BBCThu, 03 May 2007 04:27 UTC
Maggots are being used to help successfully treat MRSA patients in record time, according to a new study by the University of Manchester.
Researchers used green bottle fly larvae to treat 13 diabetics whose foot ulcers were contaminated with MRSA.
They found that all but one were cured within a mean period of three weeks, instead of the usual 28 weeks for conventional treatment.
The university has now been awarded a £98,000 grant to carry out more tests.
Anne Harding
ReutersWed, 02 May 2007 12:59 UTC
Drinking coffee can help ward off type 2 diabetes and may even help prevent certain cancers, according to panelists discussing the benefits -- and risks -- of the beverage at a scientific meeting.
Comment: A coffee a day...
At least 2.5 million broiler chickens from an Indiana producer were fed pet food scraps contaminated with the chemical melamine and subsequently sold for human consumption, federal health officials reported yesterday.
Veterans of the first Gulf War who returned with multiple health symptom complaints show significant differences in brain structures from their fellow returnees without high numbers of health symptoms, according to research that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 59th Annual Meeting in Boston, April 28 - May 5, 2007.
DAN OLMSTED
UPIThu, 26 Apr 2007 10:11 UTC
This column has long made the controversial case that autism had a beginning, a "big bang" if you will. That moment was 1930 -- no U.S. cases before then fully match the classic description of the disorder.
Kate Kelland
ReutersWed, 02 May 2007 09:16 UTC
A study of cities across the world shows pedestrians are upping their pace at an alarming rate as they scurry from place to place, determined to cram as much as possible into each day.
Scientists say it is symptomatic of a modern life driven by e-mail, text messages and a need to be available 24 hours a day.
The most dramatic increases were found in Asia among the fast-growing "tiger" economies.
The Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A: Current Issues, an authoritative journal featuring original toxicological research, has published, "A Case Series of Children with Apparent Mercury Toxic Encephalopathies Manifesting with Clinical Symptoms of Regressive Autistic Disorders," by Geier and Geier (2007).
Getting eight hours' sleep a night has long been seen as one of the keys to a healthy and happy life.
But for most of us the figure is little more than an ideal, with the average worker losing two and a half years of sleep over the course of their career, according to a survey.
In fact, the average working adult loses just over ten hours' sleep every week, which adds up to more than one complete night's rest.
That adds up to 520 hours over a year or 23,140 hours (2.5 years) over the average working lifetime.
Will Dunham
ReutersMon, 30 Apr 2007 23:40 UTC
Mental stimulation and drug treatment may help people with brain ailments such as Alzheimer's disease regain seemingly lost memories, according to research published on Sunday.
Perchlorate, a chemical used in rocket fuel, is turning up in the nation's food -- in vegetables like lettuce and spinach -- and water supply.
Comment: A coffee a day...