Health Research: Therapy could help chronic pain sufferers get a good night’s sleep ♦ Sugar-coated nanoworms not for breakfast in the human immune system N

Forget counting sheep - therapy could help chronic pain sufferers get a good night’s sleep Research indicates that chronic pain sufferers could benefit from therapy to help them sleep better.

Lack of 'sleep' may zap cell growth, brain activity, study in plants suggests Lack of adequate sleep can do more than just make you tired. It can short-circuit your system and interfere with a fundamental cellular process that drives physical growth, physiological adaptation and even brain activity.

Researchers reduce inflammation in human cells, a major cause of frailty Chronic inflammation, closely associated with frailty and age-related diseases, is a hallmark of aging. Now researchers have discovered that inhibiting key enzyme pathways reduces inflammation in human cells in culture dishes and decreases inflammation and frailty in aged mice.

Sugar-coated nanoworms not for breakfast in the human immune system Nanoparticles could aid diagnosis and treatment of diseases including cancer -- if the immune system would leave them alone. A new study shows that inducing cross links on nanoparticle surface sugars lets them escape mouse immune system and identifies remaining culprit for human immune recognition of nanoparticles.

Health News: USDA New camera system to detect active Shiga Toxin ♦ Study examines safety of medical cannabis in treatment of chronic pain ♦ Wearable electronic health patches

USDA  New camera system to detect active Shiga Toxin Scientists at USDA’s Agricultural Research Service Western Regional Research Center in Albany, CA, have come up with a less-expensive way to detect biologically active Shiga toxin, a product of pathogenic Escherichia coli serotype O157:H7. It is estimated that E. coli O157:H7 causes 73,000 cases of food poisoning and more than 60 deaths in the U.S. each year....

Children with ADHD and their mothers may live less than average population Brazilian scientists found that ADHD children and their mothers are more likely to have shorter telomeres, a hallmark of cellular aging, which is associated with increased risk for chronic diseases and conditions like diabetes, obesity and cancer.

Multi-center study examines safety of medical cannabis in treatment of chronic pain A Canadian research team has completed a national multicenter study looking at the safety of medical cannabis use among patients suffering from chronic pain. They found that patients with chronic pain who used cannabis daily for one year, when carefully monitored, did not have an increase in serious adverse events compared to pain patients who did not use cannabis

Study sheds light on powerful process that turns food into energy The way in which our cells convert food into fuel is shared by almost all living things -- now scientists have discovered a likely reason why this is so widespread. Cells that have more energy can grow and renew faster, giving them -- and the organism to which they belong -- an evolutionary advantage

Wearable electronic health patches may now be cheaper, easier to make A team of researchers has invented a method for producing inexpensive and high-performing wearable patches that can continuously monitor the body's vital signs for human health and performance tracking. The researchers believe their new method is compatible with roll-to-roll manufacturing.

Health News: Inhaled cannabis shown effective for diabetic neuropathy pain ♦ Prawn solution to spread of deadly disease ♦ Lack of knowledge on animal disease leaves humans at risk

Prawn solution to spread of deadly disease identified A deadly disease may have met its match: a bug-eyed, pint-sized crustacean. The river prawn, a natural predator of parasite-carrying snails, proves effective at curbing the spread of schistosomiasis in West Africa.

Lack of knowledge on animal disease leaves humans at risk Researchers have painted the most detailed picture to date of major infectious diseases shared between wildlife and livestock, and found a huge gap in knowledge about diseases which could spread to humans.

Inhaled cannabis shown effective for diabetic neuropathy pain Inhaled cannabis reduces diabetic neuropathy and the analgesic effect is dose-dependent, new research suggests. Researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind study evaluating 16 subjects to assess the efficacy and tolerability of inhaled cannabis for treating pain caused by diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Researchers beat untreatable eczema with arthritis drug Researchers have successfully treated patients with moderate to severe eczema using a rheumatoid arthritis drug recently shown to reverse two other disfiguring skin conditions, vitiligo and alopecia areata. The study is evidence of a potential new era in eczema treatment, they report.

Most chronic pain patients use alternative therapies, but many don't tell their doctors More than half of chronic pain patients in a managed care setting reported using chiropractic care or acupuncture or both, but many of these patients didn't discuss this care with their primary care providers. These study results suggest that better care coordination is needed among patients and physicians

Health Research: Future vaccine may help lower blood pressur ♦ Cocaine addiction, craving and relapse ♦ Moderate drinking in later years may damage heart

Cocaine addiction, craving and relapse One of the major challenges of cocaine addiction is the high rate of relapse after periods of withdrawal and abstinence. But changes in our DNA during drug withdrawal may offer promising ways of developing more effective treatments for addiction. Withdrawal from drug use results in reprogramming of the genes in the brain that lead to addictive personality

Changing diagnosis codes will challenge emergency medicine Emergency medicine faces special challenges during this fall's changeover in how medical diagnoses are coded. Nearly a quarter of all ER clinical encounters could pose difficulties’

Future vaccine may help lower blood pressure long-term A DNA vaccine helped lower blood pressure for up to six months, reduced tissue damage to the heart and blood vessels associated with hypertension in rats, investigators report. If future research shows the vaccine is a viable treatment option in humans, it could improve high blood pressure levels

Moderate drinking in later years may damage heart Moderate to heavy alcohol intake later in life may be associated with subtle changes in the structure and efficiency of the heart. Women may be particularly vulnerable to negative cardiac effects of alcohol at moderate to higher levels of consumption.

