Health update

Studies confirm Avandia's protection for diabetes patients

New data from three different clinical trials - Action in Diabetes and Vascular Disease (ADVANCE); Veteran Affairs Diabetes Trial (VADT); and Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) - presented at the recently held annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association in San Fransico established that a leading drug indicated for diabetes, Avandia (Rosiglitazone) is not associated with any cardiac risk and confirmed its previously identified benefit of the lower blood-sugar strategy for Type 2 diabetes patients. Findings from VADT showed that while Rosiglitazone was used in a majority of patients in the study, it was not associated by any means with increased deaths.

Higher HIV infection estimate shows need of more funding for care

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected soon to increase the estimate of new HIV infections by 40 percent. This highlights the need to make HIV testing a routine part of medical care and provide better funding to care for those who test positive, according to the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA). CDC has published guidelines recommending HIV screening in emergency rooms, public health clinics, regular doctor visits, and other routine interactions with the health care system. This would increase the opportunities to find those who are infected and connect them with medical care before the disease does irreparable harm to their immune systems. Also, more and more research is showing that those with their HIV infections under control are less likely to spread the disease to others.

Frankincense provides relief to arthritis sufferers

An enriched extract of the 'Indian Frankincense' herb Boswellia serrata has been proven to reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis. Research published recently in BioMed Central's open access journal Arthritis Research and Therapy has shown that patients taking the herbal remedy showed significant improvement in as little as seven days. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis; it commonly affects weight-bearing joints such as the knees and hips, along with the hands, wrists, feet and spine. The symptoms include pain, stiffness and limited movement. This randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial of 70 patients will be of great interest to sufferers, especially those who don't get adequate relief from existing treatments.

Source: The News