James Collins, a pioneering researcher in the new field of systems biology and a MacArthur Genius, says: “You know the old saying: ‘a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down?’ This is more like ‘a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine work.’ Dr. Collins, a professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University who is […]
Although acupuncture is commonly used for pain control, some questions remain about its effectiveness and safety. Investigators from the Universities of Exeter & Plymouth (Exeter, UK) and the Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine (Daejeon, South Korea) critically evaluated systematic reviews of acupuncture as a treatment of pain in order to explore this question. Reporting in […]
Community gym surfaces do not appear to be reservoirs for MRSA transmission, according to a study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC – the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. MRSA is an antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can lead to severe infections and […]
Concerns over vaccination seems to have permeated society, and parents have many questions about the safety of vaccines. One important question is whether vaccinations strain or weaken children’s immune systems and are therefore harmful to them. Roma Schmitz and her colleagues from the Robert Koch Institute investigated this research question in the current issue of […]
Screening patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) produces cost savings for the whole hospital, according to a study that used a statistical simulation model published in the February issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of APIC – the Association for Professionals in Infection Control […]
Deadly diseases are making a comeback. Pertussis, or whooping cough, has killed nine infants this year in California, and outbreaks of measles and Hib meningitis have struck U.S. communities in the past three years. At the heart of all these outbreaks: Parents who have chosen not to vaccinate their children.
“Whooping cough, diphtheria and diseases that some of us don’t even recognize anymore are not gone forever. They are widespread in developing countries and do also arise here in the US,” said Palacios. “It is important that vaccine-preventable diseases are kept under control no matter where they crop up, whether it be in Texas or […]
A study by researchers at Royal Holloway, University of London, University College London and Oxford University, has found that a genetic variant which reduces the chance of contracting diseases such as tuberculosis and leprosy is more prevalent in populations with long histories of urban living. The results are published in the journal ‘Evolution.’
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