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, ...

By examining the development of bones in the vertebral column, limbs, and ribcage, scientists at the University of Cambridge have discovered how sloths evolved their unique neck skeleton. From mice to giraffes, mammals are remarkable in that all but a handful of their 5000 species have exactly seven vertebrae in the neck. Among the few that deviate from this number are three-toed sloths, which may have up to ten ribless vertebrae in the neck. Traditionally, vertebrae above the shoulders that lack ribs are known as cervical or neck vertebrae. Animals such as birds and ...

Removing an extra two millimetres around an area of invasive breast cancer is sufficient to minimise any residual disease in 98 per cent of patients, according to research published in the November issue of IJCP, the International Journal of Clinical Practice. Surgeons from the Department of Breast Surgery at Good Hope Hospital, Sutton Coldfield, UK, studied 303 women who had undergone breast conserving surgery at the hospital between 2002 and 2008. "Breast conserving surgery followed by radiotherapy is a well-established alternative to breast removal and studies have ...

Superficial contacts on Facebook, apparently unnecessary comments, and banal status updates may be more worthwhile than we think. This is shown in a new report from the National IT User Center. The report also predicts the new social media will ultimately lead to more individual entrepreneurs. Many people are critical of those who collect hundreds of so-called friends on Facebook. Often the majority of these "friends" are old classmates, acquaintances of acquaintances, and the like, relationships that are fundamentally weak. The comments and updates of relatively banal ...

Our genetic material is often compared to a book. However, it is not so much like a novel to be read in one piece, but rather like a cookbook. The cell reads only those recipes which are to be cooked at the moment. The recipes are the genes; 'reading' in the book of the cell means creating RNA copies of individual genes, which will then be translated into proteins. The cell uses highly complex, sophisticated regulatory mechanisms to make sure that not all genes are read at the same time. Particular gene switches need to be activated and, in addition, there are particular ...

New findings suggesting that bacteria in the mouth and/or intestine can affect the the outcome pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and lead to new treatment strategies, reveals research from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The results are to be published in the distinguished journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, PNAS. "The causes of atherosclerosis have recently become clearer, but we know less about why the plaque in the arteries ruptures and contributes to clot formation," says Fredrik Bäckhed, researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy's Department ...

A first-ever, long-term study of patients who underwent robot-assisted surgery to remove their cancerous prostates found that nearly 87 percent of them had no recurrence of the disease after five years. The findings were reported in this month's issue of the European Urology journal by a team of Henry Ford Hospital researchers led by Mani Menon, M.D., an internationally recognized pioneer in the use of high-precision surgical robots. In an editorial accompanying the article, the author wrote "it is very clear that the article by Menon et al represents a land mark contribution ...

Genetic variants associated with increased susceptibility to psoriasis are reported in five papers published online this week in Nature Genetics. Psoriasis is a chronic and recurrent skin disease, and one of the most prevalent autoimmune diseases, with a global prevalence of 2-3%. One of the studies was led by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) comprehensive Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) at Guy's and St Thomas' and King's College London and the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at Oxford University, and involved multiple UK institutions. The ...

Philadelphia, PA, 18 October 2010 - Alcohol is one of the most commonly abused substances, and men are up to twice as likely to develop alcoholism as women. Until now, the underlying biology contributing to this difference in vulnerability has remained unclear. A new study published in Biological Psychiatry reveals that dopamine may be an important factor. Researchers from Columbia and Yale studied male and female college-age social drinkers in a laboratory test of alcohol consumption. After consuming an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink, each participant underwent a ...

Engineering students with average grades from upper secondary school can manage difficult courses just as well as students with high grades. At least, if a group of them meet an older student once a week during the first semester to discuss and solve maths problems and other difficult exercises from their courses. This is shown by a new evaluation from the Faculty of Engineering at Lund University of the 'peer learning' sessions, or SI (supplemental instruction), as the method is also known. The SI method is also used at universities in the USA, Canada, Australia, ...