Kids' Exercise Interventions Show Negligible Impact

Kids' Exercise Interventions Show Negligible Impact30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Interventions like extra exercise classes that aim to increase physical activity levels in children as a way to tackle the rising problem of obesity and

overweight in youngsters appears to be having only a small, almost negligible effect, according to a review published online in BMJ on

Thursday.

We have known of the rising obesity and overweight crisis for some time, and researchers have done numerous studies that show the more physically active

children are, the more likely they are to have a healthy weight (as measured by body mass index, BMI) and to stay active and maintain a healthy weight through

adulthood.

This has led to the development of interventions, or programs that deliberately aim to increase levels of physical activity in children by providing them with extra

exercise sessions, for instance in school time or afterwards.

But so far, studies of those interventions show they are not successful in improving children's BMI.


Hard Measures of Total Daily Activity

In this latest study, researchers from Plymouth and Exeter Universities in the UK, carried out a systematic review, believed to be the first, of studies that did not

rely on data extracted from questionnaires, but used "hard" measures of actual physical activity obtained from accelerometry devices, and also took into

account whole day activity, or total bodily movement across waking hours.

For their review, the authors searched recognized databases and references lists for peer-reviewed journal studies that matched their requirements. They had to

be examining interventions designed to increase activity levels in children aged 16 and under that lasted for at least four weeks, and measured results

objectively, using accelerometers.

30 randomized controlled trials that took place between January 1990 and March 2012 matched these requirements. All the studies were matched on age,

ethnicity, and socio-economic status, and the results were adjusted for gender and activity levels at the start of the intervention period.

Eight of the studies had included only overweight or obese children, while the rest included children from all BMI ranges.

The researchers assessed the effect of interventions on total physical activity and time spent on moderate or vigorous physical activity.


Example Studies Reviewed

One of the studies they reviewed was of an intervention in the US that sought to increase physical activity in 729 youngsters of average age 11 by giving them

three 90-minute after-school sessions per week. Each session included 60 minutes of high intensity physical activity.

But the results were disappointing: measures taken half way through the trial showed in terms of total activity, the children were only doing an extra five

minutes of walking or running per day, and by the end of the trial, even these few minutes had gone down to zero.

Another study the researchers reviewed was a 24-week intervention in 268 pre-schoolers attending Scottish nursery schools who were given three 30-minute

sessions per week during nursery hours.

The results here were also disappointing: the children's physical activity levels didn't rise, and if anything, went down slightly. The data showed they spent on average one

minute less per day walking or running, compared to children in the control group who did not attend the intervention sessions.

Small-to-Negligle Effects

The researchers conclude that the interventions had a "small-to-negligible" impact: there was little increase in total activity volume and only a small increase

in time spent in moderate or vigorous intensity activity (about the same as four minutes of walking or running per day).

Such tiny improvements in physical activity levels would not be sufficient to make significant reductions in children's BMI or body fat. Such a small effect would

result in a reduction for instance of only 2mm in waist size.

Previous studies have suggested such interventions don't achieve reductions in BMI and body fat because they make children eat more calories.

The authors suggest another reason for the failure to impact BMI: the interventions could be displacing equally active periods, such as after-school clubs,

which would usually take place outdoors.

While it is understandable for us to jump to the conclusion that the answer to the obesity crisis in kids is to make them do more exercise, the authors suggest we

think carefully first, and urge future studies to take into account the effect of any interventions on whole day activity as well as activity-specific periods, as "small

increase gained from formal interventions seems insufficient to improve the body mass / fat of children."

Focus On All Children

In an accompanying commentary, Mark Hamer and Abigail Fisher from University College London, say although the reviewers' chosen methods have "inherent

limitations", their evidence is the best so far.

They ask researchers not to focus on overweight and obese children but concentrate instead on what helps to improve health in children regardless of their

weight.

They also call for more studies that look at how changes to outdoor and indoor environments affect children's physical activity.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD

Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

New Weapons In The Fight Against Cancer

For ALK-Positive Lung Cancer, Phase III Trial Shows Crizotinib Superior To Single-Agent Chemotherapy

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

Kids' Exercise Interventions Show Negligible Impact

Kids' Exercise Interventions Show Negligible Impact30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Interventions like extra exercise classes that aim to increase physical activity levels in children as a way to tackle the rising problem of obesity and

overweight in youngsters appears to be having only a small, almost negligible effect, according to a review published online in BMJ on

Thursday.

We have known of the rising obesity and overweight crisis for some time, and researchers have done numerous studies that show the more physically active

children are, the more likely they are to have a healthy weight (as measured by body mass index, BMI) and to stay active and maintain a healthy weight through

adulthood.

This has led to the development of interventions, or programs that deliberately aim to increase levels of physical activity in children by providing them with extra

exercise sessions, for instance in school time or afterwards.

But so far, studies of those interventions show they are not successful in improving children's BMI.


Hard Measures of Total Daily Activity

In this latest study, researchers from Plymouth and Exeter Universities in the UK, carried out a systematic review, believed to be the first, of studies that did not

rely on data extracted from questionnaires, but used "hard" measures of actual physical activity obtained from accelerometry devices, and also took into

account whole day activity, or total bodily movement across waking hours.

For their review, the authors searched recognized databases and references lists for peer-reviewed journal studies that matched their requirements. They had to

be examining interventions designed to increase activity levels in children aged 16 and under that lasted for at least four weeks, and measured results

objectively, using accelerometers.

30 randomized controlled trials that took place between January 1990 and March 2012 matched these requirements. All the studies were matched on age,

ethnicity, and socio-economic status, and the results were adjusted for gender and activity levels at the start of the intervention period.

