Medicine news

As You Age, Better Health Means Better Sex

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Better health translates into better sex lives, with healthy people more likely to engage in sex (and good sex at that) and to express an interest in sex, new research finds. This association held firm into middle-age and later...

Do Liberals, Atheists Have Higher IQs?

TUESDAY, March 9 -- People who consider themselves liberals or atheists tend to have higher IQs than those who are more religious or conservative, a new study suggests. Higher IQs also seem to make men less likely to cheat. Men with higher IQs place...

Psychotherapy Can Help People With Lupus Cope

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Psychotherapy helps cut the incidence of psychological woes in patients with lupus who have high levels of daily stress, a new study finds. The treatment also helps these patients improve and maintain their quality of life,...

Botox Approved for Spasticity in Stroke Victims

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Botox (onabotulinumtoxin A) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat spasms (spasticity) in the flexor muscles of the elbow, wrist and fingers in adults who have had a stroke, the agency said Tuesday in...

Most Drug Studies Don't Help Docs Pick Best Treatment

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Less than one-third of drug studies published in major medical journals answer the fundamental question of which of the range of available medications works best for a particular condition. So concludes the first wide-scale look...

Herpes Infects One in Six in U.S.

TUESDAY, March 9 -- As many as one in six Americans is infected with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), health officials said Tuesday. HSV-2, one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the United States, is a serious, incurable...

Kids Who Get Flu Shots Protect the Unvaccinated

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Children who get a flu shot help prevent flu from spreading in their communities, Canadian researchers say. "By immunizing children and adolescents, there is a substantial protective effect in people who themselves were not...

Kidney Donors Go On to Lead Long, Healthy Lives

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Giving a kidney carries few health risks, with donors living just as long or sometimes even longer than those who don't donate, the largest study to date of donors has found. Using data on more than 80,000 U.S. residents who...

Recession May Mean Fewer Nips & Tucks

TUESDAY, March 9 -- A sagging economy may be causing fewer Americans to visit their plastic surgeons for a lift -- or many other beautifying procedures, a new report finds. In 2009, close to 10 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures...

Obese Colon Cancer Survivors Face Poorer Prognosis

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Colon cancer survivors who are moderately or severely obese face tougher survival odds following treatment compared with their normal-weight peers, a new study reveals. The finding builds on prior research that established that...

Doctor's Specialty Often Steers Prostate Cancer Care

TUESDAY, March 9 -- The kind of treatment received by a prostate cancer patient often depends on the type of specialist providing the patient's care, new research shows. U.S. researchers analyzed data on more than 85,000 Medicare beneficiaries aged...

Genetic Variant Raises Lung Cancer Risk

TUESDAY, March 9 -- People with a particular genetic trait are at much higher risk of developing lung cancer from exposure to secondhand smoke than others, even if they rarely come into contact with it, a new study finds. Researchers also found...

Survey May Help Docs Diagnose Mood Disorders

TUESDAY, March 9 -- A single-page questionnaire can help primary-care doctors screen patients for common psychiatric illnesses, U.S. researchers report. Called My Mood Monitor (M-3), the checklist includes 27 questions designed to screen for...

Shift Work Can Put a Crimp on Sleep

TUESDAY, March 9 -- To make ends meet these days, many Americans are sacrificing sleep to work night shifts or juggle two jobs. Research suggests, though, that lack of sleep can lead to memory problems, depression, cardiovascular concerns, cancer...

Health Highlights: March 9, 2010

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay: Alzheimer's Protein May Be Infection Fighter: Study The protein that plays a major role in Alzheimer's disease may normally help protect the...

Clinical Trials Update: March 9, 2010

-- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com: Hypertension This study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of an investigational drug. You must be 18 or older and have a history of high blood pressure to...

Cost of Junk Food May Influence Consumption

TUESDAY, March 9 -- When the cost of junk food increases, people consume less of it, a new study has found. U.S. researchers monitored the dietary habits and health of 5,115 young adults, aged 18 to 30, beginning in 1985 to 1986 and continuing...

Health Tip: Don't Drive Distracted

-- Distracted driving -- including driving while talking on the phone, trying to answer the phone or texting -- is a dangerous habit. The U.S. Department of Transportation offers these suggestions to avoid distractions while driving: Never text or...

Health Tip: Are You at Greater Risk of Pneumonia?

-- Pneumonia, a respiratory infection of the lung, can be caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi. The U.S. National Library of Medicine says the following factors may increase your risk of contracting pneumonia: Smoking cigarettes. Having a...

Alzheimer's 'Epidemic' Hitting Minorities Hardest

TUESDAY, March 9 -- Over 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease, and blacks and Hispanics are at highest risk of developing the disease, a new report finds. The report, 2010 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, from the...

Bleeding Alert Sounded for Stroke Drugs

MONDAY, March 8 -- People treated with the clot-dissolving drug tPA for a stroke caused by a blocked brain artery are significantly more likely to have excess bleeding if they have been taking the anti-clotting drug Coumadin, even though a test...

