Scientists studying the Anopheles gambiae mosquito - the main vector of malaria - have found that when the mosquito takes a blood meal, that act triggers two enzymes to form a network of crisscrossing proteins around the ingested blood. The formation of this protein barrier, the researchers found, is part of the normal digestive process that allows so-called "healthy" or commensal gut bacteria to grow without activating mosquito immune responses. But there is a downside: The barrier also prevents the mosquito's immune defense system from clearing any disease-causing agents that may have slipped into the blood meal, such as the Plasmodium malaria parasite, which in turn can be passed on to humans.

A new study published in the journal Pharmacoepidemiology & Drug Safety reveals that benfluorex, a fenfluramine derivative drug used in France under the name Mediator, is likely responsible for thousands of hospitalizations and deaths over a 30 year period.

Preterm infants born with extremely low birth weights have an increased risk of death during the first year of life. Although researchers have extensively studied risk factors that could contribute to the death of preterm infants, limited information is available after infants are released from the neonatal intensive care unit ...

In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that indicate that women who deliver their first baby early are more likely to have a subsequent baby that is small for its gestational age, ...

Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers estimate that U.S. orthopaedic surgeons create approximately $2 billion per year in unnecessary health care costs associated with orthopaedic care due to the practice of defensive medicine.

In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that women who have undergone one prior delivery via cesarean section appear to know little about the risks and benefits associated with undergoing either a ...

The management of tuberculosis cases in the European Union (EU) is not meeting international standards, according to new research.

In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that suggest that induction of labor in patients who suffer a rupture of membranes between the 34th and 37th week of gestation (before the onset ...