Eight of the studies had included only overweight or obese children, while the rest included children from all BMI ranges.

The researchers assessed the effect of interventions on total physical activity and time spent on moderate or vigorous physical activity.


Example Studies Reviewed

One of the studies they reviewed was of an intervention in the US that sought to increase physical activity in 729 youngsters of average age 11 by giving them

three 90-minute after-school sessions per week. Each session included 60 minutes of high intensity physical activity.

But the results were disappointing: measures taken half way through the trial showed in terms of total activity, the children were only doing an extra five

minutes of walking or running per day, and by the end of the trial, even these few minutes had gone down to zero.

Another study the researchers reviewed was a 24-week intervention in 268 pre-schoolers attending Scottish nursery schools who were given three 30-minute

sessions per week during nursery hours.

The results here were also disappointing: the children's physical activity levels didn't rise, and if anything, went down slightly. The data showed they spent on average one

minute less per day walking or running, compared to children in the control group who did not attend the intervention sessions.

Small-to-Negligle Effects

The researchers conclude that the interventions had a "small-to-negligible" impact: there was little increase in total activity volume and only a small increase

in time spent in moderate or vigorous intensity activity (about the same as four minutes of walking or running per day).

Such tiny improvements in physical activity levels would not be sufficient to make significant reductions in children's BMI or body fat. Such a small effect would

result in a reduction for instance of only 2mm in waist size.

Previous studies have suggested such interventions don't achieve reductions in BMI and body fat because they make children eat more calories.

The authors suggest another reason for the failure to impact BMI: the interventions could be displacing equally active periods, such as after-school clubs,

which would usually take place outdoors.

While it is understandable for us to jump to the conclusion that the answer to the obesity crisis in kids is to make them do more exercise, the authors suggest we

think carefully first, and urge future studies to take into account the effect of any interventions on whole day activity as well as activity-specific periods, as "small

increase gained from formal interventions seems insufficient to improve the body mass / fat of children."

Focus On All Children

In an accompanying commentary, Mark Hamer and Abigail Fisher from University College London, say although the reviewers' chosen methods have "inherent

limitations", their evidence is the best so far.

They ask researchers not to focus on overweight and obese children but concentrate instead on what helps to improve health in children regardless of their

weight.

They also call for more studies that look at how changes to outdoor and indoor environments affect children's physical activity.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD

Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

New Weapons In The Fight Against Cancer

For ALK-Positive Lung Cancer, Phase III Trial Shows Crizotinib Superior To Single-Agent Chemotherapy

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

New Weapons In The Fight Against Cancer

For ALK-Positive Lung Cancer, Phase III Trial Shows Crizotinib Superior To Single-Agent Chemotherapy

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

For ALK-Positive Lung Cancer, Phase III Trial Shows Crizotinib Superior To Single-Agent Chemotherapy

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

New Weapons In The Fight Against Cancer

For ALK-Positive Lung Cancer, Phase III Trial Shows Crizotinib Superior To Single-Agent Chemotherapy

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa30 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

Our Brains Hear Sounds But Often Miss Their Cessation

Many Support Financial Incentives To Encourage Organ Donation

The Immune System And Brain Tumors - Potential Breakthrough

Our Brains Hear Sounds But Often Miss Their Cessation

Commonly Prescribed HIV Drug May Attack Brain Cells Leading To Memory Decline

More Onscreen Tobacco Use Seen In Movies Aimed At Young Viewers

Optimal Quality Care Of Geriatric Surgical Patients: Landmark Guidelines Just Released

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa29 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk29 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Eating cherries over a two-day period reduced the risk of gout attacks by 35%, according to a new study led by Boston University (BU) in the US that is

being published in the journal Arthritis - Rheumatism.

Lead author Yuqing Zhang, Professor of Medicine and Public Health at BU, says in a press statement:

"Our findings indicate that consuming cherries or cherry extract lowers the risk of gout attack."

Estimates suggest about 8.3 million adults in the US have gout, an inflammatory arthritis that occurs when uric acid crystals form in the joints, causing great

pain and swelling.

There are several standard treatments, but with these gout attacks tend to re-occur, so researchers and patients are on the look-out for alternatives. Cherries

have been mentioned as having urate-lowering and inflammation-reducing properties, but there have been no rigorous studies of whether they can reduce the

risk of gout attacks.

For their case-crossover study, Zhang and colleagues recruited 633 people with gout and followed them online for a year. 88% of participants were white, had

an average age of 54, and 78% of them were male. They answered questions about gout onset, symptoms, risk factors, medications, and whether they ate

cherries or took cherry extract, and for how long.



Consuming cherries or cherry extract may lower your risk of developing a gout attack by 35%.


The researchers classed any cherry intake in servings, with one serving being half a cup, or 10 to 12 cherries.

When they analyzed the participant responses, they found of those who had eaten cherries in one form or another, 35% ate fresh cherries, 2% took cherry

extract, and 5% consumed both.

They also counted 1,247 gout attacks over the one-year follow-up, 92% of which were in the joint at the base of the big toe.

They compared the cherry consumption against the gout attack incidence, and found those participants who ate cherries for two days, had a 35% lower risk of

gout attacks or flares compared to participants who did not have them at all.

They also found that the threat of gout flares fell by as much as 75% when cherry intake was combine with allopurinol, a drug that lowers uric acid

levels, compared to not taking the drug or having the cherries.

These benefits persisted even after taking into account factors that can affect gout risk, such as gender, obesity (BMI), purine intake (in foods that can

increase gout risk), plus use of alcohol, diuretics and anti-gout medications.

