Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Charlotte, North Carolina has announced the launch of its new website. Aptly located at www.benfranklinplumbingcharlotte.com, the new online portal remains a showcase for the company's nearly infinite number of services in the garbage disposals, sewer lines, showers, toilets, water heaters, water leaks and water lines areas. Other premium services Ben Franklin offers encompasses drain cleaning, expansion tanks, gas leak detection, maintenance, slab leak detection and repair, sump pump installation, water purification systems and water softeners. "At ...

What do the television programs 'What Not to Wear' and 'Say Yes to the Dress' have in common? Both programs feature people in need of image makeovers and a team of image professionals that can handle the task! If you have ever wondered how image professionals transform their clients from 'frumpy' to 'fabulous', then plan to attend Education Day hosted by the Washington DC Metro Area Chapter of the esteemed Association of Image Consultants International on April 26 at the Waterford at Fair Oaks in Fairfax, VA. This year, Education Day will feature Dr. Jennifer Baumgartner, ...

The Overflow Project is inviting people into a new way of living this spring with a 50-Day Challenge to simplify, give, and change lives. The nonprofit is hosting a special reception and art installation at Impact Hub Seattle from 7 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, April 12, to build awareness about this tangible way to respond to the global water crisis. "The installation part of this year's 50-Day Challenge is a piece of art designed to remind us that, at a time where nearly anything can be bought and disposed, nearly 1 billion people live without the fundamental privilege of ...

Nearly 200 construction workers had a close brush with danger last month when a parking garage they were constructing in California suddenly collapsed. Workers were pouring concrete on an upper level and noticed something was not quite right. All of them immediately vacated the construction site just before an upper floor and the scaffolding collapsed. None of the 20 firefighters who responded to the call were injured either. Some people are not so lucky as to escape harm during construction site accidents. While the construction industry is booming in areas around the ...

Many individuals across the nation already completed their tax filing obligations -- or gave themselves extra time by filing extensions -- but the tension is still hanging in the air. For many, this time of year is fraught with nervousness regarding a potential audit by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Filers in California are in the spotlight each year as they file a higher number of federal tax returns than do other states, according to the IRS Databook. An IRS audit can take months or years to complete and is often a harrowing experience. Not only is an audit a ...

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are required to pay nonexempt workers an overtime rate for hours worked in excess of 40 during a given workweek. The overtime pay rate must be at least one and one-half times the employee's normal hourly wage. There is no shortage of high profile unpaid overtime cases currently working their way through California courts. Hollywood has been no stranger to unpaid overtime cases, particularly among interns, but in a new suit filed in early 2014, a prominent video editor claimed he and other employees were denied proper overtime ...

Recently, the National Safety Council (NSC) released its much-anticipated annual "Injury Facts" report. While the report did contain some statistics that were not terribly surprising to most - such as the fact that the period around New Year's has the highest percentage of drunk driving fatalities - some of the other findings within the report were quite alarming. For instance, it discovered that an estimated 26 percent of all motor vehicle accidents involve some type of cellphone use, which includes not only texting while driving but also talking on phones while behind ...

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) has caused numerous concerns for small businesses across the nation in the past few years. Changes to guidelines and delays in implementation of various portions of the ACA have caused some confusion for those trying to make financial decisions that will help keep their companies in the black. Originally, the employer mandate provision required employers with more than 50 employees to provide health insurance to all of their employees beginning in 2014. That deadline was first bumped back to 2015 and, as of this February, ...

Flexible Lifeline Systems, a world leading provider of innovative fall protection solutions, has installed a Flow water jet cutting system at its manufacturing facility in Houston, TX. With its new waterjet system, Flexible is now capable of cutting complex finished-quality parts from virtually any material. Fall protection expert Flexible Lifeline Systems manufactures a wide variety of fall protection equipment specializing in custom projects. Fall protection systems and maintenance platforms designed and installed by Flexible are used around the world to protect workers ...

Kristina DeSenze, an associate attorney with Berman & Asbel, LLP, is expanding the firm's practice areas to include animal law, gas and oil leases, land use law and environmental law. Firmly focused on environmental and energy law, Ms. DeSenze founded the Delaware County Bar Association Environmental and Energy Law Committee and serves as its chairperson. She serves on committees related to land use and is a volunteer with the Brandywine Conservancy stewardship program, that works with landowners to create conservation programs for their properties. Ms. DeSenze ...

Recognizing the need to blend the qualities of a premium social club with the modern world of dating, image, and lifestyle consulting, JE Consulting developed the NETWORK. Offering unprecedented access to lifestyle inspired events and networking opportunities, the NETWORK is an unparralled community of quality, like-minded individuals that has been designed for both singles and couples to revitalize their social experiences. For a low annual fee, members gain access to exclusive events and valuable offers from preferred partners such as industry leading wardrobe stylists, ...

It seems like so long since we saw it showcased, but the day is finally here: the Samsung Galaxy S5 is on sale now! One of the most anticipated smartphones of the year, the S5 is set to take the tech world by storm. If the S4 was all about adding as many features as possible, the S5 is the opposite of that. Trimming back the fat and cutting out unnecessary functions, the keyword for the S5 is 'simplicity' but at the same time, everything has been improved. Samsung's stripped back all the bulk to provide a truly exciting user experience, with more streamlined power than ...

