Endocrinology
"There were all kinds of ways to misunderstand" the meaning of a recent Gallup poll that found for the first time that more U.S. residents identify themselves as "pro-life" than as "pro-choice," Time columnist Nancy Gibbs writes in an opinion piece. Gibbs writes that although Gallup "attributes the new numbers to Republicans purifying their views," that trend is "to be expected" because "when fewer people call themselves Republican, the party condenses into a pool of true believers." According to Gibbs, the real drivers of the shift are "the people in the middle who are constantly weighing which restrictions are reasonable." Gibbs notes a recent Pew poll that found that while "a majority of independents said abortion should be legal in most cases as recently as October, just 44% do so now." This finding "may inspire some introspection on the part of the political operatives in both parties who attribute the Republicans" present frailty to its orthodoxy on social issues," Gibbs says, adding that the GOP"s "message, on abortion at least, may be closer to mainstream than Democrats care to acknowledge."Gibbs continues, "I think the numbers, inadequate and simplified though they may be, reflect deeper changes -- some generational, some legal, some technological." She writes that people younger than age 30 "are more opposed to abortion than those older" and that she "wonder[s] if younger women are now sure enough of their sexual autonomy and their choices generally, that they don"t view limits on abortion as attacks on their overall freedom." At the same time, "the political context" has changed, Gibbs says. She adds, "The very meaning of the labels adjusts; calling yourself pro-choice at a time when a liberal Democratic President and allies in Congress are lifting abortion restraints may imply no qualms at all, and that"s not where most people are." She continues, "People always want to apply the brakes to whichever side has the momentum" because the "stakes are too high, the pain too private ... to see the issue treated as an ideological toy or fundraising tool." Gibbs concludes, "President Obama got in trouble in his talk last August with Rick Warren for saying that the question of when life begins was "above my pay grade." But just because he was glib doesn"t mean he was wrong" (Gibbs, Time, 5/18).
As part of its research commitment on bisphenol A (BPA), Health Canada released yesterday the results of studies investigating BPA exposure levels in baby food in glass jars with metal lids, powdered infant formula, and bottled water. The results from these three government studies provide definitive confirmation that baby food products packaged in glass jars with metal lids, powdered infant formula, and bottled water do not pose a health risk. Researchers found that all levels of BPA found in tested products were exceedingly low and all are well below the level established as safe for consumers by the Canadian government. The North American Metal Packaging Alliance, Inc. (NAMPA) welcomes the latest Canadian study, noting that these findings confirm industry"s own research that shows BPA levels in food containers are negligible.
New York"s Kendra"s Law to provide assisted outpatient treatment for people with severe mental illness is effective in a wide-range of measures, and provides long-lasting benefits the longer someone with a mental illness is in the program, a comprehensive independent evaluation conducted for the state by Duke University Medical School finds.
EndoGastric Solutions (EGS), the recognized leader in the emerging field of Natural Orifice Surgery (NOS), announced that the American Society of General Surgeons (ASGS) has published a position statement endorsing its Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication (TIF) procedure for the treatment of GERD. ASGS is the preeminent society of general surgeons with membership exceeding 2,000.
Two new specialist teams will be set up to improve diagnosis, care and support for people with eating disorders in Wales, Health Minister Edwina Hart officially announced.
If you believe everything you read, "health and safety" is to blame for a lot of fun events being cancelled. Plastic duck races, ice cream toppings and even Morris Dancing have all allegedly fallen victim to excessive health and safety regulations.
Fate of 27,000 ER Patients Per Year Hangs in Balance as Supervisors Consider Withdrawing County"s Authority to Convert Acute-Care Hospital into a Rehab Center
Bayer Diabetes Care in the UK and Ireland today unveils "DIDGET(TM), the
UQ"s Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) will host a workshop tomorrow Tuesday July 14 for clinicians and scientists seeking to better understand the syndromes associated with a brain development condition made famous in the movie Rain Man.
safefood today launched a new advertising campaign to highlight common and widespread poor food hygiene practices in the home as new research (1) revealed that 84% of people did not thoroughly wash their hands after handling raw chicken. The campaign titled "Don"t Take Risks" focuses on key messages of proper hand washing, proper cleaning of cooking utensils and thorough cooking, steps all of which can help minimise the risks of food poisoning in the home. The research also revealed that 72% failed to properly wash a knife used in preparing raw chicken before its reuse on salad vegetables, and 56% did not check if the chicken was cooked properly.
