Battling Heart and Stroke

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Researchers at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and the University of Calgary have found that stem cells derived from adult skin can create neural cell types that can be transplanted into and function in mouse models of disease. This research is reported in the June 14, 2006 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

SickKids researchers previously discovered what type of cells can be made from these stem cells (called skin-derived precursors, or SKPs) based on the role played by neural-crest stem cells during embryogenesis. In addition to generating the peripheral nervous system, neural crest stem cells generate other tissues such as bone, cartilage, some types of muscle, and even part of the heart.

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The percentage of U.S. adults age 20 and older with diabetes rose from 5.1 to 6.5 percent between two time periods studied by federal health officials: 1988-1994 and 1999-2002, according to recent research from the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention.

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WHEN: Wednesday, June 14, 2006
11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Agenda:
11:15 a.m. - Media Registration
11:30 a.m. - Event and photo opportunity with Darryl Sittler
and the Heart and Stroke Foundation
- Cheque presentation to the Heart and Stroke
Foundation by Bayer HealthCare

WHERE: TD Centre Courtyard
66 Wellington Street West
Toronto, ON

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OTTAWA, June 7 /CNW Telbec/ - Canadians admitted to hospital with a new heart attack are less likely to die in hospital within 30 days than in the past, according to a new report released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). The short-term (30-day) in-hospital death rate dropped from 13.4% in 1999-2000 to 11.1% in 2004-2005. Patients admitted to hospital with a new stroke were more likely to die within 30 days than those with a heart attack - 18.8% died in hospital within 30 days in 2004-2005, a rate that was relatively stable over the preceding five years.

These new findings are reported in Health Care in Canada 2006, CIHI’s seventh annual publication on the state of the health system. For the first time, this year’s report provides trends for two key health indicators: short-
term mortality rates following admission with a new heart attack and short-term mortality rates following admission with a new stroke. It also examines how these death rates vary across the country and explores factors that may be associated with better or worse odds of survival, including age, sex and the types of care that patients receive.
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The Heart and Stroke Foundation is out with a report that forecasts an alarming increase in obesity in Canada,especially among children.

It says more can be done to tackle this problem, including a series of tax measures. They would include taxing unhealthy foods, while dropping taxes on healthy items as well as on sports and exercise equipment.

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