http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Pioneering research using human brain tissue removed from people suffering from epilepsy has opened the door to new treatments for the disease. http://www.physorg.com/news178818726.html Medicine & Health Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:56:07 EST news178818726 A recent study determined there is a significant risk of seizure for individuals who currently smoke cigarettes. Boston-based researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School also found that long-term, moderate intake of caffeine or alcohol does not increase the chance of having a seizure or developing epilepsy. This is the first prospective study to examine the potential risks associated with cigarette smoking, caffeine intake, and alcohol consumption as they independently relate to epilepsy. Full findings of this study are currently available online and will appear in the February 2010 issue of Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy. http://www.physorg.com/news177763536.html Medicine & Health Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:20:02 EST news177763536 The long-held theory that our brains use different mechanisms for forming long-term and short-term memories has been challenged by new research from UCL, published today in PNAS. http://www.physorg.com/news177005525.html Medicine & Health Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:21:37 EST news177005525 (PhysOrg.com) -- In a scientific first, researchers have been able to demonstrate the ability of humans to control the activity of individual brain cells. http://www.physorg.com/news175417796.html Medicine & Health Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:10:01 EST news175417796 The most common gene for a syndrome associated with abnormal heart rhythms and sudden death triggers epileptic seizures and could explain sudden unexplained death in epilepsy, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in a report that appears today in the journal Science Translational Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news174749325.html Medicine & Health Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:50:02 EST news174749325 In the second in a six part series on treating mental health problems in resource-poor settings, Caroline Mbuba and Charles Newton (Centre for Geographic Medicine Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, Kilifi, Kenya) discuss "packages of care" for treating epilepsy. http://www.physorg.com/news174633609.html Medicine & Health Tue, 13 Oct 2009 06:20:41 EST news174633609 (PhysOrg.com) -- A Duke University Medical Center researcher who spent years looking for the signals that prompt the brain to form new connections between neurons has found one that may explain precisely how a well-known drug for epilepsy and pain actually works. http://www.physorg.com/news174577830.html Medicine & Health Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:10:01 EST news174577830 In mice that are missing a protein found only in the brain, neural signals "go crazy," leaving the animals with epileptic seizures from a young age, researchers have found. The report in the September 18th Cell, a Cell Press publication, details what it is that happens when the protein encoded by plasticity related gene-1 (PRG-1) gets lost, revealing an important fine-tuning mechanism for brain function. http://www.physorg.com/news172409997.html Medicine & Health Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:40:53 EST news172409997 University of Utah medical researchers have identified a gene with mutations that cause febrile seizures and contribute to a severe form of epilepsy known as Dravet syndrome in some of the most vulnerable patients - infants 6 months and younger. http://www.physorg.com/news172157374.html Medicine & Health Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:30:07 EST news172157374 (PhysOrg.com) -- Every movement and every thought requires the passing of specific information between networks of nerve cells. To improve a skill or to learn something new entails more efficient or a greater number of cell contacts. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried could now show, together with an international team of researchers, that certain cells in the brain, the astrocytes, actively influence this information exchange. http://www.physorg.com/news171547807.html Medicine & Health Mon, 07 Sep 2009 13:10:53 EST news171547807 (PhysOrg.com) -- A form of partial epilepsy associated with auditory and other sensory hallucinations has been linked to the disruption of brain development during early childhood, according to a study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). http://www.physorg.com/news170255472.html Medicine & Health Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:11:45 EST news170255472 Children who have normal IQs before they experience a first seizure may also have problems with language, memory, learning and other cognitive skills, according to a study published in the August 12, 2009, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. http://www.physorg.com/news169316424.html Medicine & Health Wed, 12 Aug 2009 17:30:06 EST news169316424 Women with epilepsy who have seizures during pregnancy appear more likely to give birth to pre-term, small or low-birth-weight babies than women without epilepsy, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Neurology. http://www.physorg.com/news169141537.html Medicine & Health Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:10:04 EST news169141537 Scientists at Leeds have prevented epilepsy caused by a gene defect from being passed on to mice offspring - an achievement which may herald new therapies for people suffering from the condition. http://www.physorg.com/news168539046.html Medicine & Health Mon, 03 Aug 2009 17:24:39 EST news168539046 (PhysOrg.com) -- In 1997, an episode of the popular Pokemon cartoon gained worldwide attention when more than 800 Japanese children with photosensitive seizure conditions were admitted to the hospital after viewing the cartoon or the subsequent news coverage of it. http://www.physorg.com/news167495445.html Technology Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:31:23 EST news167495445 The molecular machinery that helps brain cells migrate to their correct place in the developing brain has been identified by scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The finding offers new insight into the forces that drive brain organization in developing fetuses and children during their first years. Disruption of this brain-patterning machinery can cause epilepsy and mental retardation and understanding its function could give new insight into such disorders. http://www.physorg.com/news166887881.