From CBC News:
People with multiple sclerosis may someday have the option of taking a pill for the disease instead of the injections available now.
But the oral treatments under study also carry potentially dangerous side-effects, two new studies suggest.
The studies in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine suggest the oral drugs work to reduce relapses and deterioration of the neurodegenerative disease, which attacks the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms of MS include inflammation, paralysis and problems with speech, memory and concentration.
Current treatment therapies, which include the injection of drugs such as interferon, show good results but become tiresome for the patients in the long term, researchers say. ...more
Showing posts with label research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label research. Show all posts
Monday, January 25, 2010
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Steady Drop in Hip Fractures
From the New York Times:
Rates of hip fractures, an often devastating consequence of osteoporosis, have been steadily falling for two decades in Canada, a new study finds. And a similar trend occurred in the United States, researchers found. But it is not clear why.
Skip to next paragraph
Drugs that slow the rate of bone loss may be part of the reason, but they cannot be the entire explanation, osteoporosis researchers say. And although experts can point to other possible factors — like fall prevention efforts and a heavier population — the declining rates remain a medical mystery.
The new study, published Wednesday in The Journal of the American Medical Association, analyzed Canadian hospitalization data. From 1985 through 2005, the researchers report, hip fracture rates, adjusted for the age of the population, fell by 32 percent in women and by 25 percent in men. ...more
Rates of hip fractures, an often devastating consequence of osteoporosis, have been steadily falling for two decades in Canada, a new study finds. And a similar trend occurred in the United States, researchers found. But it is not clear why.
Skip to next paragraph
Drugs that slow the rate of bone loss may be part of the reason, but they cannot be the entire explanation, osteoporosis researchers say. And although experts can point to other possible factors — like fall prevention efforts and a heavier population — the declining rates remain a medical mystery.
The new study, published Wednesday in The Journal of the American Medical Association, analyzed Canadian hospitalization data. From 1985 through 2005, the researchers report, hip fracture rates, adjusted for the age of the population, fell by 32 percent in women and by 25 percent in men. ...more
Monday, July 06, 2009
Canadian-made HIV vaccine close to human trial
From the National Post:
It has been 20 years in the making but researchers at the University of Western Ontario say they're confident their HIV vaccine is only months away from being approved for human trials.
Lead researcher Dr. Chil-Yong Kang said Thursday the approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration can come as soon as two or three months.
"We've been working on the HIV virus since 1987. This is a very important day for us," Dr. Kang said while attending a conference in South Korea. "It is a very important milestone for us, this vaccine."
The SAV001-H vaccine has already been tested on monkeys and rats with no side effects. ...more
It has been 20 years in the making but researchers at the University of Western Ontario say they're confident their HIV vaccine is only months away from being approved for human trials.
Lead researcher Dr. Chil-Yong Kang said Thursday the approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration can come as soon as two or three months.
"We've been working on the HIV virus since 1987. This is a very important day for us," Dr. Kang said while attending a conference in South Korea. "It is a very important milestone for us, this vaccine."
The SAV001-H vaccine has already been tested on monkeys and rats with no side effects. ...more
Friday, June 26, 2009
Firm has high hopes for blockbuster drug
From the St. Catharines (Ont.) Standard:
The clinical setting inside Biolyse Pharma Corp. resembles the space-plague movie The Andromeda Strain.
Except this St. Catharines firm is developing what could be a real miracle drug for a horrible earthly disease.
In lab tests, the as-yet-unamed drug so far seems to kill all cancer cells; if it continues to perform as well in human trials, it could revolutionize cancer treatment, generate billions of dollars for Biolyse and create hundreds of new jobs in St. Catharines.
Biolyse executive vice-president John Fulton is more blunt: “I’ve heard talk in the labs referring to this as the Holy Grail of cancer drugs.” ...more
The clinical setting inside Biolyse Pharma Corp. resembles the space-plague movie The Andromeda Strain.
Except this St. Catharines firm is developing what could be a real miracle drug for a horrible earthly disease.
