Body

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Men in steady same-sex relationships where both partners are HIV negative will often forgo condoms out of a desire to preserve intimacy, even if they also have sex outside the relationship. But the risk of HIV still lurks.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (August 19, 2014) — Daylight was breaking over the central Pacific and coffee brewing aboard the MY Hanse Explorer. Between sips, about a dozen scientists strategized for the day ahead. Some would don wetsuits and slip below the surface to collect water samples around the southern Line Islands' numerous coral reefs. Others would tinker with the whirring gizmos and delicate machinery strewn throughout the 158-foot research vessel. All shared a single goal: Be the first research group to bring a DNA sequencer out into the field to do remote sequencing in real time.

Researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles have shown that a select team of immune-system cells from patients with leukemia can be multiplied in the lab, creating an army of natural killer cells that can be used to destroy the cancer cells. Results of their in vitro study, published August 19 in the journal Leukemia, could one day provide a less toxic and more effective way to battle this cancer in children.

Children born and diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) in the United States in 2010 are expected to live longer than those born earlier, according to a study being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

CF is a life-shortening genetic disease that causes progressive damage to the lungs and other organs. In 1950, children born with CF did not live to attend elementary school.

Atypical antipsychotic drug use is associated with an increased risk for acute kidney injury (AKI) and other adverse outcomes, according to a study being published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Each year, millions of older adults are prescribed atypical antipsychotic drugs (quetiapine, risperidone, and olanzapine) to manage behavioral symptoms of dementia, which is not an approved indication.

The specific composition of bacterial species in a person's gut may protect against or increase susceptibility to Campylobacter, the most common cause of human bacterial intestinal inflammation, according research published this week in mBio®, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology. The study also found that Campylobacter infection can yield lasting changes to one's gut bacteria composition.

In recent years, a shift from inpatient to outpatient surgery in the U.S. for commonly performed urologic procedures has coincided with increasing deaths following complications that were potentially recognizable or preventable. The finding, which comes from a recent study published in BJU International, indicates the importance of monitoring urologic surgery patients for potential complications.

New York, NY, August 19, 2014 – Postsurgical cognitive side effects can have major implications for the level of care, length of hospital stay, and the patient's perceived quality of care, especially in elderly and fragile patients. A nationwide survey of Swedish anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists has found there is low awareness of the risks of cognitive side effects following surgery. Furthermore, only around half of the respondents used depth-of-anesthesia monitors. Results are published in Annals of Medicine and Surgery.

(PHILADELPHIA) – The common thought in the medical community is that the randomized, controlled trial is the gold standard in medical research. Findings from these studies are thought to be most reliable and are often endorsed by guideline-making organizations and brought into medical practice. But, Penn Medicine researchers caution that the rapid adoption of one or two studies as the basis for clinical practice, even if they are randomized controlled trials, can lead to misinformation and potential harm.

Scientists at Queen's University Belfast have made a breakthrough in the fight against the most resistant hospital superbugs.

The team from the School of Pharmacy at Queen's have developed the first innovative antibacterial gel that acts to kill Pseudomonas aeruginosa, staphylococci and E. coli using natural proteins.

The gels have the ability to break down the thick jelly-like coating, known as biofilms, which cover bacteria making them highly resistant to current therapies, while leaving healthy cells unaffected.

Investigators at the University of Southampton have discovered that two new vaccines can prevent the transmission of meningitis bacteria from person to person.

The vaccines do this by reducing 'carriage' of the responsible bacteria in the nose and throats of the population.

Meningitis is a devastating condition and the Southampton team believe this discovery will change the way new vaccines are made in the future.

Single use, disposable acupuncture needles were introduced in the late 1970s, prompted by concerns about the risk of infection of reusable needles. Since that time, they have gradually been adopted worldwide.

In clinical practice it is often difficult for the acupuncturist to insert a long needle into tissue, because long fine needles are prone to buckling.

Current evidence suggests that the characteristics of an area in which a person lives can negatively affect their cardiovascular health. This includes, for example, the density of fast food outlets; levels of violence, noise, and pollution; drug use; and building disrepair.

But few studies have looked at the potential health enhancing effects of positive local neighbourhood characteristics, such as perceived neighbourhood social cohesion, say the authors.

New research published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) shows that the blood-fat lowering drug fenofibrate is as effective in women with type 2 diabetes as in men with type 2 diabetes.

Tampa, FL (Aug. 18, 2014) -- A new therapy developed by researchers at the University of South Florida (USF) Morsani College of Medicine and Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) may help reduce the life-threatening complications of interventional cardiovascular disease treatment.

The researchers demonstrated in a rat model that the novel molecular therapy could selectively inhibit blood vessel re-narrowing and simultaneously promote vessel healing following a medical procedure using a balloon catheter to open narrowed or blocked arteries.