news 2022

An estimated 600,000 Australians are using medical cannabis - but that's according to data from 2019. Considering the dramatic increase in the number of doctors registering to prescribe in the past two years, and the rapid growth of applications for prescriptions, the figure today is likely to be much higher.

Serving in the military for longer periods of time, and serving on operational tours were associated with reduced suicide risk; while younger veterans and those who left after a short career were more at risk A new study from The University of Manchester has found that veterans are at no greater risk of suicide than the general population.

Metformin, the most prescribed drug for treating diabetes mellitus, known as type 2 diabetes, requires the presence of the growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) —a protein whose expression increases in response to cellular stress— to present its antidiabetic effects.

Dementia is on the rise in Germany. In the absence of treatment options, the focus is shifting to preventing dementia. In particular, a healthy lifestyle is considered beneficial for brain health. A study by the Faculty of Medicine now shows that opportunities for a healthy lifestyle are unequally distributed: being socially disadvantaged is associated with a higher risk of dementia.

Researchers at the University of Bonn find clues to the causes of the condition Cleft lip and palate are among the most common congenital malformations, which are mainly due to genetic causes. It is not yet known exactly which genes are affected. A study led by the University of Bonn has now uncovered new correlations: New mutations near known genes such as SPRY1 could contribute to the increase in disease risk.

The efficacy and safety of taking aspirin before the eleventh week of pregnancy have not been demonstrated for this gestational problem, which affects about 5% of women Preeclampsia is a problem of pregnancy hypertension that increases the risk of premature delivery and leads to the death of approximately 60,000 women and 500,000 children worldwide each year, mainly in developing countries.

The diagnosis and treatment of long COVID syndrome (LCS) is still very difficult, and there is only little knowledge about the factors causing accompanying symptoms. Researchers at the Joint Metabolome Facility of the University of Vienna and the Medical University of Vienna have now presented new evidence of triggers for fatigue following SARS-COV-2 infection.

Leukemic cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (L-CTCL) is a rare type of skin cancer that presents varied clinical features and symptoms. In a recently published study by the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna and the Medical Universities of Vienna and Graz, the researchers managed to integrate the genomic data from affected patients with pharmacologic studies.

Discovery will improve diagnosis and open treatment possibilities for thousands of people with this debilitating neurodegenerative condition worldwide New England Journal of Medicine reports the identification of a previously unknown genetic cause of a late-onset cerebellar ataxia, a discovery that will improve diagnosis and open new treatment avenues for this progressive condition.

Can restricting blood flow to athletes' limbs while training boost performance? University of Toronto researchers investigate Ischemic preconditioning (IPC), a technique used to prepare an organ or tissue for a lack of blood or oxygen supply, was originally developed for use in clinical settings where there is an expected lack of blood and oxygen supply, for example during surgery or after an adverse event like a heart attack.

Harmful fungal toxins are on the rise in Europe's wheat and affect almost half of crops, according to a new study led by the University of Bath. Wheat - the most widely cultivated crop in the world - is under growing attack from harmful toxins. Across Europe, almost half of wheat crops are impacted by the fungal infection that gives rise to these toxins, according to a study led by fungal biologist Dr Neil Brown from the University of Bath, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Exeter.

Antidepressants can increase the risk of preterm birth, but it's unclear why. A new Yale study shows inflammation may play a key role. A Yale study has found that exposure to the common antidepressant Prozac provoked an inflammatory response in human fetal membranes, also known as the amniotic sac. The effect may reveal an underlying factor in what has been found to be an increased risk of preterm birth among those who use antidepressants during pregnancy - and possible therapeutic targets to reduce that risk.

Research shows doctors and their families are less likely to follow guidelines about medicine. Why do the medically well-informed comply less often? Following established guidelines about prescription drugs would seem to be an obvious course of action, especially for the professionals that do the prescribing.

COVID-19 vaccinations that combine two or more distinct variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus could offer protection against both current and future -variants of concern-, say scientists at the University of Cambridge and Medical University of Innsbruck.

Researchers at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and Lawson Health Research Institute have shown that vaping has a negative effect on a critical layer in the lungs and may harm lung function. The study, published in the PLOS ONE Journal , shows that vaping affects pulmonary surfactant - a layer in the lungs made up of lipids and proteins that allows people to breathe with minimal effort by reducing surface tension.

A group of researchers from the Institute of Corpuscular Physics (IFIC, UV-CSIC) has collaborated in the publication of the first international manual of supportive therapies for cancer patients.

The Austrian Society of Dermatology and Venereology (ÖGDV) honoured MedUni Vienna researchers for their scientific achievements at its annual conference. Georg Stary received the Ferdinand von Hebra award, while Johanna Strobl and Laura Marie Gail of Georg Stary's research group were awarded the Science Award for a research paper.

A scientific team led by Thomas Niederkrotenthaler and Hannah Metzler from MedUni Vienna and Complexity Science Hub Vienna analysed approximately seven million postings on the topic of suicide and suicide prevention on Twitter. In the process, it was shown that content on the prevention and management of suicidal crises increased the number of contacts with mental health services.

Swiss people's interest and confidence in science increased during the pandemic but has now returned to pre-Covid levels, the 2022 edition of the Science Barometer Switzerland has shown.

Science, Health & Technology Brett Goldhawk Researchers at UBC's Life Sciences Institute have identified a compound that shows early promise at halting infections from a range of coronaviruses, including all variants of SARS-CoV-2 and the common cold. The findings, published this week in Molecular Biomedicine , reveal a potential path toward antiviral treatments that could be used against many different pathogens.