WASHINGTON, D.C., April 14, 2015 - A team of Finnish scientists has found a new way to examine the ancient art of putting ink to paper in unprecedented 3-D detail. The technique could improve scientists' understanding of how ink sticks to paper and ultimately lead to higher quality, less expensive and more environmentally-friendly printed products. Using modern X-ray and laser-based technologies, the researchers created a nano-scale map of the varying thickness of toner ink on paper. They discovered that wood fibers protruding from the paper received relatively thin coatings ...

Among a group of more than 320,000 children, intrauterine exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus diagnosed by 26 weeks' gestation was associated with risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA. Maternal pre-existing type 2 diabetes was not significantly associated with risk of ASD in offspring. Exposure of fetuses to maternal hyperglycemia may have long-lasting effects on organ development and function. Previous studies have revealed long-term risks of obesity and related metabolic disorders in offspring of women who ...

Between 2010 and 2013, data breaches of protected health information reported by HIPAA-covered entities increased and involved approximately 29 million records, with most data breaches resulting from overt criminal activity, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA. Reports of data breaches have increased during the past decade. Compared with other industries, these breaches are estimated to be the most costly in health care; however, few studies have detailed their characteristics and scope. Vincent Liu, M.D., M.S., of the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, ...

Among patients with atrial fibrillation who filled prescriptions for the anticoagulant dabigatran at Veterans Health Administration sites, there was variability in patient medication adherence across sites, with appropriate patient selection and pharmacist-led monitoring associated with greater adherence to the medication, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA. Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, affecting more than 3 million patients and necessitating treatment with oral anticoagulation in moderate- to high-risk patients to reduce ...

In a comparison of mechanical prosthetic vs bioprosthetic mitral valves among patients 50 to 69 years of age undergoing mitral valve replacement, there was no significant difference in survival at 15 years, although there were differences in risk of reoperation, bleeding and stroke, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA. In patients with severe, symptomatic mitral valve disease unsuitable for surgical repair, mitral valve replacement reduces symptoms and improves survival. Bioprosthetic valves (made primarily with tissue) are recommended in patients older ...

PASADENA, Calif., -- Children whose mothers developed gestational diabetes by the 26th week of pregnancy were at increased risk of developing autism later in life, according to a new Kaiser Permanente study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers examined the electronic health records of more than 322,000 ethnically diverse children born between 28 and 44 weeks at Kaiser Permanente Southern California medical centers between January 1995 and December 2009. They followed the children for an average of 5.5 years and found that those ...

Patients are more likely to take a new type of blood thinner correctly and without missing doses when they are managed by pharmacists, rather than only by doctors or nurses, according to a study co-authored by a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Mintu Turakhia, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Stanford, and fellow researchers studied a new treatment for atrial fibrillation, a dangerous heart disorder that increases the risk of stroke and blood clots. The treatment, a drug called dabigatran, is one of a new class of twice-daily oral medications. ...

WASHINGTON D.C., April 14, 2015 - For our modern, technologically-advanced society, in which technology has become the solution to a myriad of challenges, energy is critical not only for growth but also, more importantly, survival. The sun is an abundant and practically infinite source of energy, so researchers around the world are racing to create novel approaches to "harvest" clean energy from the sun or transfer that energy to other sources. This week in the journal Applied Physics Letters, from AIP Publishing, researchers from the University of Waterloo in Canada ...

Parents who work to instill self-control in their children will see them reap the benefits not only in the short-term but throughout their working life, according to new research in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The researchers who led the study found that children with high self-control -- who are typically better able to pay attention, persist with difficult tasks, and suppress inappropriate or impulsive behaviors -- are much more likely to find and retain employment as adults, spending 40% less time unemployed than those ...

Instead of shrinking as expected, as part of the normal aging process, the memory center in the brains of seniors maintained their size and, in men, grew modestly after two years in a program that engaged them in meaningful and social activities, new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health-led research suggests. At the same time, those with larger increases in the brain's volume over two years also saw the greatest improvements on memory tests, showing a direct correlation between brain volume and the reversal of a type of cognitive decline linked to increased ...

WASHINGTON - Gradual and variable change in mental functions that occurs naturally as people age, not as part of a neurological disease such as Alzheimer's disease, is one of the most challenging health issues encountered by older adults, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. The aging process affects the brain just like any other part of the body. Known as "cognitive aging," the type and rate of change can vary widely among individuals. Some will experience very few, if any, effects, while others may experience changes in their memory, speed of processing ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Following the 2012 shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, some in the media and the public speculated a link existed between autism spectrum disorder and violence and, in particular, that violent video games may cause gamers with autism to act violently. Now, a study from the University of Missouri has found evidence to contradict this speculation. It is the first study to test the effects of violent video games on aggression in adults with autism spectrum disorder. "If violent video games caused adults with autism spectrum disorder to behave aggressively, ...

Messages conveyed on websites may be more persuasive if theses websites are interactive, according to researchers. In a study, participants who visited an interactive antismoking website were more likely than controls to say that smoking was an unattractive behavior, and more likely to agree with the site's stance against smoking. "When interface features are perceived as natural, easy to use and intuitive, users will feel more focused and have more fun during browsing," said Jeeyun Oh, assistant professor of communications, Robert Morris University and former Penn ...