Zhang says:

"The gout flare risk continued to decrease with increasing cherry consumption, up to three servings over two days."

He and his colleagues found cherry intakes above this number of servings did not give any additional benefit.

In an accompanying editorial, Allan Gelber from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and Daniel Solomon from Brigham and Women's

Hospital and Harvard University Medical School in Boston, say the study is significant because it looks at diet and the risk of gout flares recurring.

But while these findings are promising, they urge patients who currently suffer from gout not to "abandon standard therapies".

They agree with the study authors that further randomized clinical trials should now be done to confirm the findings.

As does Alan Silman, professor and medical director of Arthritis Research UK.

He says in a press statement from the charity that he welcomes the findings, because for some time there has been talk of fruits like cherries being of benefit to

people with gout and rheumatoid arthritis, both of which occur with chronic inflammation.

The study shows good evidence that perhaps cherries, together with traditional drugs that reduce uric acid, could significantly lower the risk of painful gout

attacks, and, "it has been suggested that antioxidant compounds found in cherries may be natural inhibitors of enzymes which are targeted by common anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen" says Silman.

"Eating cherries, in fact, is not dissimilar to taking ibuprofen on a daily basis. However, we'd like to see additional clinical trials to further investigate and

provide confirmation of this effect," he adds.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Odds Of Successful Grafts Improved By New Method Of Resurfacing Bone

Leptin Implicated In Hearing And Vision Loss

Research On Attention Sheds Light On Boredom

How Inflammatory Cells Function Sets Stage For Future Remedies

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa

Deadly New Virus Uncovered In Africa29 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A piece of genetic detective work by an international team has uncovered a deadly virus not seen before that likely caused a small isolated outbreak of

acute hemorrhagic fever in central Africa in the summer of 2009.

The outbreak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killed two people and left one

person seriously ill. The researchers have given the deadly pathogen the name Bas-Congo virus (BASV), after the province where the three people lived.



They report their work in the 27 September issue of the online open access journal PLoS Pathogens.

The researchers were in an international consortium comprising the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the US company Microbiota, and other

institutions and organizations in America and Africa.

The 2009 Outbreak

The 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever started when a 15-year-old boy from a village called Mangala in the DCR suddenly got ill and started bleeding from the nose and gums and

vomiting blood. He got worse very quickly and died three days later.

A week later, a 13-year-old girl who went to the same school as the boy, started with the same symptoms, which also worsened rapidly, and she also died within

three days.

Then, again, another week after the girl died, a male nurse who had cared for her started with the same symptoms. He was transferred to hospital and

survived.

The UCSF team leader was Charles Chiu, assistant professor of laboratory medicine at UCSF and director of the university's Abbott Viral Diagnostics and

Discovery Center. He says in a press release:

"These are the only three cases known to have occurred, although there could be
additional outbreaks from this virus in the future."

Deep Sequencing Reveals BASV

Initial tests for known viruses on blood samples taken from the survivor revealed nothing. But eventually, after more members of the consortium got involved,

further genetic tests uncovered a completely new virus.

These tests used a new approach called "deep sequencing" that generates millions of sequences of DNA from a clinical sample and then stitches them

together using computer algorithms and human analysis.


Chiu says the new virus, BASV, is quite unlike other viruses in Africa known to be behind deadly outbreaks of acute hemorrhagic fever, such as Ebola virus,

Lassa virus, and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus.

BASV Is More Like Rabies

Genetically, BASV bears more resemblance to rabies viruses, which cause a different type of infection, a neurological illness that can take months to develop

but invariably kills, explains Chiu.

The virus belongs, like rabies, to a family called the rhabdoviruses.

"BASV was present in the blood of the lone survivor at a concentration of over a million copies per milliliter. The genome of BASV, assembled from over 140

million sequence reads, reveals that it is very different from any other rhabdovirus," write the authors.

No other rhabdovirus is known to cause the acute, rapid and deadly hemorrhagic fever seen in the three cases in the Congo. For example, rabies can

be deadly if untreated, but it doesn't progress in the rapid and deadly fashion seen with BASV.

However, there is some precedent: in fish, where rhabdoviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic septicemia (acute bleeding and death).

Reservoir Unknown: More Work to Do


When the researchers did an antibody test on the man who survived, and those who had come into contact with him, they concluded while the virus may spread

from person to person, the likely source is not in humans, but in another species, such as an insect or rodent. The likely "reservoir" and how the virus spreads

from it is still being sought.

Chiu's team is still working on new ways to diagnose the new virus so that health officials in central Africa can identify it quickly should there be another

outbreak.


Joseph Fair, co-author and vice president of Metabiota, says:

"Known viruses, such as Ebola, HIV and influenza, represent just the tip of the microbial iceberg."

"Identifying deadly unknown viruses, such as Bas-Congo virus, gives us a leg up in controlling future outbreaks," he adds.




Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk29 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Eating cherries over a two-day period reduced the risk of gout attacks by 35%, according to a new study led by Boston University (BU) in the US that is

being published in the journal Arthritis - Rheumatism.

Lead author Yuqing Zhang, Professor of Medicine and Public Health at BU, says in a press statement:

"Our findings indicate that consuming cherries or cherry extract lowers the risk of gout attack."

Estimates suggest about 8.3 million adults in the US have gout, an inflammatory arthritis that occurs when uric acid crystals form in the joints, causing great

pain and swelling.

There are several standard treatments, but with these gout attacks tend to re-occur, so researchers and patients are on the look-out for alternatives. Cherries

have been mentioned as having urate-lowering and inflammation-reducing properties, but there have been no rigorous studies of whether they can reduce the

risk of gout attacks.

