Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Diabetes & Endocrinology for December 2007. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Growth Hormone Linked to Aggressive Prostate Cancer
MONDAY, Dec. 31 (HealthDay News) -- A mutation leading to lack of growth hormone reduced incidence of cancer and resulted in less invasive tumors in an animal model of aggressive prostate cancer, according to a report published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Wnt Pathway Implicated in Pituitary Tumorigenesis
FRIDAY, Dec. 28 (HealthDay News) -- Inhibitors of the Wnt signaling pathway may be tumor suppressors important in the pathogenesis of pituitary tumors, according to study findings published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Obesity May Hinder Access to Kidney Transplantation
FRIDAY, Dec. 28 (HealthDay News) -- In patients who need a kidney transplant, obesity is associated with a decreased likelihood of receiving one, according to a study published online Dec. 19 in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
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Selective Thyromimetic Lowers LDL Cholesterol
FRIDAY, Dec. 28 (HealthDay News) -- Treatment with a synthetic, selective thyromimetic improves dyslipidemia without apparent cardiac side effects related to thyroid hormone, according to a report published online Dec. 26 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.
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Relaxin Receptor Variants May Play Role in Parturition
FRIDAY, Dec. 28 (HealthDay News) -- Three splice variants of the relaxin receptor that are differentially expressed in fetal membranes during the peripartum period and which may have functional significance in parturition, have been identified by researchers, according to an article published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Previously Uninsured Enjoy Better Health with Medicare
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 26 (HealthDay News) -- The health of people who don't have health insurance improves once they acquire Medicare coverage at the age of 65, especially if they have cardiovascular disease or diabetes, researchers report in the Dec. 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Stress Regulates Inflammatory Pathways in Brain
TUESDAY, Dec. 25 (HealthDay News) -- Stress mediators regulate inflammatory pathways in the rat brain cortex in response to acute restraint stress, according to research published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Signaling Pathway Defective in Osteoporotic Osteoblasts
FRIDAY, Dec. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Signaling through the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I) receptor is impaired in osteoblasts from osteoporotic patients, possibly explaining the impaired osteoblast proliferation in osteoporosis, according to the results of a study published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Total Thyroidectomy for Cancer Gets Economic Nod
THURSDAY, Dec. 20 (HealthDay News) -- In patients with low-risk papillary thyroid cancer, treatment with total thyroidectomy is probably a more cost-effective initial surgical treatment than hemithyroidectomy, though some caveats apply, according to research published in the December issue of the
Archives of Otolaryngology -- Head & Neck Surgery.
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Aldosterone Mediators of Cardiac Injury Identified
THURSDAY, Dec. 20 (HealthDay News) -- The ability of aldosterone to generate superoxide and cause cardiovascular injury is mediated by several cellular mediators including NAD(P)H oxidase and Rac1, according to a study published online Dec. 13 in Endocrinology.
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Vertebral Fractures Predict Additional Fractures in Women
TUESDAY, Dec. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Women with pre-existing vertebral fractures have a high risk of developing new vertebral fractures over the next 15 years, particularly if they have osteoporosis diagnosed by low bone mineral density, researchers report in the Dec. 19 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Higher Rates of Lung Cancer in Lower UVB Light Areas
TUESDAY, Dec. 18 (HealthDay News) -- In a survey of 111 countries, places with lower levels of ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiance have higher incidence of lung cancer, according to research published in the January issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
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Pros & Cons of Bariatric Procedures Reviewed
MONDAY, Dec. 17 (HealthDay News) -- In the surgical treatment of obesity, the decision of which bariatric surgery method to use should take patient factors into account and include an individualized discussion of benefits and risks of each method, according to a review article published in the Dec. 15 issue of The Lancet.
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Neuropeptide Biomarker May Predict Preterm Delivery
FRIDAY, Dec. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Maternal serum levels of urocortin, a neuropeptide produced by gestational tissues, may be a useful biomarker in predicting preterm delivery in women with threatened preterm labor, according to research published in the December issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
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FDA Approves Drug for Treatment of Phenylketonuria
FRIDAY, Dec. 14 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that it has approved Kuvan (sapropterin dihydrochloride) for the treatment of tetrahydrobiopterin-responsive phenylketonuria (PKU). PKU is a rare genetic disorder in which an enzyme deficiency leads to build-up of phenylalanine in the body to toxic levels, resulting in mental retardation, seizures and other neurologic complications.
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Surgery Benefits Subclinical Cushing's Syndrome
THURSDAY, Dec. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Adrenalectomy often improves clinical and metabolic outcomes in patients with subclinical Cushing's syndrome, according to a study in the December issue of Surgery.
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Obesity Impairs Anti-Bacterial Immune Response
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Obese mice display an impaired immune response to bacterial infection, developing more severe periodontitis and alveolar bone loss than lean mice, according to study findings published online Dec. 12 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.
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Insulin Response Improved in Heart Cell Study
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Ciglitazone and 9-cis retinoic acid (RA), which are agonists of the nuclear receptor complex PPARγ/RXR, increased insulin- and metabolic stress-stimulated glucose transport in rat cardiomyocytes, according to a report published online Dec. 6 in the journal Endocrinology.
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TrkB Agonist Shows Promise in Treating Obesity
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Treatment with Neurotrophin-4 (NT4), a natural ligand for the tyrosine kinase receptor trkB, suppressed appetite, reduced body fat, and improved triglycerides and blood sugar in obese rodents, according to research published online Dec. 6 in Endocrinology.
