Vaccine for brain cancer
Scientists are hard at work developing a new vaccine that can actually help cure a patient of a devastating illness – brain cancer.
The experimental vaccine specifically affects glioblastoma, a very deadly type of brain tumor. Right now, surgeons can actually remove about 99 percent of this brain tumor. But the small cancer cells can usually be left behind and these can multiply swiftly and even resist treatments. The vaccine is built to target these wayward cancer cells. The vaccine makes use of smart cells, basically the same cells that come from the patient’s body but placed with proteins that help attack the tumor cells.
CTS
Your hand and wrist are in trouble if you continue working at the computer all day. It’s medically called CTS or Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. The pain is centered in your forearms and they sometimes feel numb. Does it mean that you need to see a surgeon soon? Hmmm, well, not necessarily… Surgery won’t fix the problem You just need to rest your hands regularly. Stay off the computer or limit your use to 20-minute sessions with 5-10 minute breaks. Use a keyboard tray or adjust your chair so the keyboard and mouse are below your elbows and your wrists are level.
Image source here.
Posted by Ella on December 10th, 2010Fruit Juice For Ageing Skin
Worried of getting old and having wrinkled skin? Here’s something for you:
Ever since Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA) have been found to reduce tiny facial lines and fade age spots on the skin, beauty products worldwide are including them in skin creams in the highest concentration the FDA will allow. AHA is made from the juices of citric acid fruits. Higher and more effective dosages are used by Dermatologists and other medical professionals for out-patient skin treatments. AHA reverses sun damage and imparts a more youthful glow to the skin but it cannot get rid of deep lines or sags. – Source
So, what fruits contains citric acid? As the name implies, citric acid is present in citrus fruits including lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruits. It is also present in pineapple. Why worry? When these fruits are easily seen and available in the market anywhere in the world….
Posted by Ella on November 10th, 2010Modern Surgery Overview
Although it is sometimes difficult to determine when a medical procedure is considered surgery, a medical treatment that involves a cutting of a patient’s live tissue (e.g., hair and nails are dead tissue) is usually considered surgery of some sort. A medical procedure involving a drilling of live tissue in a body would often be considered surgery, but mere piercing of a body is not necessarily surgery since piercing is often done for taking samples or draining fluids from or injecting materials into the body, or setting up intravenous drip, and usually does not require suturing to close the pierced opening. Even if a medical procedure or treatment does not include cutting or drilling of live tissue in a body, it may be considered surgery, if it involves common surgical procedure or a setting, such as use of an operating room or table in a hospital, anesthesia, antiseptic conditions, typical surgical instruments, and suturing or stapling. Surgery is considered an invasive procedure. Examples of surgery without cutting the body may include debridement or closing (suturing or stapling) an open wound or applying skin grafts if done under typical surgical conditions. Many types of more complicated or involved surgery are obviously considered surgery, since they involve common surgical procedure or setting as mentioned above. A medical procedure may be surgery even if not all of the typical surgical conditions or procedures mentioned above are used. -Source
Posted by Ella on October 10th, 2010Cloned Heart
Technology has revolved so much and because of this, everything seems to be possible. Researchers and scientist made up a revolution in revitalizing a deteriorating  heart though test has not been scheduled yet for humans. Organ decellurization is been tested to dead rat heart. They remove the cells from the heart, leaving behind only the nonliving fibers that give the heart its shape. Once the cells grew and functions like a new tissue, they inject cells from neonatal and newborn rats’ hearts into the left ventricle and propel oxygen and nutrients through the structure of blood vessels to support cell growth. After a couple of days, the heart is already pumping.
‘Rewired’ Nerves Restore Ability to Walk
Scientists have figured out how mice that lose the ability to walk after a spinal-cord injury can regain it, a finding that could someday help human patients, Scientific American reports. When the long nerves that run from the brain to the base of the spine were severed, shorter nerves in the area were repurposed—not regrown, as was previously believed.
Could their rollercoaster ride be over?
Have you ever tried riding a rollercoaster? You just can’t stop yelling at the top of your lungs because of its challenging ups and downs. One moment you’re up there, the next minute you’ve almost kissed the ground. It may be an adrenaline-pumping experience for many, but for bipolar patients, living life on a constant rollercoaster ride is no fun at all.
People suffering from a bipolar disorder or the so-called manic depression are living life on an emotional rollercoaster. They can be extremely happy for one moment then for the next few hours they can be dreadfully depressed. There seems to be no in between.
It’s sad to know that there is no cure for bipolar disorder but good thing there is a way to treat it effectively. Doctors treating patients with bipolar disorder have been using lithium carbonate for 50 years now however, it’s found not effective for everyone. To solve this problem, doctors
started giving the patients anti-depressant and anti-psychotic drugs.
For patients with bipolar disorder, life is never easy for it is a series of extremes. But with the advancing medical technologies we can just hope that soon the rollercoaster ride for them will be completely over.
Photo credits: Maciek Sliwinski
Posted by Ella on May 10th, 2010New Tech Tracks Things Left Behind
Hospitals are turning to technology to cut down on incidents of doctors sewing up surgical patients with sponges and other items left inside, the Chicago Tribune reports. A bar-coding system to ensure what goes in comes back out is one solution; another involves tagging items with chips that allow them to be detected with a radio-frequency wand.
Finding the cure
You can llearn more about fibriomyalgia and Lyrica here.
Fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome has long been one of the most complex medical situations that has baffled many doctors. Recent years has shown little improvement in the cure of the disease although the only way doctors dealt with the sickness was through trial and error. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Ella on March 10th, 2010Painless vaccines?
Not everyone is a fan of needles. In fact, there are probably more people who are averse to having needles stuck into their skins. This isn’t surprising as needles are most always associated with pain, sickness, and medication.
Since it’s a part of many medical procedures however, there’s no way around getting shots until new ways of dispensing specific medicines or vaccines can be found. This might soon change though thanks to the medical researchers at Georgia Tech and Emory University who have teamed up to create a flu vaccine that is painless, convenient, and hassle-free.
“We’re developing a technology we like to call microneedles. These are needles that we make by using the technology that’s used to make integrated circuits for computers,” said Georgia Tech Professor Mark Prausnitz.
Prausnitz says microscopic needles are coated with flu vaccine that can be barely seen or felt. It allows the vaccine to get into the body.
“Without those tiny needles, if you put the flu vaccine on your skin, none would go in,” according to Prausnitz.
Emory University’s Dr. Ioanna Skountzou says the technology is promising and easy to use. “This is something we hope to put in practice in the very near future. You can apply the patch yourself like a band aid, keep it on for only a short period of time and then dispose it.”
Learn more about this breakthrough here.
Photo credits: Ruud de Jong
Posted by Ella on January 10th, 2010