Rob Stein

FDA Backs Off On Regulation Of Fecal Transplants

Rob Stein — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:08:00 +0000

Federal regulators are dropping plans to tightly control a procedure that is becoming increasingly popular for treating people stricken by life-threatening infections of the digestive system.

The Food and Drug Administration says the agency will exercise enforcement discretion and no longer require doctors to get the agency's approval before using "fecal microbiota for transplantation."

The procedure is being used to treat people suffering from infection with the bacterium Clostridium difficile, or C. diff.

Disinfect All ICU Patients To Reduce 'Superbug' Infections

Rob Stein — Wed, 29 May 2013 21:08:00 +0000

Hospitals can sharply reduce the spread of the drug-resistant bacteria in their intensive care units by decontaminating all patients rather than screening them and focusing only on those found to be infected already, researchers reported Wednesday.

A study involving more than 74,000 patients in 74 intensive care units nationwide found that cleaning all ICU patients with a special soap and ointment reduced all infections, including MRSA, by 44 percent. For the patients in group that got disinfected no matter what, there were 3.6 infections per 1,000 days in the hospital.

Research Reveals Yeasty Beasts Living On Our Skin

Rob Stein — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:18:00 +0000

Scientists have completed an unusual survey: a census of the fungi that inhabit different places on our skin. It's part of a big scientific push to better understand the microbes that live in and on our bodies.

"This is the first study of our fungi, which are yeast and other molds that live on the human body," says Julie Segre, of the National Human Genome Research Institute, who led the survey.

Trillions of microbes live everywhere in and on our bodies. Most of these viruses, bacteria and other microorganisms are harmless.

Scientists Clone Human Embryos To Make Stem Cells

Rob Stein — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:23:00 +0000

Scientists say they have, for the first time, cloned human embryos capable of producing embryonic stem cells.

The accomplishment is a long-sought step toward harnessing the potential power of embryonic stem cells to treat many human diseases. But the work also raises a host of ethical concerns.

"This is a huge scientific advance," said Dr. George Daley, a Harvard stem cell scientist who wasn't involved in the work.

Parents' Saliva On Pacifiers Could Ward Off Baby's Allergies

Rob Stein — Mon, 06 May 2013 07:43:00 +0000

That word "microbiome" — describing the collection of bacteria that live in and on our bodies — keeps popping up. This time, researchers say that children whose parents clean their pacifiers by sucking them might be less likely to develop allergic conditions because of how their parents' saliva changes their microbiomes.

That's the word from a small study of 184 Swedish babies published in this week's issue of the journal Pediatrics.