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:20:01 EST news166887881 (PhysOrg.com) -- Drugs that block a growth factor receptor on brain cells may prevent epilepsy after brain damage, according to a new study appearing in the July 15 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. http://www.physorg.com/news166861484.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:25:11 EST news166861484 (PhysOrg.com) -- Chronic seizures caused by traumatic head injuries may result from chemicals released by the brain's immune system attempting to repair the injured site, according to a study led by the University of Colorado at Boulder. http://www.physorg.com/news166114561.html Medicine & Health Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:56:29 EST news166114561 Rutgers researchers have discovered a potential new way to treat childhood epilepsy using a widely available therapeutic drug. http://www.physorg.com/news163851350.html Medicine & Health Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:16:18 EST news163851350 Researchers studying a difficult-to-treat form of childhood epilepsy called infantile spasms have developed a line of mice that experiences seizures with features closely resembling those occurring in patients with infantile seizures. These genetically engineered mice provide a new opportunity for scientists to test treatments that may benefit children. http://www.physorg.com/news163077300.html Medicine & Health Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:15:31 EST news163077300 University of Minnesota McKnight professor and Director of Center for Neuroengineering Bin He has developed a new technique that has led to preliminary successes in noninvasive imaging of seizure foci. He's technique promises to play an important role in the treatment of epileptic seizures. http://www.physorg.com/news161974636.html Medicine & Health Tue, 19 May 2009 17:57:37 EST news161974636 An important genetic study conducted through Mayo Clinic has identified vital new information concerning alcoholism in subjects with European ancestry, according to a recent issue of Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research. http://www.physorg.com/news159723718.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:42:45 EST news159723718 A discovery made by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine while studying mice may help explain how some people without a genetic predisposition to epilepsy can develop the disorder. http://www.physorg.com/news159694944.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 08:42:59 EST news159694944 Three-year-olds whose mothers took the antiepileptic drug valproate during pregnancy had average IQs six to nine points lower than children exposed to three other antiepileptic drugs, a landmark multi-center study has found. http://www.physorg.com/news159037072.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:58:30 EST news159037072 Researchers at Rhode Island Hospital have found that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can reduce the frequency of seizures in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES), along with improving their overall quality of life. The study was published in the April 2009 edition of Epilepsy and Behavior. http://www.physorg.com/news159023187.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:07:07 EST news159023187 A new study published in Epilepsia reveals surgery for babies and toddlers suffering from epilepsy is relatively safe and is effective in controlling seizures. The findings also show that early surgery may have a positive impact on babies' brain development. http://www.physorg.com/news157035610.html Medicine & Health Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:02:51 EST news157035610 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have discovered what could be causing Alzheimer`s disease sufferers to go on to develop epilepsy. http://www.physorg.com/news156698574.html Medicine & Health Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:23:38 EST news156698574 An important clinical repercussion in the treatment of epilepsy has been discovered by a research team led by Scott Mintzer, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and the Jefferson Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University. The team has determined that two of the most commonly prescribed anti-seizure medications may lead to significantly increased levels of cholesterol, C-reactive protein and other markers of cardiovascular disease risk. The finding - set to be published in the March 18th online edition of Annals of Neurology - may help doctors manage the care of patients with seizures more effectively by prescribing different anti-seizure medications that will not adversely affect cardiovascular health. http://www.physorg.com/news156607822.html Medicine & Health Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:10:54 EST news156607822 Epilepsy is a common medical condition characterized by convulsions and short periods of confusion. It affects more than 50 million people worldwide. But intractable epilepsy, which affects more than 1 million Americans and is often resistant to drug treatment and surgery, is arguably worse. http://www.physorg.com/news156603451.html Medicine & Health Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:58:06 EST news156603451 Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered that convulsive seizures in a form of severe epilepsy are generated, not on the brain's surface as expected, but from within the memory-forming hippocampus. The scientists hope that their findings - based on a mouse model of severe epilepsy - may someday pave the way for improved treatments of childhood epilepsy, which affects more than two percent of children worldwide. Their study will be published online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS) the week of March 16. http://www.physorg.com/news156443277.html Medicine & Health Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:28:24 EST news156443277