Health Tips

Apr 29, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- ANXIETY TEST PARTICIPANTS NEEDED

Researchers are looking for participants for a nationwide study of an investigational drug for generalized anxiety disorder. The mental illness, characterized by excessive and persistent worry about everyday events and activities, affects more than 4 million Americans, who may experience such symptoms as restlessness, fatigue, irritability, muscle tension, headaches, nausea, insomnia or poor concentration, says Dr. Madhukar Trivedi, professor of psychiatry and director of the mood disorders research program at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Treatments include medication, psychotherapy or both. UT Southwestern is one of 40 sites recruiting a total of 800 volunteers for the study, which will last 14 weeks with the possibility of a one-year extension. Participants must be 18 to 64, drug-free, in stable medical condition, not pregnant or considering pregnancy and diagnosed with or experiencing symptoms of GAD. For more information, call 214-648-5249.

SUPPLEMENTS FAIL TO PREVENT BONE BREAKS IN SOME

Researchers report giving elderly patients regular supplements of vitamin D and calcium to prevent secondary bone fractures is ineffective. They write in the journal The Lancet doctors often recommend vitamin D and calcium, alone or in combination, for preventing osteoporotic fractures. Adrian Grant of the University of Aberdeen in England says his study of 5,300 volunteers past their 69th birthday, who had suffered a fracture in the past 10 years and who were followed for 24 months to 62 months, found no difference in the incidence of new fractures between those taking and not taking the supplements. The trial did not address whether supplementation should be used for primary prevention, Grant says.

WOMEN MORE WEIGHT-CONSCIOUS THAN MEN

A study shows women want to lose more weight than men, even if they are not overweight. The researchers note some 20 years of research suggests women are at a higher risk than men for developing problems related to body image and satisfaction. The scientists at the University of Missouri, Columbia, and University of Missouri, St. Louis, found women wanting to lose weight chose to shed more pounds than did the men, an average of 11 pounds vs. 9 pounds. They also were more dissatisfied with particular body parts, such as abdomen, hips and thighs, than were their male counterparts. Most troubling, most of the women in the study who wanted to lose weight were not overweight, setting them up for problems related to body image, eating and dieting, says Laurie Mintz, associate professor and director of counseling psychology.

CONTACTS FOR ASTIGMATISM

Vistakon, a division of Johnson and Johnson Vision Care Inc., has announced the availability of Acuvue Advance Brand Contact Lenses for Astigmatism. The company says this is the first silicone hydrogel daily wear contact lens for individuals with the common condition that occurs when surfaces of the eye, such as the cornea, have an oval shape that prevents light from focusing properly on the retina at the back of the eye. The new lens is based on technology that uses the pressures of a blinking eye to balance the lens in place while the eye is open and realign the lens if it rotates out of position, says Susan Resnick, a New York City optometrist. She says most currently available soft contacts worn by individuals with astigmatism tend to rotate with movements of the eyelid, leading to blurriness or vision fluctuation.

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(Editors: For more information about ANXIETY, Donna Steph Hansard at 214-648-3404 or donna.hansard@utsouthwestern.edu. For BONE, Joe Santangelo at j.santangelo@elsevier.com. For WEIGHT, Jeff Neu at 573-882-3346 or NeuJ@missouri.edu. For CONTACTS, Gary Esterow at 732-524-3474 or Gester1@visus.jnj.com.)

Copyright 2005 by United Press International.