Reuters Health News Summary

Cholesterol drugs may curb strokes among low-risk older adults

Cholesterol-lowering drugs such as statins may reduce the risk of stroke in low-risk elderly patients, a French study suggests. People who took statins or fibrates, another type of cholesterol-lowering medicine, were 34 percent less likely to have a stroke than those who didn't, researchers report.

Suicide rates rising among young black children in U.S.

Suicide rates have fallen among young white children in the U.S. but they've gone up among black youngsters, according to a new study of suicides in kids under age 12. Suicide is rare among these very young children, but it does happen, lead author Jeffrey A. Bridge of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio told Reuters Health by email.

South Korea reports first case of MERS virus; patient stable

South Korean health officials on Wednesday confirmed the country's first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in a patient who recently returned from Bahrain and is in stable condition after being treated for a high fever and cough. The 68-year-old man was in Bahrain from April 18 through to May 3 and was engaged in farming-related business, South Korea's health ministry said in a statement. He returned to South Korea on May 4 through Qatar, it said.

Is nicotine all bad?

Since he ditched Marlboro Lights five years ago, Daniel's fix is fruit-flavored nicotine gum that comes in neat, pop-out strips. He gets through 12 to 15 pieces a day and says he has "packets of the stuff" stashed all over. But he doesn't see himself as a nicotine addict. Like many people, Daniel believes nicotine gum is far less harmful for him than smoking. Doctors worldwide agree. By giving up cigarettes, they say, Daniel has removed at least 90 percent of the health risks of his habit.

Four U.S. cancer charities charged; two settle

The U.S. government has charged four cancer charities with misusing more than $187 million in donations, with two agreeing to be dissolved and two fighting the allegations, the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday. The FTC, 50 states and the District of Columbia charged the Cancer Fund of America, Cancer Support Services Inc, the Children's Cancer Fund of America and the Breast Cancer Society Inc with collecting millions of dollars in donations but doing little to help patients.

Lpath to cut jobs as eye drug fails mid-stage study

Lpath Inc said it would reduce its workforce and cut costs as its experimental drug failed a mid-stage study in patients with wet age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness in the elderly. Lpath's drug, iSONEP, did not show any statistically significant improvement in visual clarity in patients who had not realized enough benefit from prior treatments, the company said on Wednesday.

Achillion partners with J&J to develop hepatitis C drugs

Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc said it will collaborate with Johnson & Johnson to develop and market its hepatitis C drugs including an oral regimen that could work on all genotypes and shorten treatment time. Achillion will be eligible for milestone payments of up to $1.1 billion related to the development, regulatory approval and sales of the drugs.

Memory loss may be more common in athletes left unconsciousness by concussion

Athletes who lose consciousness after concussions may be at greater risk for memory loss later in life, a small study of retired National Football League (NFL) players suggests. Researchers compared memory tests and brain scans for former NFL players and a control group of people who didn't play college or pro football. After concussions that resulted in lost consciousness, the football players were more likely to have mild cognitive impairment and brain atrophy years later.

Amputees control bionic legs with their thoughts

Amputees can control their bionic prosthetic limbs with their minds, thanks to tiny implanted myoelectric sensors (IMES) developed by Icelandic orthopedics company Ossur and surgically placed in a patient's residual muscle tissue. Ossur implanted tiny sensors in the residual muscle tissue of two amputees that they say trigger movement in the prosthesis via a receiver. Ossur President & CEO Jon Sigurdsson was due to announce in Copenhagen on Wednesday (May 20) that the two amputees are the first world-wide to be able to control their lower-limb prostheses subconsciously.

Bullied kids have higher risk of adult obesity and heart disease

Victims of childhood bullying are more likely to be overweight or obese as adults and have a higher risk of developing heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses, according to a study by British psychiatrists. Researchers found that just over a quarter of women who were occasionally or frequently bullied as children were obese at age 45, compared to 19 percent of those who had never been bullied.