MIAMI — December 4, 2012 - The 2010 blowout of the Macondo well in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico resulted in the region's largest oil spill in U.S. history. As the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) incident unfolded, in an effort to prevent the oil from coming to the surface and reaching coastal and marsh ecosystems, chemical dispersants were injected at the wellhead. These powerful dispersants, typically used to break up oil slicks at the sea surface had never been used in such large quantities and over such a prolonged period of time in the deep ocean. A new study published ...

A new study released this week confirms that lions are rapidly and literally losing ground across Africa's once-thriving savannahs due to burgeoning human population growth and subsequent, massive land-use conversion. Representing the most comprehensive assessment of the state and vitality of African savannah habitat to date, the report maintains that the lion has lost 75% of its original natural habitat in Africa – a reduction that has devastated lion populations across the continent. Co-authored by Panthera's Lion Program Survey Coordinator, Dr. Philipp Henschel, and ...

1. American College of Physicians Says Upper Endoscopy Overused in Patients with Reflux Routine use of upper endoscopy for most patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) does not improve patient health, is associated with preventable harms, and may lead to unnecessary interventions and costs, says the American College of Physicians (ACP) Clinical Guidelines Committee in a new evidence-based clinical policy paper. Heartburn, a symptom of GERD, is a common reason for people to see a doctor. Long term complications of GERD can include scarring of the esophagus ...

PHILADELPHIA, December 4, 2012 -- Heartburn is one of the most common reasons for people to see a doctor, and some physicians often use upper endoscopy to diagnose and manage gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). But most patients do not require the procedure unless other serious symptoms are present, according to the American College of Physicians (ACP) Clinical Guidelines Committee in a new evidence-based clinical policy paper published today in Annals of Internal Medicine. "The evidence indicates that upper endoscopy is indicated in patients with heartburn only when ...

Hamilton, ON (Dec. 3, 2012) - A heart-healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables and fish significantly reduces the chance of a second heart attack and stroke in people with cardiovascular disease, McMaster University researchers have found. A five-year study of almost 32,000 patients (average age 66.5 years) in 40 countries discovered those who ate a heart-healthy diet had a: 35 per cent reduction in risk for cardiovascular death 14 per cent reduction in risk for new heart attacks 28 per cent reduction in risk for congestive heart failure 19 per cent reduction ...

If you have cardiovascular disease, a heart-healthy diet may help protect you from recurrent heart attacks and strokes, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Circulation. "At times, patients don't think they need to follow a healthy diet since their medications have already lowered their blood pressure and cholesterol — that is wrong," said Mahshid Dehghan, Ph.D., study author and a nutritionist at the Population Health Research Institute, McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. "Dietary modification has benefits in addition to those ...

Social media may be an effective tool to help children overcome obesity, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement. The statement is published online in the association's journal Circulation. "Online communication and social media are an increasing part of our lives and our overall social network of family, friends and peers," said Jennifer S. Li, M.D., M.H.S., chair of the writing group. "Healthcare providers should embrace its potential as a tool for promoting healthy behavioral change." The writing group evaluated research on Internet-based ...

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have shown that the cells that produce glucagon are stimulated by the hormone itself. A previous study by the same group demonstrated that this principle also applies to insulin. This means that a feedback system is at work in the body, whereby hormone secreting cells receive an immediate signal to produce more of the hormone. While insulin is a hormone that lowers the level of glucose in the blood, glucagon is a hormone that increases it. Associate Professors Barbara and Ingo Leibiger and Professor Per-Olof Berggren at ...

Why are older people especially vulnerable to becoming victims of fraud? A new UCLA study indicates that an important clue may lie in a particular region of the brain that influences the ability to discern who is honest and who is trying to deceive us. Older people, more than younger adults, may fail to interpret an untrustworthy face as potentially dishonest, the study shows. The reason for this, the UCLA life scientists found, seems to be that a brain region called the anterior insula, which is linked to disgust and is important for discerning untrustworthy faces, ...

CHICAGO – A study of more than 33,000 outpatient male veterans suggests that a longer duration of antimicrobial treatment of more than seven days for a urinary tract infection (UTI) appeared not to be associated with a reduced risk of early or late recurrence compared to a shorter duration (seven days or less) of treatment, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. The optimal treatment duration for UTI in ambulatory, noncatheterized women is well defined, but the optimal treatment duration in men is unknown. ...

CHICAGO – A survey finds that 14.2 percent of adolescents ages 13 to 18 years with any mental disorder reported being treated with a psychotropic medication in the last 12 months, which researchers suggest challenges concerns about widespread overmedication and misuse of psychotropic medications among young people in the U.S., according to a study published Online First by Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. Concern has been raised about inappropriate prescribing of psychotropic medications to children and adolescents, but these criticisms ...

A special collection of articles about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill provides the first comprehensive analysis and synthesis of the science used in the unprecedented response effort by the government, academia, and industry. Papers present a behind-the-scenes look at the extensive scientific and engineering effort—teams, data, information, and advice from within and outside the government—assembled to respond to the disaster. And, with the benefit of hindsight and additional analyses, these papers evaluate the accuracy of the information that was used in real-time to ...

New research helps explain why some teenagers are more prone to drinking alcohol than others. The study, led by King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) and published in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) provides the most detailed understanding yet of the brain processes involved in teenage alcohol abuse. Alcohol and other addictive drugs activate the dopamine system in the brain which is responsible for feelings of pleasure and reward. Recent studies from King's IoP found that the RASGRF2 gene is a risk gene for alcohol abuse, however, the ...

