USA TODAY articles from February 2005

USA TODAY archives from February 2005

Can saliva samples replace blood work?(Diagnostic Testing)
February 1, 2005... Spitting into a cup or licking a diagnostic test strip someday could be an attractive alternative to having blood drawn at the doctor's office. Researchers have identified the largest number of proteins to date in human saliva, a preliminary...

Kids curious about genetic dads.(Donor Insemination)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... The vast majority of children born from open-identity sperm donors feel positively about their conception and simply are curious about their genetic fathers, according to a study by University of California-Davis psychologist Joanna Scheib. The...

Home testing for rare disease.(Genetic Disorders)
February 1, 2005... Home-testing kits have made it easier for diabetics and hypertension patients to track their conditions, but such self-monitoring has not been possible for people with phenylketonuria (PKU). Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology,...

Mail order drugs tainted by heat.(Prescriptions)
February 1, 2005... Mail-order prescriptions exposed to excessive environmental heat, such as temperatures found in mailboxes and car interiors, may become significantly less effective for patients. Formoterol, a common inhaled asthma medication, delivered...

Groups considered at high risk for the flu should consider getting a pneumonia vaccine as well.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Groups considered at high risk for the flu should consider getting a pneumonia vaccine as well. "The same group of people we need to target for influenza vaccination--the very young, the very old, and those with chronic lung and heart disease...

Blood tests to determine the amount of cholesterol and the lipid triglyceride in the bloodstream, which are primary risk factors for heart disease, are nearly always conducted after a 12-hour fast.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Blood tests to determine the amount of cholesterol and the lipid triglyceride in the bloodstream, which are primary risk factors for heart disease, are nearly always conducted after a 12-hour fast. Increasingly, however, researchers are...

Doctors appear willing to use intensive measures to lessen otherwise untreatable pain and severe symptoms in dying patients even if the treatment at least in theory, risks hastening the dying process.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Doctors appear willing to use intensive measures to lessen otherwise untreatable pain and severe symptoms in dying patients even if the treatment, at least in theory, risks hastening the dying process, according to a pair of studies on...

"Memory and other cognitive functions do not show significant decline in all elderly," contends Beth Ober, professor of human development at the University of California, Davis.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... "Memory and other cognitive functions do not show significant decline in all elderly," contends Beth Ober, professor of human development at the University of California, Davis. "In fact, 85% of those 65 years old and older show normal...

Interacting with and petting animals.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Interacting with and petting animals create a hormonal response in humans that can help fight depression, maintains a University of Missouri-Columbia researcher. "Our... results indicate that levels of serotonin, a hormone in humans that helps...

The proportion of admissions to substance treatment programs for abuse of narcotic prescription medications, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamine has increased in the past 10 years, while those for cocaine abuse declined.(Health Beat)
February 1, 2005... The proportion of admissions to substance treatment programs for abuse of narcotic prescription medications, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamine has increased in the past 10 years, while those for cocaine abuse declined, states the Substance...

Sleep researchers from the School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, and colleagues report sleep loss and fatigue affect medical residents in several ways, including learning, job performance, and personal relationships.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Sleep researchers from the School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, and colleagues report sleep loss and fatigue affect medical residents in several ways, including learning, job performance, and personal relationships....

Children living on pig farms.(Health Beat)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Children living on pig farms where antibiotics are added to feed have a significantly higher prevalence of asthma, a University of Iowa, Iowa City, study states. In addition to the swine risk, several "early life events," including premature...

Increased mortality following discharge.(Hospitalization)
February 1, 2005... A reduction by health insurance carriers in the number of treatment days covered in medical rehabilitation hospitals by nearly 40% during the past decade did not diminish treatment effectiveness, a study has found. However, the analysis...

Librarians give pointers for online searches.(Health Information)
February 1, 2005... For some patients, talking to the doctor and reading pamphlets on medical issues are sufficient to learn about their health. Others search aggressively for third-party information, sometimes to better understand or ask more informed questions...

