http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. For decades, scientists believed that a spine with multiple segments was an exclusive feature of land-dwelling animals. But the discovery of the same anatomical feature in a 345-million-year-old eel suggests that this complex anatomy arose separately from – and perhaps before – the first species to walk on land. http://phys.org/news256965731.html Biology Wed, 23 May 2012 04:22:26 EST news256965731 (PhysOrg.com) -- The spine of a sea urchin is 99.9% chalk, a very common material forming tiny crystals that are very hard but easy to break apart. Scientists have now discovered how these marine animals use chalk or lime to grow spines combining this hardness with shock-absorbing flexibility. Tiny calcite crystals are embedded, like bricks in a wall, into a mortar of amorphous lime mixed with minute amounts of biological proteins. This points the way to the design and synthesis of new hi-tech composite materials, and a project has already begun involving a major concrete manufacturer. The results are published in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) dated 13-17 February 2012. http://phys.org/news248424026.html Chemistry Tue, 14 Feb 2012 06:41:06 EST news248424026 (AP) -- At least 116 million U.S. adults experience long-lasting pain - the kind that lingers for weeks to months - and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a health care system poorly prepared to treat them, the Institute of Medicine said Wednesday. http://phys.org/news228572037.html Medicine & Health Wed, 29 Jun 2011 13:14:22 EST news228572037 Teenagers who undergo spine fusion for scoliosis using the newest surgical techniques can expect to be doing well 10 years after surgery, according to a Hospital for Special Surgery study published online ahead of print in the [TK issue] of the journal Spine. Researchers had thought that the surgery would cause damage to the spine just below the fused discs, but the study showed that this was not the case. http://phys.org/news221215266.html Medicine & Health Tue, 05 Apr 2011 09:41:30 EST news221215266 The research brings together archaeology and anthropology expertise at the University of Bristol with the latest computer modelling techniques developed at the University of Leeds. http://phys.org/news218111923.html Other Sciences Mon, 28 Feb 2011 10:39:02 EST news218111923 Motorcycle helmets, long known to dramatically reduce the number of brain injuries and deaths from crashes, appear to also be associated with a lower risk of cervical spine injury, new research from Johns Hopkins suggests. http://phys.org/news216473754.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:00:30 EST news216473754 (AP) -- "Why did they cut you?" The shocking question came from a respected spine surgeon tracked down by Keith Swenson, who was still in severe pain after an earlier back operation. http://phys.org/news195217815.html Medicine & Health Tue, 08 Jun 2010 12:30:01 EST news195217815 New University of Alberta research disputes advice that routine lifting is bad for your back. Tapio Videman's research found that physical loading, the pressure put on the spine that comes with, for example, frequent lifting, may in fact slightly delay disc degeneration. http://phys.org/news190556666.html Medicine & Health Thu, 15 Apr 2010 13:40:03 EST news190556666 Immobilizing the spines of shooting and stabbing victims before they are taken to the hospital -- standard procedure in Maryland and some other parts of the country -- appears to double the risk of death compared to transporting patients to a trauma center without this time-consuming, on-scene medical intervention, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers. http://phys.org/news182452821.html Medicine & Health Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:50:06 EST news182452821 Using a branch of science that crosses disciplines to study complex problems, a Michigan State University researcher is introducing a new way to understand and treat lower back pain, a condition affecting more than 40 million Americans and costing billions of dollars each year. http://phys.org/news179507385.html Medicine & Health Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:20:02 EST news179507385 Being overweight as a child could lead to early degeneration in the spine, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). http://phys.org/news178867734.html Medicine & Health Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:50:01 EST news178867734 So what is it now, you medical experts? We need to learn how to sit? http://phys.org/news170083491.html Medicine & Health Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:30:02 EST news170083491 A new study led by Mayo Clinic researchers has found that relief of pain from vertebral compression fractures, as well as improvement in pain-related dysfunction, were similar in patients treated with vertebroplasty and those treated with simulated vertebroplasty without cement injections. The article, "A Randomized Controlled Trial of Vertebroplasty for Osteoporotic Spine Fractures," was released today in the New England Journal of Medicine. http://phys.org/news168714380.html Medicine & Health Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:21:03 EST news168714380 A new study published in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS) finds that two years after anterior cervical neck operations, patients who have arthroplasty (disc replacement) or