Inhaler With Ring Tones Helps Kids Fight Asthma

In a study appearing in Pediatrics, researchers saw surges in the number of US children taking prescription medications for diabetes and asthma - the number of asthma prescriptions was up nearly 47%. Unfortunately adherence with preventive medication, even within the context of a research study, was generally low and highly variable. Subjective measures of adherence were found to overestimate adherence in young asthmatics.

An innovative New Zealand-based company has developed a smart solution: an inhaler with ring tones. The inhaler monitors a child's compliance with a usage schedule determined by their doctor. When it's time to use the inhaler it provides a ring tone reminder. It records the child's compliance with the recommended schedule and can also detect inappropriate usage such as dosage dumping.

ABCs of Melanoma Identification

Obesity Linked To Elevated Risk Of Ovarian Cancer

A new epidemiological study has found that among women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy, obese women are at an increased risk of developing ovarian cancer compared with women of normal weight. The research indicates that obesity may contribute to the development of ovarian cancer through a hormonal mechanism.

Researchers noted that among women who had never taken hormones after menopause, obesity was associated with an almost 80 percent higher risk of ovarian cancer. In contrast, no link between body weight and ovarian cancer was evident for women who had ever used menopausal hormone therapy.

The research was conducted byDr. Michael F. Leitzmann of the National Cancer Institute and colleagues. They studied 94,525 U.S. women aged 50 to 71 years over a period of seven years.

Ovarian cancer is the most fatal of gynecologic malignancies, and has a 5-year survival rate of only 37 percent.

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