Health

Wednesday, 03 October 2012 16:12

Two-day test can spot gene diseases in newborns

Written by By LAURAN NEERGAARD

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A new rapid way to decode the DNA of sick newborns may help doctors diagnose genetic diseases faster in their tiniest patients - in roughly two days instead of weeks.......

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 15:49

US Birth Rate Drops as Economy Struggles

Written by Joshua Cohan

Authors: Joshua Cohan

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- The U.S. birth rate continued its decline in 2011, according to a preliminary report from the Centers for Disease Control, and researchers link part of the downturn in births to the economy.
Last year, the number of births hit a record low after declining 1 percent from 2010 to...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 15:35

Woman's Desire for Thinness May Be Biological

Written by Joshua Cohan

Authors: Joshua Cohan

Jupiterimages/Thinkstock(ANN ARBOR, Mich.) -- Images of waif-like models and size zero actresses aren't entirely to blame for the relentless drive many women feel to be thin. According to a new University of Michigan study, women possess "skinny genes" that control their desire for a svelte figure.
The study, published in the...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 15:19

FDA says Teva antidepressant is ineffective

Written by Administrator

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Teva Pharmaceuticals is pulling its generic version of a popular antidepressant off the market after a federal analysis showed the pill does not work properly.......

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 15:06

New, Faster Genetic Screen May Help Sick Babies

Written by Joshua Cohan

Authors: Joshua Cohan

Design Pics/Thinkstock(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) -- A new method of genetic testing appears to be able to help doctors diagnose critically ill babies more quickly than ever before, according to a new study. The method allows doctors for decode a baby's entire genome in two days -- fast compared to current methods that can take six...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 14:17

Texas Boy Battles Rare Leigh's Disease

Written by Joshua Cohan

Authors: Joshua Cohan

Lori Martin(NEW YORK) -- Will Martin looks like a healthy 3-year-old, but his bright blue eyes and cheeky smile mask a deadly disease that's powering down his body one cell at a time.
Will has Leigh's disease, a genetic disorder that affects one in 40,000 newborns. And although his case is mild, he's unlikely to live past his...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 14:16

For Colon Cancer Treatment, Living in City a Plus

Written by Joshua Cohan

Authors: Joshua Cohan

Comstock/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- New research shows that patients with colon cancer, one of the leading causes of death in the United States, may have worse outcomes if they live in a rural area.
The new study, presented Wednesday at the American College of Surgeons 2012 Annual Clinical Congress, showed that patients living...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 11:40

Kenya: Doctors strike over poor health care

Written by By TOM ODULA

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Doctors in Kenya's public hospitals on Wednesday spent their 17th day on strike to protest the dilapidated state of public health care. Emergency rooms in some of Kenya's public hospitals frequently don't have gloves or medicine, and power outages sometimes force doctors to use the light from their phones to complete a...

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 10:41

Kenya's doctors protest poor state of health care

Written by By TOM ODULA

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Emergency rooms in some of Kenya's public hospitals frequently don't have gloves or medicine. Most alarmingly, power outages sometimes force doctors to use the light from their phones to complete a procedure.......

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Wednesday, 03 October 2012 09:52

Odyssey of an American opium addict

Written by By DENIS D. GRAY

BANGKOK (AP) -- One Halloween night, in a blacked-out bedroom in Bangkok's Chinatown, Steven Martin went into physical and mental free fall. High fever oscillated with shivering cold, gut-wrenching stomach pains brought on waves of diarrhea. Howling in agony, he leapt around the room in a kind of devil dance, his body smeared with oily sweat,...

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