Risk For Bone Fractures In Older Women Increased By Diabetes Drug
A Henry Ford Hospital study finds women with type 2 diabetes who take a commonly prescribed class of medications to treat insulin resistance may be at a higher risk for developing bone fractures. After taking a thiazolidinedione (TZD) for one year, women are 50 percent more likely to have a bone fracture than patients not taking TZDs, according to study results. And those at the greatest risk for fractures from TZD use are women older than 65. "Older women are already at a higher risk of osteoporosis and osteoporosis-related fractures, which might explain why they appeared to be the most affected by TZDs, " says study senior author L. Keoki Williams, M.D.
Exactech Platform Fracture Stem For Shoulder Surgeries Receives FDA Clearance
Exactech, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXAC), a developer and producer of bone and joint restoration products for hip, knee, shoulder, spine and biologic materials, announced that the company has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market the company's Equinoxe® Platform Fracture Stem, the latest addition to the company's shoulder arthroplasty line. The Equinoxe® Platform Fracture Stem is designed to relieve pain and restore function in shoulder patients with acute fractures of the proximal humerus or a deficient, irreparable rotator cuff. It is compatible with Exactech's Equinoxe® Reverse shoulder components giving orthopaedic surgeons the intra-operative flexibility to decide whether to perform a hemiarthroplasty or a reverse total shoulder.
Battling A Biceps Injury
People who suffer from injuries to the distal biceps tendon may benefit from earlier surgical intervention and new surgical techniques, according to a review article published in the March 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS). Located in the front of the elbow, the distal biceps tendon attaches to the lower end of the biceps muscle, and is responsible for two primary motions: -- allowing the elbow to bend (elbow flexion), and -- allowing the arm to turn the palm upward (supination). The study reported individuals who undergo surgery soon after their injuries experience faster and more complete recoveries than patients who are treated nonsurgically, as well as those whose surgeries are delayed.
Soccer Reduces Risk Of Falls And Bone Fractures
An extensive research project has studied the effects of soccer on muscle strength, postural balance, bone mineral density and reflex response to a sudden push in the back among adult women and men. Five scientific articles are now being published in Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports showing that regular participation in soccer increases both bone mass and bone density, causes a significant improvement in standing postural balance and improves muscle strength. Together, these effects reduce the risk of falls and bone fractures. The observed improvements in bone mineral density, strength and postural balance due to recreational soccer are of particularly interest for a large group of women but also for elderly men, says project leader Associate Professor Peter Krustrup, Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences, and continue "It is well known that the risk of falls and fractures increases with age as a result of weaker bones, poorer balance and attenuated ability to trigger rapid muscle force, but the present results suggest that soccer - and possibly other ball games - is an effective training method to reduce bone weakening that comes with increasing age".
New 'Work Charter' Launched To Help 6.5m People With Musculoskeletal Conditions To Stay In Work, UK
Today the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance (ARMA), backed by leading policymakers and employers, is calling for positive action to ensure people with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are properly supported to access employment and remain in their jobs. Launching a new Charter for Work, ARMA is calling on policymakers, employers, and healthcare professionals to make a commitment to decrease the number of people who fall out of the workplace as a result of ill-health: - MSDs are the second biggest cause of work-limiting health problems and sickness absence in the UK, responsible for up to 10.8 million lost working days in 2008/09 - The cost of MSDs to society has been estimated at over В 7 billion at 2007 prices - Persistent pain and stiffness that MSDs can cause have a major impact on quality of life and can result in more days off work The Charter contains a set of cohesive actions developed in partnership with NHS Employers, The Royal College of Nursing and The Work Foundation.
Inhibiting Serotonin In Gut Could Cure Osteoporosis
An investigational drug that inhibits serotonin synthesis in the gut, administered orally once daily, effectively cured osteoporosis in mice and rats reports an international team led by researchers from Columbia University Medical Center, in the Feb. 7 issue of Nature Medicine. Serotonin in the gut has been shown in recent research to stall bone formation. The finding could lead to new therapies that build new bone; most current drugs for osteoporosis can only prevent the breakdown of old bone. "New therapies that inhibit the production of serotonin in the gut have the potential to become a novel class of drugs to be added to the therapeutic arsenal against osteoporosis, " said Gerard Karsenty, M.
OrthoDynamix LLC Receives FDA 510 k Clearance For ArthroSteer R 3.5mm Ablator
OrthoDynamix announced that it has received FDA clearance for its new device, ArthroSteer 3.5mm Ablator, a mono polar electrosurgical device, for general surgical use, including the orthopedic and arthroscopic applications for resection, ablation, excision of soft tissue, hemostasis of blood vessels, and coagulating soft tissue in, but not limited to the knee, shoulder, and primarily the hip. Approximately 40 million Americans are affected by joint pain due to multifactorial causes. There are over 1 million annual surgical interventions of the knee with over 300, 000 shoulder and hip procedures. ArthroSteer's patent pending technology improves triangulation and or orientation of its instruments in tight joint capsules enabling the surgeon greater access to damaged tissue.
Common Osteoporosis Drugs Are Associated With A Decrease In Risk Of Breast Cancer
Women who take some types of bone-building drugs used to prevent and treat osteoporosis may be at lower risk of breast cancer, according to a study by U.S. researchers published today in the British Journal of Cancer. The study found that women who used bisphosphonate drugs, such as Fosamax, Boniva and Zomita, for more than two years had a nearly 40 percent reduction in risk as compared to those who did not, according to lead author Polly Newcomb, Ph.D., M.P.H., head of the Cancer Prevention Program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. "This large study provides new evidence that the use of bisphosphonates is associated with a potentially important reduction in breast cancer risk, " Newcomb said.
Synexus Recruits 87 Of Patients For Major Osteoporosis Study
Following the recent announcement from Manchester-based Synexus that they had randomised 2, 700 patients in just ten months for an osteoporosis study, the company has once again demonstrated that it is possible to recruit the agreed number of patients within the study deadline by recruiting 87% of patients to another study for the same therapeutic area. This trial, for a major biotech, involved eleven of Synexus' twenty six dedicated recruitment centres across the UK, Europe and South Africa. There were nine US sites also taking part. Of the 565 patients that were randomised, Synexus recruited 494 over an average of eighteen weeks per site, with the Polish and South African sites recruiting significantly above their targets.
Anorexics Found To Have Excess Fat -- In Their Bone Marrow
People with anorexia nervosa, paradoxically, have strikingly high levels of fat within their bone marrow, report researchers at Children's Hospital Boston. Their findings, based on MRI imaging of the knees of 20 girls with anorexia and 20 healthy girls of the same age, appear in the February issue of the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. "It's counter-intuitive that an emaciated young woman with almost no subcutaneous fat would be storing fat in her marrow, " says endocrinologist Catherine Gordon, MD, MSc, director of the Bone Health Program at Children's and the study's senior investigator. In the study, the knee MRI images were read by radiologists who were unaware of the patient's clinical status.