Social Sciences

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The number of children with a certain blood disorder undergoing an ultrasound to help prevent stroke is up significantly in the past 10 years since the publication of a major study showing its benefits. However, limited access to labs that perform this type of screening appears to be a barrier to helping these children who are at a high risk of stroke. The research is published in the April 14, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers followed 157 children with sickle cell disease in northern California for an…

Approximately one in four practicing clinicians appear to be aware of two major federally funded clinical trials of alternative therapies, and many do not express confidence in their ability to interpret research results, according to a report in the April 13 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Complementary and alternative (CAM) therapies are widely used, but until recently few rigorous studies of their safety and effectiveness have been conducted, according to background information in the article. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has invested…

Individuals who take aspirin or other medications that prevent blood clotting by inhibiting the accumulation of platelets appear more likely to have tiny, asymptomatic areas of bleeding in the brain, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the June print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Cerebral microbleeds—small deposits of the iron-storing protein hemosiderin in the brain—may be a sign of cerebral small-vessel disease, according to background information in the article. This condition, common among older adults, occurs when the walls…

The prevalence of the eye disease age-related macular degeneration is projected to increase substantially by 2050, but the use of new therapies is expected to help mitigate its effects on vision, according to results of simulation modeling reported in the April issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) occurs when the macula, the area of the eye's retina responsible for sharp vision, begins to deteriorate. In 2000, as many as 1.75 million Americans reached the advanced, vision-threatening stages of AMD, according to…

Two medications used to treat erectile dysfunction in men (tadalafil and sildenafil) do not appear to have visual side effects when taken daily for six months, despite concerns about eye-related complications, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The advent of the medications sildenafil citrate (sold as Viagra), tadalafil (sold as Cialis) and verdenafil hydrochloride (sold as Levitra) has profoundly changed the treatment of erectile dysfunction, according to background information in the article. These medications are known…

Ann Arbor, MI--Patients with a rare, blinding eye disease saw their vision improve after treatment with drugs to suppress their immune systems, according to researchers at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center. Because autoimmune retinopathy (AIR) is difficult to diagnose, the biggest challenge now is to find biologic markers that identify patients who can benefit from treatment. In a review of 30 patients with autoimmune retinopathy, 21 individuals showed improvement after receiving treatment with immunosuppression therapy. The study, reported in the April issue of Archives of…

The new science of epigenetics explains how genes can be modified by the environment, and a prime result of epigenetic inquiry has just been published online in The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org): You are what your mother did not eat during pregnancy. In the research report, scientists from the University of Utah show that rat fetuses receiving poor nutrition in the womb become genetically primed to be born into an environment lacking proper nutrition. As a result of this genetic adaptation, the rats were likely to grow to smaller sizes than their normal counterparts. At the same time…

RICHMOND, Va. (April 13, 2009) – While the number of Americans registered as organ and tissue donors is rising, the registry still only includes 38 percent of licensed drivers, according to a report card issued by Donate Life America this year. Yet, according to a new survey of Americans, 72 percent of people want their decision to donate honored, even if their family disagrees. "The number of people awaiting organ transplants has climbed to more than 100,000 – and an average of 18 people die each day waiting for available organs," said Donate Life America Chair Sara Pace Jones. "It is…

Kansas State University engineers think the possibilities are deep for a very thin material. Vikas Berry, assistant professor of chemical engineering, is leading research combining biological materials with graphene, a recently developed carbon material that is only a single atom thick. "The biological interfacing of graphene is taking this material to the next level," Berry said. "Discovered only four years ago, this material has already shown a large number of capabilities. K-Staters are the first to do bio-integrated research with graphene." To study graphene, researchers rely on an atomic…

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Though a high-fiber diet has long been considered good for you and beneficial in staving off colon cancer, Medical College of Georgia researchers have discovered a reason why: roughage activates a receptor with cancer-killing potential. Researchers report in the April issue of Cancer Research that the GPR109A receptor is activated by butyrate, a metabolite produced by fiber-eating bacteria in the colon. The receptor puts a double-whammy on cancer by sending signals that trigger cell death, or apoptosis, and shutting down a protein that causes inflammation, a precursor to cancer…