Waiting Safe for Some at Risk of Glaucoma

MONDAY, March 8 -- Eye doctors can often treat glaucoma successfully if they catch it early, but a new study suggests that ophthalmologists can sometimes wait before treating those at risk of developing the disease. If their ophthalmologists choose...

Blacks, Hispanics With Heart Failure Less Likely to Use Hospice

MONDAY, March 8 -- Blacks and Hispanics with advanced heart failure are much less likely to turn to hospice care than whites, even though blacks in particular are more likely to develop the condition, a new report finds. Heart failure, in which the...

Sudden Protein Intake Harmful for Some Hospitalized Patients

MONDAY, March 8 -- Doctors report that they've discovered a syndrome that could afflict thousands of hospital patients who take high-protein dietary supplements. The syndrome -- called supplement-associated hyperammonemia after cachectic episode...

Study Looks At Cost-Effectiveness of ECG in Hyperactive Kids

MONDAY, March 8 -- Electrocardiogram screening to check for heart problems in hyperactive children before prescribing stimulant medications may help identify those at risk, but is only borderline cost-effective compared to the current practice of...

Diet, Exercise Can Improve Thinking

MONDAY, March 8 -- A good diet and regular exercise may help the mind function better, a new study suggests. "It looks like exercise and diet improve the range of cognitive function," said Patrick Smith, an intern in clinical neuropsychology and a...

Stroke Risk Runs in the Family

MONDAY, March 8 -- If your mother or father had a stroke by the time they were 65, your chances of also having a stroke by that age are increased fourfold, U.S. researchers report. There are many risk factors for stroke, such as high blood...

Supermarket Display May Make Spinach Even Healthier

MONDAY, March 8 -- Fluorescent lighting in grocery stores might increase the nutritional value of fresh spinach, a new study suggests. Many food stores display fresh spinach in clear plastic containers, kept at around 39 degrees Fahrenheit in...

Teamwork Unlikely to Improve Cholesterol Levels

MONDAY, March 8 -- For patients with high cholesterol, joint physician-pharmacist care to help them manage their lipid levels doesn't have a significant impact, a new study finds. Canadian researchers looked at partnerships where doctors were...

Proteins May Predict Spread of Colon Cancer

MONDAY, March 8 -- Two proteins that might serve as biomarkers for predicting the spread of colon cancer have been identified by Chinese scientists. They compared proteins produced by primary and metastatic colon cancer cells and found that two...

Light Drinking Might Help Keep Women Slim

MONDAY, March 8 -- Count staying slim as one of the apparent benefits of light-to-moderate alcohol consumption, at least for women. New research found that women who drank the equivalent of one to two drinks a day were least likely to gain weight...

Health Highlights: March 8, 2010

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay: New Technique Reduces Brain Damage Risk in Premies "Washing out" the brains of premature babies who suffer fluid build-up because of bleeding in...

Breast Cancer Patients Often Confused by Genomic Testing

MONDAY, March 8 -- Doctors need to do a better job of explaining genomic test results to breast cancer patients, say U.S. researchers. Genomic testing -- which analyzes 21 genes in breast tumors removed during surgery in order to predict the risk...

1 in 5 At-Risk U.S. Babies Doesn't Get Hepatitis B Vaccine

MONDAY, March 8 -- About one in five babies born to mothers with hepatitis B aren't getting treatments that have been shown to prevent the infection in newborns, a new study finds. Given within 24 hours of birth, the hepatitis B vaccine and...

Health Tip: Dress Your Salad for Success

-- A salad can be a delicious and healthy meal or side item. But even a salad can become laden with calories with just a few toppings and dressings. Make sure your salad is packed with lots of fresh vegetables, preferably darker ones, advises the...

Health Tip: Shovel Snow Safely

-- Shoveling snow may be a necessity if you live in a cold climate -- and it's good exercise. But you can also hurt yourself if you don't do it properly. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons offers these snow shoveling tips: Consult your...

Sleepless Nights Plague America

MONDAY, March 8 -- Americans of all races toss and turn in bed each night, and sleeplessness is affecting their jobs, social lives and even their sexual habits, the latest poll on U.S. sleep habits finds. "Everybody is sleeping less; we do live in...

Sunlight May Help Protect Men From Kidney Cancer

MONDAY, March 8 -- Men with jobs that expose them to high levels of sunlight are less likely to develop kidney cancer than those with little or no sunlight exposure at work, says a new study. Previous research suggests that vitamin D, which is...

HIV Hides Out in Bone Marrow Cells

SUNDAY, March 7 -- Medications can reduce the level of the AIDS virus in the blood to zero, but HIV doesn't disappear and often roars back when patients stop taking their pills. Now, research is giving scientists new insight into how the virus...

Gene Variant May Help Some Overcome Adversity

SUNDAY, March 7 -- The study of a link between misery and death has helped researchers identify a gene variant fostering resilience in the face of adversity. The U.S. research team focused on a gene called IL6, which is known to cause inflammation...