ScienceDaily: Top Health News

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• New tests to detect drug-resistant malaria
• Innovative 'pay for performance' program improves patient outcomes
• Pay for performance encouraged physicians to follow blood pressure guidelines
• With horses and iPads, autistic children learn to communicate
• Scientists create new memories by directly changing the brain
• Five-fold increase in ADHD medication use in children and adolescents
• Possibility of selectively erasing unwanted memories
• Irregular periods in young women can be cause for concern
• Four common genetic variants associated with blood pressure in African-Americans
• Screening for minor memory changes will wrongly label many with dementia, warn experts
• Strain of MERS coronavirus engineered for use in a vaccine
• Kids get more exercise in smart growth neighborhoods
• Researchers find what’s missing in teen health programs
• Changing part of central line could reduce hospital infections
• Commercial baby foods don't meet infants' weaning needs
• Changing breakfast habits may not affect weight
• Autoimmune disease strategy emerges from immune cell discovery
• Brain circuitry loss may be an early sign of cognitive decline
• Early-onset Parkinson's disease linked to genetic deletion
• Effects of climate change on West Nile virus
• A new approach to early diagnosis of influenza
• Explaining why so many cases of cardiac arrest strike in the morning

New tests to detect drug-resistant malaria Posted: 10 Sep 2013 05:55 PM PDT Researchers have developed two tests that can discern within three days whether the malaria parasites in a given patient will be resistant or susceptible to artemisinin, the key drug used to treat malaria.

Innovative 'pay for performance' program improves patient outcomes Posted: 10 Sep 2013 02:14 PM PDT Paying doctors for how they perform specific medical procedures and examinations yields better health outcomes than the traditional "fee for service" model, where everyone gets paid a set amount regardless of quality or patient outcomes, according to new research.

Pay for performance encouraged physicians to follow blood pressure guidelines Posted: 10 Sep 2013 01:54 PM PDT In a multi-year study involving researchers found that modest monetary incentives to individual physicians resulted in a significant 8.36 percent increase in patients whose blood pressure was brought down to desired levels or who received an appropriate medical response when it was found that their blood pressure was uncontrolled.

With horses and iPads, autistic children learn to communicate Posted: 10 Sep 2013 01:53 PM PDT Researches are helping autistic children communicate by combining equine therapy and assistive technology through a program called Strides©.

Scientists create new memories by directly changing the brain Posted: 10 Sep 2013 11:23 AM PDT By studying how memories are made, neurobiologists created new, specific memories by direct manipulation of the brain, which could prove key to understanding and potentially resolving learning and memory disorders.

Five-fold increase in ADHD medication use in children and adolescents Posted: 10 Sep 2013 11:15 AM PDT Use of stimulant medications to treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents has increased significantly over the past several years. This trend toward increased use of prescription stimulants extends beyond ADHD to other types of neuropsychiatric disorders in children and teens as well, including Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), according to a new study

Possibility of selectively erasing unwanted memories Posted: 10 Sep 2013 11:09 AM PDT For the first time, scientists have been able to erase dangerous drug-associated memories in mice and rats without affecting other more benign memories. The surprising discovery points to a clear and workable method to disrupt unwanted memories while leaving the rest intact.

Irregular periods in young women can be cause for concern Posted: 10 Sep 2013 09:14 AM PDT While irregular periods are common among teenage girls, an underlying hormonal disorder may be to blame if this problem persists. Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is an endocrine disorder that is characterized by an excess of androgens or male hormones in the body. The imbalance of hormones interferes with the growth and release of eggs from the ovaries, which can prevent ovulation and menstruation.

Four common genetic variants associated with blood pressure in African-Americans Posted: 10 Sep 2013 08:28 AM PDT A landmark study has discovered four novel gene variations associated with blood pressure in African Americans. Compared to Americans of European-ancestry, African-Americans' increased hypertension prevalence contributes to a greater risk of stroke, coronary heart disease, and end-stage renal disease.

Screening for minor memory changes will wrongly label many with dementia, warn experts Posted: 10 Sep 2013 06:54 AM PDT A political drive, led by the UK and US, to screen older people for minor memory changes (often called mild cognitive impairment or pre-dementia) is leading to unnecessary investigation and potentially harmful treatment for what is arguably an inevitable consequence of aging, warn experts.

Strain of MERS coronavirus engineered for use in a vaccine Posted: 10 Sep 2013 06:54 AM PDT Scientists have developed a strain of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus that could be used as a vaccine against the disease.

Kids get more exercise in smart growth neighborhoods Posted: 10 Sep 2013 06:34 AM PDT Children who live in smart growth neighborhoods, designed to improve walkability, get 46 percent more moderate or vigorous physical activity than those who live in conventional neighborhoods, finds a new study.

Researchers find what’s missing in teen health programs Posted: 10 Sep 2013 06:34 AM PDT Adding a mental health component to school-based lifestyle programs for teens could be key to lowering obesity, improving grades, alleviating severe depression and reducing substance use, a new study suggests.

Changing part of central line could reduce hospital infections Posted: 10 Sep 2013 06:33 AM PDT Simply replacing the connector in the IV system in patients with central lines could help reduce deadly bloodstream infections, researchers have found.

Commercial baby foods don't meet infants' weaning needs Posted: 09 Sep 2013 05:13 PM PDT UK commercial baby foods don't meet infants' dietary weaning needs, because they are predominantly sweet foods that provide little extra nutritional goodness over breast milk, indicates new research.

Changing breakfast habits may not affect weight Posted: 09 Sep 2013 05:10 PM PDT New research shows while there's an association between breakfast habits and obesity, some practices by scientists have led the evidence for a causal claim to be exaggerated.

Autoimmune disease strategy emerges from immune cell discovery Posted: 09 Sep 2013 02:22 PM PDT Scientists have identified a new way to manipulate the immune system that may keep it from attacking the body's own molecules in autoimmune diseases such as Type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis.

Brain circuitry loss may be an early sign of cognitive decline Posted: 09 Sep 2013 02:22 PM PDT The degeneration of a small, wishbone-shaped structure deep inside the brain may provide the earliest clues to future cognitive decline, long before healthy older people exhibit clinical symptoms of memory loss or dementia.

Early-onset Parkinson's disease linked to genetic deletion Posted: 09 Sep 2013 02:22 PM PDT Scientists have found a new link between early-onset Parkinson's disease and a piece of DNA missing from chromosome 22. The findings help shed new light on the molecular changes that lead to Parkinson's disease.

Effects of climate change on West Nile virus Posted: 09 Sep 2013 02:21 PM PDT Projections of how climate change may affect the populations of West Nile virus-carrying mosquitoes across the southern United States over the coming 40 years have been recently developed. While changes are expected to vary strongly with region, the southern states should expect a general trend toward longer seasons of activity and smaller midsummer populations.

A new approach to early diagnosis of influenza Posted: 09 Sep 2013 06:23 AM PDT A new technology is showing promise as the basis for a home test to diagnose influenza quickly, before the window for taking antiviral drugs slams shut and sick people spread the virus to others, scientists report. They have described how it also would determine the specific strain of flu virus, helping in selection of the most effective drug.

Explaining why so many cases of cardiac arrest strike in the morning Posted: 08 Sep 2013 10:55 AM PDT Evidence from people with heart disease strongly supports the existence of the molecular link first discovered in laboratory mice between the body's natural circadian rhythms and cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death — the No. 1 cause of death in heart attacks, scientists say.

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