New findings about mechanisms underlying chronic pain reveal novel therapeutic strategies A critical role for a class of cells present in the brain and spinal cord, called microglia, has been discovered for those in pain. Researchers have found microglia to neuron signaling to be crucial in the development of pain hypersensitivity after injury, but also for one of the paradoxical effects morphine and other opioids sometimes produce, called hyperalgesia, which is an increase in pain sensitivity.

Brain Research:Yoga and chronic pain have opposite effects on brain ♦ Impact of video gaming on the brain ♦ Shut down signals involved in brain diseases

Concussion in former NFL players related to brain changes later in life In the first study of its kind, former National Football League (NFL) players who lost consciousness due to concussion during their playing days showed key differences in brain structure later in life.

Researchers discover new ways to shut down signals involved in brain diseases A research team has found new ways to block a pathway that may be responsible for several brain disorders, which could open the door to developing better treatments. Their work is focused on the protein NOS-1, which generates nitric oxide, a chemical signal that is linked to neurological disorders from neurodegeneration, stroke and chronic pain sensitivity to anxiety and depressive disorders.

Yoga and chronic pain have opposite effects on brain gray matter Chronic pain is known to cause brain anatomy changes and impairments, but yoga can be an important tool for preventing or even reversing the effects of chronic pain on the brain.

New light on impact of video gaming on the brain Video gamers now spend a collective three billion hours per week in front of their screens. In fact, it is estimated that the average young person will have spent some 10,000 hours gaming by the time they are 21. The effects of intense video gaming on the brain are only beginning to be understood. New research shows that while video game players exhibit more efficient visual attention abilities, they are also much more likely to use navigation strategies that rely on the brain's reward system.

Brain Research:Brain chemical may offer new clues in treating chronic pain ♦ Traumatic brain injury linked to increased road rage ♦ How noise changes the way the brain gets information

Traumatic brain injury linked to increased road rage Ontario adult drivers who say they have experienced at least one traumatic brain injury in their lifetime also report significantly higher incidents of serious road-related driving aggression, said a new study. Serious driver aggression includes: making threats to hurt a fellow driver, passenger or vehicle. These individuals also reported significantly higher odds of being involved in a motor vehicle collision that resulted in hurting themselves, their passenger or their vehicle.

How noise changes the way the brain gets information In a study on mice, cells that relay information from the ear to the brain changed their behavior and structure in response to the noise level in the environment. Researchers think the adaptations could aid hearing in different conditions.

Say what? How the brain separates our ability to talk and write The human ability to write evolved from our ability to speak. Writing and talking are now such independent systems in the brain that someone who can't write a grammatically correct sentence may be able say it aloud flawlessly

Brain chemical may offer new clues in treating chronic pain A chemical in the brain typically associated with cognition, movement and reward-motivation behavior -- among others -- may also play a role in promoting chronic pain. The chemical, dopamine, sets the stage for many important brain functions, but the mechanisms that cause it to contribute to chronic pain are less well understood

Health News: New Ebola treatment effective three days ♦ Overcoming drug-resistant malaria ♦ Impact study of chronic pain conditions

Stressed-out parasites: Overcoming drug-resistant malaria Drug resistance to the critical antimalarial therapeutics of the artemisinin family has emerged in Southeast Asia, highlighting the need to understand how these drugs work and how they can be used more effectively. Artemisinins may function by chemically damaging the malaria parasite's proteins, causing them to activate a cellular stress response

Discovery could impact study of chronic pain conditions Researchers have uncovered the critical role in pain processing of a gene associated with a rare disease. Their breakthrough paves the way for a better understanding of chronic pain

Missing genetic link found in a challenging immune disease In the largest genome-wide analysis to date of common variable immunodeficiency disorder, scientists have identified a gene that may be a 'missing link' between overactive and underactive immune activity.

Finding effective, cost-effective treatments for complex wounds Two new papers identify which of the hundreds of available treatments for complex wounds are most likely to be effective and which are most likely to be cost-effective. Complex wounds are a significant burden on patients and on the economy, costing the North American health-care system $10 billion a year.

