The latest in BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.

Men likelier than women to enjoy sex in old age

2010-03-09T16:16:06Z

<div><p>Men are more than twice as likely as women to be sexually active in old age but good health is the key for both to feeling naughty, says a study published Wednesday by the British Medical Journal.</p><p>Doctors looked over two big probes into the health of the American population.</p><p>One survey covered 3,000 people aged 25-74 who filled in questionnaires in the mid-199...

High vitamin D levels, lower colon cancer risk?

2010-02-22T14:11:08Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Higher levels of vitamin D in the blood may help protect both men and women from cancers of the colon and rectum, confirm results of the largest study ever conducted on the topic.</p><p>Among more than 1200 people who developed colorectal cancer and an equal number who did not, researchers found that those with the highest levels of vitamin...

Quitting smoking after lung cancer diagnosis helps survival

2010-02-22T16:48:57Z

<div><p>Smokers diagnosed with lung cancer should not assume they have been handed a death sentence, as quitting tobacco even at this stage can greatly boost their survival chances, doctors said on Friday.</p><p>Among those smokers who quit swiftly after diagnosis, 63-70 percent were still alive after five years, a benchmark of survival in cancer research, compared with only 29-33 percent among those who continued to smoke, they said in an ...

'Aura' migraines double stroke risk: study

2010-02-24T13:34:04Z

<div><p>Migraines accompanied by a blurring of vision known as "aura" double the risk of stroke, according to a study released Wednesday.</p><p>That risk becomes even higher for woman, persons under 45, and smokers, said the study, published in the British Medical Journal.</p><p>Women who use contraceptives that contain oestrogen bo...

Errors spike as teaching hospitals get going

2010-02-24T18:04:21Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - When the new crop of interns and residents report for duty at the nation's teaching hospitals each year -- patients beware. A new study found a spike in the number of medical errors occurring during the first few months of each new class's training.</p><p>In the study, researchers examined five years of patient and administrative records fo...

Exercise eases fatigue in cancer patients on chemo

2010-02-24T18:31:08Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Exercise can reduce the often debilitating fatigue that cancer patients experience during chemotherapy, new research shows.</p><p>The study from Denmark found that people being treated for cancer are likely to benefit from a supervised exercise program that combines high intensity exercises (res...

Over half of SIDS deaths occur during co-sleeping

2010-02-24T19:06:26Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In a study from England, most babies who died from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) were sleeping with an adult or another child at the time.</p><p>Many of these "co-sleeping" deaths occurred in a potentially hazardous environment, such as in a bed or a sofa shared with an adult...

Doubts on suicide-anti-smoking drug Chantix link

2010-02-24T23:40:37Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite earlier health agency warnings, there is no strong evidence that the anti-smoking drug Chantix raises the risk of suicidal thoughts or depression compared to other stop-smoking products, researchers reported Thursday in the British Medica...

Snap diagnosis: How camera phone brought disorder into focus

2010-02-26T05:30:56Z

<div><p>Norwegian doctors are singing the praises of the camera phone, saying the tiny device installed in most mobiles these days can be a useful medical tool.</p><p>In an unusual case reported in Friday's British Medical Journal (BMJ), obstetricians at St. Olav's Universi...

Balance training may help prevent ankle sprains

2010-02-26T10:00:47Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Athletes who have suffered an ankle sprain can significantly cut their chances of spraining their ankle again by doing balance exercises, a study from the Netherlands shows.</p><p>Ankle sprains are common and costly injuries. In the U...

Rear-facing car seats protect older children

2010-02-26T21:52:24Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children under 4 years of age fare better in motor vehicle accidents when they are riding in rear-facing rather than forward-facing car seats, according to a report published online in the British Medical Journal.</p><p>Infants are typically switched from a re...

Do Calcium Supplements Have Side Effects?

2009-03-01T06:56:11Z

<p>Do Calcium Supplements Have Side Effects?</p><p>By Paul S Fitzgerald</p><p></p><p>Calcium, what is it? Why is it needed by the body? Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body and has a lot of important functions. 99% of calcium is to be found in the bones and teeth while the remaining 1% is found throughout the body in our muscles, blood and the fluid between the cells.</p><p></p><p>Calcium has many functions in...

Passive smoking linked to dementia: study

2010-03-01T22:30:46Z

<div><p>Exposure to second-hand smoke boosts the risk of dementia and other cognitive problems, even among people who have never smoked, the largest study of its kind reported Friday.</p><p>Ill effects on non-smokers of constant exposure to tobacco smoke include an increased risk of lung cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke and death, earlier research has shown.</p><p>As for the impact on brain functi...

Fertility drugs do not boost ovarian cancer risk: study

2010-03-02T05:46:24Z

<div><p>The use of fertility drugs does not increase a woman's risk of developing ovarian cancer, the largest study of its kind reported Friday.</p><p>For decades doubt has persisted as to whether drugs commonly used to increase a woman's chance of becoming pregnant also boosted her susceptibility to cancer.</p><p>A pair of studies in the mid-1990s suggested a link, causing anxiety among women seeking to enhance ...

Postnatal depression can be treated, prevented: studies

2009-03-07T12:47:39Z

<div><p>Many women struggling with the post-baby blues may expect only a hug or a couple of pills, but in new studies published on Friday, doctors say counselling can not only treat this risky condition but prevent it, too.</p><p>Professional counsellors can reduce rates of postnatal depression by 40 percent, while support from fellow mothers can reduce the risk of developing this dangerous disorder by half, they say.</p><p>In one paper, a team led by

Naughtiness at school points to failure in life: study

2009-03-24T22:40:59Z

<div><p>Children who badly misbehave in school are likelier to end up with a dud job, poor mental health, teen pregnancy or divorce, according to a British study published on Friday.</p><p>The paper, published online by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), provides statistical backing for teachers who sound warnings about anti-social behaviour, its authors say.</p><p>It draws on an...

Healthy living halves risk of early death: study

2010-02-28T13:51:33Z

<div><p>Women who eat right, exercise and never smoke tobacco more than halve the risk of dying from cancer or heart disease, a long-term study released Wednesday said.</p><p>The study is based on data provided by 80,000 women in the United States who were between 34 and 59 years old when the investigation began in 1980.</p><p>Over the next 24 years, the v...

Doctors' advice to Britons: have fewer children and help save the planet

2010-03-04T07:11:12Z

<div><p>British couples should consider having no more than two children to help reduce the environmental impact of the rising global population, doctors have said.</p><p>An editorial in the British Medical Journal today calls on GPs to encourage the view that bigger families are as environmentally dubious as owning a patio heater or driving a gas-guzzler.&...

Calcium Supplements May Increase Older Women's Heart Risk

2010-03-04T08:24:17Z

<div id="subtitle">British study warns of potential adverse effect</div><div><p>As women age, they often take calcium supplements to promote bone health and ward off osteoperosis. But could those supplements be risking their health in other ways?</p><p>Researchers writing in the British Medical Journal say yes, suggesting that ca...

High Heart Attack, Stroke Risk in Aspirin-Resistant Patients

2010-03-04T08:24:26Z

<div id="subtitle">Study quantifies risk of being sensitive to aspirin</div><div><p>Being resistant to aspirin makes patients four times more likely to suffer a heart attack, stroke or even die from a pre-existing heart condition, according to a study published onbmj.com, the Web site of the British Medical Journal. </p><p>The stud...