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Ibuprofen is as effective as acetaminophen with codeine to treat pain in children with arm fractures

Children with arm fractures fared as well with ibuprofen to control their pain as acetaminophen with codeine, according to a new study by researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and Children's Research Institute.

The study, which was led by Amy Drendel, D.O., assistant professor of pediatrics at the Medical College, will appear in the Aug. 18, 2009, issue of the Annals of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Drendel also is a pediatric emergency medicine specialist at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

Should parents be more involved in the classroom? Researchers say yes

It is widely understood that, ideally, schools and parents should work together to ensure that children can succeed as students and citizens. But what is the right balance? And how much do teachers want parents involved in the classroom? A new study from North Carolina State University identifies ways that schools and communities can work with parents to give children the greatest chance of success.

Anthropologists discover stone tools, rare animal bones—clues to Caribbean's earliest inhabitants

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A prehistoric water-filled cave in the Dominican Republic has become a "treasure trove" with the announcement by Indiana University archaeologists of the discovery of stone tools, a small primate skull in remarkable condition, and the claws, jawbone and other bones of several species of sloths.

Study links video gaming to unhealthy lifestyles in adults

San Diego, CA, August 18, 2009 – While video gaming is generally perceived as a pastime for children and young adults, research shows that the average age of players in the United States is 35. Investigators from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Emory University and Andrews University analyzed survey data from over 500 adults ranging in age from 19 to 90 in the Seattle-Tacoma area on health risks; media use behaviors and perceptions, including those related to video-game playing; and demographic factors.

Once praised Mexican health care system inefficient and expensive, say researchers

A Policy Forum published in this week's open access journal PLoS Medicine argues that twenty-five years of health care reforms in Mexico have increased insurance coverage but have not resulted in greater efficiency and have not significantly reduced health inequities despite their costs in a country that has huge divisions between the rich and the poor.

Secrets of the sandcastle worm could yield a powerful medical adhesive

A new glue, says Stewart, a bioengineer at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, has passed toxicity studies in cell culture. It is at least as strong as Super Glue and is twice as strong as the natural adhesive it mimics, he notes.

"We recognized that the mechanism used by the sandcastle worm is really a perfect vehicle for producing an underwater adhesive," Stewart said. "This glue, just like the worm's glue, is a fluid material that, although it doesn't mix with water, is water soluble."

Patients have similar chances of survival with veteran and novice trauma surgeons

Within a structured trauma program, patients are equally likely to survive if they are treated by a novice surgeon or by the experienced trauma director, according to a report in Archives of Surgery.

"Trauma care in the United States is provided by surgeons with vastly different training and experience," the authors write. "It is assumed that after general surgery residency training, surgeons are competent to provide trauma care. Trauma fellowships exist for additional training in trauma surgery but are not a prerequisite at most medical centers."

Honey-bee aggression uncovers clues about killer bees

A new study reveals that changes in the gene expression of the honey bee are in response to an immediate threat. These changes, it turns out, have a lot in common with more long-term and even evolutionary differences in honey-bee aggression. The findings lend support to the idea that nurture (an organism's environment) may ultimately influence nature (its genetic inheritance).

Flat bacteria can go anywhere

It appears that bacteria can squeeze through practically anything. In extremely small nanoslits they take on a completely new flat shape. Even in this squashed form they continue to grow and divide at normal speeds. This has been demonstrated by research carried out at TU Delft's Kavli Institute of Nanoscience. The results will be appearing in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Water quality improves after lawn fertilizer ban, study shows

In an effort to keep lakes and streams clean, municipalities around the country are banning or restricting the use of phosphorus-containing lawn fertilizers, which can kill fish and cause smelly algae blooms and other problems when the phosphorus washes out of the soil and into waterways.

But do the ordinances really help reduce phosphorus pollution? That's been an open question until now, says John Lehman, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Michigan.

Asian-American women more likely to attempt suicide

Although Asian-Americans as a group have lower rates of attempted suicide than the national average, U.S.-born Asian-American women seem to be particularly at risk for suicidal behavior, according to new University of Washington research.

Without water reform, Asia could face food shortages by 2050

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (18 August 2009) — A comprehensive new study of irrigation in Asia warns that, without major reforms and innovations in the way water is used for agriculture, many developing nations face the politically risky prospect of having to import more than a quarter of the rice, wheat and maize they will need by 2050.

Women, minorities still face discrimination in labor market, study reports

A new study from North Carolina State University shows that white men receive significantly more tips about job opportunities than women and racial minorities – particularly among people in upper management positions – highlighting racial and gender inequality in the labor market.

Children from low-income families sexually active by 12 years old

AMES, Iowa -- As a new mother herself, Brenda Lohman admits to being shocked by the results of a new study she co-authored. It found that among nearly 1,000 low-income families in three major cities, one in four children between the ages of 11 and 16 reported having sex, with their first sexual intercourse experience occurring at the average age of 12.77.

Family quarrels and no free time can promote headaches in children, study says

Family quarrels and a lack of free time can promote headaches in children. This is what Jennifer Gassmann and her coauthors concluded in their study on risk factors, which appears in the current issue of the Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2009; 106[31-32]: 509-16).