New Ebola treatment effective three days after infection  A post-exposure treatment that is effective against a specific strain of the Ebola virus that killed thousands of people in West Africa has been developed. The treatment uses a sequence specific short strand of RNA, known as siRNA, designed to target and interfere with the Ebola virus, rendering it harmless.

Health News: Smartphones Quickly and accurately diagnoses disease ♦ Unsafe food ’growing global threat ♦ Predicting chronic pain in whiplash injuries

 Smartphones Quickly and accurately diagnoses disease and monitors treatment remotely Researchers from Florida Atlantic University and collaborators have identified a new biosensing platform that could be used to remotely detect and determine treatment options for HIV, E-coli, Staphylococcus aureus and other bacteria  

Unsafe food ’growing global threat Eating food contaminated with bugs leads to more than half a billion cases of illness a year, the World Health Organization warns. It says this "global threat" contributed to 351,000 deaths in 2010. Unsafe foods, for example undercooked meat, can cause 200 problems - from diarrhoea to cancer

Innovative strategies needed to address US transplant organ shortage As the United States faces transplant waiting lists that continue to grow longer over time, there is increasing debate about the proper way to incentivize living donations. Due to organ shortages, thousands of Americans are on transplant waiting lists for 5 or more years as their health deteriorate

Generous welfare benefits make people more likely to want to work, not less Generous welfare benefit levels make people who are not in employment more likely to want to work rather than less. "Many scholars and commentators fear that generous social benefits threaten the sustainability of the welfare state due to work norm erosion, disincentives to work and dependency cultures,". "This article concludes that there are few signs that groups with traditionally weaker bonds to the labor market are less motivated to work if they live in generous welfare states."

Predicting chronic pain in whiplash injuries While most people recover from whiplash injuries within a few months, about 25 percent have long-term pain and disability for many months or years. Using special MRI imaging, scientists identified, within the first one and two weeks of the injury, which patients will develop chronic pain and disability. This is the earliest these patients have been identified and will enable faster treatment. The imaging revealed large amounts of fat infiltrating the patients' neck muscles, indicating rapid atrophy.

Health News:Hospital patients exposed to E. coli ♦ Superbug outbreak ♦ Protein that may help conquer blindness ♦ Spider venom relieves chronic pain ♦ Robots for stroke rehabilitation

Hartford Hospital says patients might have been exposed to E. coli. Hartford Hospital in Connecticut announced March 4 that it will take cultures from 281 patients who may have been exposed to a strain of E. coli that is resistant to some drugs after the hospital learned that two scopes used in procedures on the patients were not properly disinfected Continue Reading

Superbug outbreak extends to Cedars Sinai hospital, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles reported March 4 that 4 patients were infected and 67 others may have been exposed to the deadly carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) superbug from a contaminated scope Continue Reading

Retina protein that may help conquer blindness discovered  A protein in the retina that is crucial for vision has been discovered by researchers who report, for the first time, the key molecular mechanisms leading to visual degeneration and blindness. The research reveals events that may be harnessed for prevention, as well as to slow down progression of retinal degenerative diseases.Continue Reading

Analysis of spider venom reveals promising compounds to relieve chronic pain  New research shows that seven compounds of the countless found in spider venom block a key step in the body's ability to pass pain signals to the brain.Continue Reading

Robots for stroke rehabilitation  A prototype of a robotic glove has been developed which stroke sufferers can use in their own home to support rehabilitation and personal independence in receiving therapies. At the chronic stages of stroke, patients are not likely to be receiving treatment but they continue to live with some impairments -- the glove's goal is to provide therapies to target these impairments.Continue Reading

1/17/15 Health News: Obesity experts recommend weight loss drug ♦ chronic pain ♦ Children of melanoma survivors need protection from sun ♦ Positive youth - better heart health

Obesity experts recommend weight loss drugs, surgery as supplement to lifestyle interventions A Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) has been released by experts on strategies for prescribing drugs to manage obesity and promote weight loss. Obesity is a worsening public health problem. According to the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, about 33.9 percent of adults ages 19-79 were overweight, 13.4 percent were obese and 6.4 were extremely obese Continue Reading Study reveals lack of data on opioid drugs for chronic pain Researchers have found little to no evidence for the effectiveness of opioid drugs in the treatment of long-term chronic pain, despite the explosive recent growth in the use of the drugs. Continue Reading

Children of melanoma survivors need better protection from sun's harmful rays

Children of melanoma survivors are not adhering optimally to sun protection recommendations, researchers have discovered in a groundbreaking new study. This is concerning as sunburns are a major risk factor for melanoma, and children of survivors are at increased risk for developing the disease as adults Continue Reading

Positive factors in youth linked to better heart health later in life

Children with favorable psychosocial experiences may have better cardiovascular health in adulthood, according to new research. Favorable socioeconomic status and self-regulatory behavior, meaning good aggression and impulse control, in youth were the strongest predictors of ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood. Continue Reading