
BOSTON -- Beta-amyloid plaques in the brains of those with Alzheimer's type dementia can be spotted with the aid of the imaging agent Pittsburgh Compound B, determined researchers here.

BOSTON -- Beta-amyloid plaques in the brains of those with Alzheimer's type dementia can be spotted with the aid of the imaging agent Pittsburgh Compound B, determined researchers here.

LOS ANGELES -- There is more evidence that sildenafil (Viagra, Revatio) is beneficial to patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, researchers here reported.

ATLANTA -- Faulty communication between hospital-based and primary care physicians may affect the treatment of nearly one-quarter of patients discharged from the hospital, according to a review of the literature.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Epidural steroid injections for lower back pain with sciatica have been given a tepid endorsement in guidelines published by the American Academy of Neurology.

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- The FDA warned today that aggressive use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents to raise hemoglobin to a target of 12 g/dL or higher was associated with "serious and life-threatening side-effects and or/death."

LONDON -- Electrical stimulation of the occipital nerve could be another option for patients with drug-refractory chronic cluster headaches.

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Cellular telephones caused no interference in 300 separate tests conducted in 75 rooms in 11 patient-care areas at the Mayo Clinic, including telemetry-laden ICUs, researchers found. So a ban on cell phones there may be lifted.

SEATTLE -- Carotid stenting with embolic protection was as safe and effective in a real-world registry trial as it was in phase III trials that led to FDA approval, researchers said here.

PHILADELPHIA -- Nearly 80% of hospitalized children are medicated with drugs that have not been approved by the FDA for pediatric use, according to a study here.

MELBOURNE, Australia -- The persistent rhythmic motions of tooth brushing appear to have triggered seizures in patients with reflex epilepsy, researchers here reported.

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- More than 40,000 automatic external defibrillators in schools, health clubs, and other public sites have been recalled because of a potentially faulty low-battery signal, the FDA reported.

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- Although aspirin and NSAIDs such as ibuprofen can reduce the occurrence rate of colon cancer, they're not worth the increased risk of gastrointestinal side effects, said the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

SAN DIEGO -- Prophylactic surgery is the best bet for women at risk of endometrial and ovarian cancer because of Lynch syndrome, a researcher said here.

SAN DIEGO -- Adjuvant chemoradiation may benefit some women with advanced endometrial cancer, researchers said here.

SEATTLE -- Translaminar steroid injections into the cervical spine may help relieve chronic neck pain, according to a retrospective study.

NEW YORK -- PET imaging with a radiolabeled monoclonal antibody can identify aggressive clear-cell renal carcinoma and help urologists decide whether surgery is needed, researchers here reported.

SAN DIEGO -- There's more evidence that the expertise of a gynecologic oncologist gives women with ovarian cancer a survival advantage.

NEW YORK -- CT screening dramatically increased the number of small lung cancers detected and the rate of curative surgery, but mortality didn't change, according to researchers here.

SAN DIEGO -- Irrespective of their education and income, women don't seem to have much interest in their genetic risks of cancer, researchers said here.

Explain to interested patients that while flossing is recommended as part of good oral hygiene, it is not recommended as a way to reduce cardiovascular risk.