Active Ingredient In Florastor Probiotic Clinically Proven To Boost Efficacy Of Treatment For Clostridium Difficile-Associated Disease
C. diff-associated disease (CDAD), otherwise known as severe intestinal disease brought on by the Clostridium difficile (C. diff) pathogen, has been the subject of heightened concern in the medical community. A new report released this month by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality revealed a 200 percent increase in potentially fatal diarrheal infections in U.S.

Early Diagnosis, Treatment Of Lymphedema Enabled By Preoperative Assessment Of Breast Cancer Patients
NIH, National Naval Medical Center, George Mason University study published in journal Cancer demonstrates importance of physicians' shift to baseline measures and ongoing 'surveillance' model for successful management of common, debilitating condition.

Seeking An Osteoporosis Fingerprint Through Genotyping
For the first time ever, an extensive genome-wide search has been undertaken to find the genes linked to osteoporosis and fracture. Five regions of interest have been identified that appear to warrant further scientific investigation.From the age of 60, 40% women and 25% men will sustain a fracture due to osteoporosis, with the risk being higher in people with a family history of fracture.

Anti-HBe May Play A Role In The Progression Of The Disease Of Hepatitis B
Genotype D is found to be the only detected type in different clinical forms of HBV infections, including cirrhosis, among residents of southwestern Iran. A significant association between the presence of anti-HBe antibody and increasing ALT levels among either HBeAg-negative or HBeAg-positive individuals was also determined.This study, performed by a team led by Dr.

Gastric Juice For Diagnosis Of H. Pylori Infection In Patients On Proton Pump Inhibitors
This study determined the efficiency of a gastric juice PCR test for the detection of H. pylori infection in patients receiving PPI therapy and compared it with histology and gastric biopsy PCR.This study, led by Dr Javed Yakoob, is described in a research article to be published in the March 14, 2008, issue of the World Journal of Gastroenterology.

Discovery Of High Rate Of Pediatric Complicated Idiopathic Gallstone Disease
The prevalence of gallstones in adults of industrialized countries is approximately 10% and is showing a tendency to rise. Data for pediatric patients is scarce.A research article published on March 14, 2008, in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this problem. The team lead by Dr.

Randomised Trial Confirms Efficacy Of Ketogenic Diet In Preventing Epileptic Seizures In Children
A randomised controlled trial has confirmed the efficacy of the ketogenic diet in helping control and prevent epileptic seizures in children with drug-resistant epilepsy. These are the conclusions of authors of an Article published early Online and in the June edition of The Lancet Neurology.

Sorting Of CEA Modulated By Cholesterol, Implications For Inflammatory Bowel Disease
In polarized Caco-2 cells, cholesterol was depleted by a combination of synthesis inhibition and plasma membrane extraction with complexing agents. This led to an increased sorting of CEA to the basolateral surface. Interestingly, polarity was not significantly affected by this approach.

The Double Life Of Proteins Discovered By Scientists
Scientists at The Australian National University are a step closer to understanding the rare Hartnup disorder after discovering a surprising link between blood pressure regulation and nutrition that could also help to shed light on intestinal and kidney function.

Synergistic Growth Inhibitory Effect Of Herbal Extracts Against HCC And Lung Cancer Cells
Several herbs with diversified pharmacological properties are known to be rich sources of chemical constituents that may have potential for the treatment of several human cancers.

Study Suggests Vocabulary Evolved To Fit In The Brain
The latest edition of the Oxford English Dictionary boasts 22,000 pages of definitions. While that may seem far from succinct, new research suggests the reference manual is meticulously organized to be as concise as possible - a format that mirrors the way our brains make sense of and categorize the countless words in our vast vocabulary.

When Cooperation Butts Heads With Competition
Phrases such as "survival of the fittest" and "every man for himself" may seem to accentuate the presence of political and social competition in American culture; however, there obviously are similar instances of inter- and intra-group conflict across almost all known organisms.

The Motivation Of Advanced Practice Nurses To Explore
Research Motive in PracticeNursing profession today has the essential elements ofaccountability and autonomy meaning that a nurse isresponsible, professionally and legally for the nursing careprovided.

