Health Tips ... from UPI

TECHNIQUE DETECTS SPREADING CANCER

Researchers say whole body MR imaging can quickly and accurately detect spreading cancer. They studied the effectiveness of three-dimensional volumetric interpolated breath-hold whole body MR imaging combined with a rolling patient platform. Instead of several radiological exams that take several hours or even days, the new technique can detect metastatic disease in about 10 minutes, the study of patients with breast and testicular cancer showed. Doctors now use 3D VIBE primarily for diagnostic imaging of the abdomen. The study combined the technology with a rolling table which can be pulled through the MRI machine so the patient's entire body can be imaged. "We can acquire data on the brain, thorax, abdomen, pelvis and femur during a series of seven scans that can be done in rapid succession. The scan time is only about four minutes," said Dr. Thomas Lauenstein of the University Hospital in Essen, Germany. The entire procedure takes about 10 minutes, he said. The results were published in the American Journal of Roentgenology.

TIMED-RELEASE TREATMENT HELPS KIDS WITH ADHD

Investigators have found a single morning dose of a long-acting form of the stimulant medication Adderall is effective in controlling symptoms of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder in children. The standard form of Adderall, made up of several amphetamine-based drugs, is only effective for four hours. The new formulation joins other long-acting stimulants, such as extended-release methylphenidate (Ritalin). "Long-acting stimulants are very beneficial for children with ADHD, who otherwise have to go to the nurse's office during the school day to receive their medication. And timed-release dosage avoids having frequent peaks and valleys of medication levels, giving the patient a more stable therapeutic environment," said Dr. Joseph Biederman, director of pediatric psychopharmacology at Masachussetts General Hospital. "This medication gives us another treatment opportunity for those who cannot tolerate other stimulant drugs." The report appears in the journal Pediatrics.

QUITTING SMOKING HELPS HEART

Want a health heart? Then quit smoking. A study shows kicking the hazardous habit significantly reduces the risk of heart disease. The five-year Lung Health Study funded by the National Institutes of Health involved 5,887 participants. Smoking increased rates for death, cardiovascular disease and coronary disease by 50 to 70 percent, the authors found. The study appears in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

VIAGRA TO THE HEART RESCUE

Men with congestive heart failure and erectile dysfunction can safely use Viagra to improve sexual function. That finding comes in a study reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. The popular medication may even make patients more likely to take their heart failure drugs, said author Dr. Edimar Bocchi, associate professor and chief of the heart failure clinics at the Sao Paulo University Medical School in Brazil. "Heart failure patients may become noncompliant with their congestive heart failure treatment if they feel it causes or aggravates their ED," Bocchi said. "However, our study suggests that treating the ED may make patients more motivated to take their medicines." The drug caused no harmful effects and improved performance during treadmill exercise tests in 23 men with congestive heart failure and erectile dysfunction, Bocchi said.

(EDITORS: For more information about MR, contact Brantley DuBose at 703-858-4332 or dubose@arrs.org; about TIMED, contact: Sue McGreevey at 617-724-2764 or smcgreevey@partners.org; about SMOKING, contact: Cathy Carlomagno at 212-314-6442 or ccarlomagno@thoracic.org; about VIAGRA, contact Carole Bullock at 214-706-1279 or carole.bullock@heart.org.)