Medicine, Study | featured news

Azithromycin may be risky for adults with heart problems, a new study finds, by possibly causing abnormal, potentially fatal, heart rhythms.

For some people with diabetes, surgery may be the best medicine. Two studies have found that weight loss operations worked much better than the standard treatments to control Type 2 diabetes in obese and overweight people. Those who had surgery to staple the stomach and reroute the small intestine were much more likely to have their diabetes go into complete remission, or to need less medicine, than people given the typical regimen of drugs, diet and exercise, the studies found. The surgery also helped many to lower their blood pressure and cholesterol.

Researchers believe they have identified why a mutation in a particular gene can lead to obesity.

Ritalin and similar medicines that millions of children and teens take to curb hyperactivity and boost attention do not raise their risk of serious heart problems, the largest safety study of these drugs concludes.

In a development that could change the battle against AIDS, researchers have found that taking a daily antiretroviral pill greatly lowers the chances of getting infected with the virus.

Pregnant women could -- and probably should -- consume 10 times more vitamin D than experts currently recommend, according to a new study.