(November 20, 2009 - Insidermedicine)

From Houston - A genetic sonogram significantly strengthens Down syndrome detection when used along with typical non-invasive testing, according to research published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology. Studying over 8,000 pregnant women, researchers found that ultrasound alone had a 69% detection rate of Down syndrome. However, ultrasound combined with non-invasive biochemical screening resulted in a 98% detection rate as well as a decrease in the number of false positive tests results.

From Los Angeles -  Patients with unresectable liver cancer benefit the most from triple-drug transcatheter arterial chemoemobilization (TACE)  followed with liver transplantation. Researchers studied 124 patients with unresectable liver cancer; 28 of whom underwent triple drug TACE and liver transplant and 96 who only underwent triple drug TACE. Median survival in the liver transplant group was 97 months more than those who underwent triple drug TACE alone. This research was published in the American Journal of Roentgenology.

And finally, from Baltimore - Children with asthma may see their symptoms worsen if they have a depressed mother, according to research presented in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology. Researchers studied 262 mothers of children with asthma. They found that children whose mothers were depressed had more frequent asthma symptoms over 6 months than those whose mothers were not depressed.