Quantcast

Stroke rates high in Mexican Americans

Mexican Americans have about a 20 percent higher incidence of stroke than non-Hispanic whites, the American Heart Association reported in its Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics — 2005 Update released today. The 2005 Update compiles statistics for the most recent year for which data are available. Most of the information on Mexican Americans and stroke comes from the Brain Attack Surveillance in Corpus Christi Project. About 168 of every 10,000 Mexican Americans had a stroke from 2000 — 2002, compared to 136 of 10,000 non-Hispanic whites. After adjusting for age, Mexican Americans have a higher incidence of intracerebral hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage than non-Hispanic whites. Mexican Americans also have an increased incidence of ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) at younger ages when compared with non-Hispanic whites.

Surgical treatment of migraines reduces sick days, increases employee productivity

With more than 28 million Americans suffering from debilitating migraine headaches each year, employers also suffer through missed days from work and reduced productivity. However, Migraine sufferers who had surgical treatment reduced the amount of time missed from work by 73 percent, according to a study published in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® (PRS), the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Additionally, surgical treatment substantially lowered the annual cost of migraine care for patients, the study found.

Medical journal turns missing murder case documents over to FDA

The British Medical Journal has turned over confidential drug company documents that went missing from a 10 year old murder case to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for review. The documents, which were sent to the BMJ by an anonymous source, appear to suggest a link between the drug fluoxetine (Prozac), made by Eli Lilly, and suicide attempts and violence. They also suggest that Eli Lilly officials were aware in the 1980s that fluoxetine had troubling side effects and sought to minimise their likely negative effect on prescribing.

Scientists: Fur, head hair not the same

Mammals have fur over most of their bodies, but at some point during evolution, we humans lost that fur covering. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis argue that hair on the head is somehow different from fur because fur stops growing when it reaches a certain length, but our head hair continues to grow. To drive home their argument, they ask in a recent article in the journal Evolutionary Anthropology, “Have you ever seen a chimpanzee getting a haircut?”

15-year study shows strong link between fast food, obesity and insulin resistance

Researchers have shown a correlation between fast food, weight gain, and insulin resistance in what appears to be the first long-term study on this subject. The Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study by Mark Pereira, Ph.D., assistant professor in epidemiology, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, and David Ludwig, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Obesity Program at Children’s Hospital Boston, reported that fast food increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. The results of this 15-year study will be published in the Jan. 1 issue of The Lancet.

Space scientist proposes new model for Jupiter’s core

After eleven months of politics, now it’s time for some real “core values” – not those of the candidates but those of the great gas giant planet, Jupiter. Katharina Lodders, Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis research associate professor in Earth and Planetary Sciences in Arts & Sciences, studying data from the Galileo probe of Jupiter, proposes a new mechanism by which the planet formed 4.5 billion years ago.

‘Clusters’ of earthquakes yield an ominous scenario

The newest studies on the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the coast of the Pacific Northwest have identified a “clustering” of great earthquakes of the type that would cause a major tsunami, yielding a historical record with two distinct implications – one that’s good, the other not. According to scientists at Oregon State University, this subduction zone has just experienced a cluster of four massive earthquakes during the past 1600 years, and if historical trends continue, this cluster could be over and the zone may already have entered a long quiet period of 500 to 1,000 years, which appears to be common following a cluster of earthquake events.

Common Perfumes May Harm Marine Life

Artificial fragrances in perfumes, soaps, shampoos, cosmetics, and air fresheners — widely regarded as nontoxic — are not necessarily safe for the marine environment, a study funded in part by California Sea Grant shows. In a series of experiments with California mussels, scientists discovered that synthetic musks, while not directly harmful to an organism, increase its sensitivity to toxic agents in the environment. The finding raises concerns that some common household compounds may pose unanticipated risks to the environment and human health. The results were published recently in Environmental Health Perspectives, a journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

NASA Selects Investigations for Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

NASA has selected six proposals to provide instrumentation and associated exploration/science measurement investigations for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the first spacecraft to be built as part of the Vision for Space Exploration. The LRO mission is scheduled to launch in the fall of 2008 as part of NASA’s Robotic Lunar Exploration Program. The mission will deliver a powerful orbiter to the vicinity of the moon to obtain measurements necessary to characterize future robotic and human landing sites. It also will identify potential lunar resources and document aspects of the lunar radiation environment relevant to human biological responses.

Medication May Improve Parkinson’s Drug Effects

Physicians at the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center at Northwestern University are conducting a research study to evaluate an experimental treatment intended to improve motor fluctuations associated with the “wearing-off” effects of medications to treat Parkinson’s disease. Individuals with advancing Parkinson’s disease develop inconsistent responses to medications, known as fluctuations and “wearing off.”

Loss of Fishing Fleets Will Slow Recovery in Tsunami-Hit Villages

A Duke University professor who has studied rural economic development in Indonesia and Sri Lanka says the loss of coastal villages’ fishing fleets in this week’s devastating tsunamis will be a major long-term obstacle to economic recovery there. Randall A. Kramer, professor of resource and environmental economics at Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, has conducted house-to-house socioeconomic surveys in Indonesian coastal communities similar to those decimated in northern Sumatra.