http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. One-year results from SOURCE XT – one of the largest, post-approval transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) registries to-date – reported today at EuroPCR 2013 show good clinical outcomes in routine clinical practice, with high rates of device success for all access approaches, valve sizes and delivery systems. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-post-approval-tavi-registry-high-device.html Cardiology Tue, 21 May 2013 17:16:00 EST news288375191 People with chronic or life-threatening illnesses often experience problems with their care, including confusion and conflict over how to make good decisions, poor communication with care providers, inadequate pain and symptom relief, and treatments with little or no benefit. Poor care decreases patients' quality of life, increases family stress, and adds cost but not value to health care, often with heartbreaking financial consequences for families. A new set of consensus guidelines produced by The Hastings Center can help health care professionals improve care near the end of life. The guidelines clarify what is ethically and legally permissible in the United States regarding the use life-sustaining technologies, provide in-depth guidance on talking with patients and surrogates, and offer recommendations about how to improve the delivery of care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-hastings-center-health-professionals-standards.html Health Tue, 07 May 2013 12:35:22 EST news287148911 Allergy shots are commonly used to treat children with severe environmental allergies and asthma, but under-the-tongue drops may offer yet another beneficial—and stick-free—option for pediatric allergy sufferers, according to a Johns Hopkins Children's Center review of existing scientific evidence. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-oral-kids-needle-free-relief-asthma.html Immunology Mon, 06 May 2013 05:10:02 EST news287034597 A team of researchers led by a Boston University Biomedical Engineer has developed a new joint lubricant that could bring longer lasting relief to millions of osteoarthritis sufferers. The new synthetic polymer supplements synovial fluid, the natural lubricant in joints, and works better than comparable treatments currently available. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-oil-joints-osteoarthritis.html Arthritis & Rheumatism Thu, 02 May 2013 16:42:33 EST news286731746 Antidepressants are commonly prescribed for the treatment of depression, but many individuals do not experience symptom relief from treatment. The National Institute of Mental Health's STAR*D study, the largest and longest study ever conducted to evaluate depression treatment, found that only approximately one-third of patients responded within their initial medication trial and approximately one-third of patients did not have an adequate clinical response after being treated with several different medications. Thus, identifying predictors of antidepressant response could help to guide the treatment of this disorder. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-common-gene-variants-antidepressant-response.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 28 Mar 2013 08:38:59 EST news283678728 Two patients freed from severe to disabling effects of dystonia through deep brain stimulation therapy continued to have symptom relief for months after their devices accidentally were fully or partly turned off, according to a report published online Feb. 11 in the journal Movement Disorders. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-dystonia-cases-deep-brain-therapy.html Neuroscience Tue, 12 Feb 2013 17:03:19 EST news279910984 (HealthDay)—Patients seeing a spine surgeon are most influenced by low back pain intensity when considering whether to proceed with spinal fusion surgery, according to a study published in the Jan. 15 issue of Spine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-pain-intensity-influential-fusion-decision.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 24 Jan 2013 18:20:01 EST news278272579 There is no strong evidence to back the use of cannabis extract in the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), concludes a review of the available evidence on the first licensed preparation, published in the December issue of Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (DTB). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-strong-evidence-cannabis-multiple-sclerosis.html Neuroscience Wed, 12 Dec 2012 18:30:05 EST news274554384 Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is considered the most effective treatment option for patients with severe depression who cannot find symptom relief through antidepressant medications or psychotherapy. In a new study, researchers at Butler Hospital and Bradley Hospital in Rhode Island found a sharp decline in the availability and use of ECT in general hospitals across the U.S. The findings were published online in the journal Biological Psychiatry on October 10, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-decline-availability-key-treatment-depression.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:50:43 EST news272645434 A new study may reassure some women considering short-term use of hormones to relieve hot flashes and other menopause symptoms. Starting low-dose treatment early in menopause made women feel better and did not seem to raise heart risks during the four-year study. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-benefits-hormone-early-menopause.html Health Wed, 03 Oct 2012 04:26:45 EST news268456173 (HealthDay)—A new drug significantly reduces the abdominal pain and constipation characteristic of certain types of irritable bowel syndrome, according to two new studies. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-drug-bowel-syndrome.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 18 Sep 2012 12:20:03 EST news267186928 (Medical Xpress) -- A new study involving researchers from Karolinska Institutet demonstrates the efficacy of Tofacitinib, a new drug for rheumatoid arthritis. According to the study, which is published in The New England Journal of Medicine, the drug is just as effective as biological medicines, but unlike them can be taken in tablet form. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-efficacy-rheumatoid-arthritis-drug.html Arthritis & Rheumatism Thu, 09 Aug 2012 04:13:33 EST news263704405 In one of the first studies to look at transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in real-world clinical practice settings, researchers at Butler Hospital, along with colleagues across the U.S., confirmed that TMS is an effective treatment for patients with depression who are unable to find symptom relief through antidepressant medications. The study findings are published online in the June 11, 2012 edition of Depression and Anxiety in the Wiley Online Library. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-efficacy-transcranial-magnetic-depression.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 26 Jul 2012 16:14:39 EST news262537986 (HealthDay) -- Corticosteroid nasal sprays apparently are not a silver bullet when it comes to symptom relief for acute sinusitis patients, a new review suggests. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-steroid-nasal-small-benefit-sinusitis.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 15 May 2012 11:21:43 EST news256299674 A technique that delivers highly focused beams of radiation, known as Cyberknife, can relieve the stabbing pain of the facial nerve condition trigeminal neuralgia, indicates a small study published online in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-cyberknife-relieves-stabbing-pain-facial.html Neuroscience Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:24:34 EST news246860664 According to a new study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, better understanding of a patient's abdominal pain could help physicians know which patients will benefit most from surgical removal of the gallbladder. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology is the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-pain-characteristics-higher-benefit-gallbladder.html Other Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:37:25 EST news237638238 In an examination of the appropriateness of the widespread use of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs), researchers found that of more than 500,000 PCIs included in the study, nearly all for acute indications were classified as appropriate, whereas only about half of PCIs performed for nonacute indications could be classified as appropriate, according to a study in the July 6 issue of JAMA. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-pcis-balloon-angioplasty-acute-indications.html Cardiology Tue, 05 Jul 2011 17:16:04 EST news229104950 Scientists in Scandinavia have found a new way to treat sufferers of pelvic organ prolapse. Presented in the New England Journal of Medicine, their study reveals that the use of synthetic mesh can have a more beneficial effect on patients than traditional surgery. The team, led by the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, says synthetic mesh not only restores genital anatomy but can also provide more efficient symptom relief. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-prolapse.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 17 May 2011 10:50:01 EST news224847533 (Medical Xpress) -- A Nordic multicentre study, headed by researchers from Karolinska Institutet, shows that pelvic organ prolapse surgery using synthetic mesh can be more effective than traditional surgery. The advantages indicated by the study mainly concern restored genital anatomy and more efficient symptom relief, although there is an associated greater risk of complications. The study is published in the renowned scientific periodical The New England Journal of Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-synthetic-mesh-outcome-prolapse-surgery.html Other Thu, 12 May 2011 06:47:54 EST news224401650