April Showers Bring May Flowers… And Kick Allergy Season Into Full Bloom
May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, and Carpenter Co., a leader in sleep technologies and the world's largest producer of comfort cushion products, offers relief for the more than 60 million Americans who suffer from these ailments.

AmpliMed Corporation Announces Start Of Randomized Phase 2 Trial Of Amplimexon In Pancreatic Cancer
AmpliMed Corporation, a cancer therapeutics company, announced that patient enrollment is underway in a Phase 2 trial of Amplimexon® (imexon for injection) in combination with gemcitabine (Gemzar®) in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.

3M Collaborates With Infectious Disease Research Institute On Vaccine Adjuvants
3M Drug Delivery Systems announces the signing of a non-exclusive license agreement with the Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) in support of vaccine research for humanitarian efforts in developing countries. Under the agreement, 3M will donate its patented toll-like receptor (TLR) immune response modifier compounds.

Accordance Home Care Launches Operations In Huntsville
Seventy-nine percent of older Americans live in homes that they own, and most of them want to keep it that way for as long as possible. That's the reality driving the surge in professional home health care, according to Dee Harrell, founder of Accordance Home Care, which has begun providing services to the Huntsville area's aging population.

Cancer Remains Top Cause Of Unum's Disability Claims; Research Finds Supportive Workplace Can Aid Recovery
For the seventh consecutive year, cancer is the leading reason for long term disability absence in 2007, reports Unum (NYSE:UNM) in its annual review of disability claims. Unum, the leading provider of group disability insurance in the United States, reports that pregnancy is the No. 1 reason for short term disability.

Seroquel Evaluation On Improvement In Short And Long-Term Symptoms
AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) announced new study data on SEROQUEL XR™ (quetiapine fumarate) Extended-Release Tablets (quetiapine XR) for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in adult patients. The results from the studies were presented today at the 161st Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) in Washington, DC.

Drinking Among Young Adolescents Affected By Genes And The Environment
A 2001/2002 report by the World Health Organization found that, among young people in western countries who began drinking before 16 years of age, the average age of initiation was 12 years of age.

International Experts To Explore Brain Injury, Treatment In The Elderly, Conference
Internationally renowned brain experts will gather at Moody Gardens in Galveston on May 14-16 to discuss ways to treat and rehabilitate elderly men and women with traumatic brain injuries.

UV Protection For Eyes Especially Important During Summer Months
Ultraviolet (UV) protection is a concern for many Americans, particularly in the spring and summer months, but most people are thinking about their skin, not their eyes.

Genome Sequence Of Fungus Reveals Unsuspected Ability To Use Complex Carbon Sources
The model fungus Podospora anserina (P. anserina) has undergone substantial evolution since its separation from Neurospora crassa, as revealed from the Podospora draft genome sequence published in BioMed Central's open access journal, Genome Biology.

Who Has The Best Brain In Canada - Testing High School Students Knowledge Of Neuroscience And Patient Diagnosis And Neuroanatomy
High school students from across the country will compete for the title of "best brain in Canada" at the first CIHR Canadian National Brain Bee, testing their knowledge of neuroscience and their skill at patient diagnosis and neuroanatomy. The event will be held May 9 and 10 at McMaster University.

Hot And Bothered!
As the temperature rises and the risk for heat stroke increases, people should be aware of how their bodies are handling the heat. Minimizing the stress of heat on your body by staying hydrated and spending more time in an air-conditioned environment will keep you cool and healthy throughout the summer months.

Beyond Fashion: Why You Gotta Wear Shades
Cheap sunglasses may cost you less, but are they just as likely to protect against the effects of harmful UV rays as expensive sunglasses?According to Dr. Donald J.

The Endocrine Society Conference June 15-18, 2008, San Francisco, California
June 15-18, San Francisco, Calif., Moscone CenterBreaking news on sexual performance, diabetes, combating obesity, steroid abuse and growth hormone doping will be presented in a series of news briefings at ENDO 08, the 90th annual meeting of The Endocrine Society.Sunday, June 15Sexy Sex Findings (8:30 a.m. PDT): Breaking news on sexual performance for men and women.

