Treatment

Deep Brain Stimulation Curbs Parkinson Symptoms

Scientists reported that a therapy for treating Parkinson’s disease called deep brain stimulation improved quality of life and gave patients more daily hours without troubling movement symptoms than standard medical care. However, brain stimulation also carried a greater risk of serious adverse events.

Deep brain stimulation has been used for more than a decade to treat patients whose Parkinson’s symptoms can no longer be effectively controlled with medication. The procedure involves surgically implanting tiny electrodes into brain regions that control movement. When the electrodes are stimulated, they inhibit the malfunctioning brain signals that cause tremor, walking problems and other movement abnormalities typical of Parkinson’s disease. Despite its long-term use, however, questions remain about the benefits and risks of the procedure and its appropriate use, and few randomized trials have compared its effectiveness to other, less invasive therapies.

In the latest study, the largest clinical trial of its kind to date, 255 patients with advanced Parkinson’s disease were randomly assigned to receive either deep brain stimulation or “best medical therapy,” including medication. The study was funded by NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Research and Development, with additional support from Medtronic, Inc. Unlike most previous studies, this multicenter trial included a large percentage of older patients; about 25% of participants were age 70 or older. The results were published in the January 7, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

By 6 months after surgery, patients receiving deep brain stimulation had gained an average of 4.6 hours per day of good symptom control without troubling involuntary movements, called dyskinesia. In contrast, patients receiving standard medical care showed no change, on average, in hourly symptom control. In patients age 70 and over, those in the stimulation group gained an average of 3.8 hours of good symptom control per day, whereas those in the standard therapy group lost a half hour per day.

Clinically meaningful improvements to motor function were also seen in 71% of patients who received brain stimulation, compared to 32% in the standard therapy group. In addition, assessments of quality of life improved significantly in the stimulation group compared to the other group.

On the down side, serious adverse events were seen in 49 of 121 patients (40%) who received deep brain stimulation and in 15 of 131 patients (11%) in the best medical therapy group. The most common adverse event in the stimulation group was infection from the surgery. Other negative events included nervous system, psychiatric and cardiovascular disorders.

In the second phase of this ongoing study, the researchers will assess the longer term effects of deep brain stimulation. Until more data are available from carefully controlled clinical trials, the scientists recommend that doctors and patients carefully weigh potential benefits and risks when deciding on appropriate treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

— by Vicki Contie

http://ongoing study-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

Acupuncture-Like Treatments Improve Low Back Pain

Acupuncture and simulated acupuncture both improved chronic low back pain more than conventional care in a new study. The result highlights central questions about how acupuncture helps people with chronic pain.

Acupuncture is a family of procedures that originated in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves stimulating specific points on the body by a variety of techniques, including the insertion of thin metal needles though the skin. In the United States, acupuncture is considered part of complementary and alternative medicine.

Many patients with back pain who are dissatisfied with their medical care seek treatment from acupuncturists. In fact, back pain is the leading reason for visits to licensed acupuncturists.

Several recent studies have suggested that both real acupuncture and "sham" acupuncture (the shallow needling of points) are equally effective for treating chronic low back pain, and that both are superior to best-practice medical care. A team of researchers led by Dr. Daniel Cherkin of the Group Health Center for Health Studies in Seattle set out to further investigate. Their work was funded by NIH's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM).

The team enrolled 638 adults with chronic low back pain who never had acupuncture. The participants were randomly assigned to 4 groups. The first received individualized acupuncture, a customized prescription for acupuncture points from a diagnostician. The second received standardized acupuncture, targeting points that acupuncture experts consider generally effective for chronic low back pain. The third group received simulated acupuncture, which mimics needle acupuncture but doesn't involve actual penetration of the skin. The fourth group received standard medical care.

The patients in the 3 acupuncture groups were treated twice weekly for 3 weeks, and then weekly for an additional 4 weeks. At 8, 26 and 52 weeks, the researchers measured back-related dysfunction and asked the participants about their symptoms.

The researchers reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine on May 11, 2009, that dysfunction scores at 8 weeks had improved significantly more for all 3 acupuncture groups than for the standard care group. The benefits persisted for a year, though they diminished over time. There was no significant difference between the groups receiving the needle and simulated forms of acupuncture. Neither tailoring acupuncture needle sites to an individual patient nor actually penetrating the skin appeared to be necessary to get the benefits of acupuncture.

"Because of the lack of highly effective medical treatments for chronic low back pain, we were pleased to find that acupuncture-like treatments were helpful for persons suffering from chronic back pain," Cherkin says. "However, the finding that real acupuncture produced no greater benefit than simulated acupuncture raises important questions about acupuncture's mechanisms of action."

"This adds to the growing body of evidence that there is something meaningful taking place during acupuncture treatments outside of actual needling. Future research is needed to delve deeper into what is evoking these responses," says Dr. Josephine P. Briggs, director of NCCAM.

http://growing body-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

Gene Therapy Shows Promise for Eye Condition

Three young adults who received gene therapy for a blinding eye condition remained healthy and maintained visual gains one year later, researchers reported. One patient also noticed a visual improvement that helped her perform daily tasks.

Retinal photo of a patient with Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA). Image courtesy of NEI.

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a currently untreatable hereditary condition that causes severe vision loss and blindness in infants and children. The 3 patients in the study—aged 22, 24 and 25—have been legally blind since birth due to a specific form of LCA caused by mutations in the RPE65 gene. The protein coded by this gene is needed for the production of a retina-specific form of vitamin A that allows light-sensitive photoreceptor cells to function.

The RPE65 form of LCA offers an opportunity for treatment because it leaves some photoreceptors intact. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Florida pinpointed an area of intact photoreceptors in the retina of each patient. They then injected healthy copies of the RPE65 gene under the retina in this area. The ongoing phase I clinical trial is supported by NIH's National Eye Institute (NEI).

Three independent groups previously reported the short-term benefits of this procedure. In a paper published online on August 3, 2009, in Human Gene Therapy, the researchers noted that, one year after the procedure, the therapy had not provoked a detectable immune response, a risk in gene therapy procedures. The patients' ability to read letters on an eye chart remained unchanged, but all 3 patients could detect dim lights that they weren't able to see before treatment. This provides evidence that the newly introduced RPE65 gene is functional and is increasing the light sensitivity of the retina.

