In this issue:

A new technique for elbow fracture surgery

The Wrightington Hospital in Wigan has been at the forefront of pioneering medical research for decades.

Banishing the phantom menace

Imagine having feeling in a part of your body that is no longer physically there. Now imagine that not only do you have feeling there, but also severe pain and discomfort.

Countering the deadly threat of meningitis

An Action Medical Research team at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford has been looking at a bacterial disease which is the leading cause of meningitis and infection in newborn babies. It is also known to be a cause of pre-term delivery, stillbirths and late miscarriages.

Craniosynostosis

An Action Medical Research project helping babies with a potentially devastating condition called craniosynostosis.

Genetic discovery offers hope to HSP sufferers

The hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) are a diverse group of conditions that involve degeneration of the nerves in the spinal cord and are characterised by progressive weakness and stiffening in the lower limbs.

Helping stroke patients to recover

Each year in the UK around 130,000 people suffer a stroke and often lose the ability to walk and use their hands.

Hip replacement surgery

Thousands of people across the UK suffer from arthritis, and when it affects the hip joint it can cause severe and often constant pain, stiffness and loss of mobility.

Motor neurone disease — helping the body to help itself

Motor neurone disease (MND) is a progressive disorder of the central nervous system, which affects around 5,000 people in the UK.

My story: Living with dyspraxia

How a ‘hidden’ disability can make school life a misery for some youngsters

New antibody can track operation’s success

Many people have one leg longer than the other. It’s usually trouble-free but in extreme circumstances it can cause a difference of as much as 12 inches or more.

Osteoporosis: why prevention is the best cure

An Action Medical Research project in Manchester has been looking at the effects of calcium and exercise on bone density in children and how the skeleton develops.

Retraining the brain

Workers who make their living through their skill in performing certain types of movement can suffer from involuntary muscle spasms of the hand.

Understanding what triggers migraine

Migraine is as old as human history and clear descriptions of it can be recognised in Babylonian manuscripts dating back to 3000 BC.