Australian doctors have conducted a world-first medical procedure in which heart valves are replaced without patients needing to undergo open heart surgery.

The treatment, using a manoeuvrable synthetic heart valve, lasts about 90 minutes and could be commonly performed within two years.

It allows doctors to replace the aortic valve via the insertion of a synthetic valve through a small hole in the groin and into the heart. The valve opens once inside the heart and can be easily repositioned.

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Scientists claim to have overcome a major hurdle in their work on finding a way to wipe out cancer with viruses.

Scientists suggest the reovirus, which usually causes mild colds or stomach upsets, has the power to shrink tumours.

They have created the viral vaccine that can be injected into the bloodstream, "hitching a ride" on blood cells and avoiding the immune system.

Previous research has focused on injecting the virus into tumours.

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Groundbreaking Alzheimer's Vaccine could Cut Cases by Half and be First Step Towards Finding Cure

A groundbreaking vaccine that could cut cases of Alzheimer's disease by half has been discovered.

The jab developed by scientists in Sweden could delay the onset of the debilitating illness and be the first step towards finding a cure.

Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia and attacks nerves, brain cells and neurotransmitters that carry messages to and from the brain.

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Two Patients Get Eye Stem Cells Transplant to Restore Sight

Two people have had stem cells transplanted into their eyes as part of a clinical trial to restore their sight.

The technique has been developed by Scottish specialists to reverse corneal blindness, and it is believed to be the first treatment of its kind in the UK.

Both have corneal blindness, and until now the only treatment was a transplant of cornea tissue from an organ donor.

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What parents need to know about effective child discipline for children with ADHD.

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Open Wide! Dental Filling of the Future Kills Bacteria and Regenerates Tooth

The dreaded trip to the dentist to replace a worn-out filling could soon be a thing of the past, thanks to a dental breakthrough.

Scientists have used nanotechnology to create the first cavity-filling composite that kills harmful bacteria and regenerates tooth structure lost to decay.

Rather than just limiting decay with conventional fillings, the new material controls harmful bacteria, which co-exist in the natural colony of microorganisms in the mouth.

It also works to remineralise the tooth, said study leader Professor Huakun Xu from Maryland University School of Dentistry.

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JEDDAH – Many patients, including undocumented workers, have been lying in private hospitals in Jeddah for months because they are unable to foot the exorbitant costs of treatment. The Okaz daily visited several private hospitals and found that the majority of such cases had been involved in traffic accidents and transported by ambulances from the Saudi Red Crescent Authority (SRCA).

A large number of the patients could not be taken to government hospitals due to the unavailability of beds; therefore, they were shifted to private hospitals where the cost of treatment reached tens of thousands of riyals in some cases. The Ministry of Health was petitioned to pay the bills but it declined to do so. Many of the patients are low income workers who suffer from critical conditions that require around-the-clock medical care.

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Dr. Safia Sherbini, a prominent endocrinology and diabetes consultant, said during a phone-in program conducted Tuesday by the Ministry of Health: “Diabetics should be careful about their intake of medicines, which can lead to various problems when consumed without medical advice.”

 

She insisted patients can only take paracetamol without prescription.

 

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BAISH: A man in his thirties went to a health care center in Baish, complaining of a toothache and was dead within an hour, local daily Al-Madinah reported Sunday.

The Health Affairs department in Jazan has opened an investigation into the cause of death. Acting spokesman of the department Hussain Maashi said the passports of the members of the medical and technical team which dealt with the case had been confiscated.

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