Eye injection drugs recommended by NICE cost the NHS up to £447m annually, but could be replaced by an unlicensed drug, bevacizumab, costing as much as ten times less. Use of the two licensed drugs, ranibizumab and aflibercept, has increased threefold over the last five years, with some parts of England treating five times as … Continue reading Unlicensed eye injection drug could save the NHS millions

Two recent studies led by the University of Bristol provide significant new hope in the fight against antibiotic resistance. By identifying what makes some bacteria resistant to the most commonly prescribed antibiotics, and how this can be reversed, the findings have demonstrated potentially life saving consequences and could help reverse the tide of antibiotic resistance. … Continue reading Hopes of reversing antibiotic resistance

Kidney failure is associated with lower quality of life in young people and limited employment, independence, and relationships compared with healthy peers, according to an analysis led by the University of Bristol and published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). The University of Bristol reports that, compared with healthy peers, … Continue reading Kidney failure associated with lower quality of life

Risk factors for heart health seem to be linked to changes over time in the quality of marital relationships, at least for men, according to a University of Bristol study published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. The University of Bristol reports that the available research points to an association between marital status … Continue reading Heart health linked to marital relationships

The University of Bristol has reported that it has been awarded £2m to lead a major new project that aims to tackle the devastation caused by vector-borne plant diseases in Africa. In much the same way as insects can transmit human diseases, destructive plant diseases are transmitted by aphids, beetles, whitefly and other insects. These … Continue reading Tackling vector-borne plant diseases in Africa

The University of Bristol has reported that cooling babies deprived of oxygen at birth (perinatal asphyxia) can reduce the number of children who develop epilepsy later in childhood, according to a new study published in Epilepsia. The study has been led by Marianne Thoresen, Professor of Neonatal Neuroscience, from the Bristol Medical School: Translational Health … Continue reading Cooling babies at birth can reduce the risk of epilepsy

The University of Manchester has reported that a Lancet commission of senior scientists has demanded root and branch reform of the way experimental therapies associated with regenerative medicine are carried out. The commission, led by cell biologist Professor Giulio Cossu from the University of Manchester, said the specialism is held back by poor quality science, … Continue reading Calls to improve regenerative medicine

The University of Bristol has reported that the first global review to quantify the impact of needle syringe programmes (NSP) and opioid substitution treatment (OST) in reducing the risk of becoming infected with the hepatitis C virus is published in Cochrane Library Drug and Alcohol Review Group and the journal Addiction. The study, has implications … Continue reading Reducing hepatitis C infection in drug users

The University of Bristol has reported that a new study led by academics at the Bristol Veterinary School has reviewed the literature on the use of antimicrobials (AMs) in livestock practice together with the views of stakeholders. The study found that although there are some barriers to change, there is a clear awareness of the … Continue reading Bristol Veterinary School study looks at the use of antimicrobials

The University of Bristol has reported that its scientists have found that the delivery of a group of proteins involved in the information flow between the brain’s nerve cells to the synapse is much more sophisticated than previously suspected. The findings, published in Cell Reports, will help the development of therapies for conditions such as … Continue reading Researchers find family of proteins involved in brain’s connectivity are controlled by multiple and previously unprecedented checkpoints