Clinical Research

Minutes after having sexual intercourse with her boyfriend, a 35-year-old woman suddenly felt her left arm go weak. Her speech became slurred and she lost feeling on the left side of her face. She had suffered a stroke and the conclusion was that the stroke probably was due to several related factors, including birth control pills, a venous blood clot, sexual intercourse and a heart defect. Doctors at Loyola University Medical Center describe the unusual case in the Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disease. Birth control pills slightly increase the risk of blood clots. Doctors believe a…

Neanderthals had a brain at birth of a similar size to that of modern-day babies. However, after birth, their brain grew more quickly than it does for Homo sapiens and became larger too. Nevertheless, the individual lifespan ran just as slowly as it does for modern human beings. These new insights into the history of human evolution are being presented this week in PNAS by researchers from the University of Zurich. Dr. Marcia Ponce de León and Prof. Christoph Zollikofer from the Anthropological Institute of the University of Zurich examined the birth and the brain development of a newborn…

Ol' Blue Eyes was way ahead of the curve in diabetes treatment - I nominate his 1956 hit, "I've Got You Under My Skin" for the official anthem for type 1 diabetes patients. A study published online in the New England Journal of Medicine Sept. 8 details a new continuous glucose monitor device placed - you guessed it - under the skin. The Skinny on CGM The authors, from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, randomly assigned 322 adults and children with intensively treated type 1 diabetes to CGM or normal blood glucose meter. Primary outcome was change in glycated hemoglobin at 26 weeks. (…

An athlete's ability to sweat may do more than keep the body cool. It also may prevent the development of exercise-induced asthma (EIA), a common respiratory condition among trained athletes. New research appearing in the September issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), shows that athletes with EIA produce less sweat, tears, and saliva than those who do not have breathing problems. Warren Lockette, MD, lead study author and advisor to the University of Michigan's NCAA Division I women's swimming team, has worked with many Olympians and…

Basil can protect against the harmful effects of ageing, according to research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester. Holy basil, (Latin name Ocimum sanctum), is a close relative of the herb commonly used in Western cooking. Native to India, its extract has long been used in the ancient system of Ayurvedic medicine practiced in India and other parts of Asia as a rejuvenation drug, to promote a youthful state of physical and mental health. In the first formal study of the herb, pharmacy researchers found that holy basil extract was effective at actively…

If you are on vacation in the Mediterranean basin and happen upon a person gnawing on a pine tree, fear not – the person is likely treating one of a myriad of inflammatory symptoms. While Western medicine tends to eschew traditional or “natural” therapies, the alternative movement is winning more and more converts as people seek to reduce health care costs and invest in a more organic lifestyle. The latest example of non-traditional medication comes to us from the lovely western Mediterranean, home to the Pinus pinaster , more commonly known as the maritime pine. (N.B.: If at a party with…

Long procedures require long fluoroscopy times with a serious amount of radiation for physician and personnel. The idea is that both the performance of procedures can be improved by robotic navigation systems and that the amount of complications can be reduced. At present two systems are extensively tested in cardiology: a robotic system that allows manipulating conventional catheters directly in the heart (Sensei, Hansen) and the Niobe (Stereotaxis) system that allows steering special magnetic catheters with the help of two large external magnets. The experience with the robotic remote…

It has long been a dream of developmental biologists to easily reprogram one type of fully formed adult cell into another type of adult cell without using stem cells. By reprogramming cells, you might be able to treat many diseases where certain cells are lost or damaged, like diabetes or Parkinson's. Now, a truly exciting new study from the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) is making that dream become reality. In a brand new study published in the journal Nature, Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) co-director Doug Melton and post doctoral fellow Qiao "Joe" Zhou report having taken one type…

The vegetative neural system adjusts life functions of all organs. Developmentally old, has narrow relations with the mental sphere of the affective and instinctive. 1913 years LERICHE recommend a periarterial sympathectomy at peripheral disturbances of profusions. JONNESCO 1916 carried out successfully sympathectomy of the cervical truncus sympathicus at an angina pectoris. HUNTER and ROYLE 1924 years cut ramie communicants, revealing one of the most important indications of the surgery of sympathicus – removal of spasms of arteries. WHITE 1936 introduced preganglionic cutting, whose…

An international study of the effects of Hormone Replacement Therapy(HRT) use on quality of life has shown that HRT use can significantly improve wellbeing in women with menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats. This study looked at health-related quality of life in 5692 health women aged 50-69 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. The International Menopause Society notes that the study found that about 3 out of 4 women who complained of night sweats and hot flushes, found that these symptoms had vanished after a year of HRT use. Even in women who were well past menopause…