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Tag: "rop" at medical news

New Drug in Diabetic Neuropathy

Diabetic Neuropathy can be a painful condition which is a very agonizing nighttime pain seen in diabetics. However, new hope lies with experimental drug, memantine, which blocks NMDA receptors, which are believed to mediate pain effects in diabetic neuropathy being researched by Central Arkansas Research, Arkansas. This drug showed a definite reduction of pain compared to placebo... Wh...

Fight anemia by fortifying crops with iron!!!!!!!!

In a path breaking idea researchers at the just concluded Indian science congress in New Delhi have called for a collaborative effort with agricultural scientists to combat anemia with iron fortification of crops. Almost 50% of women and 75% children under 3 years of age are anemic in India. While iron supplementation is expensive, fortification of plants with iron and using it in turn to fight a...

Bupropion relieves nerve pain

A new survey reveals that Bupropion is an effective treatment for neuropathic pain (nerve pain)...Neuropathic pain or nerve pain is commonly treated with tricyclic antidepressants(TCAs) But these drugs have side effects and don't always relieve the burning, stabbing and shooting sensations associated with nerve pain. ....Now researchers at the University of Texas have revealed that bupropion S...

More Elderly Take Inappropriate and Harmful Medications

More than one in five elderly Americans living on their own takes a medication that could put them at risk for injuries and illness. According to the report, more than 21% of elderly Americans--representing nearly 7 million// individuals--had received at least one of these 33 potentially inappropriate medications in 1996. ....Nearly 3% used a medication that elderly people should always avoid, in...

FDA issues warning for Droperidol

A drug commonly used by anesthesiologists can cause fatal irregular heartbeats at lower doses than expected, prompting the government to urge doctors to try different medications. At issue is droperidol, a tranquilizer often used to treat the nausea many people feel after undergoing anesthesia. ....Droperidol has long carried a warning that it could cause sudden cardiac death at high doses in pa...

Appropriate treatment for breast cancer

According to researchers the appropriate treatment should be recommended for paitents with breast cancer in order to reduce the complications. Women who have// had breast cancer do well years after treatment, although those who have chemotherapy and tamoxifen may have reduced physical functioning. Researchers at the University of Cleavland report on one of the largest studies looking at quality o...

Tiotropium surpasses Ipratropium

Tiotropium significantly improves lung function, dyspnoea and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) compared to alternative therapy.// Previous studies have suggested that tiotropium may be the only treatment other than smoking cessation capable of reversing the symptoms of COPD. These latest findings are further evidence of the drug’s potential for treatme...

Eyedrops for amblyopia

Lazy eye is a condition in which the brain favors one eye over the other. It is the most common cause of visual impairment in children, with symptoms including crossed eyes, farsightedness and nearsightedness.// Lazy eye affects as many as 3% of U.S. children and usually develops in infancy or early childhood. Eye drops are just as effective as eye patches for treating "lazy eye" and are less lik...

Cholesterol lowering drugs increase neuropathy risk

According to a new study taking cholesterol-lowering drugs called 'statins' could elevate the risk of peripheral neuropathy. Previous research has shown the benefits of statins, drugs that lower cholesterol levels. However, researchers in Texas now reveal that the drugs might// increase their risk of peripheral neuropathy, a condition marked by weakness, numbness and pain in the hands and feet...

Glaucoma may be delayed by eye drops

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness. The cause of eye damage in some otherwise healthy eyes is a raised pressure within the eye, (the intraocular pressure), that can damage the nerve over a period of time and this damage results in poor blood supply or weak end eye structure.// Its caused when raised pressure inside the eyeball damages the optic nerve leading to the brain. Fluid en...

Stem Cells, Tumor Cells Share Similar Properties: Scope For Treatment and Prevention?

Stem cells are one of the fascinating areas for research in biology today. Vigorous research on stem cells is adding new information to the scientific body of knowledge everyday.// ..Researchers have now added key evidence to claims that some types of cancer originate with defects in stem cells. The study reveals that if molecules crucial to the functioning of these stem cells are not placed in t...

Europe On High Bird Flu Alert: European Commission

Health officials in Europe have expressed the ‘high alert’ situation, following confirmation of three bird flu deaths in Turkey and hospital admission of several others// (26) believed to be afflicted with the disease. In addition, this situation has prompted fears of a human-human transmission. ......The health officials have undertaken strict monitoring of the bird flu spread from East Asia to...

Europe Seeks Indian Expertise

Indian expertise is sought by European nations in the field of life sciences and biotechnology. Staf Van Reet, Managing Director of the Belgian// company Viziphar Biosciences, told a seminar that the country has tremendous potential for global sourcing in life sciences. ...."We are starting with an R&D project in tuberculosis, in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Sciences in Bangalo...

