Healthspan Blog

BALTIMORE (Reuters) - Spinal disc fusion surgery to treat low-back pain is not very likely to be better than other, more conservative options such as physical therapy over the long term, most members of a panel of U.S. medical experts told Medicare officials on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chemical compound in the abortion pill RU-486 blocked formation in mice of breast tumors caused by a mutant gene blamed in many women's breast and ovarian cancers, researchers found.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - It might be better to start your morning with a cup of coffee than a sugar-sweetened juice, at least where risk for type 2 diabetes is concerned, a new study suggests.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Exercise training for heart patients is safe, a new study shows. Among 25,420 patients undergoing rehabilitation after heart surgery, heart attack or for other causes, just 20 severe events occurred over a one-year period, and none were fatal, French researchers report.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study confirms that weight gain during pregnancy affects the risk of spontaneous preterm birth, and suggests that both race and a history of preterm birth seem to influence the association.