Health Highlights: April 28, 2009
April 29 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:
Scientists Create Glowing Dogs for Research
Four dogs that glow red were created using cloning techniques that could be used to treat human diseases, say South Korean scientists.
The fluorescent genes in the beagles cause them to glow red under ultraviolet light. Other scientists have cloned fluorescent mice and pigs, but this is the first time researchers have successfully cloned dogs with modified genes, the Associated Press reported.
The achievement is described in a paper on the Web site of the journal Genesis.
"What's significant in this work is not the dogs expressing red colors but that we planted genes into them," research team leader Lee Byeong-chun, a Seoul National University professor, told the AP.
This experiment shows it's possible to successfully insert genes with a specific trait, he explained. That could eventually lead to implanting genes in order to treat specific diseases.
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Sleep Affects Children's Behavior: Study
Getting enough sleep may help reduce hyperactivity and bad behavior among children, suggests a new study.
Finnish researchers studied 280 healthy children, ages 7 and 8, and found that those who got an average of less than 7.7 hours of sleep per night had higher scores on tests of hyperactivity and impulsive behavior. They also had more symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), BBC News reported.
"We were able to show that short sleep duration and sleeping difficulties are related to behavioral symptoms of ADHD," said study leader Dr. Juulia Paavonen. "The findings suggest that maintaining adequate sleep schedules among children is likely to be important in preventing behavioral symptoms."
Paavonen also said inadequate sleep may increase "some of the behavioral problems that have been seen in children with attention deficit disorders," BBC News reported.
The study appears in the journal Pediatrics.
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Body Image Therapy Helps Women Quit Smoking: Study
Body image counseling appears to help young women quit smoking, suggests a small pilot study of 24 women, ages 18 to 24.
The women were randomly assigned to either body image counseling sessions or a supervised group exercise program. In addition, all the women received nicotine patches, United Press International reported.
After 8 weeks, 18 percent of the women in the counseling group had quit smoking, compared with 8 percent of those in the exercise group. The Temple University study also found that women in the body image group lost an average of 3.3 pounds each, compared to less than 1 pound in the exercise group.
The study was presented in Montreal at the annual meeting of the Society for Behavioral Medicine.
Clinical psychologist Melissa Napolitano and colleagues noted that about 20 percent of women ages 18 to 24 in the United States smoke, and most of them say they're afraid to quit because they're worried about gaining weight, UPI reported.
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Senate Expected to Approve Sibelius as HHS Secretary
Leading the United States' response to the swine flu outbreak will be the immediate challenge facing Kathleen Sebelius if, as expected, the Senate on Tuesday approves her as Health and Human Services Secretary.
Because there's no HHS secretary in place, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has had to help lead the nation's efforts against swine flu, the Associated Press reported.
Sebelius, the two-term Democratic governor of Kansas, is expected to get the 60 votes she needs in the Senate to confirm her as HHS secretary.
However, she would take up her post somewhat short-handed, because the Senate hasn't approved the White House nominees for deputy HHS secretary or Food and Drug Administration commissioner, the AP reported.
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Jay Leno Returns to Show
Jay Leno returned to the "Tonight" show on Monday, after missing two shows last week because he was in hospital with an undisclosed illness.
During his Monday show, the comedian made jokes about swine flu and the 103-degree fever that sent him to hospital, the Associated Press reported.
Leno said it was a cold morning, and he wasn't wearing a jacket when he drove one of his vintage cars to the "Tonight" studio last Thursday. He got the chills, and an NBC nurse who took his temperature said he needed to take an ambulance to a hospital. Instead, Leno walked to nearby Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center.
Doctors found no evidence of serious ailment, Leno' spokesman said last week, the AP reported.
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Group Wants New Term for Shaken Baby Syndrome
Instead of "shaken baby syndrome," doctors should use the term "abusive head trauma," says a new American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement.
The group said the new diagnostic term is a more comprehensive diagnosis for brain, skull and spinal injuries caused by severe shaking and other forms of abuse, the Associated Press reported.
The new term should be used in medical records, and it may provide more clarity in legal cases, the academy said in the new policy statement, which is being published in the May issue of the journal Pediatrics.
Physicians should watch for signs of head trauma in infants that could be caused by abusive shaking and need to teach parents safe ways to calm upset babies and how to avoid shaking, the policy recommends, the AP reported.