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Common Pollutant Transported into Breast Milk
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Perchlorate, exposure to which is common in the United States, is transported into breast milk by the sodium-iodine symporter and would affect thyroidal iodine uptake, according to the results of a study in rats published online Dec. 11 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.
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Sugary Beverages May Promote Alzheimer's Disease
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Sugar-sweetened beverages can worsen memory and promote the development of plaques in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease, researchers report in the Dec. 14 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
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Thiazolidinediones Linked to Mortality in Older Diabetics
TUESDAY, Dec. 11 (HealthDay News) -- A heightened risk of congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction and death has been found among older diabetic patients who are treated with thiazolidinediones (TZDs), according to the results of a study published in the Dec. 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Strong Link Found Between Smoking and Diabetes
TUESDAY, Dec. 11 (HealthDay News) -- A review of studies on the relationship between smoking and the risk of type 2 diabetes concludes that there is an association between the two, researchers report in the Dec. 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Urinary Marker Linked to Graves Ophthalmopathy
TUESDAY, Dec. 11 (HealthDay News) -- In patients with Graves ophthalmopathy, the most frequent extrathyroidal manifestation of Graves disease, a marker of oxidative stress is high with active disease and drops after treatment with corticosteroids, according to a report in the December issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.
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Steroids for Trigger Finger Less Effective in Diabetics
MONDAY, Dec. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Corticosteroid injections for trigger finger are not as effective in diabetics as in non-diabetics, and in fact, among diabetic patients, they may be no better than placebo, according to the results of a small study published in the December issue of the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery.
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Cortisol May Block Breakdown of Corpus Luteum
MONDAY, Dec. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Locally generated cortisol may act on the corpus luteum through glucocorticoid receptors and block luteolysis during maternal recognition of pregnancy, researchers report in the December issue of Endocrinology.
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Role for Regulatory T Cells in Thyroiditis
FRIDAY, Dec. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Regulatory T cells (Treg) may be involved in the progression of hyperthyroidism in Graves' disease and Hashimoto's thyroiditis, according to the results of a study in mice published in the December issue of Endocrinology.
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Americans Getting More Daily Calories from Liquids
THURSDAY, Dec. 6 (HealthDay News) -- American adults consumed a far greater percentage of their daily caloric intake from beverages in 2002 than they did in 1965, and beverage consumption patterns during that period became much more complex, researchers report in the November issue of Obesity Research.
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Worldwide Burden of Chronic Disease Targeted
THURSDAY, Dec. 6 (HealthDay News) --
Experts address the worldwide chronic disease epidemic in a series of articles published online Dec. 5 in The Lancet. The authors review the burden of chronic disease in developing countries and discuss cost-effective strategies to mitigate this burden in keeping with the World Health Organization's (WHO) global goal of reducing chronic disease mortality by 2 percent over the next decade.
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Tesamorelin Associated with Reduction in Visceral Fat
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 5 (HealthDay News) -- The growth hormone-releasing factor tesamorelin may be helpful in reducing visceral fat and improving lipid profiles in patients with HIV who are receiving antiretroviral therapy, according to research published in the Dec. 6 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Obese Youths at Higher Risk of Future Heart Disease
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 5 (HealthDay News) -- Children with a high body mass index (BMI) are at an increased risk of coronary heart disease in adulthood, according to a study published in the December issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. A second study estimates future morbidity based on current obesity trends in teens.
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Sleep Durations Associated with Diabetes
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 5 (HealthDay News) -- Risk of diabetes is associated both with short- and long-duration sleep patterns, however confounding factors are likely to account for the long-duration association, according to a report in the December issue of Sleep.
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Scaled-Up Drug Treatment Could Prevent Deaths
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 5 (HealthDay News) -- Scaling up treatment of individuals at high risk for cardiovascular disease with an evidenced-based, multidrug regimen would reduce deaths from cardiovascular disease in 23 countries by almost 18 million over a decade, at an average annual cost of only about $1 per person, according to an article published online Dec. 5 in The Lancet.
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Seizures Prompt New FDA Guidelines for Desmopressin
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 5 (HealthDay News) -- New prescribing guidelines have been issued for the anti-diuretic drug desmopressin acetate after reviews of 61 cases of hyponatremic-related seizures associated with its use, according to a Dec. 4 announcement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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Three Meds Linked to Many Adverse Drug Events in Elderly
TUESDAY, Dec. 4 (HealthDay News) -- Of the adverse drug events among older adults treated in U.S. emergency departments over a recent two-year period, relatively few involved drugs found on a commonly used list of medications deemed potentially inappropriate for older adults, according to study findings published in the Dec. 4 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Metabolic Syndrome in Child Follows Obesity in Mom
MONDAY, Dec. 3 (HealthDay News) -- The waist circumference of a mother predicts the presence of metabolic syndrome in her child, researchers report in the December issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
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PPAR-γ Agonist Rosiglitazone Implicated in Osteoporosis
MONDAY, Dec. 3 (HealthDay News) -- Researchers have shown that the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) promotes osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption in a mouse model, raising concerns that PPAR-γ agonists like the diabetes drug rosiglitazone (Avandia) could cause osteoporosis. This research was published online Dec. 2 in Nature Medicine.
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Pancreatic Islet Yield Higher from Living Donors
MONDAY, Dec. 3 (HealthDay News) -- The yield of pancreatic islets isolated from living donors is higher than cadaveric donors, even though they function at similar levels, according to study findings published in the November/December issue of Clinical Transplantation.
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