Childhood kidney disorder may persist into adulthood with long-term complications

October 9th, 2009 LONDON - The identity of the "cursed blood" disorder that troubled the British Royal Family in the 19th and early 20th centuries has been revealed. DNA analysis show that the disease inherited by Queen Victoria's descendants was probably a severe form of the blood clotting disorder haemophilia B, according to the study published in journal Science.

October 1st, 2009 LONDON - Children who gorge on chocolate and sweets daily are more likely to grow into violent adults, says a new research. A study of almost 17,500 volunteers in the British Cohort Study (BCS) found that 10-year-olds who ate confectionary daily were significantly more likely to have been convicted for violence at the age of 34 years.

October 1st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Monash University researchers have found what they call 'microscopic antennas' that play a vital role in kidney repair process. They hope that the new discovery would be a crucial step towards a cure for fatal polycystic kidney disease.

August 25th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new study, Finnish researchers have found that adults born with very low birth weight have lower bone mineral density. Led by Dr. Petteri Hovi, from the National Institute for Health and Welfare Helsinki, Finland, the researchers evaluated skeletal health in 144 adults (ages ranging from 18 to 27 years) who were born preterm with very low birth weight.

August 4th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Depression among preschoolers is not a transient developmental stage, but may even continue into childhood, according to a report. Researchers have said that depression among preschoolers is rather a continuous, chronic condition.

July 7th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A group of common environmental contaminants called phthalates, which are present in many industrial and consumer products including everyday personal care items, may play a role in premature births, according to a study of expectant mothers. The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, has found that women who deliver prematurely have, on average, up to three times the phthalate level in their urine compared to women who carry to term.

June 24th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Children living in war-hit Afghanistan experience a multitude of wartime stressors everyday, which increases their risk of developing post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a study. The kids are first-hand witnesses to the bombings, abuse, and the general upheaval of their home life and society as a result of war, including the effects of long-term poverty and familial turmoil.

May 29th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Kids with impaired thought processes are more likely to develop obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as adults, according to a new study. The study, conducted by Dr Jessica Grisham from the University of New South Wales, suggests that people at risk of developing OCD could now be identified during childhood.

May 28th, 2009 TORONTO - Authors and educators are doing hyperactive children a disservice by insisting that hyperactivity has always existed. Canadian researcher Matthew Smith said not only is that notion wrong, it misleads patients, their parents and their physicians.

May 22nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Being abused in childhood can have damaging outcomes for the victim throughout his or her life, leading to more suicide attempts, prevalence of substance use disorder and proneness to personality disorders. These victims also had an earlier onset of mental illness and an increase in psychiatric hospitalisations, said a Mayo Clinic study.

May 19th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has found that girls with a history of childhood abuse are at a risk of early menarche or onset of their menstrual periods before age 12 years. Lead researcher Lauren A.

May 16th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a bid to diagnose and treat renal diseases early and more successfully, researchers from nine European countries have spent four-and-a half years to create a three-dimensional virtual "Kidney Atlas", which incorporates the latest research findings on the development and diseases of the kidney. The Kidney Atlas was part of the European Renal Genome Project (EuReGene), coordinated by the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, Germany, which the European Union (EU) funded with more than 10 million euros.

April 27th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Drinking diet soda is likely to reduce the risk of forming kidney stone, according to a new study. The research by the University of California, San Francisco, (UCSF) suggests that the citrate and malate content in sodas may be sufficient to inhibit the development of calcium stones.

February 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Girls growing up with a heroin-addicted parent and going through adversarial experiences before 18 become four times tougher than boys. These experiences include family mental illness, having a parent jailed, family violence, being a victim of abuse and having a parent die.

February 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Surgeons at Johns Hopkins have successfully pulled out a healthy kidney through a small incision at the back of the donor's vagina, in a historic first ever operation. 'The kidney was successfully removed and transplanted into the donor's niece, and both patients are doing fine,' said Robert Montgomery, chief of the transplant division at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSM), who led the operation.