Health and Medicine

The chances of getting a Borrelia infection from a tick bite are no different in a city centre park than they are out in the archipelago. This is one of the recent discoveries of Professor Matti Viljanen and his research team who are looking into how the Borrelia bacteria deceives and manipulates the human immune defence system. The research project under the supervision of Professor Viljanen is part of the Academy of Finland’s Microbes and Man Research Programme.

One in three ticks in the p

Results of a Chinese population-based study in this week’s issue of THE LANCET provide strong evidence that women who take folic acid supplements during pregnancy do not have an increased likelihood of having a multiple birth.

Folic acid supplements are recommended for women of childbearing age to prevent neural tube defects-such as spina bifida and anencephaly-in their children. However, results from some small studies have suggested that consumption of vitamins containing folic acid during

Removing pituitary tumors through the nasal cavity rather than using the classic approach beneath the upper lip offers patients a minimally invasive alternative with similar results, less discomfort and faster recovery, a new UCLA study indicates.

The findings, published in the February 2003 edition of the peer-reviewed Journal of Neurosurgery, quantify the advantages of the direct endonasal approach over the sublabial procedure, regarded as the surgical standard for more than 40 years.

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, a report published in the February issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association says that chocolate is good for your heart.

Researchers at the University of California at Davis reviewed a number of recent studies on chocolate – particularly dark chocolate – and its health benefits. They found that flavan-3-ols, the main flavonoids found in cocoa, are associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease.

“Cocoa contains th

When 29-year-old Eric Lange suddenly experienced several hours of mental confusion last July, physicians at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center naturally ordered brain scans and carotid artery studies in their first search for a cause. With the initial exams turning out OK, Eric’s neurologist pursued other clues and ended up finding a heart defect called a patent foramen ovale, or PFO. A blood clot was believed to have slipped through the defect and out of the normal route of circulation that would

Advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology can detect heart attack in emergency room patients with chest pain more accurately and faster than traditional methods, according to a new study supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Published in the February 4 issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, the findings suggest that more patients who are suffering a heart attack or who otherwise have severe blockages in their coronary arteries could r