Bladder rupture used to affect only men who consumed alcohol in excess. However, cases of binge-drinking women whose bladders have ruptured are starting to emerge, according to an article in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), this week’s issue. The authors report that recently three women who attended hospital with lower abdominal pain had bladder rupture - a rare condition. The authors add that binge drinking in the UK continues to grow apace. [click link for full article]

When obesity overloads the body with excess nutrients, parts start to fail. Obesity contributes to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, some cancers, liver disease, immune dysfunction, painful joints, and a host of other problems. With so many parts of the body affected, studies of the health effects of obesity that concentrate on one body organ or system may overlook common underlying events occurring at the cellular level throughout the body. [click link for full article]

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration, USA) has approved an allergy drug, Zyrtec-D (cetirizine HCl 5 mg and pseudoephedrine HCl 120 mg), for non-prescription use in children aged 12 and more and adults. In other words, Zyrtec-D is now an OTC (over-the-counter) drug. Zyrtec-D has been on the market since 2001, but only as a prescription medication. [click link for full article]

Endorphins and other morphine-like substances known as opioids, which are released during exercise, don’t just make you feel good — they may also protect you from heart attacks, according to University of Iowa researchers.It has long been known that the so-called “runner’s high” is caused by natural opioids that are released during exercise. [click link for full article]

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have discovered a new mechanism to inhibit key enzymes that play a major role in clotting disorders, which could lead to novel therapies to treat clots in the lungs and those localized deep in the body in areas such as the legs.Antithrombotic disorders occur when the effect of thrombin, a protein involved in coagulation, is inhibited, rendering blood unable to clot effectively. These disorders are considered common and can be fatal. [click link for full article]

Hispanic youth report better dental health habits than their non-Hispanic peers, according to a study of northern Manhattan adolescents by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. The study, which is published in the November issue of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, provides insight into the oral health of the diverse Hispanic community in America. [click link for full article]

Overweight children and adults have low levels in their blood of a protein known as SHGB, which transports sex steroids and regulates their entry into tissues. Low levels of SHGB are a marker of the metabolic syndrome, a combination of medical disorders that increase an individual’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes and heart disease. [click link for full article]

Coronary artery disease is a leading cause of mortality in Western countries. It cannot be cured. Recent research, led by Pilar Ruiz-Lozano, Ph.D., at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research, may lead to new therapies for coronary artery disease. The research demonstrated that stimulation of the Wnt signaling pathway is essential for the formation of the coronary vasculature. [click link for full article]

The head of the UN’s World Food Programme Josette Sheeran has acclaimed the phenomenally successful internet-based vocabulary game FreeRice (http://www.freerice.com) as an example of the Web’s power to mobilise millions of people in the fight against global hunger. [click link for full article]

Researchers have discovered that a molecular switch in the protein making machinery of cells is linked to one of the most common forms of lethal breast cancer worldwide. The discovery by researchers at NYU School of Medicine could lead to new therapies for the cancer, called locally advanced breast cancer (LABC). [click link for full article]