Neurological Disease News

Parkinson's Disease Linked to Pesticides

People with long-term, low-level exposure to pesticides have a 70 per cent higher incidence of Parkinson's disease than people who have not been exposed much to bug sprays, US researchers say. (theage.com)

Autism Linked to Air Pollution

Children with autism disorders in the San Francisco Bay Area were 50% more likely to be born in neighborhoods with high amounts of several toxic air contaminants, particularly mercury, according to a first-of-its-kind study by the California Department of Health Services. (healthsentinel.com)

Antioxidants May Prevent Some Migraines

Eleven men and women with a long history of migraine did not respond to several type of drugs, including beta-blockers, antidepressants and anticonvulsants, had fewer and less severe headaches, on average, after taking capsules containing an extract of pine bark, vitamin C and vitamin E every day for three months, according to a report in the journal Headache. (Reuters.co.uk)

Pfizer Tested Unapproved Drug on Children

During an epidemic in Nigeria in 1996, Pfizer illegally tested an unapproved drug on children with brain infections, says a panel of Nigerian medical experts. According to the report, published in the Sunday (today) edition of the Washington Post, this violated international law. The report was completed five years ago, but never came out in the open. (Medical News Today)

Keith Richards to Have Brain Surgery

After falling out of a palm tree, Rolling Stone Keith Richards continued to suffer headaches after being discharged from the hospital. It was at first believed that he suffered only a mild concussion but doctors have now diagnosed bleeding in the brain. He will undergo an operation to drill a hole in his skull and drain the blood. (Ireland on-line)

Ovary Removal Linked to Dementia

Women who have their ovaries removed may be at increased risk of dementia, a study of 2,500 patients suggests.

A Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, team found the risk was especially raised among young women - removal of one ovary by the age of 38 raised the risk by 260% (BBC NEWS)

Vitamin E, Vitamin C and Ibuprofen for Alzheimer's Disease

For patients at high risk of Alzheimer's disease, taking a combination of vitamins E and C plus ibuprofen significantly reduces their risk, results of a longitudinal study suggest. (REUTERS)

Alzheimer's Disease Linked to Obesity

A new study suggests that people in midlife who are overweight are at increased risk for Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers from the Kaiser Permanente Foundation Research Institute in Oakland, Calif., followed nearly 9,000 people for up to 30 years. The study participants were evaluated for overweight and obesity by measuring upper arm and shoulder skinfold thickness.
Those with higher skinfold measurements in their 40s were more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease than those with smaller measurements. (upi.com)

Dopamine Agonists May Lead to Compulsive Behavior

Many people with Parkinson's disease who are taking dopamine agonists such as Mirapex and Permax are finding that they have new problems: compulsive gambling, overactive sex drive, and other compulsive behaviors. Some patients are suing the drug companies "to recover the money they lost gambling, on the grounds that the companies did not do enough to warn about these risks." The drug companies say there's no scientific proof that their drugs cause comulsive behavior. However:

... a recent analysis headed by FDA scientist Ana Szarfman found a strong association between pathological gambling and dopamine agonists. The statistics from a federal adverse-events database are not conclusive, but FDA officials regularly mine the data to spot red flags. (Washington Post)

Acupuncture for Migraines

Acupuncture, one of the most popular complementary treatments, works as well as standard drugs for migraines, German researchers said on Thursday. (MSNBC)

Green Tea for the Aging Brain

People who regularly drink green tea may have a lesser risk of mental decline as they grow older, researchers have found.

Their study, of more than 1,000 Japanese adults in their 70s and beyond, found that the more green tea men and women drank, the lower their odds of having cognitive impairment. (MSNBC)

Physical and Mental Exercise Protect Aging Brain

If it seems you're forgetting more as you grow older, you are. Like most other organs in the body, the brain gets smaller as we age, leading to a decline in memory, decision-making ability and verbal skills. That doesn't necessarily mean that you're on a steep downhill slide toward certain dementia, say experts. Growing evidence suggests there are steps you can take to better the odds of preserving your brainpower and protecting it against disease. (Washington Post)

Genetic Link to Parkinson's Disease Found

Researchers said yesterday that they have identified a single genetic mutation that accounts for more than 20 percent of all cases of Parkinson's disease in Arabs, North Africans and Jews, a big surprise for a major disease in which genetics was thought to play a relatively minor role. (Washington Post)

Ariel Sharon Clinging to Life

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive and life-threatening cerebral hemorrhage Wednesday evening and was rushed into all-night emergency surgery in a desperate attempt to halt extensive bleeding. The reins of national leadership were handed over to Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

The 77-year-old prime minister's medical team painted a picture of a life-and-death struggle, saying he was in intensive care after nearly eight hours of surgery. Doctors managed to stem bleeding in several areas of his brain, and Sharon's vital signs had stabilized, but prospects for a full recovery were seen as virtually nil. (Newsday.com)

Ariel Sharon Suffers Massive Stroke

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke Wednesday and was on a respirator after falling ill at his ranch. Doctors operated to drain excess blood from his brain.

Powers were transferred to his deputy, Vice Premier Ehud Olmert.

Dr. Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, said Sharon suffered "a significant stroke," adding that he was "under anesthetic and receiving breathing assistance." A few minutes later, Mor-Yosef emerged to say that initial tests showed Sharon had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, or bleeding in his brain. (excite.com)