For their case-crossover study, Zhang and colleagues recruited 633 people with gout and followed them online for a year. 88% of participants were white, had

an average age of 54, and 78% of them were male. They answered questions about gout onset, symptoms, risk factors, medications, and whether they ate

cherries or took cherry extract, and for how long.



Consuming cherries or cherry extract may lower your risk of developing a gout attack by 35%.


The researchers classed any cherry intake in servings, with one serving being half a cup, or 10 to 12 cherries.

When they analyzed the participant responses, they found of those who had eaten cherries in one form or another, 35% ate fresh cherries, 2% took cherry

extract, and 5% consumed both.

They also counted 1,247 gout attacks over the one-year follow-up, 92% of which were in the joint at the base of the big toe.

They compared the cherry consumption against the gout attack incidence, and found those participants who ate cherries for two days, had a 35% lower risk of

gout attacks or flares compared to participants who did not have them at all.

They also found that the threat of gout flares fell by as much as 75% when cherry intake was combine with allopurinol, a drug that lowers uric acid

levels, compared to not taking the drug or having the cherries.

These benefits persisted even after taking into account factors that can affect gout risk, such as gender, obesity (BMI), purine intake (in foods that can

increase gout risk), plus use of alcohol, diuretics and anti-gout medications.

Zhang says:

"The gout flare risk continued to decrease with increasing cherry consumption, up to three servings over two days."

He and his colleagues found cherry intakes above this number of servings did not give any additional benefit.

In an accompanying editorial, Allan Gelber from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and Daniel Solomon from Brigham and Women's

Hospital and Harvard University Medical School in Boston, say the study is significant because it looks at diet and the risk of gout flares recurring.

But while these findings are promising, they urge patients who currently suffer from gout not to "abandon standard therapies".

They agree with the study authors that further randomized clinical trials should now be done to confirm the findings.

As does Alan Silman, professor and medical director of Arthritis Research UK.

He says in a press statement from the charity that he welcomes the findings, because for some time there has been talk of fruits like cherries being of benefit to

people with gout and rheumatoid arthritis, both of which occur with chronic inflammation.

The study shows good evidence that perhaps cherries, together with traditional drugs that reduce uric acid, could significantly lower the risk of painful gout

attacks, and, "it has been suggested that antioxidant compounds found in cherries may be natural inhibitors of enzymes which are targeted by common anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen" says Silman.

"Eating cherries, in fact, is not dissimilar to taking ibuprofen on a daily basis. However, we'd like to see additional clinical trials to further investigate and

provide confirmation of this effect," he adds.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Odds Of Successful Grafts Improved By New Method Of Resurfacing Bone

Leptin Implicated In Hearing And Vision Loss

Research On Attention Sheds Light On Boredom

How Inflammatory Cells Function Sets Stage For Future Remedies

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk

Eating Cherries Lowers Your Gout Attack Risk29 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Eating cherries over a two-day period reduced the risk of gout attacks by 35%, according to a new study led by Boston University (BU) in the US that is

being published in the journal Arthritis - Rheumatism.

Lead author Yuqing Zhang, Professor of Medicine and Public Health at BU, says in a press statement:

"Our findings indicate that consuming cherries or cherry extract lowers the risk of gout attack."

Estimates suggest about 8.3 million adults in the US have gout, an inflammatory arthritis that occurs when uric acid crystals form in the joints, causing great

pain and swelling.

There are several standard treatments, but with these gout attacks tend to re-occur, so researchers and patients are on the look-out for alternatives. Cherries

have been mentioned as having urate-lowering and inflammation-reducing properties, but there have been no rigorous studies of whether they can reduce the

risk of gout attacks.

For their case-crossover study, Zhang and colleagues recruited 633 people with gout and followed them online for a year. 88% of participants were white, had

an average age of 54, and 78% of them were male. They answered questions about gout onset, symptoms, risk factors, medications, and whether they ate

cherries or took cherry extract, and for how long.



Consuming cherries or cherry extract may lower your risk of developing a gout attack by 35%.


The researchers classed any cherry intake in servings, with one serving being half a cup, or 10 to 12 cherries.

When they analyzed the participant responses, they found of those who had eaten cherries in one form or another, 35% ate fresh cherries, 2% took cherry

extract, and 5% consumed both.

They also counted 1,247 gout attacks over the one-year follow-up, 92% of which were in the joint at the base of the big toe.

They compared the cherry consumption against the gout attack incidence, and found those participants who ate cherries for two days, had a 35% lower risk of

gout attacks or flares compared to participants who did not have them at all.

They also found that the threat of gout flares fell by as much as 75% when cherry intake was combine with allopurinol, a drug that lowers uric acid

levels, compared to not taking the drug or having the cherries.

These benefits persisted even after taking into account factors that can affect gout risk, such as gender, obesity (BMI), purine intake (in foods that can

increase gout risk), plus use of alcohol, diuretics and anti-gout medications.

Zhang says:

"The gout flare risk continued to decrease with increasing cherry consumption, up to three servings over two days."

He and his colleagues found cherry intakes above this number of servings did not give any additional benefit.

In an accompanying editorial, Allan Gelber from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and Daniel Solomon from Brigham and Women's

Hospital and Harvard University Medical School in Boston, say the study is significant because it looks at diet and the risk of gout flares recurring.

But while these findings are promising, they urge patients who currently suffer from gout not to "abandon standard therapies".

They agree with the study authors that further randomized clinical trials should now be done to confirm the findings.

As does Alan Silman, professor and medical director of Arthritis Research UK.

He says in a press statement from the charity that he welcomes the findings, because for some time there has been talk of fruits like cherries being of benefit to

people with gout and rheumatoid arthritis, both of which occur with chronic inflammation.

