Culture

Sixty percent of persons incarcerated for gun crimes in the thirteen U.S. states with the most lax standards for legal firearm ownership were not legally prohibited from possessing firearms when they committed the crime that led to their incarceration. According to the study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 31 percent of these gun offenders were old enough to possess a firearm and had no prior disqualifying record.

An analysis of published data in the medical literature has found that vertebroplasty can provide more pain relief and better function for patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures than nonoperative treatments. Vertebroplasty, a medical procedure for reducing pain caused by this type of fracture, involves the injection of an acrylic cement into the body of the fractured vertebrae for stabilization.

The challenge of treating patients with genetic disorders in which a single mutated gene is simply too large to be replaced using traditional gene therapy techniques may soon be a thing of the past. A Nationwide Children's Hospital study describes a new gene therapy approach capable of delivering full-length versions of large genes and improving skeletal muscle function. The strategy may hold new hope for treating dysferlinopathies and other muscular dystrophies.

If a train is travelling a distance of 55 miles at 150mph, how long will it take to reach its destination? If the thought of having to answer this question makes you apprehensive, then you may have mathematics anxiety. A new study published today in BioMed Central's open access journal Behavioral and Brain Functions reports that a number of school-age children suffer from mathematics anxiety and, although both genders' performance is likely to be affected as a result, girls' maths performance is more likely to suffer than boys'.

Patients look up their illnesses online to become better informed and prepared to play an active role in their care — not because they mistrust their doctors, a new University of California, Davis, study suggests.

The study surveyed more than 500 people who were members of online support groups and had scheduled appointments with a physician.

Athens, Ga. – Children need quality physical education to combat obesity and lead healthy lives. Georgia elementary schools make the grade when it comes to providing that education, but middle and high schools in the state don't even come close, according to a University of Georgia study.

MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Many patients seem to ignore prescription drug warning labels with instructions that are critical for safe and effective use, according to a study by a Kansas State University researcher working with scientists at Michigan State University.

The immunosuppressive drug fingolimod (trade name: Gilenya®) is approved for the treatment of highly-active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) in adults. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to "Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products" (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) assessed whether fingolimod offers an added benefit compared with the present standard therapy.

Over the past year, some news reports have questioned the long-term viability and popularity of daily deal companies, but the industry shows no evidence of slowing down, according to a new study from Rice University.

A professor from the University of Southampton has called on doctors around the world to give patients with persistent dizziness a booklet of simple exercises, after new research has shown that it is a very cost effective treatment for common causes of the condition.

Lucy Yardley, who has been researching dizziness for many years, will urge GPs at the international WONCA conference today (5 July) to ensure that the booklet is translated so that patients of all nationalities can benefit.

What is the purpose of a target no one can meet? The UN wants global emissions at 1990 levels, which means the developing world cannot grow food, and they want the number of hungry children to be half of 1990 levels by 2015, despite the fact that there are a lot more of them.

Unfair and exploitative political agreements allow Europeans to eat fish from the plates of developing countries, according to a study led by University of British Columbia researchers.

In the case of Madagascar, the European Union pays less than it did two decades ago while catching more fish. Since 1986, the EU's quotas for catching fish in Madagascar's waters have increased by 30 per cent while its access fees have decreased by 20 per cent. As a result, the total annual income for Madagascar decreased by almost 90 per cent between 1986 and 2010.

Tendon disorders cost the UK economy more than £7bn a year and now scientists at Queen Mary, University of London have identified a vital component of tendons which could help treat them.

The research, published in the highly regarded Royal Society journal Interface today (4 July), found that a component of tendons known as the interfascicular matrix (IFM) is essential for their function.