March 12, 2010, 7:58 AM CT

R-rated movies and underage alcohol

R-rated movies portray violence and other behaviors deemed inappropriate for children under 17 year of age. A newly released study finds one more reason why parents should not let their kids watch those movies: adolescents who watch R-rated movies are more likely to try alcohol at a young age.

Reported in the recent issue of Prevention Science, a scientific journal of the Society for Prevention Research, the study of 6,255 children examined the relationship between watching R-rated movies and the probability of alcohol use across different levels of "sensation seeking," which is a tendency to seek out risky experiences. The study was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and conducted by James D. Sargent, MD, a pediatrician at Dartmouth Medical School. The children were surveyed every 8 months for a period of two years from 2003 through 2005.

"The study observed that watching R-rated movies affected the level of sensation seeking among adolescents. It showed that R-rated movies not only contain scenes of alcohol use that prompt adolescents to drink, they also jack up the sensation seeking tendency, which makes adolescents more prone to engage in all sorts of risky behaviors" Sargent said.

"There is another take home point in the findings. When it comes to the direct effect on alcohol use, the influence of R-rated movies depends on sensation seeking level. High sensation seekers are already at high risk for use of alcohol, and watching a lot of R-rated movies raises their risk only a little. But for low sensation seekers, R-rated movies make a big difference. In fact, exposure to R-rated movies can make a low sensation seeking adolescent drink like a high sensation seeking adolescent." Sargent explained......... Posted by: JoAnn      Read more         Source

March 12, 2010, 7:23 AM CT

Preventing gastric cancer with antibiotics

Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium found in about 50% of humans worldwide, can cause stomach ulcers and, in extreme cases, gastric cancer. In an article for F1000 Medicine Reports, Seiji Shiota and Yoshio Yamaoka discuss the possible eradication of H. pylori infections.

Infection by the H. pylori bacterium can approach 100% in developing countries. Most infected people do not have symptoms, but a number of develop problems including stomach ulcers. H. pylori causes more than 90% of all duodenal ulcers and can also contribute to the development of gastric cancer, which is one of the world's biggest medical problems.

Shiota and Yamaoka, from Oita University, Japan, and Baylor College of Medicine, Texas, respectively, report on a large multicenter trial in Japan. Patients with early gastric cancer were randomly treated with H. pylori antibiotics after surgical resection and were followed up for three years. Patients who received antibiotic therapy had a significantly lower risk of developing gastric cancer, confirming the importance of careful management of H. pylori

However, certain populations (e.g. India and Thailand) have a high prevalence of H. pylori infection but a low occurence rate of gastric cancer. It is thought that certain strains of H. pylori (particularly east-Asian cytotoxin-associated gene [cagA]-positive strains) might carry an increased risk of developing gastric cancer, but currently identified cagA genotypes in the Asia-Pacific are not linked to cancer......... Posted by: Janet      Read more         Source

March 11, 2010, 11:08 PM CT

Insight into brain's decision-making process

Replaying recent events in the area of the brain called the hippocampus may have less to do with creating long-term memories, as researchers have suspected, than with an active decision-making process, suggests a newly released study by scientists at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Minnesota Medical School.

In a study of rats navigating a maze, the scientists observed that replays occurring in the hippocampus were not necessarily recent or frequent paths through the maze, as would be expected if the event was being added to memory. Rather, the replays often were paths that the rats had rarely taken or, in some cases, had never taken, as if the rats were trying to build maps to help them make better navigation decisions.

In a report published March 11 in the journal Neuron, Anoopum Gupta, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute and the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, and colleagues say their findings suggest replays in the hippocampus are not merely passive echoes of past events, but part of a complex, active process of decision making.

In addition to Gupta, the scientists include Carnegie Mellon Computer Science Professor David S. Touretzky and A. David Redish, associate professor of neuroscience, and Matthijs van der Meer, a post-doctoral researcher, from the University of Minnesota......... Posted by: Daniel      Read more         Source

March 10, 2010, 8:23 AM CT

After a fight with a partner

Common wisdom tells us that for a successful relationship partners shouldn't go to bed angry. But new research from a psychology expert at Harvard University suggests that brain activityspecifically in the region called the lateral prefrontal cortexis a far better indicator of how someone will feel in the days following a fight with his or her partner.