The study shows good evidence that perhaps cherries, together with traditional drugs that reduce uric acid, could significantly lower the risk of painful gout

attacks, and, "it has been suggested that antioxidant compounds found in cherries may be natural inhibitors of enzymes which are targeted by common anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen" says Silman.

"Eating cherries, in fact, is not dissimilar to taking ibuprofen on a daily basis. However, we'd like to see additional clinical trials to further investigate and

provide confirmation of this effect," he adds.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Odds Of Successful Grafts Improved By New Method Of Resurfacing Bone

Leptin Implicated In Hearing And Vision Loss

Research On Attention Sheds Light On Boredom

How Inflammatory Cells Function Sets Stage For Future Remedies

Odds Of Successful Grafts Improved By New Method Of Resurfacing Bone

Leptin Implicated In Hearing And Vision Loss

Research On Attention Sheds Light On Boredom

How Inflammatory Cells Function Sets Stage For Future Remedies

Leptin Implicated In Hearing And Vision Loss

Research On Attention Sheds Light On Boredom

How Inflammatory Cells Function Sets Stage For Future Remedies

Genetic Researchers Find New, Low-Cost Approach For Ovarian And Breast Cancer Testing

Following Radiation In Prostate Cancer, Risk Markers Discovered For Erectile Dysfunction

Beware Of Fake Online Pharmacies, Says FDA

Beware Of Fake Online Pharmacies, Says FDA28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

A national campaign aimed at making Americans more aware of the prevalence of fake online pharmacies has been launched by the FDA.

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) warned that fraudulent online pharmacies pose a danger to patient health. The Agency says it aims to help consumers make safe purchases.
BeSafeRx - Know Your Online Pharmacy is a resource for consumers and caregivers who plan to buy medicines online and to better understand who they are buying from. The webpage aims to help purchasers make sure that what they buy really is what is detailed in their doctor's prescription.

Of all the people who have bought products and services of any kind online, only one quarter have purchased prescription medications. Approximately 1 in every 3 consumers said they did not feel confident enough to buy online.

According to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, fewer than 1 in every 33 online pharmacies meet state and federal laws.

FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, M.D., said:

"Buying medicines from rogue online pharmacies can be risky because they may sell fake, expired, contaminated, not approved by FDA, or otherwise unsafe products that are dangerous to patients. Fraudulent and illegal online pharmacies often offer deeply discounted products. If the low prices seem too good to be true, they probably are. FDA's BeSafeRx campaign is designed to help patients learn how to avoid these risks."

Fake pharmacies which set up websites use compellingly persuasive marketing techniques to come over as authentic and legitimate, the FDA wrote in an online communiqué today.

There is a serious risk of buying medications with the wrong ingredients, incorrect dosages, or fake medications with no active ingredient at all. If the product does not match what is written in a doctor's prescription, purchasers may be putting their health at risk. In some cases, the medication being sold has another, possibly harmful ingredient.

Only these pharmacies should be considered by purchasers when buying online:

Ones located within the USA
Pharmacies that only deliver if the purchaser can produce a valid prescription from a doctor or other authorized health care professional
The pharmacy has a state board of pharmacy licence



The BeSafeRx campaign is not only aimed at patients and their caregivers, but also for other federal agencies, private organizations, non-profit organizations to be used for their own educational purposes.

Many online pharmacies do not require a pre-written prescription if you want to buy a prescription medication. Some pharmacies are not located where they say they are - one may say it is located in the USA, but is really registered in a country where prescriptions are not required.

Many Americans order medications from online pharmacies that do not require prescriptions to avoid the expense and bother of having to go and see a doctor, or because their doctor refuses to write out a prescription.

A reputable website employs its own in-house doctor to check medication requests - these doctors may write out prescriptions. Many online pharmacies, however, offer all kinds of drugs without a doctor review or prescription requirement. Health experts say that this practice is potentially dangerous because there is no reliable assessment of contraindications, risk/benefit ratios, and the suitability of a drug for a specific patient.

American consumers find online pharmacies attractive mainly because many are so cheap compared to retail outlets in the USA. Purchasers can sometimes save from 50% to 80% when buying from foreign websites.

In August 2011 cybersecurity experts at Carnegie Mellon University reported that the internet was being "flooded" with illegal online pharmacies.

A growing number of illegal online pharmacies are flooding the web trying to sell dangerous unauthorized prescriptions, according to a new report from cybersecurity experts at Carnegie Mellon University.

Written by Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Eating Cherries Reduces Gout Attacks

Eating Cherries Reduces Gout Attacks28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Eating cherries over a two-day period reduced the risk of gout attacks by 35%, according to a new study led by Boston University (BU) in the US that is

being published in the journal Arthritis - Rheumatism.

Lead author Yuqing Zhang, Professor of Medicine and Public Health at BU, says in a press statement:

"Our findings indicate that consuming cherries or cherry extract lowers the risk of gout attack."

Estimates suggest about 8.3 million adults in the US have gout, an inflammatory arthritis that occurs when uric acid crystals form in the joints, causing great

pain and swelling.

There are several standard treatments, but with these gout attacks tend to re-occur, so researchers and patients are on the look-out for alternatives. Cherries

have been mentioned as having urate-lowering and inflammation-reducing properties, but there have been no rigorous studies of whether they can reduce the

risk of gout attacks.

For their case-crossover study, Zhang and colleagues recruited 633 people with gout and followed them online for a year. 88% of participants were white, had

an average age of 54, and 78% of them were male. They answered questions about gout onset, symptoms, risk factors, medications, and whether they ate

cherries or took cherry extract, and for how long.