In lab tests, the as-yet-unamed drug so far seems to kill all cancer cells; if it continues to perform as well in human trials, it could revolutionize cancer treatment, generate billions of dollars for Biolyse and create hundreds of new jobs in St. Catharines.
Biolyse executive vice-president John Fulton is more blunt: “I’ve heard talk in the labs referring to this as the Holy Grail of cancer drugs.” ...more
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Researchers work to erase women's hormone-replacement fear
From the Ottawa Citizen:
A research team led by Ottawa scientists is creating and testing synthetic hormones to take the fear out of hormone-replacement therapy for menopausal women.
There's a lot at stake, from the well-being of women to a pharmaceutical market worth billions a year.
"There are plenty of women who would like to have such a drug," said Carleton University Professor Jim Wright, a chemist.
Wright and the research team, led by Tony Durst at the University of Ottawa, have just received a $267,000 research grant from the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. It could lead to the creation of a blockbuster new drug.
About a decade ago, hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) was touted as a magic bullet for many menopausal women. HRT boosts hormone levels and helps to reduce the symptoms of menopause, from hot flashes to osteoporosis, the brittle-bone disease that can be deadly because it leads to serious fractures. About one in three women who sustain hip fractures from osteoporosis die within a year. ...more
A research team led by Ottawa scientists is creating and testing synthetic hormones to take the fear out of hormone-replacement therapy for menopausal women.
There's a lot at stake, from the well-being of women to a pharmaceutical market worth billions a year.
"There are plenty of women who would like to have such a drug," said Carleton University Professor Jim Wright, a chemist.
Wright and the research team, led by Tony Durst at the University of Ottawa, have just received a $267,000 research grant from the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. It could lead to the creation of a blockbuster new drug.
About a decade ago, hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) was touted as a magic bullet for many menopausal women. HRT boosts hormone levels and helps to reduce the symptoms of menopause, from hot flashes to osteoporosis, the brittle-bone disease that can be deadly because it leads to serious fractures. About one in three women who sustain hip fractures from osteoporosis die within a year. ...more
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Automated telephone reminders pay off for blood pressure patients: study
From CBC News:
Automated telephone call reminders helped people with high blood pressure to lower their readings compared with people who did not receive the calls, researchers in Montreal found.
In the one-year study to be published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 223 patients with hypertension were randomly assigned to receive calls from a computer-based system at least once a week with high readings sent to their doctors or receive an educational booklet and usual medical care.
"Forty-six per cent were controlled, achieved the target, versus 28 per cent without the system," senior author Dr. Pavel Hamet, a professor of medicine, physiology and nutrition at the University of Montreal, said Tuesday.
The improvement was "highly significant," and the system worked as well as adding a new medication, Hamet said. ...more
Automated telephone call reminders helped people with high blood pressure to lower their readings compared with people who did not receive the calls, researchers in Montreal found.
In the one-year study to be published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 223 patients with hypertension were randomly assigned to receive calls from a computer-based system at least once a week with high readings sent to their doctors or receive an educational booklet and usual medical care.
"Forty-six per cent were controlled, achieved the target, versus 28 per cent without the system," senior author Dr. Pavel Hamet, a professor of medicine, physiology and nutrition at the University of Montreal, said Tuesday.
The improvement was "highly significant," and the system worked as well as adding a new medication, Hamet said. ...more
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Study on cholesterol drugs raises ethical questions
From the Calgary Herald:
Quebec doctors are being offered $100 for every new patient they put on cholesterol-lowering statin drugs as part of a major, federally subsidized study that's raising questions about the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on health research.
Critics say the OBSTAT trial seems more about drug marketing than science, getting thousands more people to take an already popular medicine.
Statins are among the most successful medications in history, with Lipitor — Canada's top-selling prescription drug — racking up almost $1.4 billion in national sales in 2008. There is ample evidence that, by cutting levels of blood cholesterol, they lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes in people already diagnosed with cardiovascular disease.
Whether they work well as primary prevention — for people who have high levels of cholesterol but don't have heart disease yet — is more debatable, though millions of such patients are taking them.
Considered relatively safe, the drugs can nevertheless cause muscle pain — sometimes severe — and other side effects. ...more
Quebec doctors are being offered $100 for every new patient they put on cholesterol-lowering statin drugs as part of a major, federally subsidized study that's raising questions about the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on health research.