President Bush proposes HSAs scheme for the benefit of both the workers and the country

President Bush in his State of the Union address encouraged Americans to open health savings accounts (HSAs). He said that it would help to fight the nation's out-of-control medical costs. It was // well received by many lawmakers. But the local employers say that HSAs are the means by which the doctors cure the country's health finance ills. ..Gary Laugharn, regional client leader in Houston...

Gene variant foretells diabetic neuropathy

A gene variant that is linked to an increase in the risk of Alzheimer's disease also predicts which people with diabetes are most likely to suffer neuropathy. In diabetes, impaired circulation may cause neuropathy in the lower limbs - that is, //peripheral nerve damage leading to pain and numbness. In severe cases, amputation may even be necessary. Researchers at Duke University in the US have no...

Novel Anti-Neutrophilic Effect produced by Salmeterol in mild asthma patients

A recent three-way crossover study over six weeks by clinicians at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Royal Brompton Hospital, London has shown that Salmeterol produced a novel anti-neutrophilic effect among patients with mild asthma. The study was prompted by the long standing argument about the effects of long-acting beta2-adrenergic receptor agonists, such as salmeterol, on inflammation. T...

Protein in diabetic neuropathy treatment

Diabetes has reached epidemic proportions the world over, with India being touted as the "Diabetes Capital of the World". Amongst the many serious diseases that diabetics can be affected with, diabetic neuropathy is also one. Neuropathy is the deterioration of nerves in the body. A diabetic patient with neuropathy has a 15 percent chance of undergoing one or more amputations. It has been found th...

Drop in global deaths from measles

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported a global fall in the worldwide death toll from measles. Measeles is a contagious disease and is the fifth leading cause of death for children under the age of five.This has largely been possible due to improved vaccination programs in Latin America and southern Africa. Measles has been virtually wiped out in the industrialized count...

Stem cells offer hope for muscular dystrophy

Italian researchers said on Thursday they were combining two new and experimental therapies -- using stem cells and gene therapy -- to try to treat muscular dystrophy. Their early work has shown some success in mice but they warned any real progress is years away. ....Writing in the journal Science, the team lead by Dr. Giulio Cossu of the Stem Cell Research Institute in Milan and the University...

Testosterone Replacement Therapy Safe If Monitored Appropriately

About 2 million to 4 million men in the United States have low levels of testosterone. Symptoms of the condition // may include erectile dysfunction, reduced muscle mass, reduced bone density, depression, and anemia. ..Testosterone replacement therapy is designed to increase testosterone levels for men with the condition. The therapy may be offered as an injection, patch, gel, or tablet. New rese...

Hope for Babies Born With Spinal Muscular Atrophy

One in 5,000 babies is born with SMA ( a terminal condition called spinal muscular atrophy ).// Eighty percent of those babies have a severe form of the disease. No treatment has shown effect against this disorder and these babies rarely live until their second birthday . Although children with SMA have many physical disabilities, they do score well on IQ tests. ..The pathology of SMA is similar...

Does Your Prescription Have An Inappropriate Medicine?

New research shows doctors are prescribing too many inappropriate medications for older people. Using data from national health // care surveys, researchers, looked at prescribing patterns in physicians’ offices and outpatient clinics in 1995 and 2000. The results showed nearly 8 percent of all the visits involved prescribing at least one drug on the “inappropriate” list. Nearly 4 percent of the...

Gene Therapy Gives Hope For Patients With Muscular Dystrophy

Researchers say their recent discovery could be the first step in the path for a treatment for humans with muscular dystrophy. They say for the first time they have found a successful way to deliver gene therapy // to all of the muscles in a mouse. ..Gene therapy for muscular dystrophy has been a hopeful treatment idea. However, finding a delivery method for the whole body has been a major obsta...

The Use Of Oral Steroids For Muscular Dystrophy Questioned

Treating children who have Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) with the oral steroid prednisone is probably a good idea say researchers // despite the side effects of the drug . Most patients with this form of muscular dystrophy die in their late teens or early 20s from respiratory failure or heart problems. Despite the beneficial effects of the drug, however, many have questioned whether its side...

Analyzing The Risk Factors For Diabetic Neuropathy

Controlling blood sugar may not be the only thing diabetics need to do to avoid the painful condition known as diabetic neuropathy // say researchers based on findings of a recent study. High triglyceride levels, being overweight, smoking, and high blood pressure, is found to exacerbate the condition. ..According to researchers proper blood sugar control can markedly decrease the risk of neuropa...

Drop in Worldwide Measles deaths by 40%

There is some good news this week from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).// They announced that there is almost a 50% drop of measles death in the last five years worldwide. This is attributed to the successful vaccination programme being undertaken in developing countries. Measles is a vaccine-preventable condition. Global measles deaths have...

Different Drug May Help Children With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

According to a new study, the drug perindopril used in early treatment of children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) may// delay the onset and progress of left ventricle dysfunction. ..DMD is one of the more common forms of muscular dystrophies that are characterized by muscle enlargement and rapid degeneration of muscles in early life. This disease is linked with the X-chromosomes and thus...