The researchers classed any cherry intake in servings, with one serving being half a cup, or 10 to 12 cherries.

When they analyzed the participant responses, they found of those who had eaten cherries in one form or another, 35% ate fresh cherries, 2% took cherry

extract, and 5% consumed both.

They also counted 1,247 gout attacks over the one-year follow-up, 92% of which were in the joint at the base of the big toe.

They compared the cherry consumption against the gout attack incidence, and found those participants who ate cherries for two days, had a 35% lower risk of

gout attacks or flares compared to participants who did not have them at all.

They also found that the threat of gout flares fell by as much as 75% when cherry intake was combine with allopurinol, a drug that lowers uric acid

levels, compared to not taking the drug or having the cherries.

These benefits persisted even after taking into account factors that can affect gout risk, such as gender, obesity (BMI), purine intake (in foods that can

increase gout risk), plus use of alcohol, diuretics and anti-gout medications.

Zhang says:

"The gout flare risk continued to decrease with increasing cherry consumption, up to three servings over two days."

He and he colleagues found cherry intakes above this number of servings did not give any additional benefit.

In an accompanying editorial, Allan Gelber from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and Daniel Solomon from Brigham and Women's

Hospital and Harvard University Medical School in Boston, say the study is significant because it looks at diet and the risk of gout flares recurring.

But while these findings are promising, they urge patients who currently suffer from gout not to "abandon standard therapies".

They agree with the study authors that further randomized clinical trials should now be done to confirm the findings.

As does Alan Silman, professor and medical director of Arthritis Research UK.

He says in a press statement from the charity that he welcomes the findings, because for some time there has been talk of fruits like cherries being of benefit to

people with gout and rheumatoid arthritis, both of which occur with chronic inflammation.

The study shows good evidence that perhaps cherries, together with traditional drugs that reduce uric acid, could significantly lower the risk of painful gout

attacks, and, "it has been suggested that antioxidant compounds found in cherries may be natural inhibitors of enzymes which are targeted by common anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen" says Silman.

"Eating cherries, in fact, is not dissimilar to taking ibuprofen on a daily basis. However, we'd like to see additional clinical trials to further investigate and

provide confirmation of this effect," he adds.



Written by Catharine Paddock PhD

Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Melatonin Helps Hypertension Patients Sleep

Melatonin Helps Hypertension Patients Sleep28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;


Beta-blockers, which are commonly given to patients with cardiovascular conditions, hypertension, and anxiety, often result in sleep issues among patients. However, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital have recently discovered that melatonin supplementation can improve sleep patterns among patients with hypertension who are taking beta-blockers.

According to a study from 2006, beta-blockers should not be used regularly for treatment of hypertension.

Melatonin, also called N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine, is a hormone that is closely involved in the sleeping and waking cycles. It is a naturally occurring compound which is present in plants, microbes, animals, and humans. Levels of melatonin in people are different, depending on the daily cycle.

Frank Scheer, PhD, MSc, lead investigator of the trial and an associate neuroscientist at BWH, commented:

"Beta-blockers have long been associated with sleep disturbances, yet until now, there have been no clinical studies that tested whether melatonin supplementation can improve sleep in these patients. We found that melatonin supplements significantly improved sleep."

During the study, which will be published in the journal SLEEP, the experts examined 16 patients with hypertension who were taking beta-blockers on a regular basis in order to treat their condition. The individuals were prescribed either a melatonin supplement to take every night before going to sleep, or a placebo. None of the participants knew which pill they were taking.

Throughout the 3 week study, the volunteers visited the lab two different times, each visit lasting 4 days. The experts were able to examine how their sleep habits had changed. They discovered that in the people who had taken the melatonin supplement, sleep time was increased by 37 minutes, in comparison to the individuals who were given the placebo.

The team found that the time the individuals slept during stage 2 sleep was increased by 41 minutes, with no decline in REM sleep or slow wave sleep. The participants were also found to have had an 8% boost in regards to how soundly they slept.

"Over the course of three weeks, none of the study participants taking the melatonin showed any of the adverse effects that are often observed with other, classic sleep aids. There were also no signs of 'rebound insomnia' after the participants stopped taking the drug. In fact, melatonin had a positive carry-over effect on sleep even after the participants had stopped taking the drug," said Scheer.


Authors of this study note that melatonin supplements are clearly beneficial for hypertensive patients who take beta-blockers, but further research needs to be done in order to assess whether other types of patients could benefit from this treatment as well.

Written by Christine Kearney
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Prostate Cancer That Spreads To Bones Benefits From Targeted Therapy

Prostate Cancer That Spreads To Bones Benefits From Targeted Therapy28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;


Prostate tumors that have spread to people's bones can be reduced in size, by a newly found cancer drug, which also helps alleviate bone pain, according to a new study.

A novel cancer therapy callled Cabozantinib, which targets tumors specifically, was found to have clear and impressive results. The scientists say the trial results will be announced on September 30th at the European Society of Medical Oncology congress in Vienna.

Previous research from May of this year indicated that a different drug, abiraterone acetate (Zytiga(R)) also greatly benefits men with prostate cancer, whose cancer has not yet metastasized. The results from the phase II trial on this treatment showed that it can can help eliminate or almost eliminate tumors in those patients.

Cabozantinib, developed by Exelixis, is an oral drug known as a kinase inhibitor. It works by blocking two molecules that aid in the growth and spread of cancer:
VEGFR2- what the cancer uses to form new blood vessels so they can take nutrients in the blood system
MET- abnormally activated in prostate cancer


A Phase II trial was conducted by Professor Johann de Bono at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and honorary consultant at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, and his team, in order to analyze the beneficial results of this medication in 51 men suffering from metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

All of the subjects were in a dangerous stage of the disease prior to research, where the tumor had spread to their bones. They had previously undergone chemotherapy, which did not prevent it from spreading.