The scientists also reported in the August 13, 2009, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine that, at 12 months, one patient noticed that she could read an illuminated clock on the dashboard of a car for the first time in her life. When the researchers performed additional tests, they found that, rather than focusing on objects using the region of the retina where the sharpest central vision normally occurs, this patient had gradually begun to use the area of the retina that had been treated with gene therapy.

"This interesting finding shows that over time, a person visually adapted to gene therapy in a meaningful way," says principal investigator Dr. Samuel G. Jacobson of the University of Pennsylvania. "As we continue our studies, we will look more closely at whether these slow visual gains could be accelerated with visual training."

The researchers will continue to follow these patients over the next several years to monitor safety and to learn whether the visual benefits remain. The ongoing trial also includes additional groups of LCA patients—children as well as adults—who are receiving different doses of the RPE65 gene therapy.

"These results are very significant because they represent one of the first steps toward the clinical use of gene therapy for an inherited form of blindness," says NEI Director Dr. Paul A. Sieving. "I anticipate that it is only a matter of time before similar techniques will be applied to other genetic diseases affecting vision."

http://gene therapy-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

Cocaine Vaccine Shows Promise for Treating Addiction

Immunization with an experimental anti-cocaine vaccine results in a significant reduction in cocaine use, according to a clinical trial. The result is the first successful demonstration to date of a vaccine against an illegal drug of abuse.

Dr. Thomas Kosten, with a team at the Yale University School of Medicine, developed the cocaine vaccine and previously demonstrated its safety. Like vaccines against infectious diseases, the anti-cocaine vaccine stimulates the immune system to produce antibodies. The antibodies attach themselves to cocaine molecules in the blood and prevent them from passing through the blood-brain barrier. By preventing the drug's entry into the brain, the vaccine inhibits or blocks cocaine-induced euphoria.

A team led by Kosten, now at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, recently carried out a clinical trial to test the vaccine's efficacy, with funding primarily from NIH's National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). The trial included 115 patients from a methadone maintenance program who were randomly assigned to receive the anti-cocaine vaccine or a placebo (inactive) vaccine. The participants received 5 vaccinations over a 12-week period and were followed for an additional 12 weeks. All attended weekly relapse-prevention therapy sessions with a trained substance abuse counselor. The patients had their blood tested for antibodies to cocaine and their urine tested for the presence of opioids and cocaine.

In the October 2009 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, the scientists reported that participants who generated the highest antibody levels in response to the vaccination had the greatest reductions in cocaine use. Thirty-eight percent attained blood levels of anti-cocaine antibodies thought to be sufficient to block cocaine's euphoric effects. During weeks 9 to 16 (when antibody levels peaked), these participants had significantly more cocaine-free urine samples (45%) than those who received the placebo or those with active vaccine but low levels of antibodies (35%). The researchers saw no serious adverse effects from the vaccinations.

"In this study, immunization did not achieve complete abstinence from cocaine use," Kosten says. "Previous research has shown, however, that a reduction in use is associated with a significant improvement in cocaine abusers' social functioning and thus is therapeutically meaningful."

"The results of this study represent a promising step toward an effective medical treatment for cocaine addiction," says NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow. "Provided that larger follow-up studies confirm its safety and efficacy, this vaccine would offer a valuable new approach to treating cocaine addiction, for which no FDA-approved medication is currently available."

http://cocaine addiction-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

NIH and D.C. Department of Health Team up to Combat District’s HIV/AIDS Epidemic

Officials from the National Institutes of Health and the city of Washington, D.C. today announced the new D.C. Partnership for HIV/AIDS Progress, a collaborative research initiative between NIH and the D.C. Department of Health designed to decrease the rate of new HIV infections in the city, improve the health of district residents living with HIV infection, and strengthen the city’s response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The partnership is being co-led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of NIH, and the D.C. Department of Health.

NIH has allocated $26.4 million for the first two years of the partnership through funding from NIAID and the NIH Office of AIDS Research.

“Tragically, our nation’s capital has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS, where about 3 percent of adults and adolescents are infected with the virus,” says NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. “By collaborating with Mayor Fenty’s administration to establish the new D.C. Partnership for HIV/AIDS Progress, NIH will seek to answer critical HIV research questions that could positively affect the district’s HIV/AIDS problem and serve as a model for programs in other U.S. cities as well.”

The D.C. Partnership centers on four research efforts:

• Identifying populations at high risk for HIV acquisition and developing effective interventions for reducing their risk
• Establishing a D.C.-wide data analysis mechanism to identify and address health issues and outcomes for people receiving HIV care and treatment
• Augmenting the city’s HIV-related subspecialty medical care and enhancing access to research studies
• Conducting a pilot program to study the voluntary test-and-treat concept aimed at stemming new cases of HIV infection

“As the nation’s capital and a national leader in the fight against HIV, the District of Columbia is excited to launch a new, innovative partnership for HIV/AIDS progress with NIH,” says Washington Mayor Adrian M. Fenty. “This comprehensive collaboration will generate fresh ideas, new services and technical knowledge to enable the city and NIH to prevent new infections and improve health care services for all residents living with HIV/AIDS.”

Identifying, Helping HIV At-risk Populations

African-Americans represent the overwhelming majority—76 percent—of the district’s HIV/AIDS cases. To better understand the risk factors for HIV infection and develop effective interventions for reducing risk, NIAID is conducting two observational studies through its HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN). The first study, HPTN 061, is collecting sexual and social networking information from black men who have sex with men (MSM). Participants receive HIV risk-reduction counseling and condoms; testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections; screenings for substance use, mental health issues, partner and/or homophobic violence; and a peer system to help them navigate the health care system and utilize HIV services. Already under way, the two-year study will assess the impact of these services on HIV incidence. HPTN 061 will enroll 2,460 men in six U.S. cities, including about 400 Washington participants.

HPTN 064, also a two-year observational study in six U.S. cities, aims to estimate HIV incidence among African-American women from areas with high rates of both HIV and poverty. The study characterizes their sexual behavior, alcohol and drug use, prevalence of domestic violence, and mental health indicators, and explores issues that facilitate and hamper HIV testing. HPTN 064 will enroll 1,200 women including 200 women from the district.