Critics say the OBSTAT trial seems more about drug marketing than science, getting thousands more people to take an already popular medicine.
Statins are among the most successful medications in history, with Lipitor — Canada's top-selling prescription drug — racking up almost $1.4 billion in national sales in 2008. There is ample evidence that, by cutting levels of blood cholesterol, they lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes in people already diagnosed with cardiovascular disease.
Whether they work well as primary prevention — for people who have high levels of cholesterol but don't have heart disease yet — is more debatable, though millions of such patients are taking them.
Considered relatively safe, the drugs can nevertheless cause muscle pain — sometimes severe — and other side effects. ...more
Secrecy slowing drug research
From the Toronto Star:
It takes a big brain and a big-time swagger to transform the drug industry. And Aled Edwards – a renowned University of Toronto biochemist and respected laboratory leader – employs both to change the way drugs get into your medicine cabinet.
The 47-year-old researcher says the current method of creating drugs – one shrouded in secrecy and driven by patents and money-making – has failed. Too few medicines have come to market in the past 30 years, which means too many people still get sick and die from disease.
Edwards believes the only way to get more medicines to patients is for industry and academia to work together – and to post all their findings free on the Internet.
It is a groundbreaking idea – one many said would be anathema to the billion-dollar drug industry, which for decades has thrived on the spoils of patented blockbuster drugs. ...more
It takes a big brain and a big-time swagger to transform the drug industry. And Aled Edwards – a renowned University of Toronto biochemist and respected laboratory leader – employs both to change the way drugs get into your medicine cabinet.
The 47-year-old researcher says the current method of creating drugs – one shrouded in secrecy and driven by patents and money-making – has failed. Too few medicines have come to market in the past 30 years, which means too many people still get sick and die from disease.
Edwards believes the only way to get more medicines to patients is for industry and academia to work together – and to post all their findings free on the Internet.
It is a groundbreaking idea – one many said would be anathema to the billion-dollar drug industry, which for decades has thrived on the spoils of patented blockbuster drugs. ...more
Fish oil pills don't boost benefit of heart drugs
From the Associated Press:
Heart attack patients who are already taking the right medicines to prevent future problems get no added benefit from taking fish oil capsules, a large study in Germany finds.
The study tested a 1-gram daily dose of a prescription version of highly purified omega-3 fatty acid — the "good fat" contained in certain oily fish that is thought to help the heart.
Researchers led by Dr. Jochen Senges of the University of Heidelberg gave fish oil or dummy capsules to more than 3,800 people who had suffered a heart attack in the previous two weeks. About 90 percent were already receiving all the medicines recommended to prevent a second attack, including aspirin, anti-clotting and cholesterol drugs.
After a year, it made no difference whether these patients took fish oil or dummy capsules. In both groups, fewer than 2 percent had suffered sudden cardiac death, 4 percent had another heart attack, and fewer than 2 percent had suffered a stroke.
If recent heart attack patients are already getting good care, "there is almost nothing you can do better on top of this" to further lower risk, Senges said. He presented the results Monday at an American College of Cardiology conference. ...more
Heart attack patients who are already taking the right medicines to prevent future problems get no added benefit from taking fish oil capsules, a large study in Germany finds.
The study tested a 1-gram daily dose of a prescription version of highly purified omega-3 fatty acid — the "good fat" contained in certain oily fish that is thought to help the heart.
Researchers led by Dr. Jochen Senges of the University of Heidelberg gave fish oil or dummy capsules to more than 3,800 people who had suffered a heart attack in the previous two weeks. About 90 percent were already receiving all the medicines recommended to prevent a second attack, including aspirin, anti-clotting and cholesterol drugs.
After a year, it made no difference whether these patients took fish oil or dummy capsules. In both groups, fewer than 2 percent had suffered sudden cardiac death, 4 percent had another heart attack, and fewer than 2 percent had suffered a stroke.