To ensure patients receive the highest quality and safest food possible, the Premier healthcare alliance released a set of standards for foodservices delivered to hospitals.
Though discoveries about Alzheimer"s disease risk factors are often in the news, adults do not know about the relationship between Alzheimer"s disease risk and heart health, nor that physical activity can be protective against dementia, according to new research reported today at the Alzheimer"s Association 2009 International Conference on Alzheimer"s Disease (ICAD 2009) in Vienna.
The Electronic Health Records Association (EHR Association) has made specific recommendations to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) on measurable criteria for achieving "meaningful use" of electronic health records (EHRs), as called for in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The Association specifically calls for 2011 objectives to be based on software and standards that are currently deployed and implemented, with a focus on adoption and use of comprehensive EHRs and recognition of the need for differences between inpatient and ambulatory meaningful use criteria.
Simulating medical scenarios helps medical students learn and retain vital information, according to a new study done by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.
The average time patients in Boston wait for an appointment to see a specialist has increased over the last five years to an average of 50 days and can be up to one year, despite the fact that the city has an "abundance" of specialists, according to a recent study, the Boston Globe reports. For the study, Merritt, Hawkins & Associates, a Texas-based consulting and physician recruiting firm, surveyed 1,162 physician offices in 15 metropolitan areas to try to re-create the situation of a new patient seeking a nonurgent appointment in five specialty areas -- cardiology, dermatology, family medicine, obstetrics-gynecology and orthopedic surgery. The average wait time in Boston is more than three weeks longer than any other city included in the study. The study determined that while Boston patients had the longest wait times for appointments to see dermatologists, ob-gyns and family practitioners, Dallas had the longest wait times to see orthopedic surgeons, followed by Boston. Miami, Minneapolis and San Diego all had longer wait times to see cardiologists than Boston.According to the study, while Boston patients have long faced delays, the problem may have been exacerbated by an increase in patients seeking care following the implementation of the 2006 Massachusetts health insurance law. While the study did not pinpoint a cause for longer wait times in Boston, the study"s authors wrote that the city"s experience "may signal what could happen nationally in the event that access to health care is expanded through health care reform."Brian Rossman, research director for Health Care for All, said the reason for long wait times also is because many specialists in Boston work for academic medical centers and do not see patients full time (Kowalczyk, Boston Globe, 5/15).
Governments could be saving up to $7.88 million a year if they adopt a national home enteral
Elderly people with no memory or thinking problems are more likely to later develop thinking problems if they have a growing amount of "brain rust," or small areas of brain damage, according to a study published in the July 14, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Lobbyists are beginning to consider how their clients would fare if health reform moves to a reconciliation process to pass legislation, Roll Call reports. "As the health care debate has grown increasingly partisan, lobbyists say they are taking more seriously the looming possibility of having many reforms added to reconciliation. "I think almost everyone looks at reconciliation as a last resort," said John Rother, executive vice president of policy and strategy for the seniors" lobby AARP. "But we haven"t made a lot of progress. Patience is running thin."" A bill passed by reconciliation would need only 51 Senate votes instead of the filibuster-proof usual 60.
The Muscular Dystrophy Association has awarded its highest philanthropic achievement honor, the MDA Directors" Award, to two entertainment industry celebrities.
Rural Americans are hopeful that health reform includes funding for clinics and health care services in their communities, where the cost of care is often high, CNN reports.
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) announces the five 2009 recipients of the ASH Research Training Award for Fellows, a grant that encourages junior researchers to pursue careers in academic hematology by supporting protected time to conduct research during their fellowship training.