After examining the brain scans of 20 of the individuals after receiving the treatment, a reduction in the size of the tumor was seen in 11 of them.

About 50% of participants in the trial were suffering from pain and discomfort, even though most of them were taking strong painkillers, such as morphine.

Approximately 70% of those evaluable after receiving treatment saw a significant decrease in pain (10/14 patients), while over 50% (7/12 patients) stopped taking painkillers as often.

The subjects noted that their daily life became less impacted by the disease. They were able to get more rest and function more properly in their daily activities. However, they did experience some negative side-effects, the most common being decreased appetite, back pain, and high blood pressure.


Professor de Bono explained:

"Although we have helped develop a number of new drugs for advanced prostate cancer over recent years, men's tumors ultimately develop resistance to treatment and so finding new options for men with late-stage disease is still crucially important. As prostate cancer progresses, it commonly spreads to men's bones, which can lead to bone fractures and severe pain. This drug has so far only been tested in a small number of patients and isn't curing them of their cancers, but it is showing promise at taking away the pain of prostate cancer and helping men live a normal life."



Professor Alan Ashworth, chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), added:

"This is an exciting time for prostate cancer research, with four new drugs shown to extend life in advanced cancer in the last two years- three of which the ICR has helped develop. This latest treatment is another of the new generation of drugs precisely targeted at tumors, and it's promising that it is showing clear signs of activity and patient benefit."

Written by Sarah Glynn
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Get Your Influenza Vaccination, The Public Is Urged

Get Your Influenza Vaccination, The Public Is Urged28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Public health officials are leading by example by getting vaccinated themselves against influenza at the NFID (National Foundation for Infectious Diseases) news conference. They urge people to do the same, and warned that nobody knows what this influenza season is going to be like.

Just because last year was a mild flu season does not mean that this year will be the same. They added that even during mild seasons there are still many complications, hospitalizations and deaths from flu.

Howard K. Koh, M.D., Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said:

"I urge everyone to join me and get a flu vaccine this year."

Dr. Koh was the first to receive his flu jab at the news conference. Other well known health figures joined him, including leaders from the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons), National Medical Association, CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), NFID, American Pharmacists Association, American Medical Association, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The health experts urged everybody aged at least six months to adhere to the CDC's recommendation of getting a flu jab once a year.

In a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report issued this week by the CDC, approximately 128 million people in the USA were vaccinated during the 2011-2012 influenza season - about 42% of the US population. Vaccination rates varied widely across states and age groups.

Dr. Koh said that over the last three years, there is one thing we can predict about influenza - it is unpredictable. It is not possible to look at the past in order to predict what a future influenza season is going to be like.

Since September 14th 2012, over 85 million influenza vaccines have been distributed across the country. Vaccine makers plan to have 135 flu vaccine doses available this season in retail outlets, pharmacies, health clinics, and primary care physician's offices.

The news conference was led by Dr. William Schaffner, who used to be president of NFID. Dr. Schaffner said "In this election year, there are many important national health issues that are up for debate, but this is one that's easy to agree on. We should all be voting 'yes' for influenza and pneumococcal prevention. It is every individual's responsibility to put prevention to good use and make vaccination part of their routine healthcare."



Seasonal influenza only exists outside tropical areas (yellow). In the northern hemisphere (blue) the flu season is from November to April, while in the southern hemisphere (red) it is from April to November

Flu vaccine coverage still short of 80% target

Although the 2011-2012 flu vaccination coverage was higher than the year before, and continued the steady gains from previous years, the CDC says that it is still lower than the public health target of 80% of Americans aged between 6 months and 65 years, and 90% of seniors.

Below are some highlighted data regarding influenza vaccination coverage during the 2011-2012 season:

For children from 6 months to 17 years, the rate remained steady at 52%

For babies/toddlers aged 6 to 23 months, the rate rose to about 75%, a six per cent increase on the year before

For teenagers aged from 13 to 17 years, the rate stayed low at 34%

For seniors (65+ years), 65% were vaccinated. This continues a gradual decline in vaccination rates for this age group. In the 2007-2008 season 74% got the flu jab.

47% of pregnant women received a flu vaccine, compared to less than 30% in 2008-2009. Pregnant women should be vaccinated against flu, says the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Pregnant women have a fivefold higher risk of complications from flu than non-pregnant women of the same age, ACOG informed.

Dr. Laura Riley, director of Obstetrics and Gynecology Infectious Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital, emphasized that the flu vaccine is safe and helps protect the mother from flu. The baby may have protection if the mother is vaccinated during pregnancy for the first few months of his/her life

86% of physicians were vaccinated

Health care professionals who worked in hospitals had the highest rates of protection from flu, while those employed in long-term care facilities had the lowest



Childhood vaccinations across different race/ethnic groups had similar disparities to previous years.

Healthcare professionals can influence influenza vaccination rates

Studies have demonstrated that what healthcare professionals recommend, regarding getting the flu jab, has a significant impact on vaccination rates in a community.

Litjen Tan, M.S., Ph.D., director of Medicine and Public Health at the American Medical Association, said:

"It is critical for physicians to protect themselves from the flu and to also encourage their patients to get vaccinated. For example, pregnant women whose physician recommended the flu vaccine were five times more likely to get vaccinated, so we want to get the message out to all physicians that they can encourage patients to get vaccinated."