$27.2 Million Award To UCI Will Provide Facility To Serve As Regional Research Hub For Speeding Development Of Stem Cell Therapies
UC Irvine has been awarded $27.2 million from the state to build a new stem cell research facility that will unify and strengthen the campus's fast-growing stem cell biology program and serve as a hub for research in Southern California.

Success Of Prisoner HIV Program
By linking HIV positive prisoners to community-based medical care prior to release through an innovative program called Project Bridge, 95 percent of ex-offenders were retained in health care for a year after being released from incarceration, according to researchers from The Miriam Hospital.

Scientists Demonstrate Method For Integrating Nanowire Devices Directly Onto Silicon
Applied scientists at Harvard University in collaboration with researchers from the German universities of Jena, Gottingen, and Bremen, have developed a new technique for fabricating nanowire photonic and electronic integrated circuits that may one day be suitable for high-volume commercial production.Spearheaded by graduate student Mariano Zimmler and Federico Capasso, Robert L.

Discovery Of Cell Linked To Learning And Memory
Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) neuroscientists at The University of Queensland have discovered a fundamental component of the process that regulates memory formation.

Female Sex Offenders Often Have Mental Problems
Women who commit sexual offences are just as likely to have mental problems or drug addictions as other violent female criminals. This according to the largest study ever conducted of women convicted of sexual offences in Sweden. Between 1988 and 2000, 93 women and 8,500 men were convicted of sexual offences in Sweden.

New Data Support Routine Childhood Vaccination With PREVENAR In Europe - Shown To Reduce Invasive Pneumococcal Disease In Young Children
Data presented at the 26th annual meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ESPID) in Graz, Austria, provide additional evidence of the public health impact of the routine use of Prevenar* (Pneumococcal Saccharide Conjugated Vaccine, Adsorbed), which helps protect against the seven pneumococcal serotypes causing the majority of diseaseworldwide.

Office Initiative Reduces Headaches And Neck And Shoulder Pain By More Than 40 Per Cent
Office staff who took part in an eight-month workplace initiative reported that headaches and neck and shoulder pain fell by more than 40 per cent and their use of painkillers halved, according to research published in the May issue of Cephalalgia. They also reported that pain levels were less severe at the end of the study than at the start.

BSI British Standards Publishes New Glossary To Help Promote The Safe And Efficient Commercialisation Of Regenerative Medicine Products In The UK
BSI British Standards has published a Publicly Available Specification (PAS) which defines the terms commonly used in the field of regenerative medicine. PAS 84, Regenerative Medicine - Glossary, provides clear guidance on the meaning of terminology currently used in the UK by industry, regulators, government and academia.

Distinct Treatment Needed: Tourette's And Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Canada
While 30 to 50 percent of people with Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome are also affected with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), both illnesses have a distinct neurocognitive profile, according to a new study published in the print edition of the journal Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biologi

New Efforts To Help Improve Medical Products For Patient Safety And Quality Of Medical Care
HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced efforts underway at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that will complement each other to improve patient safety and the quality of medical care. "This initiative will tremendously increase the FDA's capacity to monitor the use of medical products on the market," Secretary Leavitt said.

BC Committed To Improving Diabetes Management, Canada
The Canadian Diabetes Association applauds the Government of British Columbia's commitment to implement all of the recommendations of the Pharmaceutical Task Force, as outlined in the report released recently.

2008 Spring Research Review Award Announced By JDRF
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation recently awarded its top honors to three noted scientists. The awards were presented at the 2008 Spring Research Review Awards Dinner.The David Rumbough Award for Scientific Excellence was established in 1974 by the actress Dina Merrill, in honor of her late son, David.

South Sudan Fighting: MSF Treating Wounded
Since May 14, fighting between the Sudanese armed forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) has devastated the town of Abyei, which has been virtually destroyed. Almost the entire local population has fled to the north and south of the town to seek refuge. Abyei, located in the center of Sudan, and its surroundings, had a population of approximately 130,000 people prior to the fighting.

