Exposure Therapy For Phobias

Because confronting fear won't always make it go away, researchers suggest that people with phobias must alter memory-driven negative attitudes about feared objects or events to achieve a more lasting recovery from what scares them the most. Ohio State University psychology researchers determined that people who retained negative attitudes about public speaking after exposure therapy were more likely to experience a return of their fear a month later than were people whose attitudes were less negative... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Sex After Childbirth - Most Mothers Wait At Least 6 Weeks, Some Considerably Longer

Most first-time mothers wait until after 6 weeks postpartum to resume vaginal sex following childbirth and women who have an operative vaginal birth, caesarean section, perineal tear or episiotomy appear to wait longer, suggests a new study published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The study, conducted by the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Australia, used data from the Maternal Health Study, a large prospective pregnancy cohort in which data were collected from self-administered questionnaires in early pregnancy and at 3, 6 and 12 months postpartum... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

The Good Behavior Game Helps Improve Behavior In Elementary School Classrooms, Reduce Substance Abuse

Afterschool programs seem to be most effective when their organization and implementation is supported by both organizational and community resources, according to Penn State human development researchers. Using a tool to help bridge the gap between research and real life, the researchers evaluated an afterschool program called the Good Behavior Game... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Genetic Variation Behind Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treatment Success Identified

Researchers from the College of Pharmacy and Medical School working within the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, have partnered to identify genetic variations that may help signal which acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients will benefit or not benefit from one of the newest antileukemic agents. Their study is published in Clinical Cancer Research... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Same-Sex Cohabitors Less Healthy Than Those In Heterosexual Marriages

Same-sex cohabitors report worse health than people of the same socioeconomic status who are in heterosexual marriages, according to a new study, which may provide fuel for gay marriage proponents. "Past research has shown that married people are generally healthier than unmarried people," said Hui Liu, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of sociology at Michigan State University... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

New Report Finds Mental Health-Substance Use Services In Hospitals Up After Parity Law

The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 ("Parity Act") increased access to mental health and substance use services in hospitals, yet consumers continued to pay more out-of-pocket for substance use admissions than for other types of hospital admissions, finds a new Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) report... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Animal Memory Discovery May Lead To Research On Memory Impairment Diseases

If you ask a rat whether it knows how it came to acquire a certain coveted piece of chocolate, Indiana University neuroscientists conclude, the answer is a resounding, "Yes." A study newly published in the journal Current Biology offers the first evidence of source memory in a nonhuman animal... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

First Study Ever To Analyze 25 Years Of Data After Radiation Therapy For Prostate Cancer Patients

The March 2013 issue of The Journal of Urology, the official journal of The American Urological Association, includes a study conducted by four physicians from Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia (RCOG), a Vantage Oncology affiliate. This study, 25 Year Disease Free Survival Rate after Irradiation of Prostate Cancer Calculated with the Prostate Specific Antigen Definition of Recurrence Used for Radical Prostatectomy, is the first-ever to analyze 25 years of follow-up data after radiation therapy treatment for prostate cancer patients. Frank Critz, M.D... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

EEGs Of Autistic Children Show Structural Differences In Brain Connections, May Explain Features Of Autism

A look at how the brain processes information finds a distinct pattern in children with autism spectrum disorders. Using EEGs to track the brain's electrical cross-talk, researchers from Boston Children's Hospital have found a structural difference in brain connections. Compared with neurotypical children, those with autism have multiple redundant connections between neighboring brain areas at the expense of long-distance links. The study, using a "network analysis" like that used to study airlines or electrical grids, may help in understanding some classic behaviors in autism... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Experiments With Tadpoles Show Ectopic Eyes That 'See'

For the first time, scientists have shown that transplanted eyes located far outside the head in a vertebrate animal model can confer vision without a direct neural connection to the brain. Biologists at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences used a frog model to shed new light - literally - on one of the major questions in regenerative medicine, bioengineering, and sensory augmentation research. "One of the big challenges is to understand how the brain and body adapt to large changes in organization," says Douglas J. Blackiston, Ph.D... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Even Organic Foods Not Stored, Prepared Or Cooked In Plastic Containers Can Contain Phthalates And Bisphenol A

While water bottles may tout BPA-free labels and personal care products declare phthalates not among their ingredients, these assurances may not be enough. According to a study published February 27 in the Nature Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, people may be exposed to these chemicals in their diets, even if their meals are organic and foods are prepared, cooked and stored in non-plastic containers. And children may be most vulnerable. "Current information we give families may not be enough to reduce exposures," said Dr... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Hike in India's Health Budget

A hike in India's health budget has been proposed by Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. A hike by over 28 percent in 2013-14 to Rs.37,330 crore (Rs.373 million), with special focus on medical education, training and research. Making the announcement Thursday, Chidambaram said the focus of the government was "health for all". He said the new National Health Mission that combines the rural mission and the proposed urban mission would get Rs.21,239 ...

