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Scientists Report Original Of Malaria
Researchers have identified what they believe is the original of malignant malaria: a parasite found in chimpanzees in equatorial Africa.

Reform Debate Circles Back To Costs, And How To Pay For Them
In the White House"s pitches for health care reform, controlling costs has replaced universal coverage as the leading imperative to overhaul the system. A top White House economist, Christina Romer, said in a public appearance Monday, "Good health care reform is good economic policy," the San Francisco Chronicle reports. "Fixing what"s wrong with our health care system is no longer a luxury we hope to achieve - it"s a necessity we cannot postpone any longer" (Abate, 6/9).
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World Cup Campaign To Build Centers To Provide HIV/AIDS Education, Other Services To At-Risk African Youth
Authorities in South Africa have begun construction of one of the 20 planned Football for Hope centers in Africa -- part of a 2010 World Cup campaign called "20 Centers for 2010" aimed at reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, poverty and crime in local communities -- the AP/Google.com reports. The center under construction in South Africa"s Khayelitsha township will include a soccer field, community center and after-school programs that will focus on sex education and HIV/AIDS education. The International Federation of Football Association, or FIFA, in alliance with Streetfootballworld, a network of development groups, is providing the campaign with $10 million in funding. Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Namibia, Rwanda and other African countries will be home to the remaining 19 centers.According to FIFA President Joseph Blatter, the campaign "emphasizes the power of football far beyond the boundaries of the pitch." He added that the centers will "provide a platform for communities to address social issues such as children"s rights, education, health, HIV/AIDS prevention and will leave a legacy for Africa that will last long after the final whistle of the 2010 FIFA World Cup has been blown." Helen Zille, premier of the Western Cape Province, said construction of the center in the township "shows what we can do when we focus on getting things right rather than concentrating on what"s wrong," adding that she hopes the center is successful with its HIV/AIDS education efforts. The center will be run by Grassroots Soccer, an HIV/AIDS education organization that uses the sport to educate youth. Nocawe Tyali, a life-skills and football teacher who works with teenagers, said the new center will give young people an alternative to high-risk behaviors and enable the area to offer more youth football programs that include an HIV/AIDS prevention message (Nullis, AP/Google.com, 5/25).
Health Insurance

BUPA Launches Breakthrough Treatment For Back And Knee Pain

New research reveals around 22 million people suffered back pain in the last year - just under half of all UK adults (45 percent)[1]. More than one in four UK adults - nearly 13 million people - suffered from knee pain in the last year. Over 80 percent of the people with back or knee pain still suffer some pain after undergoing treatment recommended by a healthcare professional. Bupa is making APOS Treatment for knee and lower back pain available in the UK for the first time. The breakthrough treatment can eliminate the need for prescription pain relief for seven out of 10 people[2]. The APOS Treatment (which stands for All Phases of Step Cycle) has two key elements: The APOS WalkrightTM, high-tech footwear which is individually adjusted to address patients" specific pain needs, and a six-month programme of care that provides ongoing clinical and computerised assessment of the patient"s walking pattern and readjustments as needs change. The APOS Treatment combines two simple principles: realigning the body as it walks and introducing a mild instability, encouraging retraining of the joints. The APOS Treatment can reduce the intensity of knee pain by an average of 66 percent after just eight weeks[3] and has a high success rate - 86 percent of people who have experienced the APOS Treatment would recommend it to a friend or relative[4]. The launch could be a major breakthrough for around 22 million back and 13 million knee pain sufferers in the UK, more than 60 percent of whom have suffered pain for more than a year (64 percent back, 61 percent knee).[5] Leading physician Dr Richard Budgett, said: "APOS combines two widely-recognised and applied medical principles into one unique new treatment. The concept is simple and could provide an effective new way to treat joint pain. It could become the foundation of non-surgical care for this type of pain." The new research also reveals that amongst the UK"s lower back and knee pain sufferers: - around a half of sufferers feel that treatment options are limited (54 percent back, 47 percent knee) - whether or not a treatment is non-surgical is an important factor in treatment selection for around eight in ten of those who have used/received some kind of treatment (82 percent back, 77 percent knee) - in the last year, around half of those who have taken any time off work due to their pain have taken a week or more off (49 percent back, 51 percent knee). The APOS Treatment was first invented in Israel in 2005 at the acclaimed Assaf Harofeh Medical Centre. Since then, 12,000 people have undergone the APOS Treatment. Patients interested in the APOS Treatment will undergo a free hour-and-a-half assessment at a Bupa centre to see whether it is suitable for them. This includes an in-depth consultation with a clinician and a computerised gait analysis. If the APOS Treatment is appropriate, patients will receive a six-month programme of care, including a series of follow-up assessments with a clinician, where the Walkrights are adjusted to meet their changing pain needs, as well as on-call telephone support from the Bupa team. APOS Treatment is covered by Bupa health insurance. The cost of APOS Treatment is ÷£2,925 when paid up front or ÷£3,250 when spread over six-months: an initial payment of ÷£1,750 followed by five monthly payments of ÷£300. Dr Peter Mace, Bupa"s assistant medical director said: "Existing treatments for knee and back pain may need long-term medication, surgical intervention with the risk of complications and exercise regimes which may patients may find difficult to sustain. Research shows that often these treatments are not effective at relieving chronic pain. APOS Treatment takes a different approach and can provide a long-term, sustainable solution, with less need for long term medication and surgery. The added benefit for the patient is that this treatment is easy to fit into everyday life." Dr Amit Mor, chairman and co-founder of APOS, said: "People are best placed to treat their joint problems if they have good alignment and feel less pain, features which APOS provides." References [1] Research Now - online survey of a representative sample of 4,008 UK adults (aged 16 +) between 4th and 11th June 2009. [2] Communications Centre of the Brandman Institute in Tel Aviv. Telephone interviews conducted in March, 2008 among 200 people, aged 35 +,using the APOS Treatment. Seventy percent of those taking prescription pain relief before their APOS Treatment reported no longer needing pain relief afterwards. Eighty percent of the sample were being treated with APOS for knee pain, and 20 percent for back pain. [3] for this emerging evidence is: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center. Zerifin, Israel. A medical study of 57 people with knee osteoarthritis was carried out in Israel between September 2005 and February 2006. The study has been registered with http://www.clinicaltrials.gov http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/record/NCT00457132 [4] As footnote 2 - above [5] As footnote 1 above BUPA


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