Dietary restrictions or other strategies that limit fat formation might make pancreatic cell transplants more effective, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers report.Using animal models, the researchers discovered that pancreatic islet cells transplanted into the liver fail not only because of immune rejection, but also because of overexposure to toxic fats that are synthesized by the surrounding liver cells and flood the pancreatic transplants. [click link for full article]

Treating diabetes during pregnancy can break the link between gestational diabetes and childhood obesity, according to a Kaiser Permanente study featured in the September issue of Diabetes Care.The largest study of its kind, this research shows that the risk of childhood obesity rises in tandem with a pregnant woman’s blood sugar level and that untreated gestational diabetes nearly doubles a child’s risk of becoming obese by age 5 to 7. [click link for full article]

According to new figures issued yesterday, 30th August, by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more American children are being vaccinated each year. The nation’s immunization rates for childhood vaccinations are at or near record levels, said the CDC, reflecting a rising trend of more children being protected against vaccine-preventable diseases each year. [click link for full article]

The Vatican and some Italian legislators on Monday called for changing the country’s abortion law after news of a case in which a healthy twin fetus mistakenly was aborted instead of the other fetus, which had been diagnosed with Down syndrome, AFP/New York Times reports. [click link for full article]

A new study by US researchers suggests that the global rate of chronic lung disease, called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), is higher than previous estimates have suggested and is growing steadily as the world’s population gets older. The authors conclude that cost effective prevention and treatment is the best way to stem the rising tide of this disease and its burden on health care. [click link for full article]

Geron Corporation (Nasdaq: GERN) has reported its scientists and collaborators have demonstrated that human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived cardiomyocytes improve heart function when transplanted after myocardial infarction.Published online in Nature Biotechnology, the landmark study is the first to document the potential clinical utility of regenerating damaged heart muscle by injecting hESC-derived cardiomyocytes directly into the site of the infarct. [click link for full article]

Recent efforts to expand prenatal care for low-income or uninsured women in Loudoun and Prince William counties in Virginia have halted, and community leaders are working to ensure pregnant women receive prenatal care, the Washington Post reports. The [click link for full article]

Mental disorders accounted for 52% of acute care hospitalizations among the homeless in 2005-2006 (outside Quebec), according to a new report released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). In addition, the report shows that 35% of visits to selected emergency departments (EDs) - mostly in Ontario - by homeless people were related to mental and behavioural disorders, a proportion that is higher than that for other patients (3%). [click link for full article]

This Labor Day, Mental Health America urges Congress to end a critical workplace inequity by passing legislation to establish parity between the coverage for general and mental health benefits for American workers and their families. [click link for full article]

Use of transluminal coronary angioplasty, or PTCA, a procedure for opening blocked arteries in patients with coronary artery disease, is now used nearly three times more often than the older and more invasive coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG), according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. [click link for full article]