Salt retention is the main culprit behind drug-resistant hypertension (RHTN), with older diuretic medications being the most effective treatment, according to new results from the PATHWAY-2 study. The research, presented at ESC Congress today, “will change clinical practice across the world and will help improve the blood pressure and outcomes of our patients with resistant...
Category: <span>Pharmaceutical Updates</span>
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CO2 laser + platelet-rich plasma promising treatment for vitiligo
Rania Abdelghani, M.D., from Al-Azhar University in Cairo, and colleagues randomly assigned 80 adult patients with localized non-segmental vitiligo to receive four treatment options: fractional CO2 laser, PRP, combined fractional CO2 laser and PRP, or combined fractional CO2 laser and narrowband ultraviolet B (NB-UVB)—all for two months. The researchers found that the laser and PRP group achieved the best results...
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Osteoarthritis: Could this algae extract lead to a cure?
Osteoarthritis is a joint disease, characterized by the breakdown of the joint cartilage. This condition has, so far, been considered incurable, and treatments are only symptomatic. However, new research points to a substance extracted from brown algae as holding the potential to cure osteoarthritis. Modified chemical extracts from the Laminaria hyperborea algae (shown here) have...
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Cholesterol-lowering drugs may fight infectious disease
That statin you’ve been taking to lower your risk of heart attack or stroke may one day pull double duty, providing protection against a whole host of infectious diseases, including typhoid fever, chlamydia, and malaria. Duke scientists have recently discovered that a gene variant that affects cholesterol levels could increase your risk of contracting typhoid...
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Once invincible superbug squashed by ‘superteam’ of antibiotics
The golden age of antibiotics may be drawing to a close. The recent discovery of E. coli carrying mcr-1 and ndm-5—genes that make the bacterium immune to last-resort antibiotics—has left clinicians without an effective means of treatment for the superbug. But in a new study, University at Buffalo researchers have assembled a team of three antibiotics that, together, are...
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Does platelet-rich plasma for the knee work?
Platelet-rich plasma makes it possible to heal painful knee injuries, using a person’s own blood. Athletes such as Tiger Woods and Rafael Nadal are rumored to have undergone a relatively new treatment that involves injections of platelet-rich plasma. Proponents say the therapy offers cutting-edge treatment for previously debilitating injuries, including painful knee problems due to...
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Women who take the Pill for several years ‘can cut their chance of suffering a common form of arthritis by a fifth’
Women who take the Pill are less likely to suffer arthritis, according to research Those who take the contraceptive pill for several years are statistically safer Study of 7,000 women in Sweden suggest pill takers 13% less likely to suffer Women who take the Pill are far less likely to suffer from a common form...
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Is this a CURE for baldness? New drug could help millions who suffer hair loss after scientists discover new way to activate dormant follicles
Drugs increase production of lactate – the substance which makes muscles burn Tests on mice show this activates stem cells in dormant hair follicles Hair loss is caused by aging, genetics, hormone imbalance, stress and illness The medications need to be tested on humans to show they’re safe and effective A cure for balding could...
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Therapeutic cocktail could restore motor skills after spinal cord injury, stroke
After spinal cord injury or stroke, axons originating in the brain’s cortex and along the spinal cord become damaged, disrupting motor skills. Now, according to new findings published today in Neuron, a team of scientists at Boston Children’s Hospital has developed a method to promote axon regrowth after injury. The team developed a therapeutic cocktail of...
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Review: cannabis may alleviate neuropathic pain
Shannon M. Nugent, Ph.D., from the VA Portland Health Care System and Oregon Health & Science University, and colleagues conducted a systematic review to examine the benefits of plant-based cannabis preparations for treating chronic pain in adults. The researchers found low-strength evidence that cannabis alleviates neuropathic pain based on 27 chronic pain trials; insufficient evidence was found in other pain populations....