Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a rare, but important risk posed by the antibiotic azithromycin, commonly called a “Z-pack.” The study found a 2.5-fold higher risk of cardiovascular death in the first five days of taking azithromycin when compared with another common antibiotic or no antibiotics at all. Wayne A. Ray, Ph.D., professor of Preventive Medicine, and C. Michael Stein, M.B.Ch.B., the Dan May Chair in Medicine and professor of Pharmacology, collaborated on the research published in the May 17 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine…
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Common Antibiotic Found To Carry Heart Risk
18% Of Deaths Among Under 5s Caused By Pneumonia Globally
Of the 7.6 million deaths worldwide among children under 5 years of age in 2010, 18% were caused by pneumonia, while 14% were the result of a complication of a preterm birth, researchers from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an international team of experts reported in The Lancet. The authors added that diarrhea is the third leading cause of deaths among very young children. The researchers analyzed data on the distribution of child deaths around the world in 2010. They report that 40% of them were among infants under four weeks old (naonates)…
Sports & Energy Drinks Damage Teeth
Sports drinks hit the wire today with a red light that their level of acidity is increasingly responsible for irreversible damage to teeth, especially amongst adolescents and younger adults, their predominant target market. The report is published in the May/June 2012 issue of General Dentistry, the peer-reviewed clinical journal of the Academy of General Dentistry…
Too Early To Promote Smell Test For Alzheimer’s
A study published online in The Laryngoscope reveals that current studies do not support the use of olfactory identification tests (smell tests) for predicting Alzheimer’s dementia. Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease that causes loss of brain function and is the most common cause of dementia. The disease is expected to double every 20 years through the year 2040…
Treatment With Nitric Oxide Led To Sustained Normalization Of Blood Pressure In An ASA Mouse Model
A team of researchers has discovered a treatment for a common metabolic disorder. The study, published by Cell Press in the American Journal of Human Genetics, the official journal of the American Society of Human Genetics, reports that supplementation of nitric oxide (NO) in mice and man afflicted with argininosuccinic aciduria (ASA), a urea cycle disorder (UCD), results in long-term heart and neuropsychological improvements…
Experimental Drug Reduces Autism Symptoms In Mice
An experimental medication was found to reduce autism symptoms in mice, resulting in improved social skills and fewer repetitive behaviors, researchers from the NIH (National Institutes of Health) reported. The study has been published in Science Translational Medicine. The authors explained that so far, no cure has been found for ASPs (autism spectrum disorders). The experimental drug is currently called GRN-529, and has been developed by pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer…
Possible New Cancer Treatment Identified
New research findings show how it may be possible to render cancer tumours harmless without affecting the other cells and tissues in the body. The findings apply to cancers including breast, lung and bowel cancer. The study was carried out at Lund University in Sweden. Many of the most common chemotherapy drugs used to treat cancer have serious side effects because they not only affect the cells in the cancer tumour, but also the cells in the rest of the body…
Cancer Pain Frequently Undertreated, Especially Among Minorities
Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have found that over 33.3% of individuals suffering from invasive cancer do not receive sufficient pain medication, with minorities twice as likely not to receive analgesics. Published in Journal of Clinical Oncology, the study is the largest prospective assessment ever conducted in an outpatient setting regarding cancer pain and related symptoms. This first comprehensive study to examine the adequacy of pain management in cancer care was published nearly two decades ago by Charles Cleeland, Ph.D…
Spreading Fungal Diseases Threaten Food Security, Biodiversity
The spread of existing and emerging fungal diseases in plants and animals poses a threat to global food security and biodiversity, according to a new study whose authors suggest halting fungal rot in the most important crops could feed an extra 600 million people a year…
Study Debunks Common Myth That Urine Is Sterile
Researchers have determined that bacteria are present in the bladders of some healthy women, which discredits the common belief that normal urine is sterile. These findings were published in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology by researchers at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM).”Docve been trained to believe that urine is germ-free,” said Linda Brubaker, MD, MS, dean, SSOM. “However, these findings challenge this notion, so this research may have positive implications for how we treat patients with urinary tract conditions in the future…