CHAPEL HILL, NC – Do you have questions about the Zika virus and how it spreads? If you’re traveling this holiday season, do you know how to protect yourself from Zika? Do you have questions about Zika and pregnancy? Do you know all the ways the virus can be transmitted? What about the likelihood of a Zika epidemic here in North Carolina?
Roughly 86 million Americans have prediabetes, and the vast majority of them don’t even know they have it. But the progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes is not inevitable, and there’s a simple blood test that can determine whether a person’s blood glucose levels need attention.
Muscular dystrophies, congenital heart muscle defects, and other muscle disorders often arise for reasons that scientists don’t fully understand. Now researchers from the UNC School of Medicine and Baylor College of Medicine have discovered that alternative splicing could play an important role in these disorders.
Therapies designed to help the body's immune system attack cancer cells are proving to be effective for some patients with advanced cases of the disease.
More than 3.8 billion controlled medications, such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, Valium and Adderall, are dispensed by pharmacies annually in the United States. It has been estimated that only about 30 percent of these drugs are used by the people for whom they were prescribed. The remaining 70 percent represent a large surplus of controlled medications that could be abused or sold to others for abuse.
When patients suffer from atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, they are at considerably higher risk for blood clots and stroke. However, when hospitalized, half of these patients do not receive medications that could help prevent such complications, according to research being presented Nov. 14 at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.
Scientists at Duke Health and Zhejiang Chinese Medical University have developed a strategy to stop the uncontrollable itch caused by urushiol, the oily sap common to poison ivy, poison sumac, poison oak and even mango trees. The team found that by blocking an immune system protein in the skin with an antibody, they could halt the processes that tell the brain the skin is itchy.
Two researchers at the UNC School of Medicine have been named to a global consortium for Zika research and vaccine development.
During stroke or heart attack, tissue damage can be limited because “collateral” vessels connect the tissue to other arteries. Collateral vessels can vary greatly in size and number from one person to the next. Scientists have now implicated the Rabep2 gene as a major contributor to variation.
Today’s release of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 14th Report on Carcinogens includes seven newly reviewed substances, bringing the cumulative total to 248 listings.
If you’re trying to lose weight, what are your chances of success? Your brain may hold the key. Scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center believe they may have found a way to predict who will be successful in their weight-loss efforts with a quick, non-invasive brain scan.
Women experience a notable decline in sexual function approximately 20 months before and one year after their last menstrual period, and that decrease continues, though at a somewhat slower rate, over the following five years, according to a study led by a researcher at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
Researchers have developed a technique for creating complex predictive tools that can be used to make effective decisions about word-of-mouth marketing for online products and services.
Researchers at the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center report in the journal Cell Reports that certain short, repetitive sequences of DNA, or “junk,” play an important role in the development of Ewing sarcoma.
In the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, researchers report that uninsured women under age 65 who received their mammogram at community screening clinics in North Carolina also were less likely to get follow-up within a year of a positive mammogram.
In a study in the journal Development, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers report preclinical findings showing promise for targeting a gene linked to microcephaly in infants as a treatment for medulloblastoma.
Crowdsourced information can provide a continental perspective on the scenic places where people live, work and play. Using geotagged data from photo-sharing platforms, researchers from North Carolina State University created a predictive model that can inform land use decisions and policy.
A research team at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has been awarded a three-year grant for $2 million by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to compare the effectiveness of cognitive-behavior therapy and yoga on anxiety in older adults.
“This study is a good wake-up call that health care personnel need to concentrate on the idea that the health care environment can be contaminated,” said Deverick Anderson, M.D., the study’s lead author and associate professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine. “Any type of patient care, or even just entry into a room where care is provided, truly should be considered a chance for interacting with organisms that can cause disease.”
A UNC School of Medicine dermatologist recently conducted a study to determine if the way a prescription was written – either traditionally or electronically – played a role in whether a patient filled and picked up the medication.
Scientists from the National Institutes of Health have determined what differentiates dust mite allergens from the non-allergen proteins dust mites produce. According to the researchers, dust mite allergens are more chemically stable and produced in larger quantities than other dust mite proteins.
