Newsline — Tuesday, December 23, 2014 9:18
Study: Outcomes the Same Between Minimally Invasive, Open Disc Surgery
Brain Inflammation a Hallmark of Autism, Large-scale Analysis Shows
Monday, December 22, 2014 16:30
Researchers have discovered an abnormal immune response within autistic brains by analyzing the genetic structure of cells in one of the largest tissue studies ever to take place. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, analyzed tissue from 72 autistic and non-autistic brains collected from tissue banks by performing gene expressions to study chemical reactions in the reactivated tissue. Within the autistic samples, microgia typically tasked with removing pathogens were found to be perpetually activated as if responding to extensive inflammation throughout the brain. Upon further analysis, researchers were unable to link brain inflammation to typical autistic symptoms, drawing into question how this abnormal immune response was affecting the brain. The leader research explained, “There are many different ways of getting autism, but we found that they all have the same downstream effect. What we don’t know is whether this immune response is making things better in the short term and worse in the long term.” To learn more about this study, click here.
Study: Thrombectomy Effective for Clot Removal in Large-vessel Strokes
Monday, December 22, 2014 12:24
Thrombectomy and other intra-arterial treatments shone in the Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial of Endovascular Treatment of Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands (MR CLEAN) trial, according to an article on MedPageToday.com. The trial showed that thrombectomy improved functional outcomes in severe stroke with proximal large-vessel occlusion treated up to six hours after stroke onset. Good functional outcome at three months was 67 percent more likely in the intra-arterial treatment group after adjustment for other factors than with usual care alone, researchers discovered. MR CLEAN required all patients to be able to initiate intra-arterial treatment within six hours of onset of a stroke with occlusion of the distal intracranial carotid artery, middle cerebral artery, or anterior cerebral artery proven by CT, MRI or digital-subtraction angiography. Of the 500 patients at 16 medical centers in the Netherlands randomized to treatment with intra-arterial treatment plus usual care or usual care alone, almost 90 percent received intravenous thrombolysis first. The study, published online in the New England Journal of Medicine, reported that survival with little or no disability as measured…
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Nearly Half of U.S. Kids Exposed to Traumatic Experiences During Childhood
Friday, December 19, 2014 11:49
The study recently published in the journal Health Affairs analyzes the impact of traumatic life events on childhood development throughout the nation. Researchers reviewed data from the National Survey of Children’s Health, which included records of 95,677 children under the age of 17. Various traumatic experiences, including exposure to substance abuse, death of a parent, divorce, mental illness, domestic violence and extreme economic hardship, were indexed. The study measured 22 percent of the participants as being exposed to two or more traumatic hardships, and this population was shown to be 2.5 times more likely to repeat a grade in school, as well as experience general disengagement. Notably, these children also were shown to have higher rates of chronic health problems, including ADHD, asthma, autism spectrum disorders, obesity and other conditions. However, the study also indicated that some children challenged with both a chronic health issue and multiple traumatic factors, when trained in resilience and stress management, actually showed increased engagement in school and were half as likely to repeat a grade. To learn more about…
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Many Senior Citizens with Memory Loss, Dementia Never Get Tested
Thursday, December 18, 2014 13:00
Researchers have published a study in the journal Neurology that reports senior citizens are very unlikely to be tested for dementia unless the condition has visibly disrupted their daily life. In the study, 856 elderly individuals were evaluated for dementia, while primary caretakers were interviewed regarding the individual’s interaction with health-care professionals. Out of the 297 participants who met the criteria for dementia, only 45 percent had consulted a professional about their memory problems. Of those who had mild memory problems below that of dementia, only 5 percent had been tested. Those with normal memory and cognition reported that 1 percent had been tested. Participants were more likely to be tested when spouses raised concerns about their behavior, but generally testing was only sought when symptoms were heavily demonstrated. “Early evaluation and identification of people with dementia may help them receive care earlier. It can help families make plans for care, help with day-to-day tasks, including observed medication administration, and watch for future problems that can occur. In some instances, these interventions could substantially improve…
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Mental Illness Is the Wrong Scapegoat After Mass Shootings
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 13:00
A study published in the journal American Journal of Public Health analyzes data regarding mental health and shooting deaths, concluding that a scarce minority of shootings are committed by mentally ill individuals, despite popular beliefs. The paper details research spanning four decades of crime data and literature, targeting incidents linked to individuals with a diagnosed mental illness. Researchers discovered that shootings committed by mentally ill individuals were nearly nonexistent statistically. “Fewer than 5 percent of the 120,000 gun-related killings in the United States between 2001 and 2010 were perpetrated by people diagnosed with mental illness,” explained the authors. The typical shooting assailant in North America was more likely to be influenced by drug and alcohol use, violent histories, and stress in personal relationships than a psychological condition. The authors speculate that cultural tensions have caused citizens to label the mentally ill as possible threats to their safety. To learn more about this study, click here.
