http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (Medical Xpress)—Breathing traffic pollution in early pregnancy is linked to a higher risk for certain serious birth defects, according to new research from the Stanford University School of Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-air-pollutants-linked-higher-birth.html Health Fri, 29 Mar 2013 08:20:05 EST news283762912 (Medical Xpress)—Using cutting-edge time-lapse photography, University of Southern California (USC) researchers have discovered clues to the development of the head at the cellular level, which could point scientists to a better understanding of how organs and birth defects form in humans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-genetic-clues-birth-defects-video.html Medical research Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:50:01 EST news279819853 US regulators were expected to decide Tuesday whether to approve the second new anti-obesity drug in 13 years, Qnexa, which studies have shown may help some people lose up to 10 percent of their body weight. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-weight-loss-drug.html Medications Tue, 17 Jul 2012 12:52:13 EST news261748312 Children born with cleft lip, cleft palate and other craniofacial disorders face numerous medical challenges beyond appearance. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-cleft-lippalate-cosmetic-problems.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 22 May 2012 17:38:46 EST news256927122 Patients with wider cleft palates appear more likely to postoperatively develop velopharyngeal insufficiency, a condition characterized by hypernasal speech and nasal air escape when speaking, according to a study published Online First by Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-wider-cleft-width-hypernasal-speech.html Surgery Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:02:39 EST news253810938 US regulators will decide in July whether to approve Qnexa, the first obesity drug in more than a decade, extending the initial deadline by three months, the California-based drug-maker VIVUS said. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-obesity-drug-july.html Medications Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:15:20 EST news253278870 Scientists have moved a step closer to correcting some unhealthy gene mutations with diet, according to a new research report appearing in the April 2012 issue of the journal Genetics. Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, determined variations and responses to vitamin treatment in the human cystathionine beta synthase gene, which when defective, causes the disease homocystinuria, an inherited metabolic disorder sometimes treatable with vitamin B6. After the analysis, scientists correlated specific gene mutations with severity of the disease, ranging from perfectly healthy and functional to severe and untreatable. Although the current study focused on homocystinuria, testing the effects of naturally occurring gene variations using surrogate organism genetics can be applied to other inherited disorders, such as neural tube defect, cleft palate, and blindness. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-diet-gene-mutations.html Genetics Mon, 09 Apr 2012 10:17:14 EST news253185422 Scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College used genetic methods to successfully repair cleft lips in mice embryos specially engineered for the study of cleft lip and cleft palate. The research breakthrough may show the way to prevent or treat the conditions in humans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-cleft-lip-genetically-mouse.html Genetics Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:37:08 EST news241709809 The use of corticosteroids during pregnancy does not appear to be associated with an increased risk of orofacial clefts in infants, according to an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-corticosteroid-pregnancy-linked-facial-clefts.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:46:20 EST news221744500