If recent heart attack patients are already getting good care, "there is almost nothing you can do better on top of this" to further lower risk, Senges said. He presented the results Monday at an American College of Cardiology conference. ...more
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
'Polypill' could reduce heart disease, stroke: Researchers
This article mentions the polypill, but doesn't break down the ingredients. Here it is: atenolol 50mg, ramapril 5mg, ASA 100mg, simvastatin 20mg and hydrochlorothiazide 12.5mg.
From the Calgary Herald:
Canadian researchers say a single, daily pill combining five medicines could potentially cut by half the number of heart attacks and strokes in middle-aged people.
The pill — called Polycap — is a cocktail of three blood-pressure lowering drugs, Aspirin to reduce blood clotting and a cholesterol-lowering drug. In tests involving more than 2,000 people in India, each component of the pill did what it was supposed to do.
In addition, the Polycap was generally well tolerated. There was no evidence of increasing side effects with increasing number of active components in one pill.
The 12-week study wasn't designed to see whether the "polypill" actually reduced heart attacks, stroke and death. Larger numbers of people would need to be treated with a longer followup.
But the findings suggest the pill could potentially reduce cardiovascular heart disease by 62 per cent, and stroke by 48 per cent, researchers from McMaster University in Hamilton and St. John's Medical College in Bangalore, India write in the journal, The Lancet. The study is to be presented Tuesday at the American College of Cardiology meeting in Florida. ...more
Sunday, March 29, 2009
New study pinpoints prescription error problems
From CTV News:
Every day, pharmacists find errors on physician prescriptions; most are corrected and quickly forgotten. Now a new study is counting those errors -- and the results are surprising.
Under a unique program, pharmacists in Nova Scotia are now tracking and reporting what they call "near hits" - those mistakes that patients never hear about but ones that -- had they not been caught -- could have sent the wrong medication or the wrong dose to a patient.
The ongoing study recruited 13 pharmacies across Nova Scotia, asking workers there to keep track of the errors and near-errors they encounter. They were then asked to report the errors anonymously using an online reporting tool.
In just eight months, the pharmacists at the 13 drug stores have reported 813 potential medication errors.
Dr. Neil MacKinnon, an associate professor at the College of Pharmacy at Dalhousie University, helped launch the study, called SafetyNET. He notes that all of the reported errors were caught in time and corrected before they got to the patient. ...more
Every day, pharmacists find errors on physician prescriptions; most are corrected and quickly forgotten. Now a new study is counting those errors -- and the results are surprising.
Under a unique program, pharmacists in Nova Scotia are now tracking and reporting what they call "near hits" - those mistakes that patients never hear about but ones that -- had they not been caught -- could have sent the wrong medication or the wrong dose to a patient.
The ongoing study recruited 13 pharmacies across Nova Scotia, asking workers there to keep track of the errors and near-errors they encounter. They were then asked to report the errors anonymously using an online reporting tool.
In just eight months, the pharmacists at the 13 drug stores have reported 813 potential medication errors.
Dr. Neil MacKinnon, an associate professor at the College of Pharmacy at Dalhousie University, helped launch the study, called SafetyNET. He notes that all of the reported errors were caught in time and corrected before they got to the patient. ...more
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Personalized medicines could change prescribing practices
From CBC News:
Much of the $30 billion that Canadians spend on drugs every year is wasted, but personalized medicines could revolutionize the way doctors prescribe, a biopharmaceutical researcher says.
People have genetic differences that determine how their bodies react to drugs such as warfarin or Coumadin, a blood thinner taken to prevent clotting. It is tricky to get the dosing right, because too little has no effect but too much can cause bleeding.
"Maybe you need more or maybe you have too much," said Serge Carriere, a healthy 70-year-old in Montreal who takes warfarin because he is at high risk for stroke. "It depends on the individual, the way they metabolize the drug."
Dr. Jean-Claude Tardif of the Montreal Heart Institute is testing the use of genetic analysis to help tailor drug dosages for patients like Carriere. ...more
Much of the $30 billion that Canadians spend on drugs every year is wasted, but personalized medicines could revolutionize the way doctors prescribe, a biopharmaceutical researcher says.
