Alexandria, VA – Despite their widespread use by parents and caregivers, over-the-counter (OTC) cold and cough medicines have carried a warning by the FDA since 2008, and still have the potential to cause serious adverse events in infants and children. Conservative therapies, including nasal suctioning, humidification, and nasal saline, should be recommended over routine use of OTC cough/cold products in infants and children, according to a new commentary published in the May 2010 issue of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.
Culture
WESTCHESTER, Ill. – A study in the May 1 issue of the journal SLEEP is the first to examine sleep issues in a large sample of exceptionally old adults, including nearly 2,800 people who were 100 years of age and older.
A bacterial pathogen can communicate with yeast to block the development of drug-resistant yeast infections, say Irish scientists writing in the May issue of Microbiology. The research could be a step towards new strategies to prevent hospital-acquired infections associated with medical implants.
Plants remain an effective way of tackling global warming despite emitting small amounts of an important greenhouse gas, a study has shown.
Research led by the University of Edinburgh suggests that plant leaves account for less than one per cent of the Earth's emissions of methane –which is considered to be about 25 times more effective than carbon dioxide at global warming.
The results contrast with a previous scientific study which had suggested that plants were responsible for producing large amounts of the greenhouse gas.
LAS VEGAS – The sharp turns, ups and downs, and high speeds of today's roller coasters bring a lot of thrills, but if you're not careful, the ride could also cause damage to your ears, say physicians at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
A genetic study of island lizards shows that even those that have been geographically isolated for many millions of years have not evolved into separate species as predicted by conventional evolutionary theory. Professor Roger Thorpe and colleagues Yann Surget-Groba and Helena Johansson, at Bangor University, UK, reveal their findings April 29 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.
After studying the interactions of human and animal populations in Africa, Kathleen Alexander, associate professor of wildlife science in Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources, found powerful evidence of how human behavior can influence the emergence of infectious disease in humans and animals.
Losses of managed honey bee colonies nationwide totaled 33.8 percent from all causes from October 2009 to April 2010, according to a survey conducted by the Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) and the Agricultural Research Service (ARS). Beekeepers identified starvation, poor weather, and weak colonies going into winter as the top reasons for mortality in their operations.
This is an increase from overall losses of 29 percent reported from a similar survey covering the winter of 2008-2009, and similar to the 35.8 percent losses for the winter of 2007-2008.
Caloric restriction is the favorite theory of the kookier anti-aging contingent but it may have practical benefits; an immune system boost.
Scientists funded by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) found that volunteers who followed a low-calorie diet or a very low-calorie diet not only lost weight, but also significantly enhanced their immune response. The study may be the first to demonstrate the interaction between calorie restriction and immune markers among humans.
(Boston) – Researchers from the Department of Veterans Affairs and Boston University School of Medicine have found that health care reform in Massachusetts has improved minority access for some inpatient procedures. These findings are being presented today at the annual Society of General Internal Medicine annual meetings in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Animals' right to privacy is being denied by makers of television wildlife documentaries according to new research.
Dr Brett Mills from the University of East Anglia argues that while wildlife programmes can play a vital role in engaging citizens in environmental debates, in order to 'do good' they must inevitably deny many species the right to privacy.
Nearly 4 million adults in California reported being a victim of physical or sexual violence at the hands of a spouse, companion or other intimate partner, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.
Of those victims, more than 1 million reported being forced to have sex by an intimate partner, the study found.
Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology have found an association between the level of leisure time physical exercise and a future risk of developing fibromyalgia. The research team also identified BMI as an independent risk factor for fibromyalgia. Details of the study appear in the May issue of Arthritis Care & Research, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology.
A recent study determined that African-Americans were less likely to have a varus thrust, but more likely to have valgus thrust than Caucasians. Varus thrust is visualized during gait as the worsening or abrupt onset of varus (bow-legged) alignment as the leg accepts weight, with a return to less varus and more neutral alignment during lift-off of the foot and the swing phase of gait. Prior research has shown that varus thrust seen in gait is associated with a 4-fold increase in the risk of progression of knee osteoarthritis (OA).