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. Antibiotic over-prescription is promoted by pediatricians' perception of parents' expectations. Research published in the open access journal BMC Pediatrics shows that pediatricians are more likely to inappropriately prescribe antibiotics for respiratory tract infections if they perceived parents were expecting a prescription. http://www.physorg.com/news176702660.html Medicine & Health Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:05:22 EST news176702660 (PhysOrg.com) -- Pandemic swine flu can infect cells deeper in the lungs than seasonal flu can, according to a new study published today in Nature Biotechnology. The researchers, from Imperial College London, say this may explain why people infected with the pandemic strain of swine-origin H1N1 influenza are more likely to suffer more severe symptoms than those infected with the seasonal strain of H1N1. They also suggest that scientists should monitor the current pandemic H1N1 influenza virus for changes in the way it infects cells that could make infections more serious. http://www.physorg.com/news171781315.html Biology Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:02:35 EST news171781315 From 1995 to 2006 the rate of antibiotic prescriptions for acute respiratory tract infections decreased significantly, attributable in part to a decline in ambulatory visits for ear infections in young children, according to a study in the August 19 issue of JAMA. But prescription rates for broad spectrum antibiotics, namely azithromycin and quinolones, increased substantially during the study period. http://www.physorg.com/news169832126.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:00:01 EST news169832126 Mitochondrial diseases disrupt the power generating machinery within cells and increase a person's susceptibility to bacterial infection, particularly in the lungs or respiratory tract. A new study published in Disease Models & Mechanisms (DMM), shows that infection with the pneumonia causing bacteria Legionella, is facilitated by an increased amount of a signaling protein that is associated with mitochondrial disease. http://www.physorg.com/news167989907.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Jul 2009 09:40:04 EST news167989907 Boston University School of Medicine researchers (BUSM) have observed in a study of pregnant women that consumption of at least seven servings per day of fruits and vegetables moderately reduced the risk of developing an upper respiratory tract infection (URTI). The BUSM study appears online in the journal Public Health Nutrition. http://www.physorg.com/news166271978.html Medicine & Health Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:40:16 EST news166271978 May 21, 2009 - Inuit children have the highest rate of hospital admission for Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) globally, but new research shows that lowering risk factors though public health interventions and an enhanced immunization program could improve health for Inuit children and lower health care costs significantly. The first-of-its-kind case control research was conducted by Dr. Anna Banerji, a pediatric infectious disease specialist and researcher at St. Michael's Hospital. http://www.physorg.com/news162133812.html Medicine & Health Thu, 21 May 2009 14:10:37 EST news162133812 Improving communications skills and the use of a simple blood test could help cut the growing number of inappropriate prescriptions of antibiotics, a joint Cardiff University trial has discovered. http://www.physorg.com/news162133161.html Medicine & Health Thu, 21 May 2009 13:59:59 EST news162133161 Even mildly premature infants (gestational ages of 33 weeks through 36 weeks) have an increased risk of medically attended respiratory syncytial virus infection, which is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infection in infants and young children and can lead to pneumonia in babies, according to a Kaiser Permanente Division of Research study. The RSV infection risk is higher among infants exposed to supplemental oxygen or assisted ventilation during the neonatal period, said the researchers, explaining that the need for oxygen is sometimes unavoidable for babies who need intensive care. http://www.physorg.com/news160753800.html Medicine & Health Tue, 05 May 2009 14:50:27 EST news160753800 (AP) -- Now that the swine flu virus has passed from a farmworker to pigs, could it jump back to people? The question is important, because crossing species again could make it more deadly. http://www.physorg.com/news160636697.html Medicine & Health Mon, 04 May 2009 06:18:51 EST news160636697 By mixing and matching a contemporary flu virus with the "Spanish flu" - a virus that killed between 20 and 50 million people 90 years ago in history's most devastating outbreak of infectious disease - researchers have identified a set of three genes that helped underpin the extraordinary virulence of the 1918 virus. http://www.physorg.com/news149793752.html Biology Mon, 29 Dec 2008 17:22:32 EST news149793752 Scientists funded by the Wellcome Trust are to examine what is preventing the H5N1 avian influenza virus from causing a human pandemic and what mutations are required to realise its deadly potential. The research could hold the key to early identification of a potential influenza pandemic, and to developing drugs and a vaccine. http://www.physorg.com/news139285898.html Medicine & Health Sat, 30 Aug 2008 03:31:38 EST news139285898