There is a much wider choice of venues for flu vaccines today than a few years ago. Traditionally, one would go to a doctor's office or clinic for a flu jab. Today, in all 50 US states, D.C., as well as Puerto Rico, pharmacists can administer influenza vaccines.

Mitchel Rothholz, chief strategy officer at the American Pharmacists Association, said that over 20 million flu vaccines were administered by pharmacists across the country during the 2011-2012 flu season.

Rothholz added that "Pharmacists have been offering flu vaccines for nearly two decades, but the 2009 pandemic prompted greater collaboration throughout the immunization neighborhood, resulting in sustained public health gains. Pharmacists and pharmacies are playing a greater role within the immunization neighborhood in making vaccines and vaccine information more accessible to all community residents."

This season's influenza vaccine protects against three viral strains

The 2012-2013 seasonal flu vaccine protects against three viral strains that experts believe will most probably cause illness during the coming season. It includes a strain that was present in last year's shots - A/California/7/2009 (H1N1)-like virus. There are also two new viral strains - B/Wisconsin/1/2010-like virus, and A/Victoria/361/2011 (H3N2)-like virus.

The influenza vaccine comes in four presentations to meet the needs of various populations:

A nasal spray
An intramuscular injection
A high-dose injection for seniors
An intradermal vaccine with a smaller needle


CDC officials outlined the 3-step approach to combating influenza:

Vaccination - this is the first line of defense and the most important step

Hygiene - good hand and cough hygiene. If you have flu and cough, do so into a handkerchief or into the inside of your elbow.

Antiviral medications - some people with flu are more vulnerable to complications. Antiviral drugs, such as oseltamivir and zanamivir are used for the treatment of flu (and prevention)



Get up-to-date with your other shots

Dr. Schaffner says that seniors should ask their physicians about the pneumococcal disease jab as well as the status of their vaccination needs. Among vulnerable people, such as seniors, pneumococcal infection is a common complication of flu. Pneumococcal disease can lead to meningitis, pneumonia and other serious infections.

Written by Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Benzodiazepine For Insomnia Or Anxiety Raises Dementia Risk Among Elderly

Benzodiazepine For Insomnia Or Anxiety Raises Dementia Risk Among Elderly28 Sep 2012-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Patients over 65 years of age who take the popular insomnia and anxiety drug, benzodiazepine, have a 50% higher risk of developing dementia during the following 15 years compared to people of the same age who never took the medication, researchers reported in the BMJ (British Medical Journal).

The authors say that their findings indicate that widespread indiscriminate use of benzodiazepine should be cautioned against, given the extent to which this type of medication is prescribed. Benzodiazepines have a number of potential adverse effects.

Benzodiazepine is sold extensively to elderly patients throughout the world. 30% of people over 65 years of age in France are prescribed benzodiazepines, 20% in Canada and Spain, and 15% in Australia. Benzodiazepine usage in the USA and the UK as a percentage of seniors is lower than in the other countries mentioned; however, the total number of users is still high, given the size of the US population. Guidelines suggest that benzodiazepines should only be used for a few weeks.

The authors explained that some previous studies had pointed towards a possible association between benzodiazepine use and dementia risk. However, many of them were non-conclusive.

Sophie Billioti de Gage, a PhD student from the University of Bordeaux Segalen in Bordeaux, France, and team set out to determine what impact benzodiazepines might have on dementia risk. They performed a study involving 1,063 elderly males and females with an average age of 78 years. They were all French, they lived in France and none of them had any signs or symptoms of dementia at the start. The study, which began in 1987, continued with regular follow-ups for a period of 20 years.

During the first five years of follow-up, the scientists tried to identify what factors led to people starting on benzodiazepine in the first place. They evaluated the link between new use of benzodiazepine and dementia onset. They also wanted to find out what the association might be between further benzodiazepine usage during the follow-up period and subsequent dementia risk. They made adjustments for several factors which might affect dementia risk, such as age, gender, wine consumption, diabetes status, blood pressure readings, cognitive declines, symptoms of depression, marital status, and educational level.

Out of the 1,063 participants, 95 were prescribed benzodiazepine during the study. During the follow-up period there were 253 cases of confirmed dementia, of whom 30 were on benzodiazepines and 224 were not. The researchers worked out that people who started on benzodiazepine had a shorter dementia-free survival period.

They found that the risk of developing dementia during the 20 years that followed were:

4.8 per 100 person years among those on benzodiazepine

3.2 per 100 person years among those not on benzodiazepine


The researchers say that even though benzodiazepine is effective for the treatment of insomnia and anxiety, there is growing evidence that it is linked to a number of adverse outcomes among seniors, including serious falls and fractures caused by falls (however, a 2007 Harvard study found no link between benzodiazepine usage and hip fractures). Now there is another adverse outcome - the possibility of developing dementia.

If their data is backed up with further studies regarding benzodiazepine usage and dementia risk among elderly patients, this "would constitute a substantial public health concern", the authors believe.

Not only should further studies be conducted to confirm their findings, but also mechanisms need to be examined to understand why this association exists, the researchers concluded.

What are Benzodiazepines?

Benzodiazepines are a type of drug known as tranquilizers, and more specifically minor tranquilizers. Familiar names include Valium (diazepam), Ativan (lorazepam), Klonopin (clonazepam) and Xanax (alprazolam). In the USA, they are one of the most widely prescribed medications, especially among elderly patients.

Benzodiazepines may be prescribed for the following medical conditions:

Insomnia
Anxiety
Alcohol withdrawal
Given before being administered an anesthetic, before a surgical procedure
Muscle relaxation
Seizure control


Benzodiazepine abuse is a serious public health concern.

Written by Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News TodayNot to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today