Medical Treatments

A 13-year-old girl gets an HPV vaccination from Judith Schaechter, a pediatrician at the University of Miami, in 2011.

Vaccine Against HPV Has Cut Infections In Teenage Girls

10:18pm June 19, 2013

by Richard Knox

A vaccine against a virus that causes cervical cancer has cut infections among teenage girls by over half in the first four years of use, scientists report. Only about one-third of girls in that age group have received the recommended shots.

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One version of the Robohand includes 3-D printed parts assembled with metal hardware. New parts can be easily "printed" as the child grows.

3-D Printer Brings Dexterity To Children With No Fingers

3:24pm June 19, 2013

An enterprising carpenter and a creative puppeteer teamed up on a do-it-yourself project to build a mechanical hand for a little boy. They created an inexpensive prosthetic and published their designs on the Internet. So far, over 100 children have been outfitted.

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How many calories in that bite? My Fitness Pal and other fitness and nutrition apps can help find the answer.

Patients Lead The Way As Medicine Grapples With Apps

10:39pm June 18, 2013

by Martha Bebinger

Smartphone apps can help count calories or detect a heart attack. People are embracing them to manage many aspects of their health. But medical apps are largely unregulated now, so there's no easy way to be sure which ones are trustworthy and which ones aren't.

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House Passes Bill That Would Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks

8:43pm June 18, 2013

by Julie Rovner

The legislation is one of the most far-reaching abortion bills in decades and follows the May murder convictions of Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell. The bill, which would ban nearly all abortions starting 20 weeks after fertilization, is unlikely to ever become law.

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In Arizona, An Unlikely Ally For Medicaid Expansion

6:20pm June 12, 2013

by Ted Robbins

Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, one of President Obama's staunchest critics, has confounded conservatives in her own party by pushing for an extension of Medicaid coverage in the state.

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Health & Safety

Life Resumes: Looking Ahead With Suleika Jaouad

4:43pm June 12, 2013

Two years after Suleika Jaouad was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, she is cancer free. A month before her 25th birthday, she is starting to travel and think about her career again. As part of TOTN's "Looking Ahead" series, Jaouad reflects on regaining a bit of normalcy.

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Health & Safety

Fighting To Breathe: Living With COPD

2:21pm June 12, 2013

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive lung disease that slowly robs sufferers of the ability to breathe. COPD is the third leading cause of death in the U.S., surpassed only by cancer and heart disease. There are treatments, but no cure for the disease.

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Plan B One-Step might be the only emergency contraceptive available to all ages without a prescription.

Administration's Plan For Morning-After Pill Pleases No One

6:20pm June 11, 2013

by Julie Rovner

The Obama administration's move to drop opposition to over-the-counter sales of emergency contraception is pleasing no one. It proposes making just one brand-name form available to all ages without a prescription.

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Health & Safety

The Promise In Unraveling The Mysteries Of Rare Diseases

3:13pm June 10, 2013

As a child, Jeannie Peeper was diagnosed with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, an extremely rare disease that causes a second skeleton to grow inside the body. Peeper and science writer Carl Zimmer discuss the efforts of a small group to fund research to battle the disease.

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Whole Genome Scans Could Reveal Too Much

1:33pm June 07, 2013

When doctors run out of clues on how to treat a cancer patient, they sometimes order a scan of all the patient's genes. But such a test can turn up unexpected results, such as greater risk of another disease. When are doctors obligated to tell the patient what they know? And do patients have the right not to know?

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