Medical Treatments

Promising Results In Early Trial of Novel MS Treatment

1:33pm June 07, 2013

Reporting in the journal Science Translational Medicine researchers say a new method for essentially resetting the immune systems of patients with multiple sclerosis appears to be safe. Study co-author Stephen D. Miller of Northwestern University, describes the novel approach tested in this small, phase 1 clinical trial and explains how it might one day also be used to treat other autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes.

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Miss. Turns To Cord Blood To Track Down Statutory Rapists

8:43am June 05, 2013

by Jeffrey Hess

Starting in July, doctors and midwives in Mississippi will be required by law to collect samples of umbilical cord blood from babies born to some girls under the age of 16. Officials will analyze the samples and try to identify the fathers through matches in the state's DNA database.

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These staph bacteria are resistant to vancomycin, an antibiotic that is one of the last lines of defense.

Health & Safety

Obama Administration Seeks To Ease Approvals For Antibiotics

5:15pm June 04, 2013

by Richard Knox

The goal is to counter drug resistance, which is largely a consequence of antibiotics overuse. Supporters say the plan would entice companies back into the market because it would be much cheaper to gain approval. But critics call it "a tragedy of monumental proportions."

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Health & Safety

With Advances In Prenatal Testing, Difficult Choices Arise

3:08pm May 30, 2013

Technological developments in prenatal testing and screening methods have given women more information about the genetic status of their fetuses. Increased access to information can leave mothers and their partners with difficult choices about whether to continue or terminate a pregnancy.

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Health & Safety

Hospital Reviews, Take Them With A Grain Of Salt

2:10pm May 30, 2013

Online reviews can come in handy when choosing a restaurant, but when it comes to picking a hospital, ratings and anecdotal reports can be misleading. Dr. Richard Gunderman explains how to sort through reviews and ratings to find the right hospital for you.

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How OxyContin's Pain Relief Built 'A World Of Hurt'

12:40pm May 30, 2013

New York Times reporter Barry Meier's new e-book explores opiate painkillers and the consequences that come with long-term use. He focuses in particular on OxyContin, how it came to be prescribed for chronic pain, what the consequences have been, and how it became a street drug.

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Health & Safety

Is There A Doctor Aboard? Medical Emergencies In The Clouds

2:11pm May 27, 2013

Since 2006, Dr. Celine Gounder has responded to on-board medical emergencies five times. Three times, the resources available aboard the airplane were inadequate. Gounder explains the unique challenges of providing medical care in the air. (Originally broadcast April 11, 2013.)

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Studies Question Potential Alzheimer's Treatment

2:58pm May 24, 2013

Last year scientists reported that a skin cancer drug appeared to reverse the effects of an Alzheimer's-like disease in mice. But four studies out this week in Science question the original results. Ronald Petersen, director of the Mayo Clinic's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, talks about the new findings, and the hunt for Alzheimer's drugs.

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Fungi (cyan) surround a human hair within the skin. A study in the journal Nature shows the population of fungi on human skin is more diverse that previously thought.

Research Reveals Yeasty Beasts Living On Our Skin

11:20am May 24, 2013

by Rob Stein

While studying microorganisms on humans is not new, tracking fungi is. In a census of sorts, scientists checked the skin of healthy volunteers. They found an expansive ecosystem of silent inhabitants.

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Despite significant advances in neurology and imaging, researchers still don't have simple lab tests for diagnosing patients with mental disorders. Diagnoses are still mostly based on a patient's signs and symptoms.

Health & Safety

Why Is Psychiatry's New Manual So Much Like The Old One?

12:51pm May 17, 2013

by Jon Hamilton

Unlike cardiology and most other fields of medicine, psychiatry still hasn't developed discrete, biological tests for diagnosing illnesses of the mind. That's because the brain "hasn't yielded its secrets yet," one psychiatrist says.

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