British study links IMF loans to tuberculosis
Austerity measures attached to International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans may have contributed to a resurgence in tuberculosis in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, researchers said on Tuesday.
Governments may be reducing funding for health services such as hospitals and clinics to meet strict IMF economic targets, the British researchers said.
The study, published in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Medicine, found that countries participating in IMF programmes had seen tuberculosis death rates increase by at least 17 percent between 1991 and 2000—equivalent to more than 100,000 additional deaths. About one million new cases were recorded during the same period.
GORE-TEX appears to be safe alternative for rhinoplasty
For patients who undergo plastic surgery on the nose (rhinoplasty), GORE-TEX implants are a safe and inexpensive alternative to using tissue grafts taken from another part of the patient’s body, according to the results of a 17-year review of more than 500 patients.
For initial and subsequent rhinoplasty procedures in patients with enough internal nasal tissue and external soft tissue coverage, “GORE-TEX should be strongly considered for major and minor corrections of the nasal wall and bridge in properly selected patients,” Dr. Krzysztof Conrad and colleagues, from the University of Toronto, advise.
The review, which was conducted at a teaching hospital, community hospital, and private facial cosmetic surgery center, involved 521 patients who were followed for up to 17 years. A total of 685 GORE-TEX implants were placed, all by one surgeon.
U of T discovers environmental factors linked to sex ratio of plants
Environmental factors can transform the ratio of females to males in plant populations according to new research out of the University of Toronto.
The study conducted by Ivana Stehlik, a lecturer, Jannice Friedman, a PhD candidate, and Spencer Barrett, a professor, involved a novel approach using genetic markers (known DNA sequences) to identify the sex of seeds. The team investigated six natural populations of the wind-pollinated herb Rumex nivalis in the Swiss Alps and mapped the distance between females and neighbouring males. They then measured the amount of pollen captured by female flowers and collected seeds from the plants when they were mature.
“The plant has strongly female-biased flowering sex ratios in these populations. We wanted to find out the mechanism causing the bias,” said Barrett. “We found that where there were more males surrounding females, females captured more pollen, matured more seed and produced more strongly female-biased offspring.”
Checking more lymph nodes linked to cancer patient survival
Why do patients with gastric or pancreatic cancer live longer when they are treated at cancer centers or high-volume hospitals than patients treated at low-volume or community hospitals?
New research from Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine found that cancer patients have more lymph nodes examined for the spread of their disease if they are treated at hospitals performing more cancer surgeries or those designated as comprehensive cancer centers.
Lymph node metastases (indicating the spread of cancer) have been shown to predict patients’ prognosis after cancer tissue is removed from the stomach or pancreas. If too few lymph nodes are examined for malignant cells, a patient’s cancer may be incorrectly classified, which alters the prognosis, treatment decisions and eligibility for clinical trials.
Measuring the stress of forested areas
Plants undergo stress because of lack of water, due to the heat or the cold or to excess of light. A research team from the University of the Basque Country have analysed the substances that are triggered in plants to protect themselves, with the goal of choosing the species that is best suited to the environment during reforestation under adverse environmental conditions.
Droughts, extreme temperatures, contamination, and so on – all are harmful to plants. On occasions, the damage is caused by humans. For example, as a consequence of cutting down trees, plants used to shady conditions may be exposed to an excess of light. However, in most cases it is nature itself that causes the stress. In spring, plants have sufficient average humidity and temperatures, i.e. what scientists deem ‘optimum conditions’. But in winter they have to withstand considerable cold and in summer, on the other hand, high temperatures and droughts: adverse environmental factors that generate stress situations. Thus, in winter and in summer, the light which under normal conditions would be a source of energy becomes excessive, given that the metabolism of the plants under these conditions is not able to assimilate it. This process is known as photo-oxidative stress.
Has Cancer Spread? Research Identifies Best Way to Find Answers
For patients with head and neck cancer, accurately determining how advanced the cancer is and detecting secondary cancers usually means undergoing numerous tests - until now. New Saint Louis University research has found that the PET-CT scanner can be used as a stand-alone tool to detect secondary cancers, which occur in 5 to 10 percent of head and neck cancer patients.
The study findings, which were presented on Tuesday, July 22, at the 7th International Conference on Head and Neck Cancer in San Francisco, Calif., will streamline care for head and neck cancer patients allowing them to begin treatment earlier, says Michael Odell, M.D., assistant professor of otolaryngology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine.
“There has been a lot of confusion about the best ways to evaluate head and neck cancer patients to see if their cancer has spread,” said Odell, the study’s primary author.