Both local studies are being conducted through a HPTN clinical site at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

Tracking HIV Care, Measuring Success

The new D.C. Partnership will help track HIV-associated health issues and outcomes by linking information from 13 of the city’s largest health care providers covering roughly 12,000 district residents living with HIV. By establishing this system, the partnership aims to better assess the clinical and treatment status of individual HIV-infected patients, evaluate outcomes of specific clinics and health programs and measure the impact of HIV testing and treatment initiatives within the city. The partnership will benefit providers by helping develop data-driven public health strategies.

“Our collaboration with NIH will allow us to continue our work to make sustainable and measurable improvements in the health and wellness of people living with HIV/AIDS,” says D.C. Department of Health Director Pierre Vigilance, M.D., M.P.H.

According to Shannon L. Hader, M.D., M.P.H, senior deputy director of the DC HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, STD and TB Administration, the new partnership will both “bring D.C. medical providers together to yield extraordinary knowledge about the district’s HIV epidemic and put D.C. on the map to recruiting new scientists and medical practitioners as the place to fight HIV/AIDS.”

Enhancing Care for HIV-related Medical Issues

Non–AIDS defining illnesses and HIV coinfections, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and hepatitis, are significant causes of illness and death for many HIV-infected patients. In the district, however, few medical providers can provide targeted, specialized medical services that address these issues in underinsured residents. To address this gap, NIH and the D.C. Department of Health are working with Washington medical providers to establish clinics designed to provide HIV-related subspecialty care to underinsured patients in district communities most in need. The three clinics established to date are collaborative efforts with Family & Medical Counseling Service, Inc. in Southeast Washington; Walker Jones Health Center of Unity Health Services in Northeast Washington; and Whitman-Walker Clinic in Northwest Washington.

Led by program director Henry Masur, M.D., chief of the Critical Care Medicine Department in the NIH Clinical Center, and D.C. Partnership Medical Director Dawn Fishbein, M.D., the three clinics will initially focus on treating HIV-infected patients who have hepatitis B or C. Subsequently, HIV-related metabolic disorders, mental health issues and cardiovascular disease will be targeted at future clinical sites.

“The goals of the clinics are to enhance subspecialty medical care for underinsured HIV-infected patients, assess the need for specific clinical trials on given issues, and if clinical trials are deemed necessary, provide those patients with access to the latest treatments available,” Dr. Masur explains. “This program also will focus on mentoring promising young leaders in HIV medicine who could enhance the district’s reputation as a leader in developing new strategies for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of HIV/AIDS.”

Piloting Test-and-Treat

The partnership also will provide a real-world examination of the test-and-treat hypothesis—the model published by World Health Organization scientists in early 2009 that proposed that the HIV epidemic can be significantly curtailed through annual, voluntary HIV testing and immediate antiretroviral treatment for individuals who test positive for HIV infection.

“NIAID already is conducting several studies designed to answer the key research questions that underpin the test-and-treat concept,” says Carl Dieffenbach, Ph.D., director of NIAID’s Division of AIDS. “Through this partnership, NIAID is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to design a study to answer whether implementing a combined strategy of expanding HIV testing, diagnosing infection early and bringing HIV-infected patients to medical care and treatment is feasible.”

Specifically, the test-and-treat pilot study will compare current community standards for HIV testing and treatment with accelerated expansion of routine testing services to identify HIV-infected people and evaluate enhanced methods for rapidly linking those patients to care and successful treatment. The results of the project will be analyzed to determine the cost-effectiveness of the test-and-treat approach.

NIAID and CDC also plan to conduct a pilot study in the Bronx, New York. The overall study plan is being finalized and, once initiated, is expected to last for three years.

---

http://HIV-infected people -dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

What You Should Know and

Do this Flu Season If You

Are 65 Years and Older:

January 19, 2010 2:30 PM ET

Actions To Take This Flu Season

1. Get Your Seasonal & 2009 H1N1 Flu Shot
   The best way to prevent the flu is with a flu vaccine.
   People 65 years and older are recommended for annual seasonal flu vaccination. People 65 and older who have not yet gotten a seasonal flu vaccine should still seek vaccination, although supplies of seasonal flu vaccine are limited because of early availability of, and high interest in, seasonal flu vaccine this year.
   
   People 65 years and older are now encouraged to seek vaccination against 2009 H1N1 vaccine. Supplies of the vaccines to protect against the 2009 H1N1 virus have increased dramatically and most places have opened up vaccination to anyone who wants it. This vaccine is the best way to protect against the 2009 H1N1 pandemic virus. Those who have been patiently waiting to receive the 2009 H1N1 vaccine, including people 65 years and older, are now encouraged to get vaccinated.
   

2. Take Everyday Preventive Actions including covering coughs, washing hands often and avoiding people who are sick.

3. Seek medical advice quickly if you develop flu symptoms to see whether you might need medical evaluation or possibly treatment with antiviral medications. People 65 and older are prioritized to get antiviral drugs if they become sick with the flu according to CDC’s guidance. Flu symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people may also have vomiting and diarrhea. People may be infected with the flu, including 2009 H1N1, and have respiratory symptoms without a fever.

People 65 Years and Older and Seasonal Flu

It has been recognized for many years that older people are at greater risk of serious complications from the flu compared with young, healthy adults. It’s estimated that 90 percent of seasonal flu-related deaths and more than 60 percent of seasonal flu-related hospitalizations in the United States each year occur in people 65 years and older. This is because human immune defenses become weaker with age. So influenza can be a very serious disease for people 65 and older.

People 65 Years and Older and 2009 H1N1 Flu

The new 2009 H1N1 virus does not seem to be affecting people 65 years and older in the same way that seasonal flu usually does. Most people who have gotten sick from this new virus have been younger. People 65 and older are less likely to get infected with this new virus. There have been relatively few infections and even fewer cases of serious illness and death with this new virus in people older than 65. Laboratory tests on blood samples indicate that some older people likely have some pre-existing immunity to the 2009 H1N1 flu virus. But while people 65 and older are less likely to be infected with 2009 H1N1 flu, those that do become infected are at greater risk of having serious complications from their illness and there have been severe infections and deaths in every age group, including older people. Some outbreaks among older people living in long-term care facilities also have been reported. People 65 years and older are now encouraged to seek vaccination against 2009 H1N1. Influenza is unpredictable, but flu is expected to continue for months, caused by either 2009 H1N1 viruses or regular seasonal flu viruses. This vaccine is the best way to protect against the 2009 H1N1 pandemic virus.