People have genetic differences that determine how their bodies react to drugs such as warfarin or Coumadin, a blood thinner taken to prevent clotting. It is tricky to get the dosing right, because too little has no effect but too much can cause bleeding.
"Maybe you need more or maybe you have too much," said Serge Carriere, a healthy 70-year-old in Montreal who takes warfarin because he is at high risk for stroke. "It depends on the individual, the way they metabolize the drug."
Dr. Jean-Claude Tardif of the Montreal Heart Institute is testing the use of genetic analysis to help tailor drug dosages for patients like Carriere. ...more
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Heavy drinking-prostate cancer link confirmed
From CTV News:
Men who drink 14 or more drinks a week are 20 per cent more likely to develop prostate cancer, according to an international review co-authored by a University of Victoria researcher.
The results, published in Molecular Nutrition and Food Research, provides more concrete evidence of the link between alcohol and prostate cancer - a link that has remained controversial.
Tim Stockwell, director of the University of Victoria's Centre for Addictions Research of B.C., along with research teams from the U.S. and Australia reviewed 35 previously published studies that linked drinking and the risk of developing prostate cancer.
The studies that Stockwell and his colleagues examined included "cohort studies", which measure people at one point in time and then re-measure them later to see if their drinking, smoking or exercise is associated with the incidence of disease. ...more
Men who drink 14 or more drinks a week are 20 per cent more likely to develop prostate cancer, according to an international review co-authored by a University of Victoria researcher.
The results, published in Molecular Nutrition and Food Research, provides more concrete evidence of the link between alcohol and prostate cancer - a link that has remained controversial.
Tim Stockwell, director of the University of Victoria's Centre for Addictions Research of B.C., along with research teams from the U.S. and Australia reviewed 35 previously published studies that linked drinking and the risk of developing prostate cancer.
The studies that Stockwell and his colleagues examined included "cohort studies", which measure people at one point in time and then re-measure them later to see if their drinking, smoking or exercise is associated with the incidence of disease. ...more
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Researchers explore supersized doses
From the Globe and Mail:
Researchers are taking a fresh look at vitamin D - the over-the-counter supplement much-ballyhooed as a way to prevent diseases - to determine whether it could be effective as a medical treatment for those who already have chronic illnesses such as cancer.
Although the investigations are in their early stages, any successful outcomes could be a major health breakthrough, giving patients an inexpensive treatment option that's as close as the nearest pharmacy.
Already the so-called sunshine vitamin is glowing brightly in medical circles, with recent studies showing its efficacy in preventing everything from cancer to the flu. Typical of the recent investigations was one conducted at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, where multiple sclerosis patients received one of the largest vitamin D doses ever dispensed in a clinical setting.
It yielded some tantalizing evidence that supersizing the nutrient helps calm symptoms of the neurological disease. ...more
Researchers are taking a fresh look at vitamin D - the over-the-counter supplement much-ballyhooed as a way to prevent diseases - to determine whether it could be effective as a medical treatment for those who already have chronic illnesses such as cancer.
Although the investigations are in their early stages, any successful outcomes could be a major health breakthrough, giving patients an inexpensive treatment option that's as close as the nearest pharmacy.
Already the so-called sunshine vitamin is glowing brightly in medical circles, with recent studies showing its efficacy in preventing everything from cancer to the flu. Typical of the recent investigations was one conducted at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, where multiple sclerosis patients received one of the largest vitamin D doses ever dispensed in a clinical setting.
It yielded some tantalizing evidence that supersizing the nutrient helps calm symptoms of the neurological disease. ...more
Vitamin C may protect against gout
From the Guardian (UK):
Getting plenty of vitamin C in your diet may protect against painful attacks of gout, researchers have found. The study showed that men who consumed the most vitamin C, from fruit and vegetables or from supplements, were less likely than other men to get gout.
Gout is a very painful condition causing swelling and stiffness in the joints. It usually affects the big toe joint and can make walking difficult. Gout is quite prevalent, with about 1 in 100 people getting it at some point in life, and is far more common in men than women. It tends to occur in men over 40, especially those who are overweight. Unfortunately, there are few good treatments. The pain is treated mainly with painkillers. ...more
Getting plenty of vitamin C in your diet may protect against painful attacks of gout, researchers have found. The study showed that men who consumed the most vitamin C, from fruit and vegetables or from supplements, were less likely than other men to get gout.
