ROCHESTER, Minn. -- A group of Mayo Clinic (http://www.mayoclinic.org/about/) researchers conducted the first controlled trial of swallowed fluticasone nasal spray (also known as Flonase) on people with the allergic esophageal condition called eosinophilic esophagitis (http://www.mayoclinic.org/eosinophilic-esophagitis/). Research showed that the aerosolized swallowed allergy drug helped treat the cause of the throat condition, but symptoms lingered. The researchers' findings were presented today at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology ...

Breast cancers can be divided into different subtypes based on several criteria, including whether or not they express the protein to which the female hormone estrogen binds; that is, the estrogen receptor (ER). Patients with ER-negative breast tumors have a worse outlook than those with ER-positive breast tumors. However, even among ER-negative breast tumors, those characterized as basal-like are the most aggressive and difficult to treat. New therapeutic targets for this subtype of breast cancer are urgently needed. Now, a team of researchers, led by Stefan Ambs, at the ...

EDITOR'S PICK: The protein NOS2 isn't good for ER-negative breast cancer patients Breast cancers can be divided into different subtypes based on several criteria, including whether or not they express the protein to which the female hormone estrogen binds; that is, the estrogen receptor (ER). Patients with ER-negative breast tumors have a worse outlook than those with ER-positive breast tumors. However, even among ER-negative breast tumors, those characterized as basal-like are the most aggressive and difficult to treat. New therapeutic targets for this subtype of breast ...

Information available on a government Web site designed to help patients choose high-quality hospitals does not appear to help Medicare beneficiaries identify facilities with better outcomes for high-risk surgeries, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In an effort to reduce variations in surgical quality, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) now requires hospitals to report data from the national Surgical Care Improvement Project involving measures taken to prevent infection and blood clots, ...

Individuals with co-occurring psychiatric illnesses, especially anxiety and depression, appear to have an increased risk of death within 30 days of surgery, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Psychiatric illnesses occur along with physical complaints in an estimated 5 percent to 40 percent of hospitalized patients, according to background information in the article. Having a psychiatric condition is independently associated with an increased risk of illness and death. Previous studies of these conditions ...

A survey of patients undergoing skin cancer screening shows that women were more likely to seek screening because of a skin lesion, a family history of skin cancer, or concern about sun exposure, whereas men age 50 and older, a group at highest risk for melanoma, may only seek screenings after a previous skin cancer diagnosis, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In 2008, more than 62,000 Americans were diagnosed with the skin cancer melanoma and almost 8,500 died from the disease, according to background ...

Patients with basal cell nevus syndrome, which predisposes them to develop non-melanoma skin cancers, appear to be at increased risk for vitamin D deficiency if they take steps to protect themselves from sunlight, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with an increased risk of autoimmune disease, fractures, cancer, cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality," the authors write as background information in the article. "There is increasing concern that sun ...

A simple, eight-item pre-operative questionnaire could help identify patients at risk for complications following surgery, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Individuals prone to the obstructive sleep apnea syndrome as determined by the questionnaire appear to have an increased risk of heart, lung and other complications following elective surgery. Obstructive sleep apnea, a disorder in which individuals periodically stop breathing during sleep, occurs in approximately 5 percent ...

High fat diets cause a dramatic immune system overreaction to sepsis, a condition of systemic bacterial infection. An experimental study in mice, published in the open access journal BMC Physiology, has shown that a diet high in saturated fat, sugars and cholesterol greatly exaggerates the inflammatory response to sepsis. Chantal Rivera, PhD Associate Professor of Molecular and Cellular Physiology at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-Shreveport, said that "Mortality due to sepsis in morbidly obese subjects is estimated to be 7 times more prevalent compared ...

Despite widespread use of pneumococcal vaccination, some children still develop deafness following pneumococcal meningitis, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Based on a small case series, early evaluation and simultaneous cochlear implantation in both ears may be a successful treatment strategy. Since the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) became widely used in the United States in 2001, cases of meningitis and other related diseases have dramatically declined, according ...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — If women had no prolactin receptors on cells in their mammary glands, they would not produce milk when they were nursing. Prolactin receptors are also found in other organs including the lung and the colon. The only problem is that these receptors are sort of like cellular wiring, and when the wrong conditions bring them together, the resulting short circuit can produce cancer. In new research published online Oct. 18, 2010, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, a team led by researcheres at Brown University and Rhode ...

San Antonio, Texas, October 18, 2010 – A systematic review of the medical literature supports the hypothesis that statins, cholesterol‐lowering drugs used to prevent cardiac problems, are associated with reduced risk of colon and rectal cancers. A comprehensive analysis by investigators at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, included 22 scientific studies with more than 2.5 million combined participants. "Statin use was associated with a statistically significant reduction in colorectal cancer," explained Jewel Samadder, M.D., MSc. The relative risk was 0.88 ...

