Bone and Spine News

September 9, 2016

Stem Cell Therapy Gives Paralyzed Man Use of Arms

Our Ancestors: More Gorilla Than Chimp

Origin of Ancestors Determines Health Risks

Coaxing Stem Cells to Quickly Specialize

Latest Headlines

updated 1:03am EDT

Scientists Find Culprit Responsible for Calcified Blood Vessels in Kidney Disease

Sep. 8, 2016 — Scientists have implicated a type of stem cell in the calcification of blood vessels that is common in patients with chronic ... read more

Chemists Devise Revolutionary 3-D Bone-Scanning Technique

Sep. 8, 2016 — A scanning technique for bones has been created that does not expose patients to X-ray radiation but provides exceptional 3-D images from which diagnoses and prognoses can be made. Their technique ... read more

Extra Physical Education Classes May Benefit Bone Health in Girls, Study Shows

Sep. 7, 2016 — A long-term study carried out in four Swedish schools evaluated whether extra physical education classes (200 minutes weekly as opposed to 60 minutes ... read more

Antidepressant Bone Loss Could Be Prevented With Beta-Blockers

Sep. 7, 2016 — The antidepressant fluoxetine causes bone loss by instructing the brain to send out signals that increase bone breakdown, but a beta-blocker can intercept the signals, a new ... read more

3-D Graphene Has Promise for Bio Applications

Sep. 2, 2016 — Graphene oxide flakes can be welded together into solid materials that may be suitable for bone implants, according to an ... read more

Location, Location, Location: Cellular Hotspots for Tumors and Regeneration

Sep. 1, 2016 — Two recent studies identify Drosophila larva cells with unique properties. In one case, the cells are resistant to irradiation or drug-induced cell death and can move to ... read more

Osteoporosis: Antibody Crystallized

Sep. 2, 2016 — Inhibiting a protein called sclerostin could probably help treating the bone-loss ... read more

Researchers Use a Single Molecule to Command Stem Cells to Build New Bone

Aug. 31, 2016 — An easy and efficient way to coax human pluripotent stem cells to regenerate bone tissue has been identified by researchers: feed them adenosine, a naturally occurring molecule in the body. The ... read more

Connection Between Chronic Pain, Anxiety Disorders Found by Researchers

Aug. 31, 2016 — New study results provide insight into a long-observed, but little-understood connection between chronic pain and anxiety and offer a potential target for treatment. Researchers found that increased ... read more

Increasing Nursing Mothers' Vitamin D Levels May Benefit Babies

Aug. 30, 2016 — New research has found that giving breastfeeding mothers monthly high-dose vitamin D supplements may be a possible way to improve their babies' vitamin D status. Vitamin D is essential for calcium ... read more

Paralysed Rats Electrically Stimulated to Walk Again

3D Printers and Stem Cells Give Woman New Hip

How Do Calcium and Vitamin D Affect Your Health?

Metal on Metal Hip Implants More Likely to Need Replacement

Why Bones Don't Heal: Researchers Identify Risk Factors for Nonunion of Fractures

Sep. 7, 2016 — Researchers have identified risk factors which may help orthopaedic surgeons better predict a serious complication of bone fractures. Fracture nonunion may be increasing as more patients survive ... read more

NFL Players' Careers Most Affected by Surgery to Patellar Tendon, Achilles Tendon and ACL

Sep. 6, 2016 — The first comprehensive injury database that compares return-to-play rate and performance-based outcomes in NFL players who had orthopaedic surgery has now been released. Nearly 80 percent of the 559 ... read more

Stem Cell Agency Spinal Cord Injury Clinical Trial Passes Safety Hurdles

Aug. 31, 2016 — A clinical trial using stem cells to treat people with recent spinal cord injuries has cleared two key safety hurdles, and been given approval to expand the therapy to a larger group of patients with ... read more

A New Animal Model to Understand Metastasis in Sarcomas

Aug. 30, 2016 — Researchers have developed a modified version of an orthotopic model to recreate the metastatic steps in Ewing sarcoma, the second most common bone tumor in children and adolescents. This new model ... read more

Researchers Identify Possible Pathway to Reboot Immune System After Bone-Marrow Transplants

