MarfanLife.net | News blog

ScienceDaily: Common Blood Pressure Drug Treats Muscular Dystrophy In Mice
Researchers at Johns Hopkins have shown that a drug commonly used to lower blood pressure reverses muscle wasting in genetically engineered mice with Marfan syndrome and also prevents muscle degeneration in mice with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The results are reported online this week at Nature Medicine.

Blood-pressure drug could also treat muscle disease
A drug commonly used to lower blood pressure reverses muscle wasting in lab mice genetically engineered to develop either Marfan syndrome or Duchenne muscular dystrophy, according to new findings reported by researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Review: In Search of the Blues by Marybeth Hamilton |Guardian Unlimited Books
(The story is that [Robert Johnson] was poisoned; an article in the British Medical Journal last year also posited Marfan’s syndrome - a connective tissue disorder, symptoms of which, such as spindly fingers and limbs, Johnson seemed to share.)

Non-disclosure of family history cited as court dismisses widower’s appeal
The Newfoundland Supreme Court of Appeal has ruled against a man whose wife and newborn child died a decade ago, in part because his wife did not disclose her family health history to a physician.

Enjoying the height of camaraderie - The Boston Globe
Drop by the Riverbend Lounge at the Boston Marriott Newton hotel on the first Friday night of the month and you’re in for a few double-takes — and maybe some feelings of inferiority.
For a quarter-century, the lounge has hosted the monthly gatherings of the Boston Beanstalks, a group of about 100 or so tall people (the minimum height is 5 feet 10 inches for women, 6-foot-2 for men) from Eastern Massachusetts.

Coroner: U. T. Basketball Player Suffered from Marfan’s Syndrome
(Toledo, OH) — The Lucas County Coroner said Thursday that a University of Toledo basketball player who collapsed and died during practice in October 2006, had genetic defect in the aorata.

Nairobi-Kenya | Pain and agony of fighting rare heart disorder
When she extends her hand for a handshake one hesitates to respond.

Not because you do not want to shake her hand but for fear of hurting her.

Her bone structure is frail, giving her body an almost skeletal appearance. Her legs are long and thin, her arms are equally long.

Hampton Union Community News: A balancing act
Sara Gangai of Hampton has something in common with Abraham Lincoln, the composer Rachmaninoff and Mary Queen of Scots. Gangai has a genetic disorder called Marfan syndrome.

The Seriousness Of Sudden Death In Athletes
- The thought of an athlete dropping dead in the midst of a sporting event strikes fear in the heart of all sports enthusiasts.

We have all heard the stories of athletes such as famed college basketball star Hank Gathers who died during at the peak of his athletic career. The question is were there any warning signs or was there something that could have been done to prevent this senseless death?

Welcome To The Tony B Fund
Tony has recently undergone emergency open heart surgery to replace his ascending aorta. He had been working in construction and was not offered health insurance, hence his extreme medical expenses are not covered. Therefore, he could use all the help he can get right now. Although Tony has not publicized his personal ordeal, we feel it’s important to make others aware of his situation.

[I found this website while surfing My Space. Thought people might want to check it out. -Jeanette]