Flu Vaccination

Seasonal Flu Vaccine

People 65 and older are recommended to get seasonal flu vaccine this year, as always.

2009 H1N1 Flu Vaccine

The U.S. government has purchased 250 million doses of 2009 H1N1 vaccine, so anyone who wants to get the vaccine will have the opportunity to do so. While people 65 and older were not included in the groups recommended to get the earliest doses of vaccine, they are encouraged to seek vaccination now that vaccine supplies have increased.

Related Links

• Prevention Of Pneumococcal Infections Secondary To Seasonal And 2009 H1N1 Influenza
• WebMD Article: Do People 65 and Older Need the H1N1 Vaccine?

People Age 65 Years and Older and Antiviral Drugs

Influenza antiviral drugs are prescription drugs (pills, liquid, or inhaled powder) that can treat flu illness. These drugs decrease the ability of flu viruses to reproduce in the body. While getting a flu vaccine each year is the first and most important step in preventing the flu, antiviral drugs are a second line of defense against the flu for treatment.

It’s very important that antiviral drugs be used early to treat flu illness in people 65 and older who are very sick (for example people who are in the hospital) and people who are sick with flu and who also have a greater chance of getting serious flu complications.

Although they are less likely to be infected with 2009 H1N1 flu, people age 65 and older are at higher risk for influenza related complications. Therefore, they are prioritized for antiviral treatment if they get sick with either seasonal or 2009 H1N1 flu this season.

http://treat flu illness-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

Dual Treatment Cuts Dangerous Hospital Infection

Combining antibiotics, new monoclonal antibodies prevented C. difficile in study.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Jan. 21 (HealthDay News) -- A new treatment for a widespread and virulent bacterial infection, Clostridium difficile, appears to dramatically cut recurrence, researchers report.

C. difficile infections have doubled in recent years, and one epidemic strain has caused severe outbreaks in hospitals and long-term care facilities, where the infection is most common. About 300,000 to 500,000 Americans contract C. difficile infections each year, and recurrences are common.

"Treatment of patients with C. difficile with two novel antibodies resulted in a 72 percent reduction in the number of patients that would recur with that disease," said lead researcher Dr. Donna Ambrosino, executive director of MassBiologics, the company that developed the monoclonal antibodies, and a professor of pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

The report was published in the Jan. 21 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

"The biggest issue beyond the initial disease is that even though [people] get better from the initial disease, they go on to have recurrences, and this treatment is preventing those recurrences," she explained.

C. difficile, which settles in the gastrointestinal tract, often strikes people receiving prolonged antibiotic treatment for other infections. It can cause severe diarrhea and damage the lining of the large intestine.

Treatment usually involves antibiotics, which also wipe out normal bowel flora, according to an accompanying editorial in the journal.

After antibiotic treatment, two toxins remain in the body that can cause a relapse. Moreover, the toxins resulting from the epidemic strain appear to cause more severe illness, a higher rate of relapse and about 7 percent mortality, Ambrosino said.

"The toxins are more of a problem than the actual bacteria," said Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.

The two new monoclonal antibodies -- antibodies that are cloned in the laboratory from a single hybrid cell -- are designed to remove both toxins, thereby preventing a recurrence.

In this phase II trial, Ambrosino's group randomly assigned 200 patients with C. difficile infection to antibiotic treatment with either vancomycin or metronidazole plus injections of two monoclonal antibodies or placebo.

After 84 days, recurrence of C. difficile occurred in 7 percent of the patients who received the monoclonal antibodies, compared with 25 percent of those given placebo, the researchers found.

In addition, only 8 percent of the patients with the epidemic strain of C. difficile who were given the antibodies suffered a relapse compared with 32 percent of the placebo group.

"We hope that this new treatment offers hope to these patients in ultimately reducing the health care burden and hospitalizations," Ambrosino said. "Now a larger number of patients will be studied to get the final approval," she added.

Siegel applauded the researchers' work. "The idea of monoclonal antibodies to target the toxins while at the same time killing the bacteria is a tremendous therapeutic approach," he said. "It is very likely to be successful and this study is convincing."

More study is needed on potential side effects from this treatment, Siegel noted. "But this is very promising and it is the wave of the future in treatments," he added.

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Treatment

PET Scan Improves

Diagnosis of Parkinsonism:

Study

Early identification then leads to better treatment, researchers say.

MONDAY, Jan. 11 (HealthDay News) -- New research shows that PET brain scans can diagnose which type of Parkinson's-related disease a person has.

Between 1998 and 2006, researchers scanned the brains of 167 patients who had signs of Parkinsonism but hadn't been specifically diagnosed. They used PET (positron emission tomography) technology.

The researchers found that the scans allowed them to differentiate between idiopathic Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy and progressive supranuclear palsy, although the diagnoses sometimes differed from those of doctors who assessed the patients.

According to the researchers, who report their findings online in advance of print publication in the February issue of The Lancet Neurology, early diagnosis helps doctors place patients in proper drug trials.

In an accompanying commentary, Professor Angelo Antonini of the IRCCS San Camillo, Venice, and Parkinson Institute in Milan, Italy, wrote: "The clinical and research relevance of these findings should not be underestimated. Neuroprotective and disease-modifying drug research is intensifying, and results mostly rely on accurate early diagnosis."

http://brain scans-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

Using Light to Silence Harmful Brain Activity

Novel tool might lead to treatments for epilepsy, Parkinson's, researchers say.

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 6 (HealthDay News) -- New tools that use different colors of light to silence brain activity could lead to new treatments for disorders such as epilepsy, chronic pain, Parkinson's disease and brain injury, neuroscientists say.

These so-called "super-silencers" provide precise control over the timing of the shutdown of overactive brain circuits, something that's impossible with existing drugs or other conventional treatments, according to the research team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The research is published in the Jan. 7 issue of the journal Nature.

