In an effort to better understand the effects of prescription medications on women and their unborn children, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, researchers at …
Month: December 2009
Biomedical bingo: a medical word of the day
I just came across a Web site that will likely interest medical geeks - as well as hard-core Scrabble players. MedTerms, the medical dictionary of …
Historic scientific books now available on the Web
The U.S. National Library of Medicine has made six historic science books available on the Web in high resolution. The browsing experience is fairly good …
H1N1 influenza vaccinations becoming more widely available?
The Health Blog reports that vaccinations for the H1N1 strain of influenza are becoming more widely available: "Right now there’s probably more supply than demand," …
Time's Year in Health
As 2009 draws to a close (wow - is it really almost the teens?) it's a good time to look back at the year's most …
Researchers aim to extend how long – and how well – we live
Just before the holiday I came across a U.S News & World Report article on longevity and researchers' quest to manipulate not only "how long …
The mysteries of rabies
Maggie Koerth-Baker has an interesting entry on Boing Boing this morning about rabies: On average, 55,000 people worldwide die from rabies every year, but only …
Happy holidays from the writers of Scope
We are signing off for the Christmas holiday until Monday, December 28, when we will resume our limited holiday publishing schedule. We will return to …
Tarantula venom peptide shows promise as a drug
A team of scientists at the University at Buffalo is working to develop a tarantula venom-based therapy for a range of conditions including muscular dystrophy …
Genomes of 56 species of microbes mapped
Scientists from the U.S. and Germany have assembled the first pages of a comprehensive encyclopedia of genomes of all the microbes on the planet. The …
Let Me Down Easy: A conversation with Anna Deavere Smith
It's hard to describe the brilliance of Anna Deavere Smith. The New York Times said of her work, she's the "ultimate impressionist. She does people's …
Should you bring gifts to your physician?
Bryan Vartabedian, MD, opines on whether or not to bring a gift to your physician: The world of patient care is changing quickly and not …
What to expect after health reform passes
The U.S. Senate is expected to pass its health-reform bill on Thursday; though hurdles still lay ahead, it appears likely some form of reform will …
Stanford Professor Alain Enthoven responds to Atul Gawande's 'Testing, Testing'
Earlier this month, Atul Gawande published an article in the New Yorker about health-care reform and curbing costs. Today Alain Enthoven, an emeritus professor at …
President Barack Obama gets his H1N1 vaccination
Let's just call this one our interesting medical photo of the day: It's President Obama receiving his vaccination for the H1N1 strain of influenza. The …
Company wants to market sleep drug for jet lag
Just in time for holiday travel, the Wall Street Journal's Health Blog is reporting on a prescription drug to potentially treat jet lag. The Cephalon …