At two years, Avastin (bevacizumab) and Lucentis (ranibizumab injection), two widely used drugs to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD), improve vision when administered monthly or on an as needed basis, although greater improvements in vision were seen with monthly administration for this common, debilitating eye disease, according to researchers supported by the National Institutes of [...]
EU Votes to Ban 3-acetyl-2,5-dimethylthiophene
It has been decided by the European Commission and European Union member states that the flavoring substance 3-acetyl-2,5-dimethylthiophene should be banned. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published a scientific opinion and press release on 16 May that said: ‘The flavoring substance 3-acetyl-2,5-dimethylthiophene is genotoxic (that is, it can damage DNA, the genetic material of [...]
What We Know About Concussions
Your brain is your body’s command center. Its soft, sensitive tissues float in a cushioning fluid within the hard and sturdy skull. But a swift blow to the head or violent shaking can override these protections and lead to a mild type of brain injury known as a concussion. More than 1 million mild traumatic [...]
Flu in Pregnancy May Quadruple Risk for Bipolar Disorder in the Child
Pregnant mothers’ exposure to the flu was associated with a nearly fourfold increased risk that their child would develop bipolar disorder in adulthood, in a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The findings add to mounting evidence of possible shared underlying causes and illness processes with schizophrenia, which some studies have also linked [...]
NHS England to Tackle Shockingly Low Dementia Diagnosis Rates
NHS England is to tackle “shockingly low” dementia diagnosis rates with plans that could see 160,000 people who are unknowingly living with the condition identified and treated, Jeremy Hunt announced today. The plans, announced as the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia reached its first year, will aim to see two-thirds of people with dementia identified [...]
CDC Finds Suicide Rates Among Middle-aged Adults Increased From 1999 to 2010
Suicide deaths have surpassed deaths from motor vehicle crashes in recent years in the United States. In 2010 there were 33,687 deaths from motor vehicle crashes and 38,364 suicides. Suicide rates among middle-aged Americans have risen substantially since 1999, according to a report in CDC journal, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. “Suicide is a tragedy [...]