Gout is a very painful condition causing swelling and stiffness in the joints. It usually affects the big toe joint and can make walking difficult. Gout is quite prevalent, with about 1 in 100 people getting it at some point in life, and is far more common in men than women. It tends to occur in men over 40, especially those who are overweight. Unfortunately, there are few good treatments. The pain is treated mainly with painkillers. ...more
'Don't stop asthma meds in pregnancy'
From IrishHealth.com:
Pregnant women who have asthma run a greater risk of giving birth prematurely if they stop taking their asthma medication, the results of a new study indicate.
According to researchers at the University of Montreal in Canada, ‘many pregnant women cease taking their asthma medication to protect the health of their child. However, they don't know that unchecked asthma can cause greater harm to the child than the medication’.
The researchers also pointed out that there is no link between taking asthma medication, such as Ventolin, and any congenital birth defect.
The study involved 13,000 pregnant women who consulted a doctor about asthma between 1990 and 2002. The Canadian team analysed the medication used by these women and their rate of admission to hospital following visits to A&E.
It found that those who suspended their asthma treatment during pregnancy were more likely to give birth prematurely. The probability of suffering from hypertension (high blood pressure) during pregnancy also increased among those who stopped taking their medication. ...more
Pregnant women who have asthma run a greater risk of giving birth prematurely if they stop taking their asthma medication, the results of a new study indicate.
According to researchers at the University of Montreal in Canada, ‘many pregnant women cease taking their asthma medication to protect the health of their child. However, they don't know that unchecked asthma can cause greater harm to the child than the medication’.
The researchers also pointed out that there is no link between taking asthma medication, such as Ventolin, and any congenital birth defect.
The study involved 13,000 pregnant women who consulted a doctor about asthma between 1990 and 2002. The Canadian team analysed the medication used by these women and their rate of admission to hospital following visits to A&E.
It found that those who suspended their asthma treatment during pregnancy were more likely to give birth prematurely. The probability of suffering from hypertension (high blood pressure) during pregnancy also increased among those who stopped taking their medication. ...more
Monday, March 09, 2009
Birth-control pills, low birth weight linked
From the National Post:
Women who get pregnant within a few weeks of taking birth-control pills seem much more likely than others to have low birth-weight or premature babies, concludes a new Canadian study that deals with one of the most widely prescribed classes of drugs.
The findings suggest couples should consider using condoms and other "barrier" contraception methods in the month before they try to conceive, say the researchers from the University of Ottawa.
The study does not definitively prove a cause-and-effect relationship and needs to be confirmed by more research, said the lead investigator. It is also unclear why oral contraceptives might affect the development of the fetus, added Xi-Kuan Chen, an epidemiologist.
The findings should not be ignored, though, he said.
"Doctors should be bringing this to the attention of patients," said Mr. Chen, who is also a senior analyst with the Canadian Institute for Health Information. "When they consult with some patients, they should suggest there might be some effect for them." ...more
Women who get pregnant within a few weeks of taking birth-control pills seem much more likely than others to have low birth-weight or premature babies, concludes a new Canadian study that deals with one of the most widely prescribed classes of drugs.
The findings suggest couples should consider using condoms and other "barrier" contraception methods in the month before they try to conceive, say the researchers from the University of Ottawa.
The study does not definitively prove a cause-and-effect relationship and needs to be confirmed by more research, said the lead investigator. It is also unclear why oral contraceptives might affect the development of the fetus, added Xi-Kuan Chen, an epidemiologist.
The findings should not be ignored, though, he said.
"Doctors should be bringing this to the attention of patients," said Mr. Chen, who is also a senior analyst with the Canadian Institute for Health Information. "When they consult with some patients, they should suggest there might be some effect for them." ...more
A little bit of sugar provides lasting pain relief for babies: study
From CBC News:
Sugar has a calming effect on babies that lasts beyond 10 minutes, new Toronto research suggests.