"Silencing different sets of neurons with different colors of light allows us to understand how they work together to implement brain functions," study senior author Ed Boyden, a professor in the MIT Media Lab and an associate member of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT, said in a news release.

"Using these new tools, we can look at two neural pathways and study how they compute together. These tools will help us understand how to control neural circuits, leading to new understandings and treatments for brain disorders -- some of the biggest unmet medical needs in the world," Boyden added.

He and his colleagues developed the super-silencers using two genes -- Arch and Mac -- found in different organisms such as bacteria and fungi. The genes encode for light-activated proteins that help organisms make energy. The activity of neurons engineered to express Arch and Mac can be inhibited by shining light on them. The light activates the proteins, resulting in lower voltage in the neurons, which prevents them from firing effectively, Boyden explained.

Yellow light silences Arch and blue light silences Mac.

"In this way, the brain can be programmed with different colors of light to identify and possibly correct the corrupted neural computations that lead to disease," study co-author Brian Chow, a postdoctoral associate in Boyden's lab, said in the news release.

http://brain activity-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

More Toddlers, Young

Children Given

Antipsychotics

Researchers question the 'worrisome' trend.

By Jennifer Thomas
HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, Jan. 4 (HealthDay News) -- The rate of children aged 2 to 5 who are given antipsychotic medications has doubled in recent years, a new study has found.

Yet little is known about either the effectiveness or the safety of these powerful psychiatric medications in children this age, said researchers from Columbia University and Rutgers University, who looked at data on more than 1 million children with private health insurance.

"It is a worrisome trend, partly because very little is known about the short-term, let alone the long-term, safety of these drugs in this age group," said study author Dr. Mark Olfson, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University in New York City.

Prescribing antipsychotics to children in the upper range of that age span -- ages 4 and 5 -- is justifiable only in rare, intractable situations in which all other treatments, including family and psychological therapy, have been tried and are not working, Olfson said.

And it's questionable whether 2- and 3-year-olds should ever be prescribed antipsychotics, Olfson said.

The study is published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Presumably, only children with the most severe mental problems would be given the potent drugs. Yet, less than half of children on antipsychotics had received any mental health services, including a mental health assessment or treatment from a psychotherapist or psychiatrist, the study authors noted.

"You don't see the kinds of mental health services you would expect to see if we were dealing with the most profoundly disturbed toddlers," Olfson said, raising the question of whether doctors had done everything they could to help the child before turning to medications.

The overall numbers of children prescribed antipsychotics remains small, at less than one half of one percent of the national sample. But the numbers are rising. In 1999-2001, about one in 1,300 were being treated with antipsychotics. By 2007, that had risen to one in 630, according to Olfson.

For 5-year-olds, about one in 650 were being treated in 1999-2001. That doubled, to one in 329, in 2007, he noted.

Research published online in December in the journal Health Affairs by the same research team suggested children on Medicaid are even more likely than children with private insurance to be prescribed antipsychotics.

The most common antipsychotic drug prescribed to children was risperidone (Risperdal), which accounted for nearly three-quarters of antipsychotic prescriptions. In adults and teens, risperidone is used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Risperidone is also approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat unstable mood or irritability in children with autism aged 5 and up.

Children who were most likely to receive risperidone were male and aged 4 or 5, according to the report. The most common diagnosis was pervasive developmental disorder or mental retardation, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder or disruptive behavior disorder.

Previous research has shown children on the drugs may experience metabolic and endocrine abnormalities. Little is known about their impact on the developing brain, Olfson added.

"I don't want to minimize the problems children can have at this age, but there are psychological treatments that have been proven to help parents and the kids that emphasize the quality of the parent-child relationship," Olfson said.

One reason for the uptick may be increasing numbers of children diagnosed with autism and some research showing risperidone may help with autism-related irritability, the researchers noted.

Dr. Peter Jensen, co-director of the division of child psychiatry and psychology at the Mayo Clinic, agreed that the trend is concerning. "We have no doubt there are prescribing practices out there that are very, very worrisome," Jensen said.

It's imperative that children receive a full mental health assessment before getting these drugs, to understand the family situation and school environment and if there is a family history of psychiatric problems, as well as undergoing a physical exam to rule out other medical problems.

"These agents should not be used as an adjunct to a family stressed to the max," Jensen said. "With kids who are 2 to 5, most can be managed without these medicines. Rarely a 5-year-old goes on them. But a child of 2 or 3, in my experience, I have never had to put them on [an antipsychotic]. There is so much else that can be done."

The stress and difficulty of coping with a child who has significant mental health issues, the need to have a child behave well enough to be permitted to attend school, as well as lack of adequate coverage for family therapy and mental health services, may push doctors and parents into believing they have little choice other than medicating the child, Jensen said.

http:// antipsychotic medications-dobi.blogspot.com/treatment

Treatment

New Childhood Vaccines

Schedules Released

Changes reflect H1N1 recommendations, suggest HPV vaccine for boys.

By Serena Gordon
HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, Jan. 4 (HealthDay News) -- Boys should get the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to protect them against genital warts, and all children should receive the H1N1 vaccine to guard against swine flu, according to updated guidelines on childhood and teen vaccines.

The new vaccine schedules -- issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Family Physicians -- also recommend using combination vaccines whenever possible.

"These are life-threatening illness that vaccines prevent, and if you have a combination vaccine that's safe and effective and requires one less stick for your child and one less trip to the doctor, it makes sense to me -- as a father -- to think about that," said Dr. David W. Kimberlin, a professor of pediatrics and co-director of the division of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Kimberlin is a member of the committee that created the new immunization schedules.

The new vaccine schedules are published in the January issue of Pediatrics and online on Jan. 4.

The most significant changes are:

• A recommendation that children older than 6 months receive the H1N1 influenza vaccine.
• A newly licensed HPV vaccine for girls, known as HPV2, to protect them from cervical cancer, which can be caused by certain strains of HPV. Girls should get their first dose of either the HPV2 or the earlier HPV4 vaccine, which is still considered effective, around age 11 or 12.
• A suggestion that a three-dose series of the HPV4 vaccine can be given to boys between 9 and 18 years old to prevent genital warts.
• A statement that the use of combination vaccines are generally preferred over separate injections.
• The need to revaccinate some high-risk children who have already received the meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4). Kids at high risk tend to be those with immune system disorders. Booster shots aren't recommended for those whose only risk factor is living in a dormitory setting, according to the new vaccine schedules.

