Culture | Page 2298 | Science Codex

Fathers matter when it comes to sexual behavior in teens

A new paper suggests that fathers' parenting behavior influences the sexual behavior of their adolescent children. However, to date most parent-based research on adolescent sexual risk behavior has neglected the role of fathers, a missed opportunity to contribute to their adolescent children's health and well-being.

While it is well-established that parenting is closely linked with a teenager's sexual health and reproductive outcomes, it is mothers that, to-date, have drawn most of the attention of researchers, according to the article published today by Pediatrics.

Personalized genomic medicine: How much can it really empower patients?

(Garrison, NY) Personalized genomic medicine is hailed as a revolution that will empower patients to take control of their own health care, but it could end up taking control away from patients and limiting their treatment choices, concludes an article in the Hastings Center Report.

A better way to prevent deadly blood clots?

A computerized checklist system designed to help physicians identify and use the best methods of preventing potentially deadly blood clots in hospitalized trauma patients dramatically reduced the number of these dangerous venous thromboembolisms (VTEs), new Johns Hopkins research suggests.

People with severe psoriasis nearly twice at risk for diabetes

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) -- An analysis of 27 studies linking psoriasis in 314,000 individuals with diabetes has found strong correlation between the scaly skin rash and the blood sugar disorder that predisposes patients to heart disease, say UC Davis researchers who led the review.

The findings appear in an article titled "Psoriasis and the risk of diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis," which is now online in the Archives of Dermatology.

New guide helps providers make effective connection with senior patients

"Communicating With Older Adults: An Evidence-Based Review of What Really Works," the latest report from The Gerontological Society of America (GSA), provides 40 pages of recommended guidelines for health care providers interacting with the fastest growing age segment of America's population.

University of Maryland School of Medicine scientists develop stem cell model for hereditary disease

A new method of using adult stem cells as a model for the hereditary condition Gaucher disease could help accelerate the discovery of new, more effective therapies for this and other conditions such as Parkinson's, according to new research from the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Substandard, non-approved drugs put patients at risk

The recent outbreak of meningitis in the US—and the subsequent deaths of 15 individuals—has renewed scrutiny on the contemporary practice of pharmacy compounding. The risks to patients, and associated liability risk to prescribing physicians, largely outweigh the benefits when the practice goes beyond the traditional, extemporaneous role, according to Sarah Sellers from q-Vigilance LLC and Wulf Utian from Case Western Reserve University in the US. Sellers and Utian's opinion piece appears online in the journal Drugs, published by Adis.

Medication beliefs strongly affect individuals' management of chronic diseases, MU expert says

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Nearly half of patients taking medications for chronic conditions do not strictly follow their prescribed medication regimens. Failure to use medications as directed increases patients' risk for side effects, hospitalizations, reduced quality of life and shortened lifespans. Now, a University of Missouri gerontological nursing expert says patients' poor adherence to prescribed medication regimens is connected to their beliefs about the necessity of prescriptions and concerns about long-term effects and dependency.

Penn researchers find new way to prevent cracking in nanoparticle films

PHILADELPHIA — Making uniform coatings is a common engineering challenge, and, when working at the nanoscale, even the tiniest cracks or defects can be a big problem. New research from University of Pennsylvania engineers has shown a new way of avoiding such cracks when depositing thin films of nanoparticles.

Of mice and men

So-called Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (ALCL) is even less attractive in real life than it is on paper. It is a highly aggressive type of lymphoma that generally occurs in children and young adults and that has to date proven extremely difficult to treat. It has long been known that ALCL patients frequently show a genetic alteration (a translocation) that causes expression of nucleophosmin-anaplastic lymphoma kinase (NPM-ALK), a gene known to be capable of giving rise to cancer. But how the NPM-ALK gene works has to date remained largely a matter of conjecture.

'Treasure trove' of film records unlocks history of British Cinema

A film historian at Queen Mary, University of London has been uncovering the secret past of British cinema in a private collection of production records for thousands of films, including such iconic titles as Dr No, The African Queen, and Zulu.

The unique production archive is owned by Film Finances Ltd, underwriters of many major British films made since the 1950s. The company has kept complete documentation forevery production it has guaranteed, including letters, telegrams, shooting schedules, scripts, storyboards and even doctors' certificates.

Sitting for protracted periods increases risk of diabetes, heart disease and death - study

A new study led by the University of Leicester, in association with colleagues at Loughborough University, has discovered that sitting for long periods increases your risk of diabetes, heart disease and death.

Is moderate alcohol intake associated with risk of atrial fibrillation among patients with CVD?

An analysis of the association of alcohol consumption with the development of atrial fibrillation (AF) among subjects with coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, or other manifestations of cardiovascular disease (CVD) was based on subjects in two large antihypertensive drug treatment trials. Previous research in the general population has suggested an increase in the risk of the development of AF for heavy drinkers, and the present study shows such an association among subjects who already have CVD.

Report -- illegal hunting and trade of wildlife in savanna Africa may cause conservation crisis

New York, NY and Hyderabad (India) – A new report published today by Panthera confirms that widespread illegal hunting and the bushmeat trade occur more frequently and with greater impact on wildlife populations in the Southern and Eastern savannas of Africa than previously thought, and if unaddressed could potentially cause a 'conservation crisis.' The report challenges previously held beliefs of the impact of illegal bushmeat hunting and trade in Africa with new data from experts.

New weapons detail reveals true depth of Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis took place 50 years ago this October, when US and Soviet leaders pulled back from the very brink of nuclear war. This was the closest the world has come to nuclear war, but exactly how close has been a matter of some speculation. The conflict, itself, has been analyzed and interpreted, but the number and types of nuclear weapons that were operational have not.