Young children need more detailed sound information, new study finds. Cochlear implants are powerful tools for people with hearing loss. Using electrodes implanted in the ear that transmit sound directly to the brain, they can give even the profoundly deaf a sense of sound. But their success often depends on how early the implants are […]
medicine
Colleges set guidelines for marijuana
Physicians need to ensure conventional therapies are exhausted before prescribing medical marijuana, say many provincial colleges. The seven provincial colleges of physicians that have issued guidelines are urging their members to take a cautious approach to prescribing medical marijuana. The uncertainty over the risks and benefits of the drug and the lack of reliable data […]
Quebec doctors aim to fill marijuana knowledge gaps
Doctors in Quebec who prescribe medical marijuana will automatically take part in a province-wide research project to assess the risks and benefits of the drug. Health Canada recently shifted responsibility for deciding who should have access to the drug onto the shoulders of individual doctors, raising concerns among physician groups, including the Canadian Medical Association, […]
Be wary of “prescribing” medical marijuana, CMA warns
Canadian physicians should be wary of “prescribing” medical marijuana under new regulations that come into effect on Apr. 1, 2014, says the president of the Canadian Medical Association. “For the CMA, nothing has really changed,” says Dr. Hugo Francescutti. “Our stand has always been that there is insufficient scientific evidence to support the use of marijuana for […]
With pot now legal, therapies sought to blunt high of marijuana
Marijuana is going mainstream in the US. On 1 January, Colorado became the first state in the country to allow recreational use of the drug. Washington is set to do the same within the next few months, and many others are considering similar measures. Critics of these moves say that legalizing marijuana will increase consumption, […]
New Brunswick drug plan hopes to avoid pitfalls of other provinces
New Brunswick waited a long time for a prescription drug plan but it may now have the best one in Canada, according to Steve Morgan, who studies pharmaceutical policy at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. “New Brunswick learned not to make the mistake of the western provinces, which only cover prescription drugs costs […]
Kinesin inhibitor marches toward first-in-class pivotal trial
The key to treating cancer is to put a stop to the out-of-control cell growth that leads to tumor formation. One way to do this is to go after the microtubules that help coordinate this rampant cell division. Yet because microtubules function in both dividing and non-dividing cells—for example, in non-dividing neurons they’re involved in […]
Enhanced medical vision
The ability to look inside the human body without using a scalpel has revolutionized how we diagnose and treat illness and injury. See the infographic in Nature.
US conflict-of-interest case draws attention across continent
A conflict-of-interest case in Oregon is gaining attention across the United States and Canada for the precedent it may set regarding how much physicians should disclose to patients about their financial ties to medical companies. Two physicians in Salem, Dr. Matthew Fedor and Dr. Kyong Turk, were charged under Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act. The doctors implanted […]
Risk of tick-borne infections on the rise
Canadians should be prepared for a big increase in the rates of tick-borne diseases like Lyme disease in the coming years, as milder winters make the country more hospitable for the bugs, according to a New Brunswick biologist. Vett Lloyd, who studies ticks at Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick, has seen a 6–8-fold […]