Controversial prostate cancer screening can be improved by repeating abnormal tests
(Ottawa Hospital Research Institute) For more than 20 years, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test has been used to help screen for prostate cancer, but in recent years, some task forces have called for this blood test to be abandoned because it leads to many unnecessary biopsies. Now, a new study from The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa shows that simply repeating abnormal PSA tests dramatically reduces unnecessary biopsies. (Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer)
Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer - December 10, 2015 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: news
Heart disease patients who sit a lot have worse health even if they exercise
(University of Ottawa Heart Institute) Patients with heart disease who sit a lot have worse health even if they exercise, reveals research from the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and published today in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - November 25, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news
Why Would I Be Low in Vitamin D?
My doctors and I test blood levels of vitamin D on everyone we see in our clinic. When the results come in, two things happen: 1. Pretty much everyone is low in vitamin D. 2. Pretty much everyone is shocked that they are low in vitamin D. Why worry about vitamin D? It's important. Multiple studies have shown that people with low levels of Vitamin D have the following: • Weaker bones [1] • Higher mortality rate [2] • More allergies and asthma [3] • Greater risk of cancer [4] • Higher risk of diabetes [5] • Greater risk of heart attacks [6] • Higher rates of MS [7] • Higher risk of infections [8]...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - November 20, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Normal BMI with a big belly 'deadlier than obesity'
ConclusionThis study adds to previous research that it may not be just your weight that matters, but where you carry it. It found that – especially for men – those with a high WHR had a greater chance of dying from any cause during study follow-up than those without. The results were less strong for women.A high WHR suggests excess fat around the waist, as muscle mass is unlikely to lead to greater waist circumference. Although this study does not explore why WHR may be linked to chances of dying earlier, other studies have shown that carrying excess fat around your waist may be more harmful than carrying it in other a...
Source: NHS News Feed - November 10, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Obesity Source Type: news
Will E-Cigs and Vaping End Smoking, or Just Create New Problems?
E-cigarettes could be the key to finally ending tobacco smoking and all its related diseases. Or are they delaying the goal of a smoke-free world? The scientific community hasn't rolled out the red carpet just yet. We look at both sides, and talk to someone who says her life has been totally transformed by vaping. Pro: E-cigs are 'very much less harmful' "An electronic alternative is a less harmful way of consuming nicotine than smoking," acknowledges Hazel Cheeseman, director of policy at Action on Smoking & Health. "What many people don't realize is that while smokers are addicted to nicotine, it is the smoke that ki...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - September 25, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Bees Are Losing Their Habitat Because of Climate Change
As if pesticides, disease and habitat loss were not enough, there’s more bad news for bees. Changing temperature and weather conditions due to climate change has restricted the area where bees can survive, and the pollinators have struggled to adapt, according to new research published in the journal Science.
“They just aren’t colonizing new areas and establishing new populations fast enough to track rapid human-caused climate change,” said study author Jeremy Kerr, a professor at the University of Ottawa, on a call for journalists. “Impacts are large and they are underway. They are not just s...
Source: TIME: Top Science and Health Stories - July 9, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Justin Worland Tags: Uncategorized animals Bees bees climate change Bees habitat loss climate change animals climate change news pollinators Source Type: news
Study could reduce unnecessary cancer screening
(Ottawa Hospital Research Institute) A large clinical trial led by researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa has found that contrary to expectations, a CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis does not improve cancer detection in people with unexplained blood clots in their legs and lungs. The results, published in the June 22nd edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, are expected to improve patient care and reduce screening costs around the world. (Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer)
Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer - June 22, 2015 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: news
Childhood maltreatment linked to sleep problems among adult Canadians
(University of Toronto) Adults who experienced multiple incidents of childhood maltreatment were more than two times as likely to have trouble sleeping than their counterparts who were not maltreated during childhood, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Toronto, University of Ottawa, and Western University. The study appears online in the journal Sleep Medicine. (Source: EurekAlert! - Biology)
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - May 5, 2015 Category: Biology Source Type: news
Partners herald new cancer immunotherapy company
(Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute) The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, The Ottawa Hospital, the University of Ottawa and McMaster University congratulate its researchers on forming Turnstone Biologics Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing new treatments for cancer that harness the patient's own immune system. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - May 4, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news
University of Ottawa Selects Freeslate Reaction Screening System to...
Freeslate expands its collaboration with academic centres(PRWeb April 21, 2015)Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2015/04/prweb12666577.htm (Source: PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals)
Source: PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals - April 22, 2015 Category: Pharmaceuticals Source Type: news
Adults are right to let Bambi break the bad news
Children’s films are emotional workouts that gently teach the hardest truth: that most things may never happen – this one willWhy does death feature in children’s films and stories as much as it does? Even if death isn’t the main storyline, as in Cinderella, the gloom of Cinders having lost her mother and being largely unprotected in the world is pretty scary.A group of researchers watched 45 of the top-grossing children’s animated films, and compared them with the most popular action movies aimed at adults, noting how often a main character was killed. The study, conducted by University College London and the Un...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - December 18, 2014 Category: Science Authors: Philippa Perry Tags: Children Society Animation Film Death and dying Life and style Parents and parenting Family Psychology Source Type: news
Do dopamine drugs lead to compulsive shopping?
Conclusion
This study analysed serious adverse drug events reported to the US FDA over a 10-year period, and found that 710 events (just under half of all impulse control disorders reported during this period) were attributed to dopamine receptor agonists. Most of these disorders involved gambling, followed by hypersexuality and compulsive shopping.
This group of six drugs are used in Parkinson’s disease (and a small number of other conditions) where there is a lack of the chemical dopamine. The drugs act directly on dopamine receptors, effectively taking the place of dopamine and stimulating the receptor in the same wa...
Source: NHS News Feed - October 23, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Mental health Neurology Medication Source Type: news
Researchers identify new pathway linking the brain to high blood pressure
(University of Ottawa Heart Institute) New research by scientists at the Ottawa Heart Institute and the University of Maryland School of Medicine has uncovered a new pathway by which the brain uses an unusual steroid to control blood pressure. The study, which also suggests new approaches for treating high blood pressure and heart failure, appears today in the journal PLOS ONE. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)
Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science - October 2, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news
University of Ottawa and Drexel University scientists receive 'Best of Research' award
(JMPR Associates, Inc.) Dr. Chantal Matar, University of Ottawa, and Dr. Barry W. Ritz, Drexel University, received the 'Best of Research' award from Hokkaido Prefecture Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry for a new study presented at the 22nd International Congress on Nutrition and Integrative Medicine held in Sapporo, Japan.Dr. Matar and Dr. Ritz were recognized for their pioneering research on the mode of action of the mycelial mushroom compound AHCC, an alpha-glucan rich immune modulator. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)
Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science - October 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news
Why age reduces stem cells' ability to repair muscle
As we age, stem cells throughout our bodies gradually lose their capacity to repair damage, even from normal wear and tear. Researchers from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and University of Ottawa have discovered the reason why this decline occurs in our skeletal muscle. Their findings were published online today in the influential journal Nature Medicine. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)
Source: ScienceDaily Headlines - September 7, 2014 Category: Science Source Type: news