Individuals who show more neural activity in the lateral prefrontal cortex are less likely to be upset the day after fighting with partners, as per a research studyin this month's Biological Psychiatry The findings point to the lateral prefrontal cortex's role in emotion regulation, and suggest that improved function within this region may also improve day-to-day mood.

"What we found, as you might expect, was that everybody felt badly on the day of the conflict with their partners," says main author Christine Hooker, assistant professor of psychology in Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. "But the day after, people who had high lateral prefrontal cortex activity felt better and the people who had low lateral prefrontal cortex activity continued to feel badly".

Hooker's co-authors are zlem Ayduk, Anett Gyurak, Sara Verosky, and Asako Miyakawa, all of the University of California at Berkeley......... Posted by: JoAnn      Read more         Source

March 10, 2010, 8:21 AM CT

Elective removal of ovaries during hysterectomy

Removal of the ovaries (bilateral oophorectomy) while performing a hysterectomy is common practice to prevent the subsequent development of ovary cancer. This prophylactic procedure is performed in 55% of all U.S. women having a hysterectomy, or approximately 300,000 times each year. An article in the March/recent issue of The Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology suggests that this procedure may do more harm than good.

William H. Parker, MD, John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John's Health Center, Santa Monica, CA, provides a comprehensive analysis of the medical literature relating to the benefit of oophorectomy at the time of hysterectomy. His investigation includes studies of post-hysterectomy cancer incidence, all cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and hip fractures, coronary artery disease, and many other conditions. He concludes that, on balance, removal of the ovaries is not generally warranted for all women undergoing hysterectomy. In women not at high risk for development of ovarian or breast cancer, removing the ovaries at the time of hysterectomy should be approached with caution.

Dr. Parker states, "Presently, findings based on observation suggest that bilateral oophorectomy may do more harm than good. Given that 300 000 U.S. women a year undergo elective oophorectomy, the findings of increased long-term risks have important public health implicationsPrudence suggests that a detailed informed consent process covering the risks and benefits of oophorectomy and ovarian conservation should be conducted with women faced with this important decision."........ Posted by: Emily      Read more         Source

March 10, 2010, 8:19 AM CT

Papaya extract against cancer

The humble papaya is gaining credibility in Western medicine for anticancer powers that folk cultures have recognized for generations.

University of Florida researcher Nam Dang, M.D., Ph.D., and his colleagues in Japan have documented papaya's dramatic anticancer effect against a broad range of lab-grown tumors, including cancers of the cervix, breast, liver, lung and pancreas. The scientists used an extract made from dried papaya leaves, and the anticancer effects were stronger when cells received larger doses of the tea.

In a paper reported in the Feb. 17 issue of the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Dang and colleagues also documented for the first time that papaya leaf extract boosts the production of key signaling molecules called Th1-type cytokines. This regulation of the immune system, in addition to papaya's direct antitumor effect on various cancers, suggests possible therapeutic strategies that use the immune system to fight cancers.

The papaya extract did not have any toxic effects on normal cells, avoiding a common and devastating consequence of a number of cancer treatment regimens. The success of the papaya extract in acting on cancer without toxicity is consistent with reports from indigenous populations in Australia and his native Vietnam, said Dang, a professor of medicine and medical director of the UF Shands Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office......... Posted by: Janet      Read more         Source

March 10, 2010, 8:15 AM CT

Baseball throwing arm injuries

Throwing arm injuries are on the rise in Little League and other youth baseball programs. After these injuries occur, a number of players are out for the season; others require surgery and must refrain from play for an even longer duration; still others sustain injuries so severe that they cause permanent damage and are unable to continue playing baseball.

Three new studies presented today at the at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) address this critical issue, each offering new solutions to help prevent these injuries.

Five-minute stretch after play can help young players avoid throwing-arm pain

Pitchers and catchers under the age of 15 often experience tightness of a shoulder ligament known as the posterior-inferior glenohumeral ligament. If this ligament is not stretched, it will become increasingly tighter and more prone to pain or injury as the player ages, if that player continues to play baseball.

A study of 1,267 youth baseball players, led by Charles Metzger, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon specializing in upper extremities in Houston, Texas, observed that a simple stretch known as the posterior capsular stretch can help.