In a new study, researchers used a nationally-representative dataset to estimate the frequency with which emergency providers make a formal diagnosis of elder abuse. The answer: 1 in 7,700 visits.
Crohn’s disease can have devastating consequences and is notoriously hard to treat. Now, scientists have made a discovery that could explain why Crohn’s is so variable: the disease has at least two distinct subtypes, each with its own pattern of gene expression and mix of clinical features.
New research from North Carolina State University has found that wind patterns in the lowest 500 meters of the atmosphere near supercell thunderstorms can help predict whether that storm will generate a tornado.
Twelve individuals will receive the first-ever Champion of Environmental Health Research Award from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), for their significant contributions to the field.
The percentage of college students receiving Pell grants has climbed steadily since 1999, while their family income has declined, according to a recent report by RTI International researchers.
To help communities reduce the national backlog of untested sexual assault kits, RTI International will provide training and technical assistance to an increasing number of state and local agencies as they identify and test sexual assault kits, investigate and prosecute resulting cases, and support survivors of sexual assault.
RTI International will continue supporting research efforts to improve clinical care for women with pelvic floor disorders as part of the Pelvic Floor Disorders Network.
A new series of research papers presents key findings of state and community tobacco control research to help guide state and community tobacco control policies and practices.
In fall 2017, Wake Forest will launch a new year-long study abroad program in Copenhagen, Denmark, designed exclusively for first-year students.
Doctors and public health officials differ on the potential long-term effects of vaping and the use of e-cigarettes as smoking cessation tools. But they agree the devices shouldn't explode in your face.
A head-to-head comparison of sacral neuromodulation and botulinum toxin led by a Duke Health researcher shows that Botox provides more daily relief for women suffering from urge incontinence, but might also be associated with more adverse events.
In the study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, UNC Lineberger researchers report that nearly a third of a group of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia, and who have federally-funded Medicare health insurance, did not start treatment within six months of diagnosis with any of three targeted drugs that have led to dramatic improvements in survival for the disease.
There’s no clear prescription for how to effectively encourage adults to hit the flu clinic, but data and pamphlets aren't working. New research recommends a more personal approach.
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women, with estrogen-receptor-positive (ER+) being the most common type. Drugs used to treat this cancer, such as tamoxifen and Faslodex, block the hormone estrogen receptor that ER+ cancer cells need to grow. One problem with these treatments is that many tumors initially responsive to the drugs develop resistance, making the medicines less effective.
Using a national network and gene mapping tools, Duke Health researchers led a study identifying a new genetic disorder, which still has no name. It shares similarities to two other rare genetic disorders arising from related genes.
Researchers from North Carolina State University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have created an efficient, semi-printed plastic solar cell without the use of environmentally hazardous halogen solvents.
New research from North Carolina State University finds that older adults have comparable response times to young adults when tasked with taking control of a semi-autonomous vehicle.
Can having a few drinks help people with clinical depression feel better? Yes. At least in terms of biochemistry.
New research shows that breastfeeding is not only good for children, but also for their mothers, providing more health benefits and preventing more maternal diseases than previously known.
Hot flashes – the bane of existence for many women during menopause – can be reduced in frequency by almost half for about 50 percent of women over eight weeks of acupuncture treatment, according to scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center a grant worth an estimated $8.7 million over five years for the establishment of a new center for research into Alzheimer’s disease.
Findings of improved survival for patients with a type of head and neck cancer linked to HPV-16, and comparatively worse outcomes for other HPV strains, have treatment implications.
A new study finds that indie rock musicians face significant business communication challenges, requiring them to develop skills that are probably not what they had in mind when they decided to make a career out of rock n’ roll.
New research from North Carolina State University shows that theropod dinosaur species with bony crests, horns and knobs evolved to giant body sizes 20 times faster than those species lacking such embellishments.
A research team led by Duke Health, using mice as the models, has described the cellular processes that occur during “rush desensitization.” The approach involves giving a small dose of the allergy trigger – peanuts or bee poison or even chemotherapy -- to the susceptible patient in small, yet increasing doses over a short period.
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