Here’s what’s making health news this morning: St. Jude Wiring Problem Persists (WSJ): The rate of a key failure in the Riata-series leads — wires that connect a defibrillator to the heart — rose 17% from the last company report... 

iStockphoto The ability to speak two languages can make bilingual people better able to pay attention than those who can only speak one language, a new study suggests. Scientists have long suspected that some enhanced mental abilities might be tied to... 

iStockphoto In the largest imaging study of the adolescent brain ever conducted — involving 1,896 14-year-olds — scientists report in Nature Neuroscience that some teenagers may be more inclined to experiment with drugs and alcohol, simply... 

Patients with soft-tissue sarcoma, a rare cancer that starts in the body’s muscle or connective tissues, now have a new treatment option. The FDA late yesterday approved GlaxoSmithKline’s drug Votrient for use in patients with soft-tissue sarcoma,... 

Associated Press Lessons for health care here? Searching for ways to reduce medical errors and keep patients safe? Look up. That’s the idea of some patient-safety experts, who today will discuss the formation of an independent patient-safety agency... 

iStockphoto Here’s what’s making health news this morning: U.S. Defends Safety of Nation’s Beef (WSJ): Officials said the testing regimen for mad cow disease is effective and that a diseased cow found in California was never a threat... 

iStockphoto Nearly two out of three Americans don’t follow their doctor’s orders properly when taking prescription drugs, neglecting to take their medications or seeking out pills that weren’t intended for them, according to new research . The... 

Pressure is growing on researchers to do a better job of communicating the results of clinical trials to the volunteers who participated. As WSJ’s Informed Patient reports , groups like the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research are stepping... 

Here’s what’s making news this morning: Advocacy groups are finding patients for drug trials. (WSJ).  The matchmaking comes as shortages of volunteers have slowed trials of new treatments for cancer and other diseases. Researchers identify... 

iStockphoto When consumers are offered something for nothing, they generally want to pay anyway. That’s according to a new study and a handful of businesses that say “pay-what-you-want” options for products often drive customers to...