June marks 30 years since the first report of AIDS - a syndrome that has killed an estimated 25 million people worldwide. Yet this year's anniversary is somewhat arbitrary: the virus responsible for AIDS has probably been circulating within human populations for 100 years. Why did it take so long to detect it?
During the years prior to the turn of the century, scientific and medical attention for genetic disorders was mainly focused on understanding rare single-gene disorders, such as Huntington's disease, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and cystic fibrosis (CF), as well as chromosomal abnormalities. The medical specialty of clinical genetics was established in the 1980s and 1990s in many European countries to diagnose these kinds of rare disorders and to counsel patients and families.
Antimicrobial resistance in pathogens causing important communicable diseases has become a matter of great public health concern globally including India. Resistance has emerged even to newer, more potent antimicrobial agents like carbapenems.
A child with chest pain or tics, a toddler who is limping, a 12-year-old girl with abdominal pain or headaches, an infant whose fever does not respond to antibiotics — these are age-old challenges that pediatricians face.
In 2009, giant African pouched rats trained to detect tuberculosis (TB) evaluated sputum samples from 10,523 patients whose sputum had previously been evaluated by smear microscopy. Microscopists found 13.3% of the patients to be TB-positive. Simulated second-line screening by the rats revealed 620 new TB-positive patients, increasing the case detection rate by 44%.
In 2009, giant African pouched rats trained to detect tuberculosis (TB) evaluated sputum samples from 10,523 patients whose sputum had previously been evaluated by smear microscopy. Microscopists found 13.3% of the patients to be TB-positive. Simulated second-line screening by the rats revealed 620 new TB-positive patients, increasing the case detection rate by 44%.
Although largely unregulated, genetic tests are increasingly used to diagnose conditions, map ancestry or predict disease risk. In this, the first of two related pieces, Arthur L. Beaudet advocates the US Food and Drug Administration banning direct-to-consumer medical tests but leaving the analysis of clinical diagnostics to specialists.
Although largely unregulated, genetic tests are increasingly used to diagnose conditions, map ancestry or predict disease risk. In this, the second of two related pieces, Gail Javitt argues that the US Food and Drug Administration should implement a regulatory framework for all health-related tests. In the first, Arthur L.
