Group items tagged

Composite clearance rates (combined clinical and histological assessments) for the 5 and 7x/week imiquimod groups were 75% and 73%, respectively. Histological clearance rates for the 5 and 7x/week imiquimod groups were 82% and 79%, respectively. Increasing severity of erythema, erosion, and scabbing/crusting was associated with higher clearance rates. CONCLUSION: Imiquimod appears to be safe and effective for the treatment of sBCC when compared with vehicle cream. The difference in clearance rates between the two imiquimod dosing groups was not significant. The 5x/week regimen is recommended.

© 2005 Elsevier (Am J Cardiol 2005;96:810-814). After 3 months, the extent of stress-induced ischemia decreased in the pomegranate group but increased in the control group. This benefit was observed without changes in cardiac medications, blood sugar, hemoglobin A1c, weight, or blood pressure in either group. In conclusion, daily consumption of pomegranate juice may improve stress-induced myocardial ischemia in patients who have CHD. (Small sample; further study warranted with quantitative coronary arteriography + intravascular ultrasound.)

If the uninsured were a political lobbying group, they'd have more members than AARP. The National Mall couldn't hold them if they decided to march on Washington. But going without health insurance is still seen as a personal issue...The grass-roots group Health Care for America Now plans to bring as many as 15,000 people to Washington this year to lobby Congress for guaranteed coverage.

"The American Psychiatric Association (APA) practice guidelines are developed by expert work groups using an explicit methodology that includes rigorous review of available evidence, broad peer review of iterative drafts, and formal approval by the APA"

Analysis & report regarding health spending in the current (2008-09) economic crisis. Health Update No. 7, produced by the International Coordination Group for Health (ICGH)

First bookmark of the group is, fittingly or unfittingly, an "old-fashioned" online essay with early 19th-century illustrations on the history of medicine from the viewpoint of a mid-19th-century medical professor.

New findings in rodents and human brain shed light on the mechanisms of major depressive disorder (MDD), uncovering over-expression of MKP-1 (mitogen-activated protein kinase [MAPK] phosphatase-1)...and identifying a new therapeutic target. MKP-1, also known as dual-specificity phosphatase-1 (DUSP1), is a member of a family of proteins that dephosphorylate both threonine and tyrosine residues and thereby serves as a key negative regulator of the MAPK cascade4, a major signaling pathway involved in neuronal plasticity, function and survival This study identifies MKP-1 as a key factor in MDD pathophysiology, and as a new target for therapeutic interventions.f Here we use whole-genome expression profiling of postmortem tissue and show significantly increased expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphatase-1 (MKP-1, encoded by DUSP1, but hereafter called MKP-1) in the hippocampal subfields of subjects with MDD compared to matched controls. MKP-1, also known as dual-specificity phosphatase-1 (DUSP1), is a member of a family of proteins that dephosphorylate both threonine and tyrosine residues and thereby serves as a key negative regulator of the MAPK cascade4, a major signaling pathway involved in neuronal plasticity, function and survival. We tested the role of altered MKP-1 expression in rat and mouse models of depression and found that increased hippocampal MKP-1 expression, as a result of stress or viral-mediated gene transfer, causes depressive behaviors. Conversely, chronic antidepressant treatment normalizes stress-induced MKP-1 expression and behavior, and mice lacking MKP-1 are resilient to stress. These postmortem and preclinical studies identify MKP-1 as a key factor in MDD pathophysiology and as a new target for therapeutic interventions.

Rader also believes that the MEGA trial raises important questions about just how widespread the use of statin therapy should be in primary prevention...reignite discussion on over-the-counter low-dose statins.