Health & Medicine

A parasite-infected monarch butterfly lays her eggs on medicinal tropical milkweed that will help to protect her offspring from disease.

Apr 15, 2013 11:23 AM EDT

Animals Self-Medicate To Protect Future Generations, Study Shows

Animals on various tiers of the food chain have been observed to self-medicate to cure ailments as well as prevent disease for future generations. The findings my prove to be useful for future research on plant-based pharmaceuticals for humans.

Apr 15, 2013 11:19 AM EDT

House Democrats Unearth Rampant Lack Of Oversight In Compounding Pharmacy Industry

House Democrats led by Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., released a report Monday highlighting a lack of oversight of compounding pharmacies like the one responsible for the outbreak of fungal meningitis last year that killed 53 people and sickened 733.

Apr 15, 2013 10:02 AM EDT

Nevada Gets First Medical Marijuana Business School

The Cannabis Career Instituted launched its Budtender School in Nevada just two days after the state's lawmakers uanimously passed a bill Thursday calling for the establishment and regulation of pot dispensaries.

Luis Cruz with cerebral palsy, plays with Luna, a therapeutically trained dog, during a therapy session at the Colitas Foundation in Panama City September 22, 2012

Apr 15, 2013 10:00 AM EDT

Converting Skin Cells To Brain Cells With Cellular Reprogramming Shows Hope For MS Patients

New hope for people living with so-called myelin disorders such as multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy comes out of Cleveland, Ohio where researchers there report developing a breakthrough technique that directly converts regular skin cells into the type of brain cells destroyed by the myelin disorders.

Apr 15, 2013 07:18 AM EDT

Freezing Nerves can Dampen Pain: Study

A minimally invasive treatment that uses a small ball of ice can effectively treat chronic pain, according to a new study presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology’s 38th Annual Scientific Meeting in New Orleans.

Apr 15, 2013 07:11 AM EDT

Lullabies Improve Preterm Babies' Health During NICU Stay: Study

Lullabies can aid a preterm infant's development in the neonatal intensive care unit, a new study has found. Researchers found that specific parts of music can help preterm babies' heart rate and breathing.

Apr 14, 2013 09:43 PM EDT

FDA Advisory Panel Will Assess Avandia Safety in June

The Food and Drug Administration will hold a meeting in June to reassess the safety of GlaxoSmithKline's former blockbuster diabetes drug Avandia almost three years after they curbed its sales over cardiovascular risks.

Apr 14, 2013 09:20 PM EDT

Lab Grown Rat Kidney Proves Succesful, Paves Way for Bioengineered Organs

A lab "grown" kidney has been successfully transplanted into a rat and began producing urine, an early research step that may one day lead to replacement organs for humans and will turn organ donations obsolete.

Apr 13, 2013 12:56 PM EDT

Beijing Reports First Known Case of Avian Flu Virus H7N9

China's state-run news agency Xinhua confirmed Saturday that a 7-year-old girl admitted into a hospital in Beijing tested positive for the avian flu virus H7N9.

Children run past a mural painting of an Aids ribbon at a school in Khutsong Township, 74 km (46 miles) west of Johannesburg, August 22, 2011.

Apr 12, 2013 04:35 PM EDT

New HIV/AIDS Drug In South Africa Streamlines Treatment And Lowers Costs

South Africans living with HIV or AIDS are being offered a new option for treatment that will significantly reduce the number of pills they have to take daily. The South African government, which sponsored the new medication, says it will be the least expensive HIV/AIDS treatment in the world.