"A large percentage" of U.S. and Mexican men who regularly engage in sexual activity with sex workers in Tijuana, Mexico, do not use condoms and have a history of substance and alcohol use, according to a study published in the online journal AIDS, the Los Angeles Times" blog "L.A. Now" reports. The study, by researchers from Mexico and the University of California-San Diego, surveyed 400 men - both Mexico and U.S. residents - and found that half of the men had unprotected sex with a female sex worker within the last four months. Researchers noted that although Tijuana authorities require that sex workers be registered and tested regularly for HIV, "only about half of [sex workers] have registered or been tested," according to the blog. Thomas Patterson of the UC-San Diego"s department of psychiatry and the Veterans Affairs health center, said the findings indicate a need for an educational campaign targeting men who frequent sex workers (Perry, 7/11).
One of the continuing mysteries of the HIV/AIDS epidemic is why women usually develop lower viral levels than men following acute HIV-1 infection but progress faster to AIDS than men with similar viral loads. Now a research team based at the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), MIT and Harvard has found that a receptor molecule involved in the first-line recognition of HIV-1 responds to the virus differently in women, leading to subsequent differences in chronic T cell activation, a known predictor of disease progression. Their paper, which will be published in an upcoming issue of Nature Medicine, is receiving early online release.
"I am stopping TB and controlling HIV" was the theme of an event marking World TB Day (24 March) in Uganda"s Masindi district. The Union Uganda Office participated in this event, which attracted representatives from both government and a wide variety of NGOs, as well as the public.
Group B Streptococcus (GBS), a bacterial pathogen that causes sepsis and meningitis in newborn infants, is able to shut down immune cell function in order to promote its own survival, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Their study, published online July 13 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, offers insight into GBS infection - information that may lead to new medical therapies for invasive infectious diseases that affect nearly 3,500 newborns in the United States each year.
The beta-carotene in so-called "Golden Rice" converts to vitamin A in humans, according to researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Tufts University in an article that appears in the current issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Researchers from the Makerere University hospital in Uganda, the U.S. and Belgium have developed a formula, based on a set of questions, for determining HIV-positive people"s risk of treatment failure and drug resistance, according to a study recently published in the Journal of the International AIDS Society, the New York Times reports. According to the Times, most HIV-positive people in Africa rarely have access to viral load tests to determine if they are developing resistance to first-line antiretroviral drugs because the testing is expensive and complicated.The researchers questioned 496 HIV-positive people about:
Researchers at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center and Graduate Center for Toxicology (GCT) have gained new insight into the genetic mechanisms underlying Huntington"s disease and other neurodegenerative or neuromuscular disorders caused by trinucleotide repeats (or TNRs) in DNA.
For people without a prior conviction for a hands-on sex offense, the consumption of child pornography alone does not, in itself, seem to represent a risk factor for committing such an offense. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Psychiatry studied 231 men convicted of consuming child pornography in 2002 and found that only 1% had gone on to commit a hands-on sex offense in the following six years.
Eye movement tests developed by Queen"s University researchers to aid in understanding childhood brain development and healthy aging may also help in the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and detecting the early onset of Parkinson"s disease. The project has received close to $1 million in recent funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
New technology that identifies and removes dead and dying cells from cell populations grown in laboratories is now available to UK scientists. Removing such cells increases the efficiency of growing healthy cells and can yield clearer experimental results in a broad range of life science fields. The kits - called Dead Cert - developed by Edinburgh based ImmunoSolv, are the first of their kind to effectively remove both dead and dying cells without trauma to living cells.
The number of people with Alzheimer"s and dementia - both new cases and
The National Autistic Society, urged that new reforms should not be allowed further marginalise people with disabilities, including autism, in a bid to fulfil a black hole in social care funding.
An article published Online First and in a future edition of The Lancet describes the procedures involved in a near-total face transplant. The patient is US citizen Connie Culp. In 2004, she was shot in the face with a shotgun by her husband. The article details her ground-breaking surgery and recovery to date. It is the work of Professor Maria Siemionow, of the Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, and collaborators.
Different segments of the carotid artery that supply the brain with blood respond in different fashions to the build-up of complex, health-threatening plaque, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and their colleagues.
The Baldwin County Health Department announced that a sentinel chicken from the Lillian area
Dr. James Cook officially handed over the title of American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) president to Dr. Larry Corry today at the 2009 AVMA Convention President"s Installation Luncheon in Seattle. Dr. Corry, a small-animal practitioner from Buford, Ga., becomes the 129th president of the AVMA.