In a study in mice, scientists at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered a new potential therapy that may reduce brain damage following stroke in type 2 diabetic patients. The suggested drug is already approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. However, the scientists hope that this new results, presented in the scientific journal Diabetes, also opens up the possibility to decrease brain injury after stroke in other patient groups with a high stroke risk. Stroke is when part of the neural tissue in the brain is damaged due to lack of oxygen delivery, either ...

Federal support for health security research is heavily weighted toward preparing for bioterrorism and other biological threats, providing significantly less funding for challenges such as monster storms or attacks with conventional bombs, according to a new RAND Corporation study. The findings, published in the December issue of the journal Health Affairs, come from the first-ever inventory of national health security-related research funded by civilian agencies of the federal government. Researchers say recent events such as Superstorm Sandy, tornadoes in the Midwest ...

Immigrants who come to the United States from Mexico arrive with a significant amount of undiagnosed disease, tempering previous findings that immigrants are generally healthier than native-born residents, according to a new study. About half of recent Mexican immigrants who have diabetes are unaware they have the disease and about one-third of those with high blood pressure are unaware of the illness, according to findings published in the December edition of the journal Health Affairs. The undiagnosed disease explains about one-third of the "healthy immigrant effect" ...

AMHERST, Mass. – Inside many growing cells, an active transport system runs on nano-sized microtubule tracks that resemble a highway, complete with motors carrying cargo quickly from a central supply depot to growing tips or wherever materials are needed. In spite of the cell's busy, high-traffic environment, researchers know the system somehow works efficiently, without accidents or traffic jams. Now a team of biophysicists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, using a special technique and unique microscope, have improved upon earlier studies that used too-simple ...

Recent studies have noticed a strong positive correlation between the concentration of nitrogen in forests and infrared reflectance measured from aircraft and satellites. Some scientists have suggested this demonstrates a previously overlooked role for nitrogen in regulating the earth's climate system. However, a new paper in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that the apparent relationship between leaves' nitrogen levels and infrared reflection is spurious and it is in fact the structure of forest canopies (the spatial arrangement of the leaves) that ...

Parents whose children move far away from home are less likely to become depressed than parents with children living nearby, according to a new study of rural districts in Thailand. The study, led by scientists at King's College London, suggests that children who migrate to urban areas are more likely to financially support their parents, which may be a factor for lower levels of depression. Dr Melanie Abas, lead author from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's said: 'Parents whose children had all left the district were half as likely to be depressed as parents who ...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has just released its annual report on the top cancer advances of the year. Clinical Cancer Advances 2012: ASCO's Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer, highlights major achievements in precision medicine, cancer screening and overcoming treatment resistance. "Consistent, significant achievements are being made in oncology care with novel therapeutics, even in malignancies that have previously had few treatment options, as well as defining factors that will predict for response to treatment. ASCO's ...

Stanford, CA — Plants grow upward from a tip of undifferentiated tissue called the shoot apical meristem. As the tip extends, stem cells at the center of the meristem divide and increase in numbers. But the cells on the periphery differentiate to form plant organs, such as leaves and flowers. In between these two layers, a group of boundary cells go into a quiescent state and form a barrier that not only separates stem cells from differentiating cells, but eventually forms the borders that separate the plant's organs. Because each plant's form and shape is determined ...

For decades, a source of powerful earthquakes and volcanic activity on the Pacific Rim was shrouded in secrecy, as the Soviet government kept outsiders away from what is now referred to as the Russian Far East. But research in the last 20 years has shown that the Kamchatka Peninsula and Kuril Islands are a seismic and volcanic hotbed, with a potential to trigger tsunamis that pose a risk to the rest of the Pacific Basin. A magnitude 9 earthquake in that region in 1952 caused significant damage elsewhere on the Pacific Rim, and even less-powerful quakes have had effects ...

TORONTO, Dec. 3, 2012—Mandatory rules such as restricting body checking can limit aggression and reduce injuries in ice hockey, making the game safer for young people, a new study has found. Rule changes could be incorporated into existing programs that reward sportsmanship and combined with educational and other strategies to reduce hockey injuries, according to researchers at St. Michael's Hospital. The need to address the issue is critical, said Dr. Michael Cusimano, a neurosurgeon. Brain injuries such as concussions frequently result from legal or illegal aggressive ...

BALTIMORE, Md. (December 3, 2012) – In the first study to compare mental health-related emergency department (ED) visits between children with and without autism spectrum disorders (ASD), researchers found that ED visits are nine times more likely to be for psychiatric reasons if a child has an ASD diagnosis. Published in the journal Pediatric Emergency Care (Epub ahead of print), the study found externalizing symptoms, such as severe behaviors tied to aggression, were the leading cause of ED visits among children with ASD. Importantly, the likelihood of a psychiatric ED ...

NASA's Curiosity rover analyzed its first solid sample of Mars in Nov. with a variety of instruments, including the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. Developed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., SAM is a portable chemistry lab tucked inside the Curiosity rover. SAM examines the chemistry of samples it ingests, checking particularly for chemistry relevant to whether an environment can support or could have supported life. The sample of Martian soil came from the patch of windblown material called "Rocknest," which had provided a sample ...