Fat cells — liposuctioned from a patient's belly — can safely boost heart function after a heart attack, according to a first-of-its-kind study presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2010. "The study suggests that these cells can be safely obtained and infused inside the hearts of patients following an acute heart attack," said Eric (HJ) Duckers, M.D., Ph.D., lead author of the small study and head of Molecular Cardiology Laboratory at the Thoraxcenter, Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The treatment reduced the amount ...

Abstract 21829 – Automated remote patient monitoring fails to improve outcomes for heart failure patients A remote monitoring system didn't help heart failure patients live longer or avoid return trips to the hospital, according to a new study. The system required heart failure patients to dial into an automated, interactive voice response system daily to enter their weight and answer questions about heart failure symptoms. Clinicians managing patients' heart failure reviewed the information and called patients back to discuss worrisome reports. The remote monitoring ...

Years of research are the basis for the latest drugs and treatments for cardiovascular disease. This discussion will highlight early and pre-clinical research that may well be the foundation of treatments to come. Join us for an informal Q&A with researchers who are passionate about the details of battling cardiovascular disease. We'll discuss a range of topics, from a possible drug target to regulate HDL cholesterol, to injectable goo that boosts heart function, and heart cell "balls" that take cellular therapy to another dimension. Abstract 21739 —Researchers discover ...

9 a.m. Abstract 18350 – Explanted re-sterilized ICDs are safe, practical for patient use. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) removed for upgrades or infection may be reused safely in other patients. Researchers sent explanted ICDs with 70 percent or more battery life to India, where the devices were carefully cleaned and re-sterilized. They were re-implanted in indigent patients who were at risk of life-threatening arrhythmias but couldn't afford the devices. Thirty-one patients received explanted, re-sterilized ICDs for standard ICD indications. During ...

Systematic education in rural and suburban communities can significantly shorten onset to hospital arrival times for patients with chest pain, according to study findings to be presented Nov. 16 at the 2010 annual American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions in Chicago. Time to treatment is the key determinant of outcome in patients with acute heart attacks, or ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Although the total time to reperfusion (chest pain onset to balloon) is critical, the major focus has been on decreasing door-to-balloon (D2B) times since the ...

Contact: Helene R. White, Ph.D. hewhite@rci.rutgers.edu 732-445-3579 Rutgers University Andrew Littlefield, Ph.D. Candidate akl9af@mail.mizzou.edu 573-884-1485 University of Missouri Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research Impulsive behavior in males increases after periods of heavy drinking New findings indicate that adoelscent males that engage in heavy drinking behavior are more likely to engage in risk-taking behavior Impulsive behavior is well known to be caused by acute ingestion of alcohol New findings show that periods of heavy drinking by ...

Energy drinks are commonly consumed by teens and college students A new study shows that energy drink consumption is strongly associated with increased risks for heavy drinking and alcohol dependence These results call for more scrutiny regarding the possible negative health effects of energy drinks and public education about the risks of consuming energy drinks with alcohol A hallmark of college life is staying up late to study for an exam the following morning, and many students stay awake by consuming an energy drink. Also increasing in popularity is the practice ...

Cognitive and behavioral deficits have been found in children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), which is extremely difficult to diagnose New findings indicate that those children, when trained using classical eyeblink conditioning, suffer from deficits in both learning and memory Using eyeblink conditioning could provide a good model for assessing and diagnosing FAS in children Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is an irreversible disorder in children that affects the learning centers of the brain and results in cognitive and behavioral impairment in the child ...

Adolescence is a time of significant maturation, physically and emotionally New findings indicate that adolescents who have a family history of alcohol abuse demonstrated significantly decreased neural activity in the frontal lobe This could present a unique neurobiological vulnerability for adolescents at risk of developing alcohol abuse The period known as adolescence is a significant time of change for the individual experiencing it. Some of the most significant changes that occur are located within the prefrontal cortex in the brain, which is involved in decision ...

Using antibiotics to treat newly diagnosed acute ear infections among children is modestly more effective than no treatment, but comes with a risk of side effects, according to a new study designed to help advise efforts to rewrite treatment guidelines for the common illness. Researchers found no evidence that name-brand antibiotics work any better in general than generic antibiotics and that careful examination of the eardrum by a clinician for signs of infection is critical for accurate diagnosis of acute ear infections. The study is published in the Nov. 17 edition ...

Among the findings of an analysis of previous studies regarding ear infections in children are that results from otoscopic exams (an instrument for examining the interior of the ear) are critical to accurate diagnosis and antibiotics are modestly more effective than no treatment, with most antibiotics demonstrating similar rates of clinical success among children at normal risk, according to an article in the November 17 issue of JAMA. Acute otitis media (AOM; middle ear infection) is the most common childhood infection for which antibiotics are prescribed in the United ...

A common transmissible strain of the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been identified among cystic fibrosis (CF) patients in Canada, suggesting that cross-infection has occurred widely between CF centers in the United Kingdom and Canada, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA. Infection with this strain among Canadian CF patients has been associated with an increased risk of death or lung transplantation. There is variability in the type and timing of outcome among CF patients who are infected with P aeruginosa; some patients experience a rapid decline ...

Treatment of inoperable advanced liver cancer with the agent doxorubicin (routinely used to treat this condition) in addition to the agent sorafenib resulted in greater overall survival and progression-free survival, compared to patients who received treatment with doxorubicin alone, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA. "Hepatocellular [liver] carcinoma (HCC) is the sixth most common malignancy worldwide, with approximately 600,000 new cases per year. Patients with inoperable or metastatic disease have a median [midpoint] survival of only a few months. ...

