HEALTH

The government-run health insurance option favored by President Barack Obama is not essential to a healthcare overhaul as long as the final measure boosts competition, a top U.S. health official said on Sunday.

Just weeks after quitting smoking, women show major reductions in several markers of inflammation associated with heart disease risk, new research shows.

Older adults in developing countries who regularly eat fish seem to have a lower risk of dementia, a new study suggests.

A slight difference in a person's genetic code could determine whether they respond to a grueling round of treatment for hepatitis C infection or not, U.S. researchers said on Sunday.

Two existing drugs used to treat osteoporosis may be effective in killing influenza viruses, including the new H1N1 swine flu and the H5N1 bird flu viruses, researchers in Hong Kong have found.

A study published last year suggested that bipolar disorder may be over diagnosed in people seeking mental health care. Now new findings shed light on which disorders many of these patients actually have.

Although seizures are more likely in people with Alzheimer disease (AD) than in the general population, they are not a common feature of AD, new research indicates.

Aging white adults appear to have a greater risk of developing the heart rhythm disorder atrial fibrillation than their black peers, new research suggests.

Retired police officer Bob Ritz has health insurance that covers his medical and dental care in the United States.

As much of the most vocal debate over the U.S. health reform bill focuses on non-existent

Pregnant women who underwent female genital cutting as girls are at increased risk of needing an emergency Cesarean section or suffering serious tears during childbirth, a new study finds.

A year after receiving gene therapy for a condition that causes total blindness by age 30, three people continue to see better and one has improved enough

The U.S. government finalized rules on Wednesday meant to make it easier for seriously ill patients to gain access to unapproved medicines when they have run out of other options.

Improvements in cancer screening and better treatments have resulted in steady declines in cancer death rates over the past three decades, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

Inside an aging sports arena, where rows of dental chairs and a hospital smell have replaced the former Los Angeles Lakers basketball court, thousands of Americans are seeking free healthcare.

People under age 25 who take antidepressants have a higher risk of suicide, but adults older than that do not, an analysis by U.S. Food and Drug Administration researchers released on Tuesday showed.

The widow of a New York City school administrator who became the first person in the city to die of H1N1 flu said on Tuesday she planned to file a $40 million wrongful death lawsuit against the city.

Taking aspirin not only can help keep colon cancer from coming back, but it also can lower the risk of dying from the disease, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

The rate of severe obesity among U.S. children and teenagers more than tripled over the past three decades, a new study finds.

An inadequate amount of nightly sleep on a recurring basis, coupled with a sedentary lifestyle and overeating, may fuel the development of diabetes, results of a new study hint.

President Barack Obama assailed insurance companies on Tuesday as he sought to counter an onslaught of conservative opposition to a U.S. healthcare overhaul at a town hall meeting that drew protests outside.

Adults and children who are severely ill with H1N1 flu or at high risk of complications should be treated with antivirals like Tamiflu, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

Receiving a diagnosis of breast cancer is a fear shared by millions of women. It doesn't matter their age, race, ethnicity, or other factors; this is something all women have in common.

An experimental drug developed by scientists in China appears to be effective in killing roundworms, a parasite that lurks in the intestines and which affects nearly two billion people in tropical countries.

Want to take health care reform into your own hands? Don't smoke, lose weight, get exercise, and stick to a good diet, says a new study.

Patients with potentially deadly drug-resistant bacteria that they pick up in the hospital often carry the infection to home health care settings after hospital discharge, and transmission occurs in about one fifth of household contacts, according to a report published today.

A woman with a mother or sister with breast cancer should

Cancer survivors who got radiation treatments as children have nearly twice the risk of developing diabetes as adults, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

Liberal religious groups announced on Monday they are teaming up with President Barack Obama in a national campaign to counter the surprisingly vehement