The financial crisis and lack of trust in public services mean that the NHS and the government face tough political and economic challenges ahead. In this climate, improvements in health services will only be possible if primary care takes the lead and political leaders sharpen up their vision.
Dr. Regina Benjamin is President Obama"s pick for surgeon general. The Alabama family physician has been an advocate for universal care, and is expected to have a role "at the table" in health reform, which would be an unusual degree of influence over policy for a surgeon general. Obama said Benjamin "represents what"s best about health care in America."
Many mentally-ill illegal immigrants get only limited mental health care, if any, while they are in jail or prison, advocates for them say, according to The Dallas Morning News.
The Small Business Surtax The Wall Street Journal
New research showing that "a receptor molecule involved in the recognition of HIV-1 responds to the virus differently in women than in men," might "explain why HIV infection progresses faster to AIDS in women than in men with similar viral loads," the HealthDay/Greenville Daily Reflector reports. The study was conducted by researchers at the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University and will be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Nature Medicine. Study authors also note that during the early stages of infection, women tend to have a stronger immune response to HIV than men, but then progress to AIDS more quickly. The different immune system response "then leads to differences in chronic T-cell activation, a known activator of disease progression, according to the researchers," the article states (7/13). Researcher Marcus Altfeld said the findings raise new questions about how sex hormones affect HIV in the body. "Focusing on immune activation separately from viral replication might give us new therapeutic approaches" to treating HIV, he added (AFP/Google News, 7/13).
Infection of surgical wounds is a significant clinical problem which imposes severe demands on
Counsellors from around the world will meet to discuss their role in helping people deal with social, cultural, economic and natural challenges at the 2009 International Association for Counselling (IAC) Counference organised by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
Ten articles describing how a universal language to describe genes is bringing benefits to the study of the microbial world have been published in a special issue of Trends in Microbiology, co-edited by Virginia Bioinformatics Institute professor Brett Tyler. The Gene Ontology is a powerful language that gives researchers a shared vocabulary to describe disease-related and beneficial interactions between a microbe and its host. By allowing scientists to link experimental results to a computer-readable language, the Gene Ontology provides scientists with an important bridge between specific experiments that characterize gene function and larger-scale, systems biology efforts to provide a global picture of host-microbe interactions.
Compared with women who have never taken hormone therapy, those who currently take it or who have taken it in the past are at increased risk of ovarian cancer, regardless of the duration of use, the formulation, estrogen dose, regimen or route of administration, according to a study in the July 15 issue of JAMA.
A unique study looking at the difference in cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke) and life expectancy between people of high and low socio-economic status has found that a person"s IQ may have a role to play.
Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:HALO) today announced the commencement of patient dosing in a Phase 2 clinical study of Insulin-PH20 in patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. This randomized cross-over design study is designed to compare the postprandial glycemic excursions following a standardized test meal after treatment with either insulin lispro+PH20 or regular insulin+PH20 relative to treatment with lispro (Humalog) alone.
Eating a "heart healthy" diet and maintaining or increasing participation in moderate physical activity may help preserve our memory and thinking abilities as we age, according to new research reported today at the Alzheimer"s Association 2009 International Conference on Alzheimer"s Disease (ICAD 2009) in Vienna.
A large and long term study of Frenchmen suggests there may be a simple way to establish if apparently healthy people have an elevated risk of
GenWay Biotech, Inc., a US-based diagnostic company has become CLIA certified and received a California lab license. Their license currently permits the testing of immunological biomarkers. This is a very important step in the direction of commercialization of the novel innovative diagnostic tests currently being developed at GenWay. In upcoming weeks, GenWay will add new cancer biomarker tests to their portfolio as well as several infectious diseases such as sexual transmitted diseases. GenWay is seeking to obtain CAP accreditation by the end of the year.
A team of researchers has discovered an unexpected concentration of a certain isotopic molecule in parts of the stratosphere that could have implications for understanding the carbon cycle and its response to climate change.
Smith & Nephew"s Advanced Wound Management division (NYSE:SNN) announced that the UK Court of Appeal has ruled as invalid all claims asserted against Smith and Nephew of the patent EP 0 626 720 that is licensed to Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (NYSE: KCI). As a result, the preliminary injunction against Smith & Nephew