According to the Alpes Maritimes' branch, FNAIM 06, the number of French Riviera property sales fell by 10% in 2013; the figure is an improvement on 2012 when sales in the region were down nearly 15%. Drops in real estate prices have been seen across the French Riviera, the average price per square metre in Nice in the last quarter of 2013 was 4,134 euros compared to 4,293 euros in 2012. Cannes and Antibes saw similar reductions with the average price in 2013 at 4,634 euros and 4,460 euros respectively per square metre. Of course in the fashionable French Riviera ...

How well do dry skin care lotions fare against each other when tested for the ability to keep one's skin moisturized, especially during our constantly changing weather conditions? A new study, which included the shielding lotion Skin MD Natural had surprising results according to Germaine Muniz at Cantor Research Laboratories. Cantor Research Laboratories discovered that when Skin MD Natural skin lotion treatment was applied to dry skin, it actually increased the skin's ability over time to retain moisture. All other products tested, including Vaseline Petroleum Jelly ...

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (April 12, 2014) — Twelve weeks of an investigational oral therapy cured hepatitis C infection in more than 90 percent of patients with liver cirrhosis and was well tolerated by these patients, according to an international study that included researchers from UT Medicine San Antonio and the Texas Liver Institute. Historically, hepatitis C cure rates in patients with cirrhosis (liver scarring) have been lower than 50 percent and the treatment was not safe for many of these patients. Hepatitis C virus is the No. 1 driver of cirrhosis, liver transplants ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Results from an international Phase III study presented today at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 have shown obeticholic acid (OCA) given to patients suffering from Primary Biliary Cirrhosis (PBC) who previously had an inadequate response to, or have been unable to tolerate ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), produced meaningful biochemical and clinical improvements. UDCA is the only therapy currently approved to treat PBC. Obeticholic acid at both a 10 mg dose and a 5 mg dose titrated to 10 mg, met the trial's primary composite endpoint ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Three new studies presented today at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 have helped clarify the optimal use of combination therapy with peginterferon and nucleoside analogues (NUCs) to achieve the best treatment outcomes in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). "Together these ground-breaking data will go a long way to influencing future CHB treatment guidelines," said EASL's Educational Councillor Professor Cihan Yurdaydin from the Department of Gastroenterology, University of Ankara, Turkey. In the first study , CHB patients ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Data from a late-breaking abstract presented at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 identifies a new compound, SBEL1, that has the ability to inhibit hepatitis C virus (HCV) activity in cells at several points in the virus' lifecycle.[i] SBEL1 is a compound isolated from Chinese herbal medicines that was found to inhibit HCV activity by approximately 90%. SBEL1 is extracted from a herb found in certain regions of Taiwan and Southern China. In Chinese medicine, it is used to treat sore throats and inflammations. The function of SBEL1 ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Results from three Phase III clinical trials (ION-1, ION-2 and ION-3) evaluating the investigational once-daily fixed-dose combination of the nucleotide analogue polymerase inhibitor sofosbuvir (SOF) 400mg and the NS5A inhibitor ledipasvir (LDV) 90mg, with and without ribavirin (RBV), for the treatment of genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have been presented at the International Liver CongressTM 2014. "With cure rates well in excess of 90% with as little as eight weeks of treatment for some patients, these data represent ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Exciting new data presented today at the International Liver Congress™ 2014 shows that the gut microbiota has a potential role in the development of alcoholic liver disease (ALD).1 Though an early stage animal model, the French study highlights the possibility of preventing ALD with faecal microbiota transplantation – the engrafting of new microbiota, usually through administering human faecal material from a healthy donor into the colon of a recipient.2 In the study, two groups of germ-free mice received gut microbiota transplants ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: A UK study[i] investigating the link between low vitamin D status and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in British children has identified a genetic variant associated with the disease's severity. The research, conducted by the King's College Hospital Paediatric Liver Centre and the University of Surrey's School of Biosciences and Medicine, and funded by the Children's Liver Disease Foundation retrospectively analysed the medical records of 120 paediatric patients with NAFLD. The findings could carry significant implications ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Epidemiological, genetic and clinical data presented today at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 are collectively focussed on different approaches designed to improve the diagnosis, staging and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). "Human hepatocellular carcinoma is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide and the second most frequent cause of cancer-related death," said EASL's Scientific Committee Member Dr Helen Reeves Senior Lecturer & Honorary Consultant Gastroenterologist at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: The new interferon-free, all-oral, three direct-acting-antiviral (3D) treatment regimen in development by AbbVie has achieved very high rates of virological response in patients chronically infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 (GT1); according to the results of three studies presented today at the International Liver CongressTM 2014. The 3D regimen consists of the HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitor ABT-450 dosed with ritonavir, the NS5A inhibitor ABT-267, and the NS5B RNA polymerase inhibitor ABT-333. "Using this investigational ...

London, UK, Saturday 12 April 2014: Results from RESTORE , a phase III, multicentre, single-arm, open-label study presented today at the International Liver CongressTM 2014 showed that simeprevir 150 mg once-daily for 12 weeks in combination with peginterferon and ribavirin (followed by 12 or 36 weeks of peginterferon and ribavirin) was effective and well tolerated in hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 4-infected patients, consistent with previous observations in HCV genotype 1-infected patients. Overall, 65.4% of patients achieved SVR12 (82.9% of treatment-naïve, 86.4% ...

The Lancet Oncology today [Friday 11 April] publishes a major new Commission examining the challenges to effective cancer control in China, India, and Russia – which together experience 46% of all new cancers worldwide, and account for more than half (52%) of all cancer deaths globally. The Commission was led by Professor Paul Goss, of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, USA, in collaboration with over 40 leading cancer experts from the regions studied, and across the world. At the same time, the journal also publishes a three part ...