Research from a six year study on migrating geese has discovered an interesting outcome – they return to the same spots they were taken to as youngsters. The findings of the study, published online today [November 17] in the journal Molecular Ecology, suggest young light-bellied Brent geese learn their migratory destinations from parents. This means their routes are learned through culture rather than inherited genetically, raising some interesting questions about why this species of goose demonstrates this behaviour. Xavier Harrison, from the Centre for Ecology & ...

Heart imaging specialists at Johns Hopkins have shown that a combination of CT scans that measure how much blood is flowing through the heart and the amount of plaque in surrounding arteries are just as good as tests that are less safe, more complex and more time-consuming to detect coronary artery disease and its severity. "Our findings should reassure cardiologists and patients that the newer, state-of-the-art CT scans are just as good as established older technologies in diagnosing the presence and severity of coronary artery disease," says cardiologist and lead study ...

Rolling back suggestions from previous studies, a Johns Hopkins study of 950 healthy men and women has shown that taking daily doses of a cholesterol-lowering statin medication to protect coronary arteries and ward off heart attack or stroke may not be needed for everyone. In a study to be presented Nov. 16 at the American Heart Association's (AHA) annual Scientific Sessions in Chicago, the Johns Hopkins team found that nearly 95 percent of all heart attacks, strokes or heart-related deaths occurred in the half of study participants with some measureable buildup of artery-hardening ...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. policymakers must focus more closely on developing new energy storage technologies as they consider a national renewable electricity standard, according to one of the principal recommendations in a newly released report, Integrating Renewable Electricity on the Grid, by the American Physical Society's Panel on Public Affairs (POPA). Establishing a national renewable electricity standard will help to unify the fragmented U.S. grid system—an important step in the wider adoption of using more wind and solar for energy generation. But, without the focus ...

The types of gut bacteria that populate the guts of primates depend on the species of the host as well as where the host lives and what they eat. A study led by Howard Ochman at Yale University examines the gut microbial communities in great apes, showing that a host's species, rather than their diet, has the greatest effect on gut bacteria diversity. These findings will publish next week in the online, open access journal PLoS Biology. "Bacteria are crucial to human health. They enhance the immune system, protect against toxins, and assist in the maturation and renewal ...

Keeping in close contact with heart failure patients once they leave the hospital has been an ongoing challenge for physicians. A patient's condition can worsen with no notice and early intervention could potentially make a big difference. Researchers at Yale School of Medicine thought they found the solution with a telephone call-in program designed to improve doctor-patient communication. But results from their study published in the November 16 New England Journal of Medicine shows that this program failed to improve patient outcomes. The paper will be presented simultaneously ...

The nine-month pregnancy in humans is influenced by the structure of the placenta, according to new research into the evolution of reproduction in mammals which ends a 100-year mystery. The study, by Durham and Reading universities, shows that babies grow twice as fast in the wombs of some mammals compared to others. The difference in growth rates appears to be due to the structure of the placenta and the way it connects mother and baby. The research has found that the more intimate the connection is between the tissues of the mother and the foetus, the faster the ...

A key enzyme in Mycobacterium tuberculosis that enables the microbe to reproduce rapidly could be a golden target for new drugs against tuberculosis (TB), according to a study published in Microbiology on 17 November. The human equivalent of this enzyme has been targeted in some cancer treatments as well as in immunosuppressive chemotherapies. Scientists at the University of Birmingham have now shown that inhibiting the same enzyme in M. tuberculosis effectively kills the bacterial cells. The enzyme called IMPDH is crucial for the survival of both human and bacterial ...

Targeted cancer therapies such as trastuzumab (Herceptin), gefitinib (Iressa) and erlotinib (Tarceva) could be used to treat a wider range of cancers than previously thought, according to new research presented today (Wednesday) at the 22nd EORTC-NCI-AACR [1] Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Berlin. Scientists in the USA have studied 20 genes that are targeted by existing therapies and found that there are significant changes to these genes in a broad range of patients' tumours, including many for which these drugs are not being used at present. ...

Researchers have shown that point mutations – mis-spellings in a single letter of genetic code – that drive the onset and growth of cancer cells can be detected successfully in advanced ovarian cancer using a technique called OncoMap. The finding opens the way for personalised medicine in which every patient could have their tumour screened, specific mutations identified, and the appropriate drug chosen to target the mutation and halt the growth of their cancer. Using mass spectrometry for identifying the genetic make-up of cancer cells, OncoMap can determine the point ...

Scientists believe they may have found a new target for treating triple negative breast cancer – one of the more difficult breast cancers to treat successfully and for which there is no targeted therapy at present. Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a cancer that does not express receptors for oestrogen (ER), progesterone (PR) or the human epidermal growth factor (HER2). It tends to be more aggressive, occurs more often in younger women, and is difficult to treat successfully as it lacks the receptors that currently available targeted therapies such as tamoxifen ...

Washington, D.C. (November 16, 2010) -- For more than 250 years, researchers have known that under certain conditions vapor bubbles can form in fluids moving swiftly over a surface. These bubbles soon collapse with such great force that they can poke holes in steel and damage objects such as ship propellers, turbine blades, nozzles and pump impellers. Scientists have conducted extensive research for decades to try to understand this phenomenon -- called cavitation. But most experiments to date have been related to open-water objects like ship propellers. Now a group ...