A novel type of contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) angiography is highly accurate in identifying blockages in the arteries that carry blood to the brain, according to a study in the February issue of Radiology.”Contrast-enhanced MR angiography provided highly accurate information about the supra-aortic arteries,” said Kambiz Nael, M.D., research fellow and radiology resident at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in Los Angeles. [click link for full article]

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) on Thursday introduced a bill (S 401) that would address expected budget deficits for SCHIP programs in 14 states, CQ HealthBeat reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 1/26). [click link for full article]

British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Irish musician Bono on Friday at a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, called on international corporations and donor countries to fulfill their commitments to Africa, including HIV/AIDS pledges, the [click link for full article]

The first researchers to use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study the brains of a large group of babies soon after birth found a small amount of bleeding in and around the brains of one in four babies who were delivered vaginally. The study appears in the February issue of Radiology.”Small bleeds in and around the brain are very common in infants who are born vaginally,” said John H. Gilmore, M.D. [click link for full article]

Scientists in Hong Kong are reporting synthesis and early laboratory tests of a new nanostructure that they believe may lead to the design of an anticancer nanomedicine. In a study scheduled for publication in the Feb. 21 issue of the weekly Journal of the American Chemical Society, Bing Xu and colleagues describe the structure as an eggshell nanocrystal.Like a chicken’s egg, the structure has an outer shell that encloses a “yolk” that can be released from the shell. [click link for full article]

The following highlights recent news of state actions on human embryonic stem cell research.Florida: State Rep. Franklin Sands (D) on Tuesday filed a bill ( [click link for full article]

Many studies have suggested that moderate red wine consumption is beneficial to cardiovascular health. But what if you’d like to skip the alcohol? Take heart: in a laboratory study, just published in the January 2007 issue of Cardiovascular Research, Concord grape juice worked in a similar fashion to red wine to promote healthy arterial function. Dr. [click link for full article]

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and American College of Physicians (ACP) has released new clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of venous thromboembolism (VTE).Key elements of the diagnosis guideline include the use of clinical prediction rules to establish pretest probability of deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism in a patient before further testing and the utility of various diagnostic tools such as D-dimer and ultrasonography. [click link for full article]

The EU and its Member States are under increasing pressure to grant access to better and equal care to all children with diabetes in Europe. The first call to action to improve diabetes management in European children has been issued today by Members of the Parliament (MEPs) in Brussels with the support the International Society of Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Europe and with the participation of members of the EU Commission. [click link for full article]

CMS on Thursday proposed a 0.71% increase in standard Medicare reimbursement rates for long-term care hospitals for 2008, CQ HealthBeat reports. [click link for full article]