Category: Features
Growing assault on lung health when cooking with wood, researchers find
Cooking with biomass fuel such as wood or dry brush causes significant lung damage compared to cleaner-burning liquefied petroleum gas fuels, according to research by a multidisciplinary team from India and the US. Investigating the impact of cookstove pollutants in 23 people cooking with liquefied petroleum gas or wood biomass in Thanjavur, India, researchers found […]
Imaging baby brains made easy with new wearable technology
Studying the infant brain is no easy task, especially working with MRI machines, since the subjects wiggle around a lot and are easily distracted. Novel technology for imaging the brains of infants and babies is hoped to provide a solution to this problem – a team of UK scientists and engineers from University College London […]
Longing for social contact akin to hunger cravings, scientists find
A lonely person looking upon people having fun together activates the same brain region that lights up when someone who is hungry sees a picture of a plate of food, according to neuroscientists from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), US. Their findings provide a clue as to how social stress or social isolation affects people’s […]
Improving awareness of fertility/pregnancy issues in young breast cancer patients
Fertility preservation and pregnancy-related issues are among the priority concerns of female breast cancer patients, many of whom have been diagnosed with the hormonally-driven disease before having completed their reproductive plans. Despite the marked increase in fertility preservation and feasibility of having a pregnancy after breast cancer in recent years, many young women call for […]
Taiwan and Malaysia join hands for better healthcare
The global healthcare market is estimated to hit US$1.4 trillion by 2023. Against the back of this, the exchange of medical information is vital to improving healthcare quality, safety, and patient outcomes. In order to encourage networking between Taiwan’s and Malaysia’s medical community, the Taiwan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare and Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) held […]
World-first 3D colour hand-and-wrist scanner sent to trial
New Zealand-based Mars Bioimaging Ltd. (MBI) has introduced a new, high-resolution CT scanner that creates striking three dimensional (3D) images in colour instead of flat black-and-white. The 3D scanner can diagnose hand or wrist bone fractures and monitor healing, and is set to be used in a larger international trial. MBI’s new technology is built […]
US study shows how rapid testing could cripple COVID within weeks
Exploring whether different parameters such as test sensitivity, frequency, or turnaround time helps curb the spread of COVID-19 the most has led researches at the University of Colorado-Boulder (CU-Boulder) and Harvard University to believe that rapid-turnaround testing would drive the coronavirus toward elimination soonest. The tests could be significantly less sensitive than gold-standard clinical tests […]
UPDATE: Oxford coronavirus vaccine spells good news for older adults
Good preliminary results for the Oxford coronavirus vaccine co-developed with drugmaker AstraZeneca adds to the already promising trial results for three other vaccines – Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Russia’s Sputnik. According to research data, the Oxford vaccine shows a strong immune response in adults suggesting that it can protect age groups most at risk from the […]
Radio waves used to slow pain transmission in arthritis
Scientists have chanced upon a novel technique that uses low-grade radiofrequency energy (cooled radiofrequency ablation) to help sufferers of osteoarthritis. According to Dr. Felix M. Gonzalez from the Emory University School of Medicine, Georgia, US, this form of targeted and long-lasting pain relief involves inserting needles into the affected joint to “stun” the sensory nerves […]
Two different COVID-19 vaccine trials show great success
Next year is already sounding more promising – two pharmaceutical giants have announced successful COVID-19 vaccine trials, which may help push more people to get vaccinated amid a surge of new coronavirus cases, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, an American immunologist and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The vaccines, one […]