A group of plant invasion ecologists from University of Delhi, India have highlighted the need to disentangle the composition of the highly variable Lantana species complex in order to facilitate management efforts towards this highly invasive species. The study was published in the latest issue of the open access journal NeoBiota. The native range of L. camara is Central and South America; however it has become naturalized in around 60 tropical and sub-tropical countries worldwide. The plants from this species complex are highly invasive and often colonize previously ...

The efficient conversion of light into electricity plays a crucial role in many technologies, ranging from cameras to solar cells. It also forms an essential step in data communication applications, since it allows for information carried by light to be converted into electrical information that can be processed in electrical circuits. Graphene is an excellent material for ultrafast conversion of light to electrical signals, but so far it was not known how fast graphene responds to ultrashort flashes of light. ICFO researchers Klaas-Jan Tielrooij, Lukasz Piatkowski, Mathieu ...

Publicly funded labiaplasties in Australia and the United Kingdom have more than doubled over the last decade, leading experts will say tomorrow at the RCOG/RANZCOG World Congress in Brisbane, Australia. In the UK, the number of labial reduction procedures has risen five-fold in the NHS over the past 10 years, with over 2,000 operations performed in 2010. In Australia, statistics published in the Medical Journal of Australia in 2011 estimated that approximately 1,500 labiaplasty and vulvoplasty operations were performed in 2010. In a session dedicated to discussing ...

Women's human rights need to be addressed globally in order to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity, says RCOG Vice President, Professor Lesley Regan, in her lecture tomorrow at the joint RCOG/RANZCOG World Congress in Brisbane, Australia. Professor Regan's presentation 'Why mothers die: Women's human rights' focuses on the impact of human rights on women's reproductive health and the role of healthcare professionals in improving the status of women worldwide. In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights stated that all human beings are born free and equal ...

UC Davis scientists are leading three new research projects, recently funded with more than $5 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture. These grants are part of USDA's $19 million effort to ensure the availability of a safe, nutritious and economically competitive food supply. Preventing cross-contamination in produce processing: One project will focus on preventing foodborne illnesses by developing and eventually commercializing new fresh-produce processing technologies and methods. The new systems will ...

As preparations are made to observe Holocaust Remembrance Day (Thursday, April 16), a new Bar-Ilan University study reveals that the adult children of Holocaust survivors are more preoccupied with the threat of a nuclear Iran than their peers whose parents are not Holocaust survivors. The study, entitled "Transmitting the Sum of All Fears: Iranian Nuclear Threat Salience Among Offspring of Holocaust Survivors" was published in a recent issue of Psychological Trauma, an American Psychological Association journal dedicated to the study of trauma and its aftermath. Study ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Exercise researchers have developed a new treadmill that automatically changes speed to match the pace of the runner. The automated treadmill uses sonar to tell exactly where the runner is on the treadmill. If the runner picks up pace and moves toward the front of the running belt, the speed automatically increases. If the runner slows down and moves toward the back, the speed decreases. The result is a treadmill experience that is much closer to walking or running outdoors, said Steven T. Devor, associate professor of kinesiology at The Ohio State ...

Returning to everyday life and resuming work in one's regular occupation are common goals of transplant patients, yet not all who undergo lung transplantation can go back to work. In an original article in Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2015; 112: 213-9), Hendrik Suhling and coauthors report the findings of the first study ever performed in Germany on the percentage of lung-transplant patients who resume employment after transplantation and the reasons that keep the others from going back to work. In a cross-sectional study, these researchers ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- The human immune system is poised to spring into action at the first sign of a foreign invader, but it often fails to eliminate tumors that arise from the body's own cells. Cancer biologists hope to harness that untapped power using an approach known as cancer immunotherapy. Orchestrating a successful immune attack against tumors has proven difficult so far, but a new study from MIT suggests that such therapies could be improved by simultaneously activating both arms of the immune system. Until now, most researchers have focused on one of two strategies: ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 14 - A new study from the Forsyth Institute is helping to shed more light on the important connection between the mouth and heart. According to research recently published online by the American Heart Association, scientists at Forsyth and Boston University have demonstrated that using an oral topical remedy to reduce inflammation associated with periodontitis, more commonly known as gum disease, also results in the prevention of vascular inflammation and can lower the risk of heart attack. This study is the first time researchers anywhere have ...

Phoenix, AZ (April 14, 2015) - Researchers have characterized three different brain imaging changes in individuals with Down syndrome, who are at very high risk for development of Alzheimer's disease, even before the onset of progressive memory and thinking problems. Their findings could help set the stage to evaluate promising treatments to slow down or prevent the onset of Alzheimer's symptoms in these individuals, according to a study published in Alzheimer's & Dementia. The scientists at Banner Sun Health Research Institute (BSHRI) and Banner Alzheimer's Institute ...

Composite materials used in aircraft wings and fuselages are typically manufactured in large, industrial-sized ovens: Multiple polymer layers are blasted with temperatures up to 750 degrees Fahrenheit, and solidified to form a solid, resilient material. Using this approach, considerable energy is required first to heat the oven, then the gas around it, and finally the actual composite. Aerospace engineers at MIT have now developed a carbon nanotube (CNT) film that can heat and solidify a composite without the need for massive ovens. When connected to an electrical power ...