LATEST NEWS ON AGING

Mice that were fed a diet rich in fat, sugar and cholesterol for nine months developed a preliminary stage of the morbid irregularities that form in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. The study results, published in a doctoral thesis from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet (KI), give some indications of how this difficult to treat disease might one day be preventable.
11/29/2008

When someone with Alzheimer's disease becomes lost, finding them quickly is key to preventing a tragedy. In fact, research has shown that if the person is not found within 12 hours of last being seen, there is a 50 per cent chance that they will be found injured or dead from dehydration, drowning or hypothermia. To help speed up search and rescue efforts, the Alzheimer Society, in partnership with the RCMP, developed a nationwide wandering registry.
11/26/2008

Although there has been an increase in the number of new arthritis treatments in recent years, the best results will come from more effective use of the drugs we have. Research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Arthritis Research and Therapy investigates the effectiveness of available arthritis drugs and concludes that better management is the most important factor.
11/29/2008

MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) and the University of Melbourne announced today that the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has confirmed that it will issue U.S. Patent No. 7,455,836, covering key uses of antibodies against GM-CSF. The patent stems from a provisional patent application filed in the USPTO in 2000 by the University of Melbourne.
11/25/2008

Research published today in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, British Volume summarises a number of recently developed techniques for patients that can avoid the need for knee replacements. Osteotomies around the knee had until the 1990's fallen out of favour with surgeons and knee replacement were performed instead, partly due to the complexities surrounding this treatment.
12/01/2008

Adolescent gymnasts are developing a wide variety of arm, wrist and hand injuries that are beyond the scope of previously described gymnastic-related trauma, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
12/01/2008

Work is well underway to catch more cancer cases earlier and improve the longer term treatment for cancer survivors, National Cancer Director Professor Mike Richards said today. The first annual report setting out the Government's progress against the Cancer Reform Strategy, "Maintaining Momentum, Building for the Future", highlights the achievements made in the first year and identifies priorities for the year ahead.
12/01/2008

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have determined how the characteristic shedding of fatty substances, or lipids, by ovarian tumors allows the cancer to evade the body's immune system, leaving the disease to spread unchecked. Ovarian cancer is considered to be one of the most aggressive malignancies, killing more than 70 percent of diagnosed women within five years, including an estimated 15,000 this year.
12/01/2008

If you think your levels of "good cholesterol" are good enough, a new study published in the December 2008 issue of The FASEB Journal suggests that you may want to think again. In the report, researchers from the University of Chicago challenge the conventional wisdom that simply having high levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and low levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) is necessary for good heath.
12/01/2008

JUPITER, a clinical trial suggesting rosuvastatin may lower the cardiovascular risk of healthy patients with elevated CRP, should not prompt universal statin use in older adults, according to a national poll directed at health professionals. Some 1,212 participants took part in the online poll conducted by medical news site MedPage Today LLC (http://www.MedPageToday.com).
11/26/2008

Diabetes and endocrinology specialists at Leighton Hospital in Crewe and Victoria Infirmary, Northwich, can access a summary of the patient's primary care record, enabling them to make more informed decisions at the point of care and helping them to advise a greater number of patients.
12/01/2008

State health officials are stressing a healthier lifestyle as a new Department report shows that one in every 10 Wisconsin adults has diabetes, making the disease a major health concern. "It's fair to describe the spread of diabetes in Wisconsin as an epidemic-and it shows no sign of easing," said Secretary Karen Timberlake. "Nearly 420,000 Wisconsin adults have diabetes and it's estimated that approximately 125,000 of them don't even know they have the disease.
11/30/2008

Schering-Plough Corporation (NYSE: SGP) reported that preladenant, its novel and selective adenosine2a receptor antagonist, met the primary endpoint in a Phase II dose-finding trial in patients suffering from moderate to severe Parkinson's disease experiencing motor fluctuations and abnormal involuntary movements (dyskinesias). The trial results were presented at the company's 2008 R&D Update meeting being hosted for analysts and portfolio managers at company headquarters.
11/28/2008

Ceregene, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, reported clinical data from a double-blind, controlled Phase 2 trial of CERE-120 in 58 patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. The trial did not demonstrate an appreciable difference between patients treated with CERE-120 versus those in the control group.
11/27/2008