feinberg school of medicine
New stats show America’s heart health needs improvement
America’s heart and blood vessel health is far from ideal, according to data in the American Heart Association’s “Heart Disease and Stroke Statistical Update 2012,” published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
The update provi…
Why humans see clearly
A transparent cornea is essential for vision, which is why the eye has evolved to nourish the cornea without blood vessels. But for millions of people around the world, diseases of the eye or trauma spur the growth of blood vessels and can …
Why women quit breast cancer drugs early
Why do so many postmenopausal women who are treated for estrogen-sensitive breast cancer quit using drugs that help prevent the disease from recurring?
The first study to actually ask the women themselves — as well as the largest, most sc…
Human stem cells transformed into key neurons lost in Alzheimer’s
CHICAGO — Northwestern Medicine researchers for the first time have transformed a human embryonic stem cell into a critical type of neuron that dies early in Alzheimer’s disease and is a major cause of memory loss.
This new ability to reprogram …
Struggling to follow doctor’s orders
CHICAGO — Paid caregivers make it possible for seniors to remain living in their homes. The problem, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study, is that more than one-third of caregivers had difficulty reading and understanding health-related …
Anti-clotting agent does not improve outcomes of patients with severe pneumonia
Use of the blood clot-inhibiting medication tifacogin does not appear to improve outcomes of patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia (sCAP), according to a study conducted by researchers from North and South America, Europe, Asia and Afric…
Gonorrhea acquires a piece of human DNA
CHICAGO — If a human cell and a bacterial cell met at a speed-dating event, they would never be expected to exchange phone numbers, much less genetic material. In more scientific terms, a direct transfer of DNA has never been recorded from humans …