New Compound Improves Obesity-Related Health Complications in NIH-Led Study

An experimental compound appears to improve metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity, according to a preliminary study led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. A report of the study, which was conducted with obese mice, appears online today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Gene Associated with Rare Adrenal Disorder Appears To Trigger Cell Death, According to NIH Study

A gene implicated in Carney complex, a rare disorder of the adrenal glands, appears to function as a molecular switch to limit cell growth and division, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.

Medicare, NIH Expands National Network for Transforming Clinical and Translational Research

Nine health research centers have received funds to develop ways to reduce the time it takes for clinical research to become treatments for patients. The funds were awarded as part of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program which is led by the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), part of the National Institutes … Read more

Medicare, After 40 Years, NIH-Supported Researchers Identify Possible New Treatment for Severe Vasculitis

Investigators have made a major advance in treating people with a severe form of vasculitis, anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis, a rare but devastating disease of blood vessels. In a six-month study, a new treatment strategy provided the same benefits as the current standard of care used for more than 40 years but required less … Read more

Medicare, Gene Variant that may Prevent African Sleeping Sickness also Leads to Increased Chance of Kidney Disease

National Institutes of Health researchers and grantees have found that gene variants in APOL1, more common in African Americans, come with both health risk and reward, as reported in the July 15 online issue of Science.

Medicare Card, NIH Funds 10 International Centers of Excellence for Malaria Research

In an effort to accelerate the control of malaria and help eliminate it worldwide, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, today announced approximately $14 million in first-year funding to establish 10 new malaria research centers around the world.

Medicare Card, Annual Federal Statistics Compilation Reports Second Straight Decline In Preterm Births

Preterm births and adolescent births declined, eighth graders’ math and reading scores increased, and more children had health insurance, according to the federal government’ annual statistical report on the well-being of the nation’s children and youth. The report also showed several economic changes that coincided with the beginning of the economic downturn: increases in child … Read more

NIH Scientists Advance Universal Flu Vaccine

A universal influenza vaccine — so-called because it could potentially provide protection from all flu strains for decades — may become a reality because of research led by scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Medicare Card: NIH-Supported Experimental Marburg Vaccine Prevents Disease Two Days after Infection

An experimental vaccine developed to prevent outbreaks of Marburg hemorrhagic fever continues to show promise in monkeys as an emergency treatment for accidental exposures to the virus that causes the disease. There is no licensed treatment for Marburg infection, which has a high fatality rate.

Program to Enhance Communication of Life-sustaining Treatment Preferences Associated with Closer Adherence to a Person’s Wishes when Compared with Traditional Practices, Finds NIH-Supported Study

A program in which individuals used a standardized form signed by a physician to communicate their end-of-life care preferences on issues such as levels of medical intervention and tube feeding lead to significantly better adherence to treatment preferences than more traditional methods of communication, according to a new study.

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NIH Expands Food Allergy Research Program

Today, the National Institutes of Health announce that the Consortium of Food Allergy Research (CoFAR), established in 2005, will be funded for five more years. CoFAR will continue to foster new approaches to prevent and treat food allergies and also expand in scope to include research on the genetic causes underlying food allergy and studies … Read more

Medicare, Medicare Card, NIH and Wellcome Trust Announce Partnership To Support Population-based Genome Studies in Africa

The National Institutes of Health, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Wellcome Trust, a global charity based in London, today announced a partnership to support population-based genetic studies in Africa of common, non-communicable disorders such as heart disease and cancer, as well as communicable diseases such as malaria. … Read more

Medicare, Aiming for Near-Normal, Blood Sugar Did Not Delay Combined Risk of Diabetic Damage for People With Long-standing Diabetes, NIH-Sponsored Trial Finds

In people with longstanding type 2 diabetes who are at high risk for heart attack and stroke, lowering blood sugar to near-normal levels did not delay the combined risk of diabetic damage to kidneys, eyes, or nerves, but did delay several other signs of diabetic damage, a study has found. The intensive glucose treatment was … Read more

Adverse Cardiovascular Events Reported in Testosterone Trial in Older Men

A clinical trial of testosterone treatment in older men, reported June 30 online in the New England Journal of Medicine, has found a higher rate of adverse cardiovascular events, such as heart attacks and elevated blood pressure, in a group of older men receiving testosterone gel compared to those receiving placebo. Due to these events, … Read more

NIH-Supported ACCORD Eye Study Finds Two Therapies Slow Diabetic Eye Disease Progression

In high-risk adults with type 2 diabetes, researchers have found that two therapies may slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy, an eye disease that is the leading cause of vision loss in working-age Americans.

Medicare Researchers Discover How Folate Promotes Healing In Spinal Cord Injuries

The vitamin folate appears to promote healing in damaged rat spinal cord tissue by triggering a change in DNA, according to a laboratory study funded by the National Institutes of Health.