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Mike Huckabee Against Health Insurance Coverage for Cancer Patients

In an appearance on 'Fox and Friends' on Feb. 23, Fox News host and self-proclaimed Christian Mike Huckabee claimed that people with pre-existing conditions, including those with cancer, should not get health insurance coverage because it would financially hurt the health insurance industry According to MediaMatters.org, Huckabee, blamed the rising costs of health care on "a combination of increasing the benefits and forcing [insurance companies] to put people ...

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WHO: Small cancer risk after Fukushima accident

LONDON (AP) — A new report from the World Health Organization says people exposed to the highest doses of radiation during the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in 2011 may have a slightly higher risk of cancer that is so small it probably won't be detectable. via Health News Headlines - Yahoo! News Read More Here..

Cancer risks higher in worst hit Fukushima area: WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) - People in the area worst contaminated by radioactive material released by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident two years ago have a higher risk of developing certain cancers over their lifetime, the World Health Organisation said on Thursday. "This health risk assessment concludes that no discernible increase in health risks from the Fukushima event is expected outside Japan. ...

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Army withholding findings of Madigan PTSD probe

The results of a months-long investigation into the reversal of post-traumatic stress disorder diagnoses at Madigan Army Medical Center are being kept confidential. via NBCNews.com: Mental health Check Here

Cancer risks higher in worst hit Fukushima area: WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) - People in the area worst contaminated by radioactive material released by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident two years ago have a higher risk of developing certain cancers over their lifetime, the World Health Organisation said on Thursday.

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Medical students may lose foundation places

All August placements on hold until application ‘chaos’ sorted out Related items from OnMedica Doctors’ foundation training programme oversubscribed Scottish medical students get financial support Young doctors call for urgent medical workforce review Payments for NHS training come under fire Commitment to safeguard medical graduate jobs

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Breast Cancer Stem Cells Express HER2, Even In 'Negative' Tumors, Study Finds

New research from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center finds that the protein HER2 plays a role even in breast cancers that would traditionally be categorized as HER2-negative - and that the drug Herceptin, which targets HER2, may have an even greater role for treating breast cancer and preventing its spread. About 20 percent of women with breast cancer have tumors labeled HER2-positive... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Pregnant Women Infected With Syphilis Estimated At Over A Million World-Wide

Syphilis still affects large numbers of pregnant women world-wide, causing serious health problems and even death to their babies, yet this infection could be prevented by early testing and treatment, according to a study by international researchers published in this week's PLOS Medicine. Researchers, led by Lori Newman from the World Health Organization, estimate that in 2008, 1.4 million pregnant women around the world were infected with syphilis, 80% of whom had attended antenatal care services... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Development Of Life-Saving Tools Against Major Killers Could Be Jeopardized By US Budget Cuts

Across-the-board cuts to US R&D programs could have a devastating impact on efforts to develop new drugs for tuberculosis (TB) and HIV/AIDS, the world's first malaria vaccine, and other vital global health products in development, according to a new report from a coalition of nonprofit groups focused on advancing innovation to save lives. "We know that policymakers are currently facing difficult budget decisions... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

New Super-Nutritious Puffed Rice For Breakfast Cereals, Snacks: American Chemical Society Podcast

The latest episode in the American Chemical Society's (ACS') award-winning Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions podcast series reports a new process for blowing up grains of rice to produce a super-nutritious form of puffed rice, with three times more protein and a rich endowment of other nutrients. That makes it ideal for breakfast cereals, snack foods and nutrient bars for school lunch programs. Based on a report by Syed S.H. Rizvi, Ph.D., and colleagues in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the new podcast is available without charge at iTunes* and from Global Challenges... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Physicist Takes Nature As His Model For An Artificial Brain

