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Editor's Pick
Concerns raised over accuracy of melanoma diagnoses
A study of US pathologists shows that diagnoses can vary among pathologists, particularly for cases in the middle of the disease spectrum, suggesting the potential...
Yoga not as safe as is commonly assumed
Recreational yoga causes musculoskeletal pain in 10% of people - comparable to the injury rate of all sports injuries combined among the physically active population...
Moderate-intensity walking may reduce VCI symptoms
A moderate-intensity walking regimen may reduce symptoms of mild vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), a small Canadian study suggests.
Participants with vascular cognitive impairment, sometimes called...
New drug helps control symptoms in psoriatic arthritis patients
In a phase-3 clinical trial, patients with psoriatic arthritis for whom standard-of-care pharmaceutical treatments have provided no lasting relief, experienced a significant reduction in...
Music therapy for schizophrenia – Cochrane evidence review
Moderate- to low-quality evidence suggests that music therapy as an addition to standard care improves the global state, mental state, social functioning, and quality...
UK study could be a breakthrough in autopsy practice
For most sudden natural adult deaths investigated by British coroners, postmortem computing tomography, enhanced with targeted coronary angiography (PMCTA) could be used to avoid...
Higher mortality rates with older/busier physicians
Within the same hospital, patients treated by older physicians had higher mortality than patients cared for by younger physicians, except those physicians treating high...
One-third of hypertension patients not taking medication – UK/Czech study
More than a third of people with high blood pressure had not been taking their blood pressure medication, found a study on a UK/Czech sample...
Official UK guidelines on drinking during pregnancy 'too prescriptive'
Women are being unduly alarmed by official UK guidelines that warn them to avoid alcohol completely during pregnancy, experts claim. The Guardian reports that...
Aspirin use doesn't lower risk of stroke for a-fib patients
Atrial fibrillation patients who received a catheter ablation and were low risk for stroke didn't benefit from long-term aspirin therapy, but are at risk...
CDC modelling study sounds warning on TB in SA
South Africa, along with India, Russia and the Philippines, will over the next two decades face dramatically rising rates of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB), according...
Any exercise boosts mood and reduces depression
For people leading a sedentary lifestyle, simply getting out of your chair and moving around can reduce depression and lift your spirits, found a...
Gut microbiome used to predict advanced NAFLD
The unique microbial makeup of a patient's stool sample can be used to predict advanced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) with 88% to 94%...
Stereotactic radiation highly effective for kidney cancer
Treating metastatic kidney cancer with stereotactic ablative radiation therapy achieves more than 90% control of local tumours, and offers the possibility of safely delaying...
Over half of e-cigarette users giving up smoking tobacco
More than half of the UK's electronic-cigarette users have since given up smoking tobacco, a King’s College study suggests.
Some 1.5m vapers are ex-smokers, compared...
Statin side effects are the result of negative expectations
An Imperial College London study suggests that common statin side effects of muscle pain and weakness are not a result of the drugs themselves,...
Non-O blood groups associated with higher heart attack risk
Having a non-O blood group is associated with a higher risk of heart attack, according to a large analysis presented at Heart Failure 2017...
SA trainee doctors inadequately prepared to prescribe antibiotics
Trainee SA doctors are inadequately prepared to prescribe antibiotics‚ found a survey at the universities of the Witwatersrand, Free State and Cape Town.
The Times...
Grey hair linked with increased heart disease risk in men
A high hair whitening score was associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease, independent of chronological age and established cardiovascular risk factors, found...
Regular exercise significantly boosts brain power in the over 50s
A combination of aerobic and resistance exercises can significantly boost the brain power of the over 50s, finds the most comprehensive review of the...
Serum test to identify abusive head trauma in infants
A serum-based test, which needs to be validated in a larger population and receive regulatory approval, has been developed that would be the first...
Close to half GPs in UK plan to quit
About two in five GPs in the south-west of England are planning to quit, exposing a potential doctors’ crisis in the National Health Service...
Weak grip a strong predictor of metabolic disease and disability
A simple test to determine a person's grip strength is a robust predictor of developing metabolic disorders in middle or older age, a cross-continental...
New drug cuts number and severity of hot flushes
An experimental drug has been shown to dramatically cut the number of hot flushes in women with severe menopause symptoms, says a Pharmaceutical Journal...
Asthma drug effective for patients with urticaria
The asthma drug Omalizumab is shown to be effective in treating hives, found two separate German clinical studies.
Patients who develop itchy wheals in response...
Booster vaccine during pregnancy cuts pertussis incidence in infants
Among infants of women who received the Tdap pertussis booster vaccine during pregnancy, the risk of contracting pertussis was reduced by an estimated 91%...
How nature's sounds help us to relax
A Brighton and Sussex Medical School study found that playing 'natural sounds' affected the bodily systems that control the flight-or-fright and rest-digest autonomic...
Blood test helps determine medication to treat depression
Thanks to a blood test, doctors can for the first time determine which medication is more likely to help a patient overcome depression, according...
Low validity of self-reported sexual behaviour bad news for public health
Until there is a decline in 'double standards' about sexual morality, researchers should question the accuracy of sexual behaviour data, which are paramount for effective...
Long-term, weight-bearing exercise promotes bone growth in men
A researcher in the department of nutrition and exercise physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia has published the first study to show that long-term, weight-bearing exercises...
Range of formats may be needed to attract men to test for HIV
Specialised services to attract men to HIV testing and treatment may need to adopt several different formats in order to reach different sub-populations of...
Painkillers associated with increased cardiac arrest risk
Painkillers considered harmless by the general public are associated with increased risk of cardiac arrest, according to research. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among...
World TB Day – Launch of online TB Surveillance Dashboard
South Africa has the highest estimated tuberculosis (TB) incidence rate amongst the 22 high burden countries globally, with 834 new TB cases per 100,000...
At last we know: The Mona Lisa IS happy!
In perhaps the world's most recognised painting, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, her supposedly ambiguous expression - is she happy or sad? - was...
Conflicting guidelines on care for cancer survivors
Treatment guidelines on care for survivors of the most common cancers often lack specifics or offer conflicting advice about when or how often to...
The history of first HIV/Aids drug
Today, if someone is diagnosed with HIV, he or she can choose among 41 drugs that can treat the disease. And there’s a good...
Gene-silencing drug helps to halve cholesterol levels
The first in a new class of gene-silencing drugs, known as inclisiran, has halved cholesterol levels in patients at risk of cardiovascular disease. The...
Heart failure risk scale validated for clinical practice
A study has found the Ottawa Heart Failure Risk Scale (OHFRS) tool to be highly sensitive for serious adverse event in acute heart failure...
Testosterone Tx improves bone density and anaemia, but with heart risk
Testosterone treatment improved bone density and anaemia for men over 65 with unequivocally low testosterone, but did not improve cognitive function and did increase...
Assessing effect of exercise and supplements on muscle mass and function
Physical exercise has a positive impact on muscle mass and muscle function in healthy subjects aged 60 and older but the interactive effect of...