Simple Test To Identify MRSA In Wounds Could Quickly Diagnose The Superbug And Help Prevent Spread
The test, developed at the University of Edinburgh in collaboration with NHS Lothian, works by taking swabs from a wound or sores. These are then analysed using a strip with electrical sensors that can detect MRSA. Researchers currently process the swab samples in the laboratory to increase the amount of bacteria present before testing them. They hope to avoid the need for this in the future by improving the strip's sensitivity. Improving the strip's sensitivity would enable scientists to develop a test that could be used outside the laboratory, for example in GP practices or people's homes.
Future Skin Cancer Risk Revealed By UV Photographs Of 12-Year-olds
Look at a middle school assembly - during their lifetime one in 50 of these kids will develop melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer that kills 48, 000 people every year, worldwide. Now look at these kids again - which are at highest risk? You can't tell, but a study recently published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology shows that UV photography might provide important information about risk, not visible to the naked eye. The amount of sun damage in UV photographs taken of a large cohort of 12-year-old's correlated with known melanoma risk factors including freckles, fair skin, red hair and light eye color.
Acne Medications May Soon Include Thyme
Herbal preparations of thyme could be more effective at treating skin acne than prescription creams, according to research presented at the Society for General Microbiology's Spring Conference in Dublin this week. Further clinical testing could lead to an effective, gentler treatment for the skin condition. Researchers from Leeds Metropolitan University tested the effect of thyme, marigold and myrrh tinctures on Propionibacterium acnes - the bacterium that causes acne by infecting skin pores and forming spots, which range from white heads through to puss-filled cysts.