arthodesis (spine fusion) can be expected to have significant improvement in their headache symptoms. http://phys.org/news168519037.html Medicine & Health Mon, 03 Aug 2009 12:00:02 EST news168519037 Vesselplasty, a new minimally invasive procedure, increases mobility and reduces pain and the need for pain killers in patients with vertebral compression fractures (VCFs), according to a study performed at the Hospital Universitario Doctor Peset, Valencia, Spain. Vesselplasty is a new alternative to vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty -- two conventional VCF treatment methods. Vesselplasty solves the problem of leakage of cement out of the vertebral body which can happen during both vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty," said Lucia Flors, MD, lead author of the study. http://phys.org/news167458931.html Medicine & Health Wed, 22 Jul 2009 05:22:37 EST news167458931 A new national study confirms that thousands of Americans are opting for expensive -- and possibly risky -- spine surgery to treat their aching backs, often with a product made by Fridley, Minn.-based Medtronic Inc. http://phys.org/news165647724.html Medicine & Health Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:20:01 EST news165647724 People with the spine disease called degenerative spondylolisthesis* -- who choose surgical treatment -- experience substantially greater relief from pain over time compared to those who do not have surgery, according to a study published in the June 2009 issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS). In the past, physicians had been uncertain whether surgery provided significantly greater relief for patients, but these results help to confirm the advantages to surgery. http://phys.org/news163071763.html Medicine & Health Mon, 01 Jun 2009 10:43:08 EST news163071763 Shirly Sieh, a PhD student at IHBI, is studying the way cancer cells escape from the prostate through the bloodstream to form tumour colonies, most often in the spine and long bones. http://phys.org/news159789739.html Medicine & Health Fri, 24 Apr 2009 11:02:50 EST news159789739 The advice and treatment given to patients with vertebral compression fractures is not satisfactory. A thesis presented at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, shows that the majority of patients still have severe pain one year after the fracture. http://phys.org/news159700955.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:23:18 EST news159700955 Where are you right now? Lounging on an overstuffed couch with the newspaper and a cup of coffee? Sitting on a kitchen chair taking in the news online? Well, I hope you're sitting down for this bit of news. (Or maybe you should stand.) Your chair is slowly killing you. http://phys.org/news158569318.html Medicine & Health Fri, 10 Apr 2009 08:11:02 EST news158569318 (PhysOrg.com) -- Lumbar disc degeneration is an uncomfortable condition that affects millions of people, but two University of Alberta researchers have identified some of the genes that are causing problems. http://phys.org/news156008413.html Medicine & Health Wed, 11 Mar 2009 16:41:17 EST news156008413 Spine surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and other U.S. centers are reporting that artificial disc replacement works as well and often better than spinal fusion surgery. The two procedures are performed on patients with damaged discs in the neck. http://phys.org/news154960289.html Medicine & Health Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:32:15 EST news154960289 Surgeons at Northwestern Memorial Hospital are among the first in the country to use a new micro-laser, which uses light energy in place of a cutting tool to remove complicated brain and spine tumors. The technique offers greater precision and efficiency during surgery, reducing the incision size, surgery time and patient recovery period following surgery. http://phys.org/news152371450.html Medicine & Health Wed, 28 Jan 2009 13:24:36 EST news152371450 Using a three-dimensional (3D) image-guided system to help place screws in the spines of patients results in safe and accurate surgery with a decrease in the number of misplaced screws, and subsequent injuries, seen in more traditional operations, say neurosurgeons at Mayo Clinic in Florida. http://phys.org/news148130521.html Medicine & Health Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:22:01 EST news148130521 A University of Cincinnati (UC) neurosurgeon who has spent his career helping people with severe spine problems stand up straight has spearheaded the creation of a new spinal deformity classification system. The system, published this fall in the journal Neurosurgery, defines deformity in relation to the healthy, normal curve of the spine. http://phys.org/news148067606.html Medicine & Health Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:53:26 EST news148067606 A new study has unraveled some of the mysteries of the cocaine-addicted brain and may pave the way for the design of more effective treatments for drug addiction. The research, published by Cell Press in the August 28 issue of the journal Neuron, identifies specific brain mechanisms that underlie addiction-related structural changes in the brain and provides surprising insight into how these changes may actually defend the brain during excessive drug use. http://phys.org/news139058987.html Medicine & Health Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:29:47 EST news139058987