Brain

BOSTON, MA—In the hospital it is not only direct patient care, but also the environment that contributes to recovery. A critical component of a healing environment is a peaceful space for a patient to get enough sleep.

However, according to a new study by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), Massachusetts General Hospital and Cambridge Health Alliance, there are certain noises in a common hospital setting that can disrupt sleep. Such disruption can negatively affect brain activity and cardiovascular function.

MINNEAPOLIS – The American Academy of Neurology has issued an updated guideline outlining the best treatments for infantile spasms, a rare type of seizure that can occur in infants and young children. The guideline, which was co-developed with the Child Neurology Society, is published in the June 12, 2012, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Researchers at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging (www.nmr.mgh.harvard.edu/) at Massachusetts General Hospital have identified a portion of the brain responsible for determining how far away a sound originates, a process that does not rely solely on how loud the sound is. The investigators' report, which will appear in the early edition of Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences, is receiving early online release this week.

EUGENE, Ore. -- (June 11, 2012) -- Scientists studying the Chinese mindfulness meditation known as integrative body-mind training (IBMT) say they've confirmed and expanded their findings on changes in structural efficiency of white matter in the brain that can be related to positive behavioral changes in subjects practicing the technique regularly for a month.

PITTSBURGH—Until now, comparing stress levels in individuals across the United States over time was not possible due to a lack of historical data that tracks stress using accepted comparable measures.

Miami Beach, Fla. (June 11, 2012)—An arsenal of Alzheimer's research revealed at the Society of Nuclear Medicine's 59th Annual Meeting indicates that beta-amyloid plaque in the brain not only is involved in the pathology of Alzheimer's disease but may also precede even mild cognitive decline. These and other studies advance molecular imaging for the early detection of beta-amyloid, for which one product is now approved in the United States , as a major push forward in the race for better treatments.

Researchers at the University of Missouri have demonstrated the effectiveness of a potential new therapy for stroke patients in an article published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration. Created to target a specific enzyme known to affect important brain functions, the new compound being studied at MU is designed to stop the spread of brain bleeds and protect brain cells from further damage in the crucial hours after a stroke.

Sportsmen and women dope with the blood hormone Epo to enhance their performance. Researchers from the University of Zurich now discovered by animal testing that Epo has a performance-enhancing effect in the brain shortly after injection and not only after days by improving oxygen transport in blood. As Epo also increases motivation, it could be useful in treating depression.

DARIEN, IL – New research shows that sleep loss markedly exaggerates the degree to which we anticipate impending emotional events, particularly among highly anxious people, who are especially vulnerable.

Two common features of anxiety disorders are sleep loss and an amplification of emotional response. Results from the new study suggest that these features may not be independent of one another but may interact instead.

DARIEN, IL – MRI scans from a study being presented today at SLEEP 2012 reveal how sleep deprivation impairs the higher-order regions in the human brain where food choices are made, possibly helping explain the link between sleep loss and obesity that previous research has uncovered.

DARIEN, IL – The sight of unhealthy food during a period of sleep restriction activated reward centers in the brain that were less active when participants had adequate sleep, according to a new study using brain scans to better understand the link between sleep restriction and obesity.

New research from the University of Warwick suggests getting more money may not make you happier, especially if you are neurotic.

In a working paper, economist Dr Eugenio Proto, from the Centre for Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE) at the University of Warwick, looked at how personality traits can affect the way we feel about our income in terms of levels of life satisfaction.

He found evidence suggesting that neurotic people can view a pay rise or an increase in income as a failure if it is not as much as they expected.

Miami Beach, Fla., June 8, 2012: Piramal Imaging SA, a subsidiary of Piramal Healthcare Limited [NSE: PIRHEALTH, BSE: 500302], will present data on several compounds from its molecular imaging portfolio at the Society of Nuclear Medicine's 59th annual meeting in Miami Beach, Fla., from June 9 - 13. Data from five florbetaben studies will be featured, including results from a pivotal Phase III trial which will provide the basis for regulatory submission later this year.

June 8, 2012 — (Bronx, NY) — Patients vary widely in their response to concussion, but scientists haven't understood why. Now, using a new technique for analyzing data from brain imaging studies, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Montefiore Medical Center have found that concussion victims have unique spatial patterns of brain abnormalities that change over time.

The effectiveness of spinal manipulation divides medical opinion. On bmj.com today, experts debate whether spinal manipulation for neck pain should be abandoned.

Spinal manipulation is a technique that involves the application of various types of thrusts to the lumbar spine (lower back) or cervical spine (neck) to reduce back pain, neck pain and other musculoskeletal conditions.

Neil O'Connell and colleagues argue that cervical spine manipulation "may carry the potential for serious neurovascular complications" and that the technique is "unnecessary and inadvisable."