(June 7, 2010 - Insidermedicine)

From Boston – According to a report published in the journal Pediatrics, smoke free air laws appear to protect children from secondhand smoke. Researchers studied cotinine levels in nearly 12,000 non smoking children, finding that those living in areas that had laws promoting smoke free public places had 39% less cotinine in their blood.

From Ohio – The presence of HPV in tumors is the most important predictor of throat cancer survival, according to a report published in the New England Journal of Medicine.  Researchers studied over 300 throat cancer cases, finding that after three years of treatment, 82% of patients with HPV in their tumors were still alive, compared with only 57% of patients whose tumors did not have the virus.

And finally, from California – According to a report published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, older veterans who suffer PTSD are also at increased risk of dementia. Studying over 180,000 veterans over 55 years old, researchers found that veterans with PTSD were at 11% increased risk of also developing dementia.