The available evidence is insufficient to draw firm conclusions about the association of modifiable factors and risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a report posted online today that will appear in the September issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Estimates suggest that up to 5.3 million people in this country may have AD, and this number will likely increase as baby boomers grow older. In fact, "age is currently the strongest known risk factor for AD," write the authors. Variation in the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene is also associated ...

Elevated pressure inside the eye, cornea thinning, and visual field loss are all markers that glaucoma may progress, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Glaucoma is one of the world's leading causes of permanent vision loss. It is a group of diseases that can lead to damage of the optic nerve and can result in vision loss and blindness. Previous studies of glaucoma risk factors do not always represent the majority of patients or real-world practices in treating them. "The purpose of our study is to verify ...

When infants' tear ducts are blocked, the decision about when to intervene and the cost-effectiveness of doing so depend on how likely it is the problem will self-resolve, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. It is not uncommon for babies to be born with blockage of the tear ducts, a condition known as congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO). In many cases, the condition will resolve spontaneously by the time a child is one year old. For affected infants at least six months old, physicians can ...

Among Medicare beneficiaries, a large portion of colonoscopies for screening purposes are performed more frequently than recommended intervals. But among older patients treated at Veterans Affairs facilities, warranted follow-up colonoscopies for patients with positive fecal blood tests often do not occur, or cause burden when they do. These findings are from two reports posted online today that will appear in the August 8 print issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Colonoscopy, a screening test used for the detection of colorectal ...

ASG Bowl, the Official Insurance Partner of Strike Ten Entertainment and the leading distributor of strategic insurance solutions for bowling proprietors nationwide, has announced an exclusive partnership with Walmart to offer discounted prescription pharmaceuticals to bowling proprietors. The program provides bowling center employees with access to more than 300 different prescription pharmaceuticals for just $4/prescription with a 30-day supply, and only $10/prescription with a 90-day supply. Prescription drugs that are currently not included in the program will still ...

The introduction of multidetector row computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) was associated with an apparent increase in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE), but with only minimal changes in mortality (death), suggesting the possibility of overdiagnosis, according to a report in the May 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. This article is part of the Less Is More series in the journal. Pulmonary embolism usually occurs when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in the lungs. If not treated, PE can be fatal. Therefore, ...

Commercial funding of continuing medical education (CME) and the potential for bias appear to concern many health care practitioners and researchers, but many reported being unwilling to pay higher fees to eliminate or offset commercial funding sources, according to a report in the May 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Although over the past several years, the role of pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers in directing CME has been reduced, these entities still fund a substantial proportion of costs. Organizations such ...

Lotus Spas are proud to announce a new range of hot tubs to Europe. Our new range of spas is split into two collections both offering the highest build quality and standards of craftsmanship to bring a total of 8 different spas to the market. Engineered in Canada, the spas are built to withstand even the harshest of Canadian winters and they have been credited as being an "Energy Efficient Appliance" by the California Energy Commission (CEC), which is amongst the most stringent in the world, as well as complying with all European industry standards. All ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. - A colonoscopy is an invaluable procedure for detecting problems in the colon and rectum. Doctors can often diagnose gastrointestinal issues and even catch the warning signs of colorectal cancer. Perfecting the skills required for this delicate procedure takes practice. But just how much practice makes perfect? That was the question Robert E. Sedlack, M.D., and his Mayo Clinic research team set out to answer in their recently completed study of colorectal procedures. Their findings suggest much more practice is needed than gastroenterological professional ...

Sleeve gastrectomy, in which part of the stomach is removed, can be safe and effective when performed either transorally or transvaginally, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) who are pioneering the surgery in the U.S. Natural orifice translumenal surgery® (NOTES) eliminates the need for a large incision for organ removal, which could increase risks for infection, incisional hernia and other problems. In their review of 14 morbidly obese patients who had undergone NOTES as part of a gastrectomy, the researchers found no complications. ...

Spencer Ivy launched their electric bikes in October 2010, with the aim to make cycling more accessible to people who are usually deterred due to the terrain or distance they need to cycle - whether it be for work or leisure. Expanding into the tourism industry was therefore a natural progression. Now, in addition to offering high quality and efficient electric bikes through its network of dealers in the UK and Spain, Spencer Ivy will also provide tourists with premier electric bike holidays through its partners in Wales and across the South of England. Drover Holidays ...

Oncolytic viruses quickly infect and kill cancer stem cells, which may provide a treatment for tumors that are resistant to conventional chemotherapy and radiation, particularly pancreatic cancer, according to new research from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The findings are especially important since pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis and is difficult to detect and treat at early stages. Investigators led by Joyce Wong, MD, surgical researcher with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, investigated whether they could use oncolytic viruses, ...

DALLAS – May 9, 2011 – Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered new clues about how the intestine maintains friendly relations with the 100 trillion symbiotic bacteria that normally live in the digestive tract. Their latest findings, available online today and in a future edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that a once enigmatic cell population which lurks in the intestinal lining is essential for preventing friendly bacteria from invading into deeper tissue where they can cause debilitating conditions like inflammatory ...