Overall, Kimberlin said he thinks most parents are following these recommended schedules and protecting their children against what can be life-threatening illnesses. However, "parents are inundated with misinformation or incomplete information about vaccinations," he noted. "And, with all the noise out there, people start thinking there might be something to what they're hearing."

Dr. Michael Green, an infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, said that although most children are vaccinated, "there is a fairly large cohort of kids who don't receive optimal immunizations either for religious reasons, or their parents don't believe in immunizations because of health concerns, such as a fear of autism."

But the data has consistently shown that the measles vaccine doesn't cause autism, he said. Measles, on the other hand, can cause brain damage, or even kill children, explained Green. And, while some parents may think that they don't have to worry about these diseases because most U.S. children are vaccinated, an outbreak for unvaccinated children might be only a plane ride away. Last spring, said Green, someone visiting from another country brought measles with them. They were in close proximity to an unvaccinated American family who then contracted the measles. The outbreak ended quickly and without any serious consequences, but others might be more severe, he warned.

"People forget that when there used to be measles that kids died, or they ended up with brain damage. The risk-to-benefit ratios with today's vaccines are tremendously slanted to the benefit side. And, yet between every one to three months, I see a child with a vaccine-preventable illness," said Green.

"The vaccines we have today are the safest vaccines we've ever had, and I hope that parents recognize that it is a matter of life and death, and that they choose to do everything they can to protect their children," said Kimberlin. "Time and time again, when immunization rates fall, diseases come back, and then the immunization rates go up again."

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Treatment

Acupuncture May Cut Hot Flashes,

Boost Sex Drive in

Breast Cancer Patients

HealthDayWednesday, December 30, 2009

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 30 (HealthDay News) -- Acupuncture is just as good as standard medication to ease hot flashes and other uncomfortable symptoms in women undergoing breast cancer treatment.

And as an added bonus, the needle treatment may boost the patient's sex drive and contribute to clearer thinking.

"I think the data shows you that acupuncture is a good option for these patients [and] it has no side effects," added Dr. Eleanor Walker, division director of breast services in the department of radiation oncology at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, and lead author of a study appearing online Dec. 28 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

But another expert warned against taking the findings too seriously at this stage.

"It's provocative but the problem is it's a small number of patients and, having participated in research trials in vasomotor [hot flashes, night sweats, etc.] symptoms in women, it's a field that has a large placebo effect," said Dr. Jay Brooks, chairman of hematology/oncology at Ochsner Health System in Baton Rouge. "It needs to have a bigger trial."

Prior studies have shown that acupuncture can reduce hot flashes in postmenopausal women without breast cancer.

All of these studies, however, compared acupuncture to sham acupuncture, not to commonly used drugs, Walker noted. This is the first randomized controlled study to compare acupuncture alongside medication.

Many women with breast cancer receive anti-estrogen hormone therapy, usually for as long as five years, in addition to other treatments.

Although hormone therapy is effective in reducing tumor recurrence, it does cause hot flashes and night sweats.

The antidepressant Effexor (venlafaxine) is the most commonly used therapy for relieving these symptoms, but the drug brings its own problems, namely dry mouth, reduced appetite, nausea and constipation.

"We need something that's accessible that doesn't add adverse effects," Walker said.

For this study, 50 women with breast cancer were randomly assigned to receive 12 weeks of acupuncture (twice a week for four weeks then once a week) or daily Effexor. They were followed for a year.

Initially, both groups of women experienced similar reductions (about 50 percent) in hot flashes and depression, with an overall improvement in quality of life.

But the acupuncture benefits were longer lived. Two weeks out, women taking the antidepressant saw a resurgence in hot flashes while women in the acupuncture arm continued to have far fewer problems.

About 25 percent of women receiving acupuncture also reported more interest in sex while many also reported more energy and clearer thinking.

How might acupuncture work its magic? One expert had a theory.

Acupuncture operates as a balancing mechanism, said Janet Konefal, a licensed acupuncturist and assistant dean of complementary and integrative medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. "It is a regulator for the systems of the body," she explained. "It doesn't add or take anything -- it simply increases activity or decreases activity depending upon the points used. In this situation, it helped regulate the endocrine system, thus helping to balance the activity of hormones, neurotransmitters, and other biochemical reactions that regulate the body."

However, getting access to the treatment can be problematic, Walker said. "The issue most of the time is the cost of it and whether insurance companies will pay for it," she said. Additional studies also need to look at how often women would need booster acupuncture to minimize their symptoms.

SOURCES: Eleanor M. Walker, M.D., division director of breast services, department of radiation oncology, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit; Janet Konefal, licensed acupuncturist and assistant dean, complementary and integrative medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine; Jay Brooks, M.D., chairman, hematology/oncology, Ochsner Health System, Baton Rouge; Dec. 28, 2009, Journal of Clinical Oncology, online

HealthDay
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Treatment

Discovery in Lungs May Lead to Treatment for Respiratory Virus

Naturally occurring lipid appears to help protect against RSV, research shows.

THURSDAY, Dec. 24 (HealthDay News) -- A lipid found in the lungs appears to have the ability to prevent infection with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which is a major cause of infection in babies and can also be dangerous for adults with chronic lung diseases and conditions such as HIV, researchers report.

The lipid, known as POPG, seems to help the lungs do a better job of keeping irritants out, according to the new study.

"Our findings demonstrate that POPG is a potent antiviral agent both as a prophylactic and after infection has occurred," said study co-author Dennis Voelker, a professor of medicine at National Jewish Health in Denver. "While these are still early studies, several characteristics of POPG make me believe that it has real potential as both an antiviral and anti-inflammatory treatment."

POPG -- palmitoyl-oleoyl-phosphatidylglycerol -- is found in the fluid that lines the lungs' air sacs. Researchers think they've figured out how it works, and in the new study, they report that it prevents RSV infection in the laboratory.