"A posterior capsular stretch is done after play and since it is different from the general stretches players already know, it must be taught," says Dr. Metzger. "Once learned, however, it is very simple, and takes only five minutes to complete. Nearly 97 percent of young players who performed the stretch properly and consistently reported shoulder improvement"......... Posted by: Janet      Read more         Source

March 9, 2010, 8:39 AM CT

Anti-depressants and cataracts

Some anti-depressant drugs are linked to an increased chance of developing cataracts, as per a new statistical study by scientists at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute and McGill University.

The study, based on a database of more than 200,000 Quebec residents aged 65 and older, showed statistical relationships between a diagnosis of cataracts or cataract surgery and the class of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), as well as between cataracts and specific drugs within that class.

Published online today in the journal Ophthalmology, the study does not prove causation but only reveals an association between the use of SSRIs and the development of cataracts. The study could not account for the possibility of smoking - which is a risk factor for cataracts - and additional population-based studies are needed to confirm these findings, the scientists say.

This study of statistical relationships is the first to establish a link between this class of drugs and cataracts in humans. Prior studies in animal models had demonstrated that SSRIs could increase the likelihood of developing the condition.

"When you look at the trade-offs of these drugs, the benefits of treating depression - which can be life-threatening - still outweigh the risk of......... Posted by: Mike      Read more         Source

March 9, 2010, 8:28 AM CT

Asthma program specifically tailored to teens

An asthma program specifically tailored to teens could help those in rural areas manage their disease and avoid potentially fatal complications, Medical College of Georgia researchers say.

Black males have a death rate from asthma that is six times greater than their white counterparts, and Dr. Dennis Ownby, chief in the MCG School of Medicine Section of Allergy and Immunology, believes asthma rates are as bad in rural areas as they are in inner cities.

"The prevalence is probably the same in rural areas," he said. "But teens from those areas already face a number of other problems that can complicate their disease poor housing quality, air pollution, more trouble getting to doctors and smaller, less-equipped hospitals".

Forgetting to take medications or carry rescue inhalers only exacerbates the problem, as does exposure to tobacco either from smoking or second-hand smoke. Dr. Ownby said previous studies have shown smoking is more prevalent in rural areas than inner-cities.

He and other researchers think that Puff City, a culturally-tailored intervention program aimed at three key areas reduction of tobacco exposure, adherence to medicine and attack readiness could help at-risk teens better manage their asthma.

Over the next three years, with $2.1 million in funding from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, Drs. Ownby and Martha Tingen, a nurse researcher at the Georgia Prevention Institute, will work with 300 Ninth- to 11th-graders with asthma from Burke, Jefferson and McDuffie counties. Half of the teens will be exposed to traditional educational asthma Web sites; the other half will use Puff City......... Posted by: JoAnn      Read more         Source

March 9, 2010, 8:26 AM CT

Exposure to BPA may cause permanent fertility defects

Scientists at Yale School of Medicine have discovered that exposure during pregnancy to Bisphenol A (BPA), a common component of plastics, causes permanent abnormalities in the uterus of offspring, including alteration in their DNA. The findings were published in the recent issue of Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB J.).

Led by Hugh S. Taylor, M.D., professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at Yale, the study is the first to show that BPA exposure permanently affects sensitivity to estrogen.

Taylor and his team used two groups of mice, one exposed to BPA as a fetus during pregnancy and another exposed to a placebo. They examined gene expression and the amount of DNA modification in the uterus. They observed that the mice exposed to BPA as a fetus had an exaggerated response to estrogens as adults, long after the exposure to BPA. The genes were permanently programmed to respond excessively to estrogen.

"The DNA in the uterus was modified by loss of methyl groups so that it responded abnormally in adulthood," said Taylor. "The gene expression waccording tomanently epigenetically altered and the uterus became hyper-responsive to estrogens."

Taylor said that exposure to BPA as a fetus is carried throughout adulthood. "What our mothers were exposed to in pregnancy may influence the rest of our lives. We need to better identify the effect of environmental contaminants on not just crude measures such as birth defects, but also their effect in causing more subtle developmental errors"......... Posted by: Emily      Read more         Source