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Boomers: Tips On How To Exercise Safely
As the weather gets warmer, people often get motivated to spend more time outdoors. Whether it"s working on projects around the house, playing with the grandkids at the park or out exercising, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) stresses important that baby boomers remember their bodies are not as young as they used to be and not overdo it.

Linking Schizophrenia To Specific DNA Region With The Help Of LSUHSC Research
For the first time, an international group of researchers has found genetic evidence linking schizophrenia to a specific region of DNA - on chromosome 6. This is the same area where key genes for immune function are located. The LSUHSC research team was led by Nancy Buccola, APRN, PMH CNS-BC, Assistant Professor of Clinical Nursing at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, who also coordinated the ten clinical sites. The work, Common variants on chromosome 6p22.1 are associated with schizophrenia, along with two related papers, is published in the July 1, 2009 issue of the journal Nature.
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Cepheid Receives FDA Clearance For First On-Demand Molecular Diagnostic Test For Clostridium Difficile Infection
Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD) announced it has received clearance from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to market its Xpert(R) C. difficile test, an on-demand molecular diagnostic test designed for 45-minute detection of the bacterium that causes Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). The Xpert C. difficile test is the first test for CDI to deliver both rapid turnaround and a high degree of accuracy.
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Long-Term Changes In Bone Mineral Density And Predicted Fracture Risk In Patients Receiving Androgen-Deprivation Therapy For Prostate Cancer

UroToday.com - In the online edition of the British Journal of Urology International, Dr. Vivek Wadhwa and colleagues report on the relationship between androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and changes in bone mineral density (BMD). Skeletal-related fractures are more common due to osteoporosis rather than cancer in men with metastatic prostate cancer (CaP). The authors point out that measurement of BMD predicts fracture risk as accurately as blood pressure predicts stroke. Their goal was to study the long-term effects of LHRH agonist and antiandrogen therapy on BMD of selected groups of men with newly diagnosed advanced CaP, stratified by BMD at presentation and to predict alterations in fracture risk. The study cohort consisted of 618 men at a single institution recruited and followed from 1999 to 2007. Clinical and pathologic characteristics were assessed. The BMD was measured prior to ADT using a DEXA scan. Osteoporosis was defined as a BMD of -1. DEXA was repeated annually. Participants with osteoporosis were begun on 150mg bicalutamide daily, and osteopenics and normal BMD patients began an LHRH agonist. Vitamin D and calcium were given to osteoporotic and osteopenic men. Oral bisphosphonates were given per primary physician discretion. Mean patient age was 73, and 41% of men at diagnosis were osteoporotic, 39% were osteopenic and 20% had normal BMD. Other clinical variables were similar among these three groups. Fractures were related to BMD, being 7% in those with normal BMD, 18% with osteopenia and 26% in men with osteoporosis. Vertebral fractures also increased with increasing age; 7% in men 80 years. There were significant reductions in BMD from baseline in normal and osteopenic men, but no significant change in the osteoporotic men. Among osteopenic men at baseline, 35% progressed to osteoporosis after 1 year and 60% after 2 years of treatment with an LHRH agonist. Overall, 39% of men died during the study period of which 47% were from CaP. These data demonstrate that a significant proportion of men requiring ADT already have osteoporosis or osteopenia and vertebral fractures. LHRH agonist therapy caused significant and sustained reductions in BMD, while men in bicalutamide maintained BMD. Wadhwa VK, Weston R, Mistry R, Parr NJ BJU Int. 2009 Mar 10. Epub ahead of print. doi: 10.1111/j.1464-410X.2009.08483.x Written by UroToday.com Contributing Editor Christopher P. Evans, MD, FACS UroToday - the only urology website with original content written by global urology key opinion leaders actively engaged in clinical practice. To access the latest urology news releases from UroToday, go to: www.urotoday.com Copyright © 2009 - UroToday


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