Scientists have long been dreaming about building a computer that would work like a brain. This is because a brain is far more energy-saving than a computer, it can learn by itself, and it doesn't need any programming. Privatdozent [senior lecturer] Dr. Andy Thomas from Bielefeld University's Faculty of Physics is experimenting with memristors - electronic microcomponents that imitate natural nerves. Thomas and his colleagues proved that they could do this a year ago. They constructed a memristor that is capable of learning... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Medical Students And Residents Have Frequent Interactions With Pharmaceutical Companies, Survey Reveals

A first-of-its kind national survey of medical students and residents finds that despite recent efforts by medical schools and academic medical centers to restrict access of pharmaceutical sales representatives to medical trainees, medical students and residents still commonly receive meals, gifts, and industry-sponsored educational materials. The study was completed by a team of researchers led by fourth-year Harvard Medical School student Kirsten Austad and Aaron Kesselheim, M.D., J.D., M.P.H... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Stool Transplants Highly Efficient For Clostridium difficile Infections And Other Gastrointestinal Conditions

Clostridium difficile infections have developed into a virtual pandemic over the past two decades. The outcome of standard antibiotic treatment is unsatisfactory: the recurrence rates are high with every relapse increasing the risk of further follow-ups. Faecal microbiota transplantation offers a rapidly acting and highly effective alternative in treating recurrent Clostridium difficile infections (RCDI), as Professor Lawrence J. Brandt (Montefiore Medical Center, New York, USA) points out... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

New Lens-Free Imaging System Enables Firefighters To See Previously Hidden Details, Help Them To Save Lives

Firefighters put their lives on the line in some of the most dangerous conditions on Earth. One of their greatest challenges, however, is seeing through thick veils of smoke and walls of flame to find people in need of rescue. A team of Italian researchers has developed a new imaging technique that uses infrared (IR) digital holography to peer through chaotic conflagrations and capture potentially lifesaving and otherwise hidden details. The team describes its breakthrough results and their applications in a paper published in the Optical Society's (OSA) open-access journal Optics Express... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Targeting Lung And Colon Cancers And Glioblastoma Using New Photon-Counting Technique

For scientists to improve cancer treatments with targeted therapeutic drugs, they need to be able to see proteins prevalent in the cancer cells. This has been impossible, until now. Thanks to a new microscopy technique, University of Akron researcher Dr. Adam Smith, assistant professor of chemistry, has observed how clusters of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) - a protein abundant in lung and colon cancers, glioblastoma and others - malfunctions in cancer cells. "We can directly observe protein clusters, in a living cell membrane, that are invisible to traditional methods... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Discovery Could Hold Key To Cause Of Rare Muscle Disease And Other Inherited Diseases

Fresh insights into the protective seal that surrounds the DNA of our cells could help develop treatments for inherited muscle, brain, bone and skin disorders. Researchers have discovered that the proteins within this coating - known as the nuclear envelope - vary greatly between cells in different organs of the body. This variation means that certain disease causing proteins will interact with the proteins in the protective seal to cause illness in some organs, but not others... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Even Without A Globally Led Eradication Program, Research Suggests Malaria Can Still Be Defeated

A researcher at the University of Southampton, working as part of a team from the UK and USA, believes the global eradication of malaria could be achieved by individual countries eliminating the disease within their own borders and coordinating efforts regionally. The team's findings have been published in the journal Science. Dr Andrew Tatem explains, "In 1955 a global programme was launched to eradicate Malaria, but funding collapsed in 1969 and ultimately eradication wasn't achieved... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

Pregnant Women Need Help When Morning Sickness Lasts All Day

Severe nausea during pregnancy can be fatal, yet very little is known about this condition. Hormonal, genetic and socio-economic factors may all play a role. Almost all women experience some nausea or vomiting when pregnant. Approximately one out of every hundred suffers from acute nausea during pregnancy (hyperemesis gravidarum) and may need hospital treatment to restore hydration, electrolytes and vitamins intravenously. "At worst, women may die if they go untreated... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..

When Pain Can Be A Relief

When something causes less pain than expected it is even possible for it to feel pleasant, a new study reveals. These findings may one day play a key role in treating pain and substance abuse. If you accidently kick your toe against a doorframe you are probably going to find it very painful. As a purely intellectual experiment, imagine purposefully kicking a doorframe hard enough to potentially break your toe. When it turns out your toe has been battered but not broken, the pain may be interpreted more as a relief... via Health News from Medical News Today Read More Here..