"Our findings suggest that supplemental POPG may have significant potential for preventing RSV infections in vulnerable human populations and treating infections after they become established," the study authors wrote in their report published in this week's issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Voelker and colleagues next want to figure out whether POPG may be an effective treatment for other germs, such as those that cause flu.

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Treatment

Lithium Beats Valproate

for Long-Term Bipolar

Therapy

Combined treatment or monotherapy with lithium helps prevent relapse, study finds.

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 23 (HealthDay News) -- People with bipolar I disorder will do best over the long term with lithium treatment alone or a combination of lithium and valproate compared to valproate alone, new research suggests.

Patients who underwent the lithium or lithium/valproate treatments were less likely to relapse regardless of how severe their conditions were at the beginning of treatment, the study authors reported in the Dec. 22 online edition of The Lancet.

But the researchers couldn't say if the combined treatment is better or worse than lithium alone.

People with bipolar disorder have trouble regulating their moods and can swing between highs and lows. In most cases, patients have illness that is chronic or recurs over time. Doctors often prescribe combinations of drugs for these patients after single drugs fail to work, according to background information in a news release about the study.

The new study looked at 330 patients aged 16 and older with bipolar I disorder. The study participants lived in several countries, including the United States, and were randomly assigned to receive lithium, valproate or a combination of both drugs. They were followed for up to two years.

The results show that "for people with bipolar I disorder for whom long-term therapy is clinically indicated, combination therapy with lithium plus valproate is more likely to prevent relapse than is monotherapy with valproate. The 41 percent relative benefit is irrespective of baseline severity of illness, is maintained for up to two years, and is most apparent in prevention of manic relapse," the researchers concluded.

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Treatment

High Lipoprotein Levels Can Cause Heart Disease

Study shows it could be a new target for prevention and treatment.

By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 23 (HealthDay News) -- A genetic study proves that high blood levels of the fat-carrying molecule called lipoprotein(a) can cause heart disease.

"The case for lipoprotein(a) as a direct cause of coronary artery disease is now firm," said Martin Farrall, a professor of cardiovascular genetics at the University of Oxford in England and senior author of a report in the Dec. 24 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Elevated blood levels of LPA, as it is often abbreviated, have been linked to an increased risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular problems for decades, but the evidence has not been definitive. So while an elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol level remains the most clearly established indicator of coronary risk, "our paper, by genetic research, shows that LPA plays an important role as well," Farrall said.

"Our results will not perhaps surprise some researchers, but the scale of this project and confidence in our results mean that we can move forward to study the details of LPA and coronary risk," he added.

It is a pivotal finding, said Dr. Sekar Kathiresan, director of preventive cardiology at Massachusetts General Hospital, who wrote an accompanying editorial. "Many things in medicine are associated with an increased risk of heart attack. Almost all of these associations are not of a causal nature. This brings LPA into the domain of causal factors. And if it is causal, that gives hope that reducing it can reduce the risk of heart attack," he said. "

"We are now honing in on a potential therapeutic target," Kathiresan stated.

LPA is a member of the family of molecules that carry LDL cholesterol, the "bad" kind that clogs arteries, in the blood. The most common such molecule is lipoprotein(b), which consists of LDL with one protein attached. LPA is different because it has an additional protein attached.

The study done by Farrall and his colleagues looked in exquisite detail at the genetic makeup of 3,145 people with coronary artery disease and 3,352 free of coronary disease. The study of more than 48,000 variants of 2,100 genes found that two variants affecting LPA levels were strongly associated with coronary disease.

"We speculate and anticipate that our finding may carry over to other cardiovascular diseases, such as some kinds of stroke," Farrall said.

The reason for the harmful effects of LPA is unknown, he said. "A number of speculative mechanisms have been proposed," Farrall said. "Our study doesn't help resolve those."

One immediate impact of the research could be widened use of a blood test for LPA, which has been available for years, Kathiresan said. "This kind of study shows that people who carry a genetically determined high level of LPA have an increased risk, and this will likely increase enthusiasm for measuring LPA blood levels, particularly for people who have heart disease at an early age or have a strong family history of heart disease," he said.

And while at least one available drug, niacin, is known to reduce LPA levels to some extent, "we need a drug that selectively reduces LPA," Kathiresan said. "There is some effort to do that."

A major controlled trial will be needed to show that an LPA-lowering drug reduces the incidence of coronary disease, he added.

One odd sidelight is that while participants in the new study -- and most previous trials -- were white Europeans, elevated LPA levels are more common among people from Africa and southern Asia, Kathiresan noted. Studies of those populations are needed, he stressed.
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Treatment

Gene Therapy Holds Promise

for Emphysema

In mice, single treatment offered lifetime protection against inherited form of disease.

TUESDAY, Dec. 22 (HealthDay News) -- A single treatment with a new method of gene therapy may offer lifetime protection against the progression of the lung disease emphysema, according to the results of a study in mice.

The most common form of emphysema in young people is Alpha-1 Anti-trypsin Deficiency, caused by a mutation in the alpha-1 anti-trypsin gene, the authors of the study pointed out.

In experiments on mice, researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine developed a system that can deliver genes selectively to as many as 70 percent of the lung's alveolar macrophages, which play an important role in emphysema.

Using this new approach, the researchers achieved sustained expression of normal human alpha-1 anti-trypsin (hAAT) protein at levels that improved emphysema in mice.

"The lung macrophages carrying the therapeutic gene survived in the lungs' air sacs for the two-year lifetime of the treated mice following a single intra-tracheal injection of the lentiviral vector we had engineered," study senior author Dr. Darrell Kotton, an associate professor of medicine and pathology and co-director of the Center for Regenerative Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine, said in a news release.

"Our results challenge the dogma that lung macrophages are short-lived and suggest these differentiated cells as a target cell that may be considered for in vivo gene therapy applications, including the sustained correction of hAAT deficiency," lead author Dr. Andrew Wilson, an assistant professor of medicine, said in the news release.

The study was published online Dec. 21 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

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Treatment

Health care for us

Protein Examined

for Role in Liver Cancer

Better understanding of TAK1 could lead to new treatments for liver disease, researchers say.

