medicine – News Stories About medicine - Page 11

Alzheimer's Patients Dying In Prescription Scandal

Mar 30, 2007 10:13 AM CDT

Alzheimer's Patients Dying In Prescription Scandal

Sedatives shown to double death rates

(Newser) - Sedatives commonly prescribed to Alzheimer's and dementia patients are leading to their premature death, new research reported in the Guardian concludes. The drugs, called neuroleptics, combat the diseases' more alarming symptoms, including agitation and hallucinations. Their widespread off-label use in the U.K.—where they're licensed only for...

Red Meat
May Harm Sons' Sperm

Mar 28, 2007 8:23 AM CDT

Red Meat May Harm Sons' Sperm

Lower fertility found in men whose moms scarfed beef during pregnancy

(Newser) - Men whose mothers ate a lot of beef during pregnancy have lower sperm counts, finds a study attempting to track the effect of growth hormones fed to cattle. While the specific chemicals weren't identified, sons of pregnant women who ate beef more than seven times a week were three times...

New Breast Scan Beats Mammogram

Mar 27, 2007 12:58 PM CDT

New Breast Scan Beats Mammogram

Uses near-infrared rays to illuminate tumors and sort benign from malignant

(Newser) - A new type of breast scan promises to pick up the tumors mammograms often miss and to distinguish between benign and malignant masses—without surgery. The technology relies on harmless near-infrared light to illuminate the masses, which glow when exposed to a particular chemical combination.

HGH Isn't Worth the Hysteria

Mar 27, 2007 11:47 AM CDT

HGH Isn't Worth the Hysteria

Hyped as the next big doping scandal, there's not much evidence it even works

(Newser) - Crusaders against performance enhancing drugs should lighten up about Human Growth Hormone: In the sports version of the war on drugs, anabolic steroids are heroin and HGH is marijuana, writes Daniel Engber. Studies haven't shown any definitive increase in athletic abilities resulting from taking HGH, and they have minimal harmful...

Stents Show No Lasting Benefit In Heart Study

Mar 27, 2007 8:17 AM CDT

Stents Show No Lasting Benefit In Heart Study

Better blood flow doesn't translate in to fewer heart attacks

(Newser) - Stents used to open arteries are no more useful than conventional drug treatment for patients who haven't yet had a heart attack, a new study reveals. In more than 2,000 patients over five years, those who had surgery suffered the same number of heart attacks, strokes, and deaths as...

Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Mar 26, 2007 10:42 AM CDT

Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Implant delivers shocks to lower blood pressure

(Newser) - A pacemaker-like implant that relies on small electrical shocks may cut the risk of heart attack and stroke in half for patients with drug-resistant hypertension, a new study shows. The device, which sends electrical shocks through the neck's carotid arteries, tricks the brain into thinking blood pressure is even higher...

ADD Meds Prescribed
For Weight Loss

Mar 23, 2007 10:12 AM CDT

ADD Meds Prescribed For Weight Loss

Doctors are using Adderall for pediatric obesity, pleasing parents but raising ethical alarms

(Newser) - Pediatricians are giving Adderall, the pill that got America's kids to pay attention in class, to patients without ADHD but looking to shed extra pounds. One of the drug's side effects is appetite suppression, and "off-label" prescriptions are working for some chunky but otherwise normal teenagers. Parents worried about...

Ant Farm
Con Man
Gets Death

Mar 21, 2007 3:13 PM CDT

Ant Farm Con Man Gets Death

Fraudulent sales of "medicinal ants" earned him $400 million

(Newser) - A pyramid scheme built on an ant farm earned a Chinese entrepreneur over $400 million—and a death sentence. The sentence meted out to Wang Zhendong by a Chinese court last month is part of a nationwide crackdown on fraud. Wang swindled thousands of people by misrepresenting his wares as...

Scented Sleep Boosts Memory in the Morning

Mar 19, 2007 11:04 PM CDT

Scented Sleep Boosts Memory in the Morning

(Newser) - Add a little scent to your evening and your sleep, and your memory works better in the morning. A recent study showed that the smell of roses, administered while participants played a computer game, and then while they slept, improved their rate of recall after they woke by 13...

Tech-Savvy Docs Get More Time With Patients

Mar 6, 2007 11:04 AM CST

Tech-Savvy Docs Get More Time With Patients

New software allows them to run "micropractices"

(Newser) - A growing number of primary care doctors are opting out of hospitals and big medical groups to open up mom 'n' pop doc shops. Key to these "micropractices," reports the Wall Street Journal, is technology that allows doctors to schedule their own appointments, order prescriptions, and process...

Plastic Surgeons
Cut a New Path
Down Under

Mar 6, 2007 8:04 AM CST

Plastic Surgeons Cut a New Path Down Under

Forget breast implants: The frontier in plastic surgery is below the belt

(Newser) - David Matlock, a flamboyant California gynecologist who's been a pioneer in cosmetic surgery aimed at giving women "a youthful, aesthetic look" for their nether regions, has unleashed a host of protégés now improving unsightly genitals all over the country. Despite being uninsured, the procedures are growing in...