Brain Activity After Smokers Quit Predicts Chances of Relapsing
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 9:38
Quitting smoking sets off a series of changes in the brain that researchers say may better identify smokers who will start smoking again. Reporting in a new study recently published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, researchers found that smokers who relapsed within seven days from their target quit date had specific disruptions in the brain’s working memory system during abstinence that separated them from the group who successfully quit. Such neural activity could help distinguish successful quitters from those who fail at an earlier stage and serve as a potentially therapeutic target for novel treatments. In the study, researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore the effects of brief abstinence from smoking on working memory and its associated neural activation in 80 smokers seeking treatment. Participants were between 18 and 65 and reported smoking more than 10 cigarettes a day for more than six months. Two fMRI sessions occurred: one immediately after a person smoked and one 24 hours after abstinence began. Following smoking cessation counseling, participants set a future target quit date, and…
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To Reap the Brain Benefits of Physical Activity, Just Get Moving
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 14:33
According to a recent study, to improve cognitive function just get moving; simple exercise will work. The study compared the effects of different training methods on the cognitive functions of people aged 62 to 84 years. Two groups were assigned a high-intensity aerobic and strength-training program, whereas the third group performed tasks that targeted gross motor activities (coordination, balance, ball games, locomotive tasks and flexibility). While the aerobics and strength-training were the only exercises that led to physical fitness improvements after 10 weeks, all three groups showed equivalent improvement in cognitive performance. To learn more about the study, click here.
Research Collaboration Yields New Methods to Treat Tumors
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 9:41
In a collaborative effort by two engineering researchers at the University of Wisconsin, a new technology that could yield less invasive tumor-ablation therapies for cancer patients may soon be available. Current treatments “cook” cancerous tumors when surgeons insert an antenna into tissue to deliver electromagnetic energy, which heats up and kills the malignant cells. However, these antennas must be relatively large in size in order to produce the low-frequency radiation believed to be necessary for effective treatment. Researchers ran two simulations in order to look more closely at the potential for ablation systems that could operate at higher frequencies. Contrary to popular belief, they discovered that high-frequency microwaves could offer a comparable ablation zone to existing low-frequency antennas. “Sometimes surgeons need to treat a tumor where the direct line of sight from the surface of the body would route you through healthy tissue that you wouldn’t want to stick a need through,” said one of the study’s engineering researchers. “So if we can design the antenna to be small enough to route around bends, we…
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Study Shows Direct Brain Interface Between Humans
Monday, November 17, 2014 9:45
In a recent study published in the journal PLOS ONE, researchers from the University of Washington successfully replicated a directed brain-to-brain connection between pairs of people as part of a study following the research team’s initial demonstration a year ago. In the new study, involving six people, researchers were able to transmit the signal from one person’s brain over the Internet and use them to control the hand motions of another person within a split second of sending that signal. “The new study brings our brain-to-brain interfacing paradigm from an initial demonstration to something that is closer to a deliverable technology,” said a co-author of the study. “Now we have replicated our methods and know that they can work reliably with walk-in participants.” The study involved three pairs of participants, each pair including a sender and a receiver with different roles and constraints. They sat in separate buildings on campus about a half mile apart and were unable to interact with each other in any way — except for the link between their brains. To…
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