FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- About one-third of seniors still living on their own take a companion -- usually a spouse or other family member -- to their routine doctor's office visits, researchers report.

(HealthDay News) -- Hip arthritis can cause a lot of pain and discomfort, but may not need surgery if discovered in its early stages.

(HealthDay News) -- Lifting weights and other forms of strength training can offer a host of health rewards for people 65 and older, experts say.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) may sometimes have a genetic component, a team of German researchers reports.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Testing patients for metal hypersensitivity before they receive joint or bone implants helps identify those at increased risk for complications due to metal hypersensitivity, a new study shows.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Spending long hours at your desk may boost your work productivity, but it can harm your health, an expert warns.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Diagnosing cancer is more difficult in certain groups of patients, according to a British study.

THURSDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthDay News) Compared to other antipsychotic drugs, haloperidol (Haldol) raises the risk of death in elderly patients with dementia, a new study finds.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Overweight or obese people with chronic kidney disease may suffer further kidney damage if they use certain weight-loss methods, a new study warns.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- New research has identified more than 50 genes that can predict age-related macular degeneration, one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Many young children from low-income families drink too much juice, new research shows.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Young adult black Americans, especially those with higher levels of education, are much less likely than their white counterparts to seek mental health services, a new study finds.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- A new study finds that people with prediabetes are no more likely to have a type of nerve damage called small fiber polyneuropathy than healthy people, a finding that contradicts two decades of medical reports.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- About 70 percent of people hold their cellphone to the ear on the same side as their dominant hand, a new study finds.

THURSDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthDay News) -- Hormonal contraceptives appear to thwart pregnancy just as well in overweight and obese women as those of normal weight despite markedly lower pregnancy-prevention hormone levels among heavier females, a group of reproductive experts said.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Fewer people opted for potentially lifesaving colonoscopies to screen for colon cancer during the recent economic recession, largely because they couldn't afford to pay high out-of-pocket costs often associated with this test, new research finds.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- People with an intense fear of spiders perceive the creatures to be larger than they actually are, a new study has found.

FRIDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has expanded approval for a breath test that screens for a common ulcer-causing germ, to include children aged 3 years to 17.