THURSDAY, Dec. 17 (HealthDay News) -- A protein switch called TAK1 helps prevent liver damage, including inflammation, fibrosis and cancer, according to a team of scientists from the United States and Japan.

Learning more about how TAK1 works could improve understanding about the development of liver disease and cancer, and lead to new therapies, the researchers noted in their report, released online the week of Dec. 14 in advance of publication in an upcoming print issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"TAK1 appears to be a master regulator of liver function," study co-leader Dr. David A. Brenner, a professor of medicine and dean at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, said in a university news release.

It was already known that TAK1 activates two proteins that play a role in immunity, inflammation, programmed cell death and cancer. But it wasn't clear whether TAK1 promotes or prevents liver cancer.

To investigate this question, Brenner and colleagues created mice with liver cells that lacked TAK1 and found that the mice had a high rate of liver cell death. To compensate, the rodents' livers produced too many cells, resulting in liver damage that led to liver cancer, the researchers found.

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treatment

After Lumpectomy,

Radiation Rates Lower

for Black Women

Racial disparities seen for 'standard-of-care' breast cancer treatment, study finds.

MONDAY, Dec. 14 (HealthDay News) -- A new study finds a significant racial disparity in breast cancer treatment: Black women are less likely than their white counterparts to receive radiation therapy after a lumpectomy.

The therapy is considered the standard of care for the treatment of breast cancer that is caught in the early stages.

The study, published in the Dec. 14 issue of the journal Cancer, is based on a review of medical records of more than 37,000 women who were treated through Medicare. They were diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2003.

"Although there have been smaller studies of racial disparities in breast cancer care, no prior research has examined the differences across the nation in the rates of radiation therapy after lumpectomy between whites and blacks," study first author Dr. Grace Li Smith, a postdoctoral fellow in the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center's department of radiation, said in a university news release. "The national Medicare database, because it's so comprehensive, allowed us to determine the extent to which racial disparities in radiation therapy affected patients across the country."

The researchers looked at women aged 66 and older and found that 74 percent of the white women received radiation therapy after undergoing lumpectomy, while the percentage was 65 percent in black women.

"Until further research is conducted, we may only speculate about the underlying reasons why black and white women are not receiving radiation at the same rate," Smith said. "We don't know if fewer black women are receiving radiation simply because it is not offered to them, because they decline the treatment, or perhaps because they are unable to complete a whole course of treatment due to other health problems."

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Treatment

Hemorrhoids and Lasers

by Karl Randolf

in Health

(submitted 2009-12-12)

0

votes

vote

So why does inappropriate alcohol consumption cause or make haemorrhoids much worse? Alcohol has a tendency to dehydrate the body, has a diuretic action, which increases the flow of piss causing a loss of bodily liquids manufacturing harder stools making any bowel problems much worse. This could cause more straining when having a bowel movement. You need to try not to strain too hard and instead spend more time to try to ease the motion. Straining will also make any itching and soreness worse.
the commonest reason for hemorrhoids is straining in a bowel movement because of hard stools which increases the blood pressure in the veins in the anal sphincter. Postponing a bowel movement and holding faecal matter too long in the rectum causes pressure to build up in the colon veins. A hemorrhoid is an enlarged vein in the ass, also called a varicose vein. In a healthful individual, the tissue round the anus fills with blood to control stool movements. However , when there is constant pressure or other considerations restricting blood flow, the veins become inflamed. Poor blood flow may result in a painful, swollen, sticking out pile.

External haemorrhoids are uncomfortable with itching. Blood may appear on toilet roll during bowel movements.Internal piles show rectal bleeding and intense agony. You may very well have to push the haemorrhoids back in with your fingers after, but some petroleum jelly or other lubricant will help this. Internal hemorrhoids regularly stick out and clot. The presence of mucus and blood is also a sign.

Eating excessive processed foods, which are low in fiber and move slowly through your colon. Piles were not as common a hundred years back when the Western diet was far higher in fiber.
hemorrhoids were principally seen in the over 50's, but with the increase in drinking culture amongst younger people the age is coming down. They're getting even younger.
Also pregnant women experience increased pressure on these veins and this could cause and aggravate haemorrhoids.

The linkage between poor liver function and hemorrhoids is widely known in medical circles.
If a strain is put on the liver from poor diet, over the top drinking or cirrhosis, blood flow to the liver will increase to help cope with this and this increases blood pressure to the veins in the ass, so making the piles worse. Alcoholics and awfully heavy drinkers have a high incidence of hemorrhoids.

General body weakness, poor muscle tone in the anal area from too much drink, shortage of exercise and being overweight. Sitting about in chairs at home, work, or a car for extended periods. Lounging about drinking rather than keeping active. Irregular eating patterns, not getting the right vitamins and minerals in your food. Lack of protein leads to feeble muscle tissue in the anal area and slows the healing of wounds.
Having said all this - some people do have a predisposition to bowel obstruction or have inherited a weakness in the colon and spincter area, and are so susceptible to hemorrhoids.

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.

Treatment

Early Treatment of Hearing,

Vision Helps in

Schizophrenia

Identifying sensory problems before onset of complex disease symptoms benefits patients, study finds.

FRIDAY, Dec. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Identifying sight and hearing problems in teens who are in the early stages of schizophrenia may help doctors fully restore those senses and lessen the impact of the devastating thought disorder, U.S. researchers say.

A new study found that problems in basic sensory processing abilities cause many of the more complicated cognitive deficits in people with schizophrenia.

"In people with schizophrenia, we know that visual and auditory sensory systems that functioned well in early childhood begin to break down during adolescence, years earlier than the onset of the more complex cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia," Dr. Daniel C. Javitt, of the New York University School of Medicine, said in a news release.

"We already know a lot about what people with this disorder can and cannot do," Javitt said. "Our research focuses on understanding how the brain works and identifying specific biomarkers for cognitive impairment that will distinguish schizophrenia from Alzheimer's and other diseases."

He and his team determined that impaired function of the visual and auditory systems makes it more difficult for people with schizophrenia to read, pay attention and understand social cues. The researchers also identified biomarkers in the brain that could help determine which patients would benefit from early intervention.

The study was scheduled to be presented Dec. 9 at the annual meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology in Hollywood, Fla.

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