Telehealth Market Expected To Grow Over Next Few Years
The Home Telehealth and Remote Patient Monitoring market is currently close to a $5.6 billion level and will continue to grow at close to 70% for at least the next three to five years, according to a new strategic report published by Insight and Intelligence, a Mary Ann Liebert company.

CDC Reports More U.S. Nonsmokers Are Protected By Smoke-Free Laws
The number of states with laws prohibiting smoking in private sector worksites, restaurants, and/or bars in the United States tripled and the number with no such laws was halved between 2005 and 2007, according to a report in this week′s issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Heroes Of Emergency Medicine: Drs. Marianne Gausche-Hill And Robert Hockberger
The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) has announced it has recognized Marianne Gausche-Hill, M.D., FACEP, and Robert Hockberger, M.D., FACEP, as Heroes of Emergency Medicine, an honor the organization bestows upon emergency physicians who have made significant contributions to emergency medicine, their communities and their patients.

The Mechanics Of The Common Vaccine Booster
In an online paper in the journal Nature, Yale University researchers funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, explain how a common ingredient in many vaccines stimulates and interacts with the immune system to help provide protection against infectious diseases.

Researcher Strives For Watershed Moment
According to the World Health Organization, water scarcity affects four out of every 10 people around the world and population growth, urbanization and increased domestic and industrial water use are making the problem worse. By examining the relationship between global warming and pollution, a researcher at The University of Western Ontario hopes to help protect future water resources.

Circulation: Heart Failure: New Journal Focuses On Progress, Problems In Treating Heart Failure
Findings about how the day of admission influences the length of a patient's hospitalization for heart failure, and questions about the effectiveness of two drugs to treat heart failure patients are featured in the inaugural issue of Circulation: Heart Failure.

High School Knee Injuries Compared By Sport And Gender In First Of Its Kind Study
Knee injuries, among the most economically costly sports injuries, are the leading cause of high school sports-related surgeries according to a study conducted at the Center for Injury Research and Policy (CIRP) of the Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital and published in the June issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine.

At The Synapse: Gene May Shed Light On Neurological Disorders
In our brains, where millions of signals move across a network of neurons like runners in a relay race, all the critical baton passes take place at synapses. These small gaps between nerve cell endings have to be just the right size for messages to transmit properly.

NuMetrex Puts Wii Fit To Heart Rate Monitor Test
Can the new Wii Fit by Nintendo get people off the couch and exercising in a way that could truly improve cardiovascular health? That's the question that marathon runner and NuMetrex marketing director, Meg Burich, set out to answer yesterday when the product hit stores near the company's Delaware headquarters.

Osmotica Pharmaceutical Receives FDA Approval To Market Novel Forms Of Extended Release Venlafaxine HCl
Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp. received notice of final approval for its Venlafaxine Hydrochloride Extended-release 37.5 mg, 75 mg, 150 mg and 225 mg tablets NDA from FDA for major depressive disorder and social anxiety disorder. The Osmotica product provides a controlled release tablet form of venlafaxine HCl including a previously unavailable 225 mg dosage strength.

Specialized Microscope Allows Scientists To Image A Single HIV Particle Being Born
A mapmaker and a mathematician may seem like an unlikely duo, but together they worked out a way to measure longitude - and kept millions of sailors from getting lost at sea. Now, another unlikely duo, a virologist and a biophysicist at Rockefeller University, is making history of their own.

Potential New Treatments Could Follow Identification Of Protein That Provides Innate Defense Against HIV
By identifying a protein that restricts the release of HIV-1 virus from human cells, scientists believe they may be closer to identifying new approaches to treatment. The research is published in the advance online edition of Nature Medicine.

10 Million Pounds Per Year For Public Health Research, UK
A new research programme which will help the Government to continue to improve public health and reduce health inequalities was launched by Public Health Minister Dawn Primarolo. The Public Health Research (PHR) Programme is being established by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and will evaluate a wide range of public health interventions.

''Asthma Clinic On Wheels'' Travels To Aquarium Of The Pacific
The Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) will send two of its BreathMobiles(R) to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach on Saturday, May 31, to provide free asthma screenings, education materials and information on how to keep childhood asthma under control.