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When doctors give heart drugs to patients, the time of day can make a big difference, according to new research by University of Guelph scientists. Many doctors prefer to give heart drugs to patients in the morning. But the study revealed that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors – commonly given to patients with high blood pressure or after a heart attack or during heart failure – improve heart structure and function when given at sleep time. In fact, when administered during wake time, ACE inhibitors are no more effective than a placebo, the study found. The ...

New York, N.Y. (May 9, 2011) – In the first comprehensive study of autism prevalence using a total population sample, an international team of investigators from the U.S., South Korea, and Canada estimated the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in South Korea to be 2.64%, or approximately 1 in 38 children, and concluded that autism prevalence estimates worldwide may increase when this approach is used to identify children with ASD. "Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder in a Total Population Sample," published today online in the American Journal of Psychiatry ...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Imagine an insect repellant that not only is thousands of times more effective than DEET – the active ingredient in most commercial mosquito repellants – but also works against all types of insects, including flies, moths and ants. That possibility has been created by the discovery of a new class of insect repellant made in the laboratory of Vanderbilt Professor of Biological Sciences and Pharmacology Laurence Zwiebel and reported this week in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "It wasn't something we ...

New research has revealed how infection by a parasitic fungus dramatically changes the behavior of tropical of carpenter ants (species Camponotus leonardi), causing them to become zombie-like and to die at a spot that has optimal reproduction conditions for the fungus. The multinational research team studied ants living high up in the rainforest canopy in Thailand. A paper describing the research will be published in the BioMed Central open-access journal BMC Ecology on 9 May 2011. "The behavior of these infected zombie ants essentially causes their bodies to become an ...

The affordable, internet-based TV advertising agency Cheap TV Spots is proud to announce it has won the prestigious Gold Award at the 2011 Worldfest International Film Festival. The advertising agency's amazing award count now stands at over 190 international awards. Worldfest is the one of the longest running international film and TV festivals in North America, and Cheap-TV-Spots.com is the longest-operating producer of original, discount-priced TV commercials for the international market. What do all of these awards mean to you, the business owner? Your high quality ...

Researchers from the Basque nanoscience research center CIC nanoGUNE and Neaspec GmbH (Germany) have developed an instrument that allows for recording infrared spectra with a thermal source at a resolution that is 100 times better than in conventional infrared spectroscopy. In future, the technique could be applied for analyzing the local chemical composition and structure of nanoscale materials in polymer composites, semiconductor devices, minerals or biological tissue. The work is published in Nature Materials. The absorption of infrared radiation is characteristic ...

Online social networking sites, such as Facebook, can help students become academically and socially integrated as well as improving learning outcomes, according to a study by researchers in China and Hong Kong. Writing in the International Journal of Networking and Virtual Organisations, explain that Facebook usage is around 90% across campuses and many educational institutions offer new students orientation on how to capitalize on social networking to improve their experience of their course and their final results. Many previous studies of social networking have focused ...

OzeVision Web Hosting has been presented with 14th position amongst the "Top 25 Most Poplar" web hosting companies in the category "Australian Web Hosting Directory" by WebHostDir.com and 5th position in the category "Australian Dedicated Servers Directory" by DedicatedServerDir.com for the month of April 2011. The awards pages can be viewed at: http://ozevision.com/web_hosting/top-25-most-popular-webhosting-awards.html http://ozevision.com/web_hosting/top-25-most-popular-dedicated-awards.html On monthly basis, WebHostDir.com and DedicatedServerDir.com ...

Seven out of ten hospital nurses who took part in a Canadian study used the dorsogluteal (DG) buttock site to administer intramuscular injections - despite the potential risks of sciatic nerve injury - with only 14% using the ventrogluteal (VG) hip site recommended by the nursing literature. The research, published in the May issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing, found that younger, newer nurses were significantly more likely to follow the latest VG site advice than their older, experienced colleagues. It also discovered that more than one in four nurses using ...

Major progress has been made in reducing the burden of infectious diseases in Brazil as part of a "remarkable" success story for health in the South American country, according to researchers on a series of papers published in The Lancet. After decades of marked social change, including the introduction of unified healthcare for all, Brazil can also celebrate a reduction in mortality from chronic diseases and huge inroads into improving maternal and child health. But the nation still faces problems – including some infectious diseases such as dengue and leishmaniasis, ...

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A new study of U.S. veterans ages 70 and older finds that the healthiest get the most benefit from current colon cancer screening methods. However, for many less healthy veterans the burdens of screening may outweigh the benefits. "This study shows that we really need to target screening in older adults, so that those who will benefit do get screened and followed-up while those who won't benefit aren't exposed to unnecessary burdens," said Christine E. Kistler, MD, assistant professor of Family Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel ...