Diagnostics
The next two weeks of a health reform fight may prove pivotal for President Barack Obama"s image and his ability to use his popularity to get things done, The Washington Post reports.
Australia"s general practices stand ready to work with Government to begin vaccinating vulnerable Australians against HINI (Swine Flu) as soon as a vaccine becomes available, the AMA said today.
There are 1.8 million disabled Americans who wait two-years to enroll in Medicare. Many say that waiting period can be devastating.
Broadcasting legend Larry King turns the tables to talk about himself in his new autobiography, "My Remarkable Journey," but doesn"t mention the chronic disease he"s lived with for nearly fifteen years: type 2 diabetes. In an interview with Diabetes Forecast, the consumer magazine of the American Diabetes Association, King discusses his diabetes publicly for the first time, and explains how his health, lifestyle, and personality influence one another.
Eurand N.V. (NASDAQ: EURX), a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops enhanced pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products based on its proprietary pharmaceutical technologies, announced that the Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board (MEB) informed the Company that the Decentralized Procedure (DCP) for registration of Paracetamol 250 and 500 mg Orodispersible Tablets (ODT) in several EU countries has been successfully completed.
More people would benefit and it would be more cost effective if HIV treatment with antivirals started earlier in countries like South Africa where medical res are limited, said researchers.
Diabetes UK is looking for people with diabetes to share their experiences of supported self-management to help with our campaign for World Diabetes Day (14 November).
First Minister Rhodri Morgan announced (date) that almost ÷£30 million of funding has been secured for phase two of the Institute of Life Science at Swansea University, with the promise of up to 650 jobs.
The NPHS influenza surveillance scheme, which records reports of diagnoses of flu from more than 300 GP practices across Wales, shows low but increasing levels of influenza activity across Wales. Further detail can be found on the NPHS website: click here.
Why do animals lose their appetites when sick? Should this inform our
Most women surgeons would choose their career again, although many would favor more options for part-time or other alternative work schedules, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
In a first of its kind study, Scientific American cut through the marketing messages to take a hard look at what countries across the globe are doing to bolster biotech programs within their borders. Many rankings compare Europe, Asia, and the US -- the Scientific American Worldview: A Global Biotechnology Perspective digs deeper, examining all the elements that impact overall biotech innovation. You might be surprised by some of the results.
David Moher, from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute; University of
California and Arizona researchers have identified a gene variant that carries nearly twice the risk of developing an increasingly common type of blood cancer, according to a study published online by the science journal Nature Genetics.
A community-based Cancer Council advocacy campaign has motivated 10,000 Australians to call for expansion of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, amid new research showing 93 per cent of bowel cancer patients can survive if diagnosed early.
TCGRx (TCG), an industry leader in automation and design services for pharmacy markets across the U.S., announced today the launch of the C-Ray Electronic Pill Counter in the retail pharmacy market.
Aggressive forms of cancer are often driven by the abnormal over-expression of cancer-promoting genes, also known as oncogenes.
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy"s (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a fast and efficient way to determine the structure of proteins, shortening a process that often takes years into a matter of days.
Research carried out at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has resulted in a promising approach to help treat Alzheimer"s disease in a significant proportion of the population that suffers from a particularly rapid development of this disease.
UK bioscience has received a major boost following the announcement of 16 new fellowships by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) including the first ever Diamond Fellowship, so named because the post will be based at the new Research Complex at Harwell, adjacent to the Diamond Light in Oxfordshire - the UK national synchrotron facility.
A UK-wide government review has concluded that some asylum seekers whose claims have been refused but who cannot return home should not be denied free NHS treatment. Commenting on the announcement, Dr Vivienne Nathanson, Head of Science and Ethics at the BMA, said:
A new Bachelor of Occupational Health and Safety Science that offers career opportunities in a diverse range of workplaces, from mines to movie sets, will be on show at UQ"s St Lucia Open Day (August 2).
University of Queensland researchers will use a $2.5 million grant to help people who have suffered an acquired brain injury communicate with the world.
Pharmalucence, Inc., a leading supplier of radiopharmaceutical products, announced that it received approval from the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Generic Drugs for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) to manufacture and market its Kit for the Preparation of Technetium Tc-99m Sestamibi Injection. The FDA has determined that Pharmalucence"s Sestamibi Kit is therapeutically equivalent to Cardiolite® 1, an imaging agent used in evaluating myocardial function and to detect coronary artery disease by localizing myocardial ischemia and infarction. The agent is also for use in breast imaging as a second line diagnostic after mammography to assist in the evaluation of breast lesions.
Debiopharm Group (Debiopharm), a Swiss-based global biopharmaceutical group of companies with a focus on the development of prescription drugs that target unmet medical needs, announced that the Swiss agency for therapeutic products, Swissmedic, has issued a marketing authorisation for Moapar(R) 11.25mg, the first 3-month injectable formulation, prescribed for a reversible reduction of serum testosterone to the level of castration in adult men suffering from sexual deviations. Developed by Debiopharm, Moapar(R) contains a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist analogue.
The UK needs a national plan for dementia research or the country will pay the price, the UK"s top scientists are warning today.
Two large US studies published in a leading journal this month support the already substantial body of evidence that shows choosing to follow a
Mental health charity Mind"s Ipswich shop is launching "Piece of Mind" next Monday (27 July), a range of eco-friendly bags designed and made by volunteers at the shop, many of whom have direct experience of mental distress, using items donated to the shop as raw materials.
Reproductive health experts were "taken aback" by a recent study that found that the withdrawal method is nearly as effective as male condoms in preventing pregnancy, the New York Times reports. The paper -- published in the June issue of the journal Contraception -- found that 4% of couples will become pregnant over a one-year period if they consistently use the withdrawal method, compared with about 2% of couples that consistently use condoms. According to the study"s authors, a more significant finding was that the rate of "typical use" for withdrawal leads to pregnancy 18% of the time, compared with 17% of the time for typical use of condoms. They wrote in the study that "it is unfortunate that some couples do not realize they are substantially reducing their risk of pregnancy when using withdrawal, as these misperceptions may cause unnecessary levels of anxiety. More speculatively, if more people realized that correct and consistent use of withdrawal substantially reduced the risk of pregnancy, they might use it more effectively." Although the authors said the goal of the paper was to encourage discussion, some experts are concerned that spreading a message that withdrawal is effective could lead young people to have unprotected sex, potentially exposing themselves to sexually transmitted infections that can be prevented through condom use, the Times reports. Melissa Gilliam, chief of family planning and contraceptive research at the University of Chicago"s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a board member of the Guttmacher Institute, said the study"s data "don"t necessarily translate to youth today." She added, "In terms of a reliable method used over and over again, the risk of failure is quite high."Rachel Jones, the lead author of the study and a senior research associate at Guttmacher, said that dismissing the withdrawal method as a "legitimate" form of contraception is "counterproductive for the prevention of pregnancy and also discourages academic inquiry into this frequently used and reasonably effective method." She also said that health educators and providers "should discuss withdrawal as a legitimate, if slightly less effective, contraceptive method in the same way they do condoms and diaphragms." She noted that "most women have used withdrawal at some point in their lives."The study"s authors decided to examine the issue after noticing that many researchers and providers "just kind of dismiss withdrawal and don"t seem to realize that it can prevent pregnancy," according to Jones. She added, "Most people seem to be under the impression that you might as well do nothing." Martha Kempner, vice president for information and communications at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, said the results of the study have "made some classroom teachers nervous to give out the truth in this instance, but we do have to tell the truth." She added, "People, kids in particular, they"re using it. It is better than nothing, and it is always available" (Belluck, New York Times, 7/21).
A "new set of antiabortion actors" who are "anti-war, anti-capital punishment, pro-environment "pro-lifers"" have "emerged as the face of a new and improved antiabortion movement," Salon columnist Frances Kissling writes. Although these advocates supported President Obama in the 2008 election, they "suffer from the same lack of understanding of women"s nature and identity as do old-line anti-abortionists," Kissling writes. She notes that this group has "already decided that a political effort to make abortion illegal is hopeless, which helps the pro-choice cause." According to Kissling, "Taking legality off the table" increases the prospects for "rational public discourse about all the factors at play in women"s decisions not to continue pregnancy and not to become mothers," but "[w]e are ... far from common ground between the new anti-abortionists and the pro-choice advocates."Members of this new group believe that data suggesting that many women decide to have abortions for financial reasons prove that "better economic support" for pregnant women "will result in more continued pregnancies and more women embracing motherhood," Kissling writes. In addition, they "assert that if adoption policies were friendlier," more women would choose adoption over abortion, according to Kissling. "But facts have little place in their strategy," as the policies they support "are already in place in much of Europe," and "few women who face unintended pregnancies in those countries opt out of abortion," Kissling writes. She adds, "Something much deeper influences a woman"s decision about what to do when she is pregnant and does not want to become a mother -- and the new anti-choicers don"t seem to have a clue about what this might be." For this group, "the outcome [of pregnancy] -- the new person -- is obviously so much more valuable than whatever short-term loss or pain the women might experience," Kissling writes. Therefore, they believe it is "not asking much of a woman who faces an unwanted, difficult or unintended pregnancy to shift the plan she had for this time in her life and continue the pregnancy," according to Kissling.Kissling lists four "positions taken by the new antiabortionists [that] illuminate this flawed thinking." The first is "[d]enying the "need" for abortion," she writes. Secondly, their "same sense of pregnancy as no big deal influences the new antiabortionists" unwillingness to embrace contraception," Kissling says. She adds that "[i]f we really understood what it meant for women to consent to becoming mothers, we would want them to be able to meet their moral obligation to their own identity by avoiding becoming pregnant." The third position is an attempt to make "sex sacred," Kissling writes, adding that if "creating new life is sacred, then we want men and women to have the tools necessary to fulfill the obligation to create life responsibly and not create it when they cannot -- or choose not to -- bring it to fruition." The fourth position is "[r]edefining adoption," Kissling continues. She asks whether adoption is "now a process of finding children for needy parents," adding, "Might it not be more generous of us as a society to work harder to make it possible for women to keep their children if they so wish?"Kissling writes that the "challenge to the new antiabortionists" is whether "women"s perspectives on the meaning of pregnancy and motherhood will be considered in their project" or if "their ethical frame will remain focused on the fetus." She asks, "How many of these women"s decisions will the new antiabortionists be able to say "yes" to?" Kissling concludes, "So far it seems that it is far more than abortion that is a stumbling block to common ground" (Kissling, Salon, 7/20).
"The ad wars over the health care campaign are heating up once [again] this week," The New York Times reports. At a speech on Monday, Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee, released a party television ad "which its spokeswoman says will first be broadcast in Arkansas, North Dakota and Nevada." The ad "opens with a tiny infant, and spools out with a narrator"s voice saying: "They"ve loaned Barack Obama their future, without even knowing it. Trillions for rushed government bailouts and takeovers, banks, the auto industry." And then it continues, as children appear on the screen: "The biggest spending spree in our nation"s in history. And they"ll have to pay. The next big ticket item? A risky experiment with our health care. Barack Obama"s massive spending experiment hasn"t healed our economy. His new experiment risks their future and our health.""
The Connecticut legislature used its override in both chambers to undo seven vetoes by the governor, including one to cover most Connecticut residents, called SustiNet, The Hartford Courant reports: "Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney said that healthcare, "in many ways, has become a cloud of worry"" over much of society. SustiNet"s nine-member board of directors will study the issue (covering people and cost) for 17 months before giving its recommendations to the legislature in January 2011" (Keating, 7/20).
Nigeria on Monday signed on to receive a $100 million loan from the World Bank for malaria control activities, Leadership Nigeria reports. The states of Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano and Rivers will receive part of the funding for malaria control activities (Nduwugwe, 7/21).World Bank Country Director for Nigeria Onno Ruhl signed the agreement on behalf of the bank and Nigerian Finance Minister Sarki Muhtar signed on behalf of the federal government. Ruhl said the World Bank is "confident" in Nigeria"s ability to fight malaria, This Day writes. Ruhl pointed out that during President Barack Obama"s recent trip to Ghana, he "commended" Nigeria"s interfaith efforts for fighting malaria.
The Department of Health announced there would be an independent investigation into Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust and has proposed changes to legislation governing Foundation Trusts.
According to a recent paper published in the European Journal of Clinical Microbiological Infectious Diseases, a certain kind of honey can be an effective agent in topical wound care, particularly where antibiotic resistance is an issue. The irony is that this most exciting new treatment has been around since the dawn of history-honey was first used as a first aid treatment four thousand years ago in Ancient Egypt.
The hospitalization rate of patients admitted for treatment of hip, pelvis and other fractures associated with osteoporosis increased by 55 percent between 1995 and 2006, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
Genetic testing services have recently begun to be advertised directly to the patient, and the results of the consumers" response can affect public health, as well as the future adoption of pharmacogenetic/genomic testing, according to a position paper from the American College of Clinical Pharmacology (ACCP) to be published in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. The journal is published on behalf of the ACCP by SAGE.
Purdue University researchers have created magnetically responsive gold nanostars that may offer a new approach to biomedical imaging.
The anticipated National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) decision on the Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) for Nexavar® (sorafenib) for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been delayed, to allow consideration of the patient access scheme, Bayer Schering Pharma has agreed with the Department of Health.
Over 3,400 South Asians have taken part in the UK"s largest study into heart failure in ethnic minority populations. Researchers at the University of Birmingham in the UK have been carrying out the study, involving members of the Indian community. Patients, who are registered with GPs in the Birmingham area of the English Midlands, were screened at their local surgery, to discover how common, heart failure is among them.
Schizophrenia is a severely debilitating psychiatric disease that is thought to have its roots in the development of the nervous system; however, major breakthroughs linking its genetics to diagnosis, prognosis and treatment are still unrealized. Jill Morris, PhD assistant professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University"s Feinberg School of Medicine and a researcher in the Human Molecular Genetics Program of Children"s Memorial Research Center studies a gene that is involved in susceptibility to schizophrenia, Disc1 (Disrupted-In-Schizophrenia 1). Two recent publications by Morris and colleagues focus on the role of Disc1 in development, particularly the migration of cells to their proper location in the brain and subsequent differentiation into their intended fate. During development, cells need to properly migrate to their final destination in order to develop into the appropriate cell-type, integrate into the corresponding network of cells and function properly. Disruption of cell migration can lead to inappropriate cell development and function, resulting in disease.
The Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL) and SDI, a U.S. private-sector healthcare information company, announced the formation of the European Paediatric Influenza Analysis (EPIA) group, created to generate data needed to inform the decision process about paediatric influenza vaccination policy in individual European countries. Researchers from Denmark, England, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Scotland, Spain and Wales are participating; it is hoped that other countries will also join. EPIA was formed to address knowledge gaps highlighted in a recent European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) report that concluded that a key barrier to decision-making about paediatric flu vaccines is the lack of high-quality, European-specific data on disease burden, especially for young children. It is estimated by ECDC that at least 40,000 people die each year from influenza in the European Union (EU). EPIA will present the initial results from their research project at the 27th annual meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ESPID) in June.
Interim results of a study being conducted by scientists at the University of Liverpool suggest that children aged three years and younger, who are born to women taking the anti-epileptic drug sodium valproate whilst pregnant, are likely to have an IQ of six to nine points lower than average.
In the July issue of Biomaterials, published by Elsevier, researchers from the University of Central Florida (UCF) report on the first lab-grown motor nerves that are insulated and organized just like they are in the human body. The model system will drastically improve understanding of the causes of myelin-related conditions, such as diabetic neuropathy and later, possibly multiple sclerosis (MS). In addition, the model system will enable the discovery and testing of new drug therapies for these conditions.
Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), announced that its Endeavor drug-eluting stent (DES) is the first and only coronary stent to have received CE (Conformité Européene) Mark approval for treating patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), which includes unstable angina and acute myocardial infarction (AMI), commonly known as heart attack.
Amoxicillin - better known by brand names such as Amoxil, Dispermox, Trimox, and Alphamox - is an antibiotic drug in the penicillin group that fights bacteria and bacterial infections.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tekturna HCT((R)) (aliskiren and hydrochlorothiazide) tablets as initial therapy for patients who are likely to need multiple drugs to achieve their blood pressure goals. Tekturna HCT is a single-pill combination of Tekturna((R)) (aliskiren), the first and only approved direct renin inhibitor, and the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), one of the most commonly-used high blood pressure medications.
An exploratory study to be published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, has shown that women going into early preterm labour (before 34 weeks gestation) have low-levels of progesterone in their saliva as early as 24 weeks, and that moreover, these levels fail to rise during pregnancy in the normal way. This offers the possibility of developing a simple, non-invasive test to identify women at increased risk of delivering early.
Registered nurses and hospital workers who provide care at hospitals owned by Tenet Healthcare Corporation organized an unprecedented national protest against attempts to cut their access to sick leave.
The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and our landmark 2007 AICR/WCRF expert report, Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective, have been drawn into a controversy over the link between processed meat and cancer risk.
Five centrist House Democrats, led by antiabortion-rights Rep. Tim Ryan (Ohio), on Tuesday issued a proposal that would neither require nor ban private insurers from covering abortion services as long as federal dollars are not used, the Washington Post"s "Capitol Briefing" reports. In a letter sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Ryan and Reps. Dale Kildee (Mich.), James Langevin (R.I.), Artur Davis (Ala.) and Kendrick Meek (Fla.) said that their proposal "maintains the current status quo in the private market" and would not "preempt constitutionally permissible" state restrictions related to abortion, such as parental notification laws. The representatives called their proposal a "common ground solution." Current federal law prohibits the use of federal Medicaid funds for abortion services in nearly all circumstances. The lawmakers said that they are "increasingly concerned about potential roadblocks around the issue of abortion" in the health reform debate in Congress. According to "Capitol Briefing," antiabortion-rights Democrats are concerned that health reform legislation could lead to indirect federal funding of abortion services through private insurers participating in a proposed health insurance exchange (Eggen, "Capitol Briefing," Washington Post, 7/21). In the letter, the representatives said that they would like to include language in the final health reform bill "that makes clear that no insurance company will be required to pay for an abortion except in extraordinary circumstances." In addition, insurance providers would not be prohibited from paying for abortion services "so long as health insurance plans offered in the exchange that choose to provide abortion coverage pay for those services with funds that are separate and distinct from any federal subsidies," the letter said. Ryan said he hopes the proposal will be introduced in committee on Wednesday as an amendment (Smith, Politico, 7/21).House Members Step Up Efforts To Exclude Abortion CoverageMeanwhile, antiabortion-rights House members are intensifying their efforts to exclude abortion coverage from the chamber"s health reform bill (HR 3200), which they said includes a "hidden mandate" that would allow federal money to cover the procedure, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports. Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) said that he plans to join other antiabortion-rights House members at a news conference on Wednesday to criticize the legislation. Stupak helped draft a June 25 letter to Pelosi saying that he and 19 other Democrats would not support any health reform bill "unless it explicitly excludes abortion from the scope of any government-defined or subsidized health insurance plan." The bill does not mention abortion, which supporters say means that the legislation is neutral on the issue (Alonso-Zaldivar, AP/Houston Chronicle, 7/22).Antiabortion-Rights Coalition Launches CampaignA coalition of antiabortion-rights groups this week is launching a three-week campaign aimed at excluding abortion coverage from health reform legislation, Politico reports. The coalition includes James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family; Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council; Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention; David Bereit of 40 Days for Life; and Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life. Yoest said AUL intends to send a letter to President Obama on Thursday citing its "belief that the bills are intended to include abortion."Laurie Rubiner, vice president for public policy and advocacy at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said that abortion is "not mandated any more than any other service or procedure in health reform." She added that excluding abortion coverage could result in women losing the coverage they currently have under private plans. The abortion-rights opponents" demand to exclude abortion coverage "violates the first principle of health care reform, which is: Don"t make people worse off under health care reform than they are today," Rubiner said (Smith, Politico, 7/22).
The medical, legal and interpersonal processes involved with a surrogate birth have changed significantly since the controversial "Baby M" case two decades ago, the New York Times reports. In the case, the surrogate was the infant"s biological mother and unsuccessfully sought custody of the child after birth. The Times reports that the legal proceedings in the case helped reinforce the validity of surrogacy contracts, which are now standard practice.Most couples today use a gestational surrogate -- meaning that they have no genetic link to the woman carrying the fetus -- and some choose to maintain friendships with the surrogate after birth. According to the Times, people might choose gestational surrogacy if the woman lacks a uterus, has a malformed uterus, must take medication incompatible with pregnancy, or has had repeated miscarriages or failures at in vitro pregnancies. Male couples or single men might also use this option.Legal protections have strengthened since the Baby M case, although surrogacy remains illegal in some states. State laws also vary in the steps required to ensure that the parents" names, rather than the surrogate"s, are on the child"s birth certificate.Despite an increase in popularity, surrogacy remains "fraught with controversy" over criticisms that compensation to surrogates amounts to "baby selling" and exploitation of low-income women, according to the Times. However, surrogacy advocates say that most women who choose to become surrogates have altruistic motives. Surrogates typically receive between $15,000 and $20,000 as compensation for carrying the pregnancy and undergoing hormonal preparations. The Times reports that reputable agencies and lawyers who specialize in surrogacy help guard against exploitation and spurious motives for seeking a surrogate pregnancy. Prospective surrogates and parents typically undergo psychological screening and legal guidance, and most lawyers require that surrogates meet certain age and health criteria (Brody, New York Times, 7/21).
Women who underwent radiation therapy for cancer as children have an increased long-term risk for developing breast cancer, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Reuters reports. However, when the childhood treatments included a high dose of radiation to the ovaries, women"s risk of developing future breast tumors was "sharply reduced," according to the study.For the study, Peter Inskip of the National Cancer Institute and colleagues examined 120 women diagnosed with cancer before age 21. All women in the study were treated with radiation between 1970 and 1986 and survived at least five years. The women were compared with four women who also were diagnosed at a young age but did not receive radiation.The study found that the more radiation a woman received as a child, the more likely it was that a tumor would eventually develop. The study did not find that chemotherapy for the first cancer increased the risk for a second cancer (Reuters, 7/20).
As health reform proposals emerge from congressional committees, partisan fighting boils and the president wades into the debate with a series of televised addresses, news reports turn to an unanswered question. "What"s in it for me?" asks David Leonhardt, the New York Times business columnist. "On the subject of health care reform, most Americans probably don"t have a good answer to the question. And that, obviously, is a problem for the White House and for Democratic leaders in Congress," he writes.
Eleven Baltimore churches on Tuesday provided HIV testing to local residents as part of a larger effort by the JACQUES Initiative, a program at the University of Maryland School of Medicine"s Institute of Human Virology, the Baltimore Sun reports. The JACQUES Initiative launched Project SHALEM in partnership with the Maryland AIDS Administration and several local faith-based and community organizations, according to the Sun. Derek Spencer, the executive director of the JACQUES Initiative, said, "The ultimate goal is to make churches, mosques and synagogues a safe place where people can receive HIV support. We are no longer going to wait for people to come into our academic centers for help." He said organizers hoped to test 1,000 people, noting that at one of the testing sites, within the first hour, four people tested positive with the rapid oral swab tests. Angela Wakhweya, deputy director of the Maryland AIDS Administration, said the goal of the project is to eliminate new HIV cases in the state (Bass, 7/22).
Boosting the number of practice nurses who work with GPs would help improve patient access to care, the AMA said today.
Although visceral hypersensitivity is considered a hallmark feature of IBS, conflicting evidence exists regarding somatic hypersensitivity in this patient population. Several investigators have found no evidence for heightened somatic pain sensitivity in IBS patients. Also, others have reported similar cold presser pain tolerance in IBS patients and controls. These conflicting findings may result from differing somatic pain testing procedures. Previous studies have explored the correlates of visceral hypersensitivity among patients with IBS. To further evaluate somatic hyperalgesia among patients with IBS, the authors evaluated thermal pain sensitivity among patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS (D-IBS) vs constipation-predominant IBS (C-IBS) compared with healthy subjects.
Bracing for an outbreak of 2009 H1N1 (swine-origin) flu that a Saint Louis University infectious diseases expert estimates could sicken one in five people this fall, scientists at eight Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are launching a series of clinical trials this summer to test vaccines to protect against the illness.
Feeling stressed? Then try savoring the scent of lemon, mango, lavender, or other fragrant plants. Scientists in Japan are reporting the first scientific evidence that inhaling certain fragrances alter gene activity and blood chemistry in ways that can reduce stress levels. Their study appears in ACS" Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a bi-weekly publication.
Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPGY), the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, has announced that a study published online in the peer-reviewed journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health found once-daily Vyvanse® (lisdexamfetamine dimesylate) CII significantly reduced the symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children aged 6 to 12 from the first time point measured (1.5 hours) up to the last time point assessed (13 hours) after administration. In this pediatric analog classroom study, treatment with Vyvanse was associated with significant improvement in behavior and attention in children at each time point measured, with improvement at 13 hours after administration.
Current research suggests that a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids may help prevent one of the leading causes of legal blindness among the elderly. The related report by Tuo et al, "A high omega-3 fatty acid diet reduces retinal lesions in a murine model of macular degeneration," appears in the August 2009 issue of the American Journal of Pathology.
Simple measures such as good footcare, sight tests and light exercise can help older people live better, Care Service Minister Phil Hope said as he launched the Older People"s Prevention Package.
Health Minister Edwina Hart is reminding people that Wales will not be part of the National Pandemic Flu Service (NPHS) when it goes live in England.
The UK will play a leading role in coordinated European action to tackle dementia from.
Diarrhea is the frequent passing of loose or watery stools. Acute diarrhea, which is a common cause of death in developing countries, appears rapidly and may last from five to ten days. Chronic diarrhea lasts much longer and is the second cause of childhood death in the developing world. Diarrhea is sometimes accompanied by abdominal cramps or fever. It may be caused by infection, allergy, or could be a sign of a serious disorder, such as IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), or Crohn"s disease.
The androgen receptor a protein ignition switch for prostate cancer cell growth and division is a master of adaptability. When drug therapy deprives the receptor of androgen hormones, thereby halting cell proliferation, the receptor manages to find an alternate growth route. A new study by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Ohio State University scientists demonstrates how.
The cost of insuring a family of four with an employer-sponsored health plan in the United States averaged $12,298 in 2008, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
The National Changing Diabetes((R)) Program (NCDP), a program of Novo Nordisk, and several member associations today urged President Obama and members of Congress to make the prevention, detection and treatment of diabetes, one of the nation"s most pervasive and costly diseases, a priority in reforming the U.S. healthcare system.
A recent Yankelovich survey unveiled that although a large majority of women know there are simple steps they can take to support breast health, few women are taking the necessary actions. What"s more, 80 percent of the women surveyed have been personally affected by breast cancer or know someone who has been. To address this issue, One A Day Women"s Multivitamins is encouraging women to join a virtual march against breast cancer through the One A Day Women"s Take A Stand Campaign.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Wednesday held a private meeting with antiabortion-rights Democratic Reps. Mike Doyle (Pa.) and Tim Ryan (Ohio) in an attempt to quell pressure to exclude abortion coverage from the House health reform bill (HR 3200), Roll Call reports. Joined by abortion-rights supporter Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) -- Pelosi"s "point person" on the Energy and Commerce Committee -- Pelosi attempted to broker areas of agreement on the issue, according to Roll Call. However, antiabortion-rights Democrats contend that, beyond Wednesday"s meeting, Pelosi has not responded to their concerns by making changes to the House bill (Bendery, Roll Call, 7/22).The House bill does not mention abortion, but antiabortion-rights critics of the measure say it could increase availability of the procedure by requiring health insurance plans to cover services and by providing government funding for subsidized plans, according to the Washington Post. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said this week that decisions on specific benefits like abortion services should be "left to medical experts in the field," such as a proposed advisory board that would make recommendations on minimum benefits that private insurers must offer. Ryan and a group of centrist Democrats have proposed an amendment that would neither require nor prohibit insurers from covering abortion services, as long as federal funding is not used. Their proposal also says that current state restrictions on insurance coverage of abortion services would remain in effect (Eggen/Stein, Washington Post, 7/23). Currently, private insurers are neither required nor forbidden to cover abortion services. The Hyde Amendment and other federal measures prohibit the use of federal funds to pay for abortion except in very limited cases. Some states use their own money to cover the procedure for low-income women (Stein, Washington Post, 7/23).Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich), co-chair of the Pro-Life Caucus, said abortion-rights supporters in the House "can continue to ignore us if they want, but at their peril." He added that the bill should maintain current restrictions on federal funding for abortion. Stupak was among a group of Democrats who sent a letter to Pelosi in June threatening to oppose any health reform bill that does not explicitly÷ forbid federal funding÷ from being used÷ for abortion services (Roll Call, 7/22). The Post reports that the health care reform debate has "reignited" claims from antiabortion-rights groups that President Obama"s efforts to find common ground on abortion-related policies are an attempt "to paper over ... support for abortion rights with policies that will do little" to reduce the number of abortions." Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee, said that Obama "says he wants to reduce abortions" but that "the actual policies that this administration is promoting will result in massive public subsidies for abortion and result in a massive increase in the number of abortions." Abortion-rights opponents plan to hold a rally Thursday against the House health reform bill, and Americans United for Life has demanded a meeting with the president to discuss the issue of abortion coverage in health reform.Abortion-rights groups and Democratic leaders say opponents" allegations are exaggerated and an attempt to use the health reform debate to further restrict access to legal abortion services under private insurance plans. Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, said, "This is the kind of divisiveness that the public has grown very tired of."The debate over covering abortion services comes as Ryan and abortion-rights supporter Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) prepare to introduce a bill that aims to reduce the need for abortion by encouraging pregnancy prevention and increasing government support for young women with children. The bill has generated "an unusual array of supporters" -- including the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, NARAL Pro-Choice America and evangeli
As healthcare reform becomes an increasing national priority, the American Psychological Association (APA) and YMCA of the USA announced a partnership that provides strategies to help families improve their overall well-being and physical health, and advocates for a comprehensive healthcare system that has a strong approach to chronic disease prevention. The partnership will specifically address the impact individual behaviors such as eating healthy and increasing physical activity can have in reducing risk factors for chronic diseases.
Patients with moderate COPD were randomized to receive "usual care" or to undergo an interdisciplinary, community-based program (INTERCOM) that offered an intensive lifestyle moderation phase of four months, during which patients were instructed in detail to perform two 15-minute intervals of pleasurable walking or cycling, and offered instruction in other lifestyle changes such as nutrition and smoking cessation. After the four-month introductory period, there was a less intensive 20-month maintenance during which patients were offered guidance but not intensive intervention.
Employers around the country are split on supporting or opposing health reform "reducing the force of an opposition push," just as business lobbying heats up in the fight, The Washington Post reports.
A new study finds more seniors are covered by a Medicare drug plan and report greater savings, but gaps in coverage and other problems still persist.
A shortage of doctors and nurses could damage health care reform. Analysis finds that more incentives are needed for primary care doctors and that most medical graduates choose better paid specialties. Meanwhile, a nurse temp agency forms in Texas to address the shortages there.
The race to develop a H1N1 (swine flu) vaccine before the fall flu season ramped up Wednesday, after Australia launched the first human trials of the H1N1 vaccine and scientists from the U.S., China and Britain announced plans for human trials of an H1N1 vaccine in coming weeks, AFP/France24.com reports (7/23).
SNM"s Clinical Trials Network have announced that several leading commercial providers of PET radiopharmaceuticals in Europe have registered their manufacturing sites with the network. SNM"s Clinical Trials Network is an initiative designed to address the need for streamlined drug discovery through the integration of imaging biomarkers into multi-center clinical trials.
During its summer session, the Joint Committee of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) has approved funding for six new Research Units. Within these Research Units, researchers from different disciplines work together on a particular scientific topic. Funding for Research Units provides the personnel and equipment required for medium-term (usually six years) cooperation and contributes to the establishment of new research directions.
Two papers published on bmj.com today raise serious concerns over the methods used to put a value on the benefits of different treatments in order to set healthcare priorities.
A new study of women"s contraceptive use around the world finds that sexually active 15-19-year-olds are more likely than their 20-49-year-old counterparts to use contraceptives inconsistently and, on average, experience a 25% higher rate of contraceptive failure.
US researchers have created "bacterial computers" with the potential to solve complicated mathematics problems. The findings of the research, published in BioMed Central"s open access Journal of Biological Engineering, demonstrate that computing in living cells is feasible, opening the door to a number of applications. The second-generation bacterial computers illustrate the feasibility of extending the approach to other computationally challenging math problems.
Women who are at risk for heart disease and who are also experiencing menopause symptoms now have an added re a highly specialized clinic in the Division of Cardiology at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute. The Advanced Preventive Women"s Clinic at the Women"s Heart Center recently opened and is offering comprehensive cardiac risk assessments designed specifically for women who are in menopause. The clinic also offers menopausal patients state-of-the-art screenings, as well as personalized medicine therapies and counseling, including high-risk hormone counseling.
Promedior, Inc. announced the initiation of a Phase 1 clinical trial of PRM-151, a novel compound in development for the treatment of fibrotic diseases and tissue remodeling. The Phase 1 dose escalation study is designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and exploratory pharmacodynamics of ascending single intravenous doses of PRM-151 in healthy subjects. The study is being conducted at the Centre for Human Drug Research in The Netherlands.
More than half of clinic patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) report they also drink heavily. While highly active antiretroviral therapy has helped to reduce HIV-related cognitive and motor deficits, neuropsychological deficits may continue and even be exacerbated by alcohol. A study of memory deficits has found that HIV infection and chronic alcoholism have synergistic, damaging effects on brain function.
When Tony Goldberg is not whacking through the brush of central
Gangrene occurs when tissue dies (necrosis) because its blood supply is interrupted. Gangrene may be caused by an infection, injury, or a complication of a long-term condition that restricts blood circulation. It most commonly occurs in the extremities - the toes, fingers, arms and legs - but internal organs and muscles may also become gangrenous. There are five main types of gangrene: 1. Dry gangrene. 2. Wet gangrene. 3. Gas gangrene. 4. Internal gangrene. 5. Fournier"s gangrene.
Michael (Mike) Jones has become the world"s first recipient of adult cardiac stem cells to treat congestive heart failure. Jones" infusion on July 17 marks the world"s first phase-one FDA-approved clinical trial using adult cardiac stem cells to treat heart disease. The clinical trial is being conducted by a team of University of Louisville physicians at Jewish Hospital.
VistA Imaging, the medical and health care imaging system used in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers, attained over one billion stored images in January this year, according to the department.
A large attack on a major metropolitan area with airborne anthrax could affect more than a million people, necessitating their treatment with powerful antibiotics. A new study finds that in order for a response to be effective, quick detection and treatment are essential, and any delay beyond three days would overwhelm hospitals with critically ill people.
Bayer HealthCare AG and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that their first cooperative group-sponsored randomized Phase II trial in advanced metastatic breast cancer met its primary endpoint of progression-free survival. The study evaluated Nexavar® (sorafenib) tablets in combination with the oral chemotherapeutic, capecitabine, in patients with locally advanced or metastatic HER-2 negative breast cancer. Study findings demonstrated that the median progression-free survival was extended in patients treated with Nexavar and capecitabine compared to patients receiving capecitabine and placebo. These results were statistically significant (p-value = 0.0006). In this trial, the safety and tolerability of the combination was as expected and did not show any new or unexpected toxicities. A complete data analysis from this study is expected to be presented at an upcoming scientific meeting.
Results from the ARTEN trial presented at the 5th International AIDS Society (IAS) conference in Cape Town, South Africa demonstrated non-inferiority regarding efficacy between Viramune® (nevirapine) and ritonavir boosted atazanavir (atazanavir/r) both combined with tenofovir and emtricitabine (Truvada ®). This head-to-head study also showed Viramune®Â´s more favourable effect on the lipid profile and now clearly confirms the combination"s place as an important first line therapy for patients with HIV.
"Three years into its experiment with near-universal health care, Massachusetts has some "dos and don"ts" for the nation as it grapples with the best way to cover tens of millions of uninsured Americans," the Associated Press reports. "Do require that virtually everyone have health insurance, the overriding goal in Massachusetts. Don"t ignore rising costs, the single greatest threat to the law"s long-term affordability."
"Global health officials are scrambling to try to prevent the spread of the H1N1 swine flu virus, with U.S. officials moving Thursday with a recommendation that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approve or license a [new H1N1] vaccine," without waiting on the results from "clinical trials to test its safety and efficacy," Wall Street Journal reports (Dooren/Winning, 7/24). Reuters reports that FDA officials vowed during a meeting Thursday to closely monitor for any harmful side effects from the vaccine (Fox, 7/23).
South African President Jacob Zuma and Virgin Group founder and chair Richard Branson "intend [on] establishing a disease control centre in South Africa as soon as next year," SAPA/The Times reports. "Branson said the initiative, expected to be launched by March, would be 50 percent private and 50 percent government funded," the news service writes (7/22).
Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston say one organism discovered during their study may unlock the key to what causes colic, inconsolable crying in an otherwise healthy baby.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), in collaboration with stakeholders, trading partners, and the public and animal health communities, has refined its approach to managing cases of the pandemic H1N1 2009 virus in swine.
A successfully completed electronic health record pilot project at Randolph Medical Center in
The Federal Secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation, Ged Kearney and the Assistant Federal Secretary, Lee Thomas will be available for comment on the Prime Minister"s address on the challenges of Health Reform and the release of the NHHRC report.
Writers of a new report found "limited or suggestive evidence" that exposure to Agent Orange and other chemicals used in the Vietnam War is
African-American adolescents have some of the highest rates of HIV infection in the United States, and efforts to educate them about preventing the disease must include the help of their adolescent peers, new research suggests.
The Minister for Health and Children, Mary Harney TD, welcomed the publication of the report of the independent audit of retained organs in the State by Michaela Willis.
President Obama on Tuesday started interviewing potential Supreme Court nominees, the Wall Street Journal reports. Senior White House adviser David Axelrod on Tuesday said that the administration is looking for a candidate who will give the powerless and disenfranchised people "a fair shake." Conservatives have said that the nominee will inevitably be a "judicial activist" because Obama has said that he wants to nominate a candidate who can use past experience and empathy for the underrepresented populations to help guide court decisions.Obama has started calling Republican senators in an effort to prevent the "bruising battles" past Supreme Court nominations have encountered during the confirmation process, the Journal reports. Obama called Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) on Tuesday, which Cornyn said was a "nice gesture." Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) spoke to Obama last week. Coburn said, "I don"t know that it"s going to be contentious," adding, "A prudent man would say, "I"m going to have a couple of Supreme Court nominees. Maybe I want to defuse the thing, the first one, so I can do what I want to do (with) the second one."" Axelrod said that Obama has spoken to 15 senators from both parties (Weisman/Bendavid, Wall Street Journal, 5/20).
Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited (MSD) received a positive opinion from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommending expanded marketing authorisation for "Isentress" (raltegravir) in combination with other antiretroviral (ARV) medicinal products for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in all appropriate adult patients, including patients starting HIV therapy for the first time (treatment-naç¯ve), as well as treatment-experienced patients. The positive opinion will be reviewed by the European Commission, which grants marketing authorisation to the 27 countries that are members of the European Union (EU), as well as Iceland and Norway.
The American Academy of Ophthalmology announced that it has issued a revised policy statement on Learning Disabilities, Dyslexia, and Vision. The revised statement, which was issued jointly with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS) and the American Association of Certified Orthoptists (AACO), expands upon the previous policy and includes extensive scientific references. The statement was also published today in Pediatrics, the journal of the AAP.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain has published its fourth Pharmacy
A recent independent study has confirmed Fortoss Vital(R), developed by the Pioneering Orthobiologics Company, Biocomposites, as an effective bone replacement material demonstrating superior bone regenerative properties due to its unique negative zeta potential control (ZPC(TM)).
BrainCells Inc., a company leading the scientific research of neurogenesis using its proprietary platform technology to identify novel pathways for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) diseases, announced results from the first clinical proof-of-concept study of BCI-952, a combination of low dose buspirone and melatonin, for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). The data were presented at NCDEU 2009, a meeting co-sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health and the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology. Neurogenesis is the process by which pre-existing stem cells in the hippocampus of the adult brain produce new brain cells, including neurons.
The most comprehensive analysis yet of the genome of childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) found only a few mistakes in the genetic blueprint, suggesting the cancer arises from just a handful of missteps, according to new findings from St. Jude Children"s Research Hospital. The research appears in the July 27 online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Childhood obesity causes lifelong illness, leads to serious health complications in young adults and can lead to premature death in adulthood due to medical conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension. In addition to its significant human toll, childhood obesity alone costs the nation"s health care system some $14 billion annually.
Various news outlets examined the state of the administration"s health reform push.
A leading Democratic senator, Kent Conrad, D-N.D., said Sunday Democrats would need Republican support to make ambitious proposals to overhaul the health system a reality, the Associated Press reports. "Look, there are not the votes for Democrats to do this just on our side of the aisle," said Conrad, who chairs the Budget Committee. Democrats remain divided over the plans, prompting the Republican leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to say, "The only thing bipartisan about the measure so far is the opposition to it" (7/26).
Democrats are planning to push the point this week that health care reform, with a price tag of up to $1.6 trillion, has benefits and cost savings that aren"t scored by the Congressional Budget Office, The Hill reports.
The U.N."s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) recently allocated $6 million to address several health challenges facing Ethiopia, IRIN reports. Fidele Sarassoro, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator, said the country is having difficulty meeting the population"s basic health needs. The federal Disaster Risk Management and Food Security Sector (DRMFSS) has announced that rising malnutrition and food insecurity are a "growing concern and likely to lead to 6.2 million Ethiopians relying on food aid, out of a population of approximately 77 million," IRIN writes, adding that currently 4.9 million people in the country receive food aid (7/27).
Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), July 28 - August 1, 2009, the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, finds that assisted reproductive techniques alter the expression of genes that are important for metabolism and the transport of nutrients in the placenta of mice. The results underscore the need for greater understanding of the long-term effects of new assisted reproductive techniques in humans.
Overconsumption of fatty, sugary foods leads to changes in brain receptors, according to new animal research at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The new research results are being presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), July 28 - August 1, 2009, the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior. The results have implications for understanding bulimia and other binge eating disorders.
Following the announcement that Diabetes UK and NHS Diabetes have joined forces to deliver an innovative project that will support three PCTs in England to develop effective user involvement approaches in diabetes care, the charity has received an excellent response from PCTs wanting to get involved.
Health and population trends could increase demand for cardiothoracic surgeons in the United States far greater than the supply - diminishing and delaying care, according to a report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Tuesday began marking up a bill (S 982) that would allow FDA to regulate tobacco products, CongressDaily reports. The bill would allow FDA to place larger, color warning labels about the health risks of smoking on cigarette packs, as well as to regulate the marketing of tobacco products and advertising to children. The agency could not ban tobacco products or eliminate nicotine from cigarettes, but it could regulate their production and ban flavored cigarettes other than menthol. Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said, "Over the years, this bill has been reviewed; it has been vetted; it has been debated, over and over and over again. The time has come to act." The House in April passed its version of the bill, 298-112 (Hunt, CongressDaily, 5/20). The committee by voice vote approved an amendment proposed by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) that would give FDA priority to review products that contain nicotine, such as candies. Committee ranking member Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) proposed two amendments, one that would have given regulatory authority over tobacco to CDC and another that would have ordered FDA to study which flavors to ban, instead of a current provision that bans specific flavors. Both amendments were defeated. Enzi said, "I think the FDA is the wrong regulator. It approves cures, not poisons." The only Democrat who opposed the bill was Sen. Kay Hagan (N.C.), who said the measure would harm the tobacco industry in her home state (Armstrong, CQ HealthBeat, 5/19). The panel"s other member from North Carolina, Sen. Richard Burr (R), said he would filibuster the bill. He said, "I put my fellow senators on notice: This is something that will be a much longer time on the floor than it will be in this hearing" (CongressDaily, 5/20). The committee plans to continue marking up the bill Wednesday and possibly Thursday.The Obama administration has expressed its support for the bill (CQ HealthBeat, 5/19). FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg also has said her agency should regulate tobacco (Armstrong, CQ HealthBeat, 5/18).
Long-term survivors of cancer that developed in adulthood are at increased risk of experiencing serious psychological distress, according to a report in the July 27 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
People who are rewarded for making correct decisions learn quickly. While
Calypso Medical Technologies, Inc., announced the publication of data from a clinician sponsored investigational study conducted at the University of Pennsylvania, demonstrating the utility of the Calypso® System in tracking tumor movement in the pancreas. The data will be presented at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), July 26-30, at the Anaheim Convention Center. "In areas of the body, such as the pancreas, that are susceptible to respiratory motion it can prove difficult to handle the spectrum of motion that can arise," said James Metz, M.D., Clinical Director, Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Pennsylvania Health System.
Evidence buried in the chromosomes of animals and plants strongly suggests only one group -- mammals -- have seen their genomes shrink after the dinosaurs" extinction. What"s more, that trend continues today, say Indiana University Bloomington scientists in the first issue of a new journal, Genome Biology and Evolution.
It is widely known that the brain perceives information before it reaches a person"s awareness. But until now, there was little way to determine what specific mental tasks were taking place prior to the point of conscious awareness.
The Lymphoma Research Foundation (LRF) is pleased to announce that the 2009 Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc./Lymphoma Research Foundation Clinical Investigator Career Development Award has been awarded to Kai Fu, MD, PhD, Associate Professor at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
Couples struggling with fertility problems have a new option for assessing their ability to have a child with the start-up of a new Buffalo-based company called LifeCell Dx, Inc. (LCDX).
A new multisite study by UCLA and RAND Corp. researchers and colleagues has found that 7 percent of fifth-graders and their families have experienced homelessness at some point in their lives and that the occurrence is even higher - 11 percent - for African American children and those from the poorest households.
New research from the US suggests that divorce and widowhood damage health in ways that even getting married again doesn"t heal.
Expanded results of a study conducted on children with eye cancer (retinoblastoma) shows that chemotherapy delivered through endovascular (through the vessel) means not only successfully cures the cancer in a majority of cases, but achieves this cure with preserved vision. Study outcomes were presented this week at the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS) 6th Annual Meeting in Boca Raton, FL by lead author Pierre Gobin, Professor of Radiology in Neurosurgery and Neurology at the Weill Cornell Medical Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City.
Less than two weeks after instituting new therapeutic hypothermia treatment for heart attack patients, Providence Tarzana Medical Center has applied the body-cooling treatment in three cases - and each patient showed remarkable neurologic recovery.
A new report, released by the Manhattan Institute"s Center for Medical Progress and authored Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the former Director of the Congressional Budget Office, makes the fiscal and political case for bipartisan healthcare reform. Holtz-Eakin addresses dysfunctions in the existing healthcare delivery system; provides solutions to expanding access to affordable private health insurance in an incremental and fiscally responsible manner; and shows how improving market-based options will lead to better consumer access to information on healthcare quality. He argues that the only way to fix our broken healthcare system is through reforms that incentivize competition and pay for quality care.