Tetanus causing toxin has therapeutic properties

Tetanus toxin, that causes the disease tetanus, have therapeutic properties that can be effective// against mental disorders like anxiety disorder, depression and anorexia. ....Researchers of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain have discovered the beneficial effects of the tetanus toxin by isolating a harmless part of the toxin called the carboxy-terminal domain. This part of the toxin...

Antibiotics help combat dangerous tropical disease

More than 120 million people worldwide suffer from Filarial infection and some// get grotesque condition called elephantiasis, where their legs resemble that of an Elephant. The condition is caused by a pathogen called wuchereria bancrofti, this is a threadlike worm They go and house themselves in the body’s lymph nodes where they cause the blockage of the flow of lymphatic fluids and cause swell...

Producing Vaccines from genetically modified crops

The consortium, called Pharma-Planta, wants to produce vaccines and other treatments for major //diseases, such as HIV/Aids, rabies and TB and they hope to start clinical trials by the year 2009. The project's aim is to focus on areas that will be of greatest benefit to developing nations where they feel that access to most vaccines is very poor at the same time keeping in mind that human health...

15 Anti-SARS Drugs Identified By China-Europe Team of Researchers

SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) has been a major killer in the last two years in July 2003; SARS had killed // 774 people worldwide and infected a further 8,000. A collaborative group of researchers from China, Germany, Denmark and Poland have spent the past year screening more than 8,000 existing drugs to find those that could combat SARS and now have identified 15 existing drugs that...

Three Tropical Parasites Genetic Code Unravelled

Scientists have now cracked the genetic makeup three fatal diseases –sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis //and Chagas disease that are caused by Trypanosoma brucei, Leishmania major and Trypanosoma cruzi. The three diseases have mostly been to affect people in tropical countries. It is estimated that they affect about half a billion people worldwide and claim more than 150,000 lives annually. ....A...

Treatment for heart damage in muscular dystrophy may be possible

Common chemical used in manufacturing industries may be able to repair heart damages// and prevent heart failures of people suffering from muscular dystrophy. ....Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is one of the more common forms of muscular dystrophies that are characterized by muscle enlargement and rapid degeneration of muscles in early life. This disease is linked with the X-chromosomes and th...

Lung Cancer Deaths Declining In Men But Not Women In European Countries

Researchers have found that death among men from lung cancer is now falling// in most EU countries, however they are still rising among women. ....Lung cancer continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the world. Researchers this week have reported that lung cancer deaths among men are now falling in most EU countries, including all new member states from central and eastern Euro...

Compounds Found In The Vegetable Broccoli Could Have Anti-Cancer Properties

Studies in the past have shown that certain compounds in the vegetable broccoli, are known to halt the growth of breast, prostate, colon and stomach cancer cells and also appear to slow the progress of bladder cancer. In a more recent study researchers //say they have identified that isothiocyanates hindered the growth of bladder cancer cells in the lab, with the most profound effect on the most...

Government Organisation Proposes Strict Guidelines For SubStandard Medical Devices

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) in India has decided to prepare a set of guidelines for uniform action against the manufacture// of not of standard quality (NSQ) medical devices, diagnostic reagents, diagnostic kits etc. The guidelines drawn out would prescribe the exact procedures to be followed and action to be taken against the manufacturers by every state drug controll...

Geriatric Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease May Not Be Treated Properly

Research points out that elderly population may not be checked regularly for chronic kidney disease// (CKD) that can be a common condition in them. ....Researchers from Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston had reported in the recent issue of Journal of the American Society of Nephrology that there remained a lack of preventive routines and screening test recommendations for the geriatric pati...

Bird flu infection spreads from Asia to Europe

Recent reports of Bird flu outbreak in Russia was spread by infected migratory birds. ....H5N1 avian influenza virus attack in the Chinese province for the past three months, and earlier outbreaks, which occurred in Southeast Asia, is moving towards European countries. Earlier reports of the virus// attacking Poultry in Russia and in Kazakhstan killing more than 6,000 birds and caused a suspected...

A Drop a day Can Keep Glaucoma At Bay

Glaucoma occurs when the fluid that flows in and out of the eye drains too slowly, gradually increasing pressure inside the eye. A new study shows pressure-lowering eye drops may delay or possibly prevent // the onset of glaucoma in nearly 50 percent of blacks, who are at higher risk for developing the disease. According to the article, glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness in the black co...

Hope For Patients With Muscular Dystrophy

Researchers are now saying that the gene known as “mighty mouse” might be beneficial in human cells as well. Studies on this gene arose when a German neurologist , stumbled // on a newborn who appeared to have especially well-developed muscles. Further tests revealed the child had a mutation in his myostatin gene that effectively kept his body from producing the myostatin protein, which is known...