Aug. 25, 2016 — New research has shown how a cell surface molecule, Lymphotoxin ? receptor, controls entry of T-cells into the thymus, and as such presents an opportunity to understanding why cancer patients who ... read more

Scientists Identify Spark Plug That Ignites Nerve Cell Demise in ALS

Aug. 24, 2016 — Scientists have pinpointed an enzyme that triggers rapid demise of nerve cells in people with ALS. The research team describes a molecular chain of events that culminates in the stripping of the ... read more

Surgery That Restores Hand and Elbow Function in Quadriplegics Is Underused

Aug. 23, 2016 — A surgery for quadriplegics called tendon transfer can significantly improve hand and elbow function, but the procedure is greatly underused, according to a new ... read more

Osteoporosis Treatment: Systematic Global Review of Intervention Thresholds Based on FRAX

Aug. 23, 2016 — According to most current guidelines, treatment for osteoporosis is recommended in individuals with prior fragility fractures -- however for those without prior fractures, intervention thresholds ... read more

Injected Mix of Bone-Augmenting Agents Causes New Bone Growth in Mouse Jaws

Aug. 23, 2016 — A research team combined a protein that stimulates bone formation with a peptide that promotes osteoblast differentiation, and delivered them into mouse jawbones by injection within a gelatin ... read more

Soluble Corn Fiber Can Help Young Women Build Bone, and Older Women Preserve Bone

Aug. 22, 2016 — Supplementing with soluble corn fiber at two critical times in a woman's life -- adolescence and post-menopause -- can help build and retain calcium in bone, according to new ... read more

Bioimaging: A Clear View of the Nervous System

Aug. 22, 2016 — A new and versatile imaging technique enables researchers to trace the trajectories of whole nerve cells and provides extensive insights into the structure of neuronal ... read more

After a Fracture, It's Time to Rethink Medications

Aug. 22, 2016 — Gerontologists underscore the importance of reviewing patients' prescription medications in the wake of a fracture. Appearing alongside original research that finds few changes are made to ... read more

Rx Associated With Fracture Risk Infrequently Reduced After Fracture Occurrence

Aug. 22, 2016 — Is the occurrence of a fragility fracture -- where Medicare beneficiaries broke a hip, wrist or shoulder -- a missed opportunity to reduce exposure to prescription drugs associated with fracture ... read more

Researchers Find Herpes Strain in the Nervous System

Aug. 19, 2016 — There are a couple strains of herpes so common that researchers estimate 90% of the human population have them. These strains, human herpes 6 and human herpes 7, usually do not cause severe symptoms ... read more

Vertebroplasty Helps Reduce Acute Pain Among Patients With Spinal Fractures

Aug. 19, 2016 — Vertebroplasty is a safe and effective procedure to reduce acute pain and disability in patients who have experienced spinal fractures within a 6-week period, according to a new study. In this ... read more

Osteoblastic Metastases Distinguished from Enostoses Using CT Attenuation Measurements

Aug. 18, 2016 — CT attenuation measurements can be used to distinguish untreated osteoblastic (bone-related) metastases from enostoses (benign bone lesions), a team of researchers has ... read more

Scientists Discover Possible New Weapon in the Fight Against Gum Disease

Aug. 17, 2016 — If you hate going to the dentist, here's some good news. New research shows that melanocortin agonism may effectively control the inflammation that often occurs in gum ... read more

Real-Time Visualization of the Function of Bone-Resorbing Cells Within Animals

Aug. 17, 2016 — Researchers have discovered a way to visualize sites where bone-resorbing cells (osteoclasts) were in the process of resorbing bone in living mice. This real-time visualization of changes in ... read more

Bone Marrow Transplant Patients Report Better Quality of Life Compared to Peripheral Blood Transplant Recipients from Unrelated Volunteer Donors

Aug. 16, 2016 — A large, nationwide study finds better psychological well-being, fewer graft vs. host disease symptoms and greater likelihood of returning to work among bone marrow transplant ... read more

Injected Drug Reduces Risk of Fracture Among Women With Osteoporosis

Aug. 16, 2016 — Among postmenopausal women with osteoporosis at risk of fracture, daily injection of the drug abaloparatide for 18 months significantly reduced the risk of new vertebral and nonvertebral fractures ... read more

Wednesday, September 7, 2016