A new blood test that can give an early diagnosis of neurodegenerative disease and distinguish between Parkinsons and Alzheimers disease could be launched this summer, reports Marina Murphy in SCIs Chemistry & Industry magazine.
Small changes in schools lead to big results when it comes to preventing childhood obesity, according to a study published in the April issue of Pediatrics. The school-based intervention, which reduced the incidence of overweight by 50 percent, offers a potential means of preventing childhood weight gain and obesity on a large scale.
CHAPEL HILL Children who are neglected before their second birthday display higher levels of aggressive behavior between ages 4 and 8, according to a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study, published today in the journal Pediatrics.
Early child neglect may be as important as child abuse for predicting aggressive behavior, researchers say. Neglect accounts for nearly two-thirds of all child maltreatment cases reported in the United States each year, according to the Administration for Children and Families.
PHILADELPHIA, April 7, 2008 News stories about an allegedly harmful link between the mumps, measles and rubella vaccine and the onset of autism had little effect on whether U.S. parents immunized their children, according to a review of immunization records and news stories. Parents decisions were more likely influenced by recommendations from their childs pediatrician, the researchers said.
University of Minnesota School of Public Health researchers have found that older adolescents who have a bedroom television are less likely to engage in healthy activities such as exercising, eating fruits or vegetables, and enjoying family meals. They also consumed larger quantities of sweetened beverages and fast food, were categorized as heavy TV watchers, and read or studied less than teens without TVs in their bedrooms.
The latest issue of The Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences (Vol. 63, No. 3) features a special section devoted to the phenomenon of multidimensional geriatric assessment - an interdisciplinary diagnostic process to determine the medical, psychological, and functional status of at-risk and frail elderly patients in order to develop a coordinated, integrated plan for treatment and long-term follow-up.
Schoolchildren who required surgery as infants for congenital heart disease (CHD) run a significant risk of having problems with inattention and hyperactivity, and often require remedial services in school. These children are at risk for academic and behavior problems, and our findings reinforce how important it is to provide them with ongoing follow-up and neurodevelopmental screening, said study leader Amanda J. Shillingford, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist at The Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia.
Despite their reputation for deadly attacks on humans and pets, alligators are wiggling their way toward a new role as potential lifesavers in medicine, biochemists in Louisiana reported today at the 235th national meeting of the American Chemical Society. They described how proteins in gator blood may provide a source of powerful new antibiotics to help fight infections associated with diabetic ulcers, severe burns, and “superbugs” that are resistant to conventional medication.
Scientists in Texas are reporting development of an highly dependable, rapid, and inexpensive new method for identifying the presence of gunshot residue (GSR). The test fills a GSR-detection gap that results from wider use of “green” — lead free — ammunition.
It requires only a single speck of GSR smaller than the period at the end of this sentence and could boost the accuracy of one of the most widely used tests employed at crime scenes involving gunplay.
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