Health News - Saturday, March 17, 2007
The Trojan horse strategy has been successfully applied to defeat drug-resistant bacteria, according to a new study. This new antimicrobial approach can kill bacteria in laboratory experiments and eliminate life-threatening infections in mice by interfering with a key bacterial nutrient, according to the study by scientists at the University of Washington (UW), the University of Iowa and the University of Cincinnati.
This is the result of longtime efforts by scientists to find new antibiotic compounds as bacteria are increasingly resistant to antibiotics, and existing drugs work poorly against chronic infections like those that occur in wounds, on medical devices andin the lungs of people with cystic fibrosis. In this study, researchers took a different approach. Rather than trying to find agents that best killed bacteria in test tubes, they sought to intensify the stress imposed on microbes by one of the body's own defense mechanisms. Continue reading
If you find yourself having to resuscitate someone who has suffered a cardiac arrest you should bear in mind that chest compressions are more important for the patient than mouth-to-mouth, say researchers from Surugadai Nihon University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. According to this latest study, the patient has a much greater chance of recovering without brain damage if you follow this advice.
You have to stop chest pressing when you give mouth-to-mouth - this stops the vital flow of blood (and oxygen) to the heart and brain. You can read about this new study in The Lancet. To a certain extent, this study confirms advice given by the American Heart Association (AHA). AHA guidelines say that you should aim for 30 chest presses per two breaths, rather than the traditional 15. Continue reading