Doctors now writing "info" prescriptions.(Internet)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Having trouble finding reliable health information on the Internet? Ask your doctor to write you an "information" prescription, A University of Iowa, Iowa City. study shows that the nearly no-cost. quick effort is an effective way to put people...

Many tests and surgeries simply are a waste.(Health Care System)
February 1, 2005... Provocative observations on the health care system, including the assertion that everyday life is becoming "medicalized" have been made in The Last Well Person: How to Stay Well Despite the Health-Care System by Nortin M. Hadler, professor of...

Memory loss but not Alzheimer's.(Neurology)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Alzheimer's disease is not always the reason behind a progressive loss of memory and other mental skills. According to the Mayo Clinic Health Letter, one cause is vascular dementia. Accounting for 10-20% of all dementias, it occurs when small...

An apple a day may keep dementia away.(Alzheimer's Disease)
February 1, 2005... A potent antioxidant abundant in apples and some other fruits and vegetables appears to protect brain cells against oxidative stress, a tissue-damaging process associated with Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, according...

Oral exposure boosting infection.(AIDS)
February 1, 2005... An animal model has been used by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas to trace how the virus that causes AIDS in humans may enter and spread throughout the body following oral exposure. By...

Many short kids happy as is.(Growth Hormones)
February 1, 2005... The prevailing belief that children and adolescents who are especially short have social adjustment problems and fewer friends than kids of average height has been countered by a University at Buffalo (N.Y.) study, challenging one rationale for...

Contributing gene finally found.(Autism)
February 1, 2005... Scientific research has discovered that a specific gene contributes to autism and that autistic people have fewer receptors for the brain messenger acetylcholine, as well as more tightly packed columns of neurons in the cerebral cortex. Another...

Disease may be family affair.(Cancer)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Scientists believe that most cancers are caused by a series of genetic mutations that develop over a person's lifetime. Yet, five to 10% of cancers are associated with a single inherited gene mutation that passes down in families. "We...

Counseling improves immune system.(Breast Cancer)
February 1, 2005... Regular psychological counseling for breast cancer patients may do more than just lower their stress and anxiety. A study from Ohio State University's Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, maintains that the right type of intervention also can...

Cure-all drug remains risky.(Breast Tumors)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... The drug tamoxifen citrate not only helps prevent recurrence of breast cancer, but can keep the deadly disease from appearing in the first place in some women. However, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study indicates that it...

Cellular inflammation precursor to heart disease.(Endocrinology)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Endocrinologists are providing one more link in the growing chain of evidence pointing to chronic cellular inflammation as the precursor of heart disease and diabetes. University at Buffalo (N.Y.) researchers have shown for the first time that...

Exhibition explores images of quacks and quackery.(Medicinal Artistry)
February 1, 2005... A lively exhibition tracing the history of the colorful purveyors of patent and quack medicines over the past four centuries, "Quack, Quack, Quack: The Sellers of Nostrums in Prints, Posters, Ephemera & Books" contains 75 works ranging from...

Statins sustain cardiac victims.(Heart Medication)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Treating heart-attack patients earlier with a more aggressive regimen of cholesterol-lowering medicines may help diminish their chances of sustaining added complications later or dying after their heart attack, researchers at the University of...

Former smokers survive longer.(Pulmonary Disease)
February 1, 2005... Patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who stop smoking may be able to improve their rate of survival. A study has shown that patients with severe, early-onset COPD who continued to smoke had a risk of mortality that...

Minimizing damage after a heart attack.(Cardiovascular System)
February 1, 2005... For years, scientists have tried to determine why the French have such a low rate of cardiovascular disease, given the amount of fat consumed in their diets. Red wine has been identified as one of the suspects in maintaining a healthy heart,...

Don't be haunted by a toothless grin.(Periodontics)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Whether it is Valentine's Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Halloween, the trick to enjoying the treats is brushing and flossing teeth and gums after eating candy, cake, cookies, or any other holiday snack. This will help to prevent the onset of...