In five different studies presented at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio, researchers explored the impact of various factors on increasing rates of Clostridium difficile infection (C. difficile), such as the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and the substantial increase in antibiotic use due to new National Hospital Quality Measures; strategies to combat high rates of C. difficile infections; and cutting‐edge treatments for this potentially deadly—and quite common—infection. Five studies were featured ...

Watching violent films, TV programmes or video games desensitises teenagers, blunts their emotional responses to aggression and potentially promotes aggressive attitudes and behaviour, according to new research published online today in the Oxford Journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (Tuesday 19 October). Although previous research has suggested that people can become more aggressive and desensitised to real-life violence after repeatedly viewing violent media programmes, little is known about how the extent of watching such programmes and the severity ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – Fructose intolerance, or fructose malabsorption, is common in children with recurrent or functional abdominal pain, but the condition can be effectively managed with a low‐fructose diet, according to the results of a new study unveiled today at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio, Texas. The study, "Fructose Intolerance/Malabsorption and Recurrent Abdominal Pain in Children," investigated a total of 245 patients with unexplained chronic abdominal pain alone or associated ...

Research on obesity examining the role of hormones and the autonomic functions of the digestive system was presented at the 75th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American CoIlege of Gastroenterology. Gastric function, as well the activities of the autonomic nervous system that regulates digestion, are impaired in obese individuals in both fasting and fed states, according to a study from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, "Altered Postprandial Gastric and Autonomic Functions in Obese Subjects." Measures of gastric myoelectrical activity (GMA) by electrogastrography ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – Vitamin D deficiency puts patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) at greater risk of osteoporosis, osteopenia and an overall higher rate of abnormal bone density, according to the results of a new study unveiled today at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio, Texas. The study, "Vitamin D Deficiency and Abnormal DEXA Scans in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients," found that of the 161 IBD patients in the cohort, reduction in bone density with a diagnosis of osteoporosis ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – The impact of upper GI conditions, like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and functional dyspepsia, on sleep—and treatments aimed at providing relief to heartburn/acid reflux patients who suffer from disordered sleep—were explored in three new studies related to sleep dysfunction presented today at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio, Texas. Functional dyspepsia is a common, but poorly understood, upper GI condition affecting approximately 10 percent of U.S. adults. ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – The latest colorectal cancer research presented at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio this week strengthens the growing body of evidence that suggests significant disparity in colorectal cancer (CRC) demographics and outcomes between various races. In the first in a series of studies investigating colorectal cancer disparities that exist between various races, researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of colonoscopies performed in young patients from July 2003 to December ...

San Antonio, Texas, October 18, 2010 – Estimates of the prevalence of liver disease suggest that one‐third of the United States population has non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is now the most common cause for elevated liver function tests in the United States, a trend related to the obesity epidemic in this country. Non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of NAFLD, can lead to cirrhosis and all its complications. Two studies presented at the 75th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology investigated ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – The association between obesity and gastrointestinal-related cancers and coronary artery disease; the link between an overweight or obese body mass index and the severity of Crohn's disease; and whether inflammatory bowel disease is an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease, were among the highlights of new research that was presented this week at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio. Obesity Linked to Increased Liver Cancer Risk, Adenoma Recurrence Although ...

San Antonio, Texas (October 18, 2010) – Investment in screening programs that target the pre-Medicare population, individuals aged between 50 and 64, is needed to reduce the costs of colorectal cancer in the Medicare program, according to the results of a new study, "Cost-Savings to Medicare from Increased Colorectal Cancer Screening in the Pre-Medicare Population," unveiled today at the American College of Gastroenterology's (ACG) 75th Annual Scientific meeting in San Antonio, Texas. "With rising chemotherapy costs and aging of the population, the Medicare program will ...

CENTENNIAL, CO – October 18, 2010 – A survey released today by National Stroke Association shows that 53 percent of stroke survivor respondents suffer from symptoms of another neurologic condition called pseudobulbar affect (PBA), a condition thought to be caused by structural damage in the brain due to injury or disease. PBA causes involuntary and unpredictable outbursts of laughing or crying, often in socially inappropriate situations. Even though a significant proportion of stroke survivors suffer from PBA, fewer than one in five are familiar with the condition. Survey ...

San Antonio, Texas, October 18, 2010 – Research exploring the progression of colon polyps to colorectal cancer and evaluating techniques to improve polyp detection was among the clinical science presented at the 75th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in San Antonio today. The Progression to Colorectal Cancer in Flat Polyps Precancerous growths in the colon known as sessile serrated adenomas (SSA) are found in approximately 1 percent of colonoscopy exams. A sessile serrated ademona is a premalignant flat lesion in the colon thought ...

Research by University of Leeds plant scientists has uncovered a snapshot of evolution in progress, by tracing how a gene mutation over 100 million years ago led flowers to make male and female parts in different ways. The findings – published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) Online Early Edition – provide a perfect example of how diversity stems from such genetic 'mistakes'. The research also opens the door to further investigation into how plants make flowers – the origins of the seeds and fruits that we eat. In a number of plants, ...