Researchers at the Hospital for Sick Children, the University of Toronto, Mount Sinai Hospital and York University studied 240 babies and their reactions after half were given sugar and the other half were given a placebo following a painful medical procedure.
The research involved measuring the "pain responses" of the babies during a diaper change after a blood test, including recording their heart rate and facial reactions, such as squeezing their eyes shut and bulging their brows.
The findings, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, determined that while babies cried during a diaper change after a blood test, giving them a bit of sugar after the needle appeared to dull the pain.
The majority of the babies in both the group given the sugar and the group given a placebo were given a diaper change within an hour of the blood test.
The infants given table sugar, or sucrose, had lower pain scores than the infants given placebos. ...more
Sugar has a calming effect on babies that lasts beyond 10 minutes, new Toronto research suggests.
Researchers at the Hospital for Sick Children, the University of Toronto, Mount Sinai Hospital and York University studied 240 babies and their reactions after half were given sugar and the other half were given a placebo following a painful medical procedure.
The research involved measuring the "pain responses" of the babies during a diaper change after a blood test, including recording their heart rate and facial reactions, such as squeezing their eyes shut and bulging their brows.
The findings, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, determined that while babies cried during a diaper change after a blood test, giving them a bit of sugar after the needle appeared to dull the pain.
The majority of the babies in both the group given the sugar and the group given a placebo were given a diaper change within an hour of the blood test.
The infants given table sugar, or sucrose, had lower pain scores than the infants given placebos. ...more
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
HIV drug could raise heart attack risk
From the Irish Times:
A widely used anti-HIV drug could raise heart attack risk by encouraging blood clots to form, according to a new study by Irish scientists that was unveiled at a major international conference in Canada last week.
The Dublin-based researchers showed that patients on the anti-viral drug Abacavir have stickier blood platelets – which can clump to form clots – than patients who are not taking that drug as part of their therapy.
HIV infection itself is thought to increase heart attack risk, but last year a Danish-led study of more than 30,000 HIV-infected patients found that Abacavir appeared to almost double that risk, said Dr Paddy Mallon, consultant in infectious diseases at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital and a lecturer in medicine at University College Dublin. ...more
A widely used anti-HIV drug could raise heart attack risk by encouraging blood clots to form, according to a new study by Irish scientists that was unveiled at a major international conference in Canada last week.
The Dublin-based researchers showed that patients on the anti-viral drug Abacavir have stickier blood platelets – which can clump to form clots – than patients who are not taking that drug as part of their therapy.
HIV infection itself is thought to increase heart attack risk, but last year a Danish-led study of more than 30,000 HIV-infected patients found that Abacavir appeared to almost double that risk, said Dr Paddy Mallon, consultant in infectious diseases at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital and a lecturer in medicine at University College Dublin. ...more
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
New heart drug offers hope
From the Hamilton Spectator:
Hamilton doctors can calm a heart beating dangerously fast with a new drug expected to drastically improve the chances of surviving a common heart condition.
The drug Dronedarone cuts by 25 per cent the number of cardiac deaths and hospitalizations from atrial fibrillation, which is an abnormal heart rhythm afflicting about one per cent of the population.
The ATHENA study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine holds the hope of a treatment with far fewer side effects and better results.
“This study was spectacularly positive,” said Dr. Stuart Connolly, principal investigator of the ATHENA study and head of cardiology at Hamilton Health Sciences. “This is a very important finding.”
The drug is not yet available, but is expected to be approved in Canada in the next year or so. ...more
Hamilton doctors can calm a heart beating dangerously fast with a new drug expected to drastically improve the chances of surviving a common heart condition.
The drug Dronedarone cuts by 25 per cent the number of cardiac deaths and hospitalizations from atrial fibrillation, which is an abnormal heart rhythm afflicting about one per cent of the population.
The ATHENA study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine holds the hope of a treatment with far fewer side effects and better results.
“This study was spectacularly positive,” said Dr. Stuart Connolly, principal investigator of the ATHENA study and head of cardiology at Hamilton Health Sciences. “This is a very important finding.”
The drug is not yet available, but is expected to be approved in Canada in the next year or so. ...more
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