Sufferers prefer home remedies.(Back Pain)
February 1, 2005... Approximately one in six adults (16%) suffered from back pain every single day during the past month, according to a national survey by the North American Spine Society. Individuals are dealing with this persistent issue an average of 14 days...

"Permanent" injuries may have a cure.(Spinal Cord)
February 1, 2005... Novel methods for transplanting cells into areas damaged by spinal cord injury and experimental drug treatments show promise for aiding those suffering from devastating injuries. "New animal research brings increasing hope for sufferers of...

Knee flare-ups can be controlled.(Joints)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... If you have increasing difficulty going up and down stairs, you are not alone. Knee pain is common with age. Many times it can be handled with treatments other than surgery. Knee discomfort can come from injuries or strains that cause...

Hormones make all the difference.(The Brain)
February 1, 2005... Scientists are uncovering increasing evidence that the brain not only responds to hormones produced by the reproductive system, but that these hormones--the so-called "female hormones" estrogen and progestin and the "male" androgens, such as...

Women prone to upper body maladies.(Musculoskeletal System)
February 1, 2005... Women are at least twice as likely as men to develop musculoskeletal disorders of the upper body, indicate the findings of scientists at Ohio State University, Columbus, who reanalyzed data from 56 previous studies on the subject. This gives...

Easing discomfort of swollen feet.(Edema)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Your feet and ankles look normal in the morning. By day's end, though, they are swollen, and you cannot wait to get your shoes off. Swelling (edema) results from fluid buildup in tissues. Gravity pulls the fluids to the feet and ankles, causing...

Parasympathetic nervous system at risk.(Gulf War Syndrome)
February 1, 2005... Damage to the parasympathetic nervous system may account for nearly half of the typical symptoms-including gallbladder disease, unrefreshing sleep, depression, joint pain, chronic diarrhea, and sexual dysfunction-that afflict those with Gulf...

Disease gene linked to evolution.(Schizophrenia)
February 1, 2005... Approximately two percent of Caucasians have a gene segment variation that can cause a certain form of schizophrenia. Most people with the variation, known as a polymorphism, do not have the disease. A University of Iowa, Iowa City, study...

Infant neglect surfaces in mid life.(Central Nervous System)
February 1, 2005... Evidence continues to mount that prenatal and early experience can have profound long-term effects on the developing central nervous system and its regulation of basic physiology, psychology, and immune function. Several reports demonstrate...

Black girls most likely to be obese.(Weight Control)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Inadequate recreational facilities and lingering concerns about safety combine to prevent black girls in some communities from getting enough physical exercise to prevent obesity and promote good health later in life, a University of North...

African-Americans fatter, less fit than Caucasians.(Fitness)
February 1, 2005... Race may play an important role in determining a person's obesity and fitness levels, according to a study showing that African-American patients had a higher level of obesity and a lower exercise capacity compared to Caucasians, with the most...

The ABCs of the flu.(Influenza)
February 1, 2005... Influenza, usually called the flu, is a viral infection of the respiratory tract. The flu can move from the nose or mouth to the rest of the respiratory system. It usually is spread by touching an infected person or contaminated surface or by...

Retailers reduce sales of cigarettes to kids.(Smoking Laws)
February 1, 2005... Retailers continue to reduce sales of tobacco to children under age 18, according to data released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Washington, D.C. Overall, the national retailer violation rate dropped to 12.8%...

Why do pharmacies sell tobacco?(Smoking)
February 1, 2005... People do not expect to be able to purchase cigarettes or other tobacco products when they visit their doctors' or dentists' offices. Yet, they can buy tobacco products at many pharmacies. "As consumers know, most community pharmacies carry...

Is smoking finally out of style?(World Health)
February 1, 2005... The U.S.--the country that gave the world tobacco--now is leading it away from cigarettes, according to Earth Policy Institute, Washington, DC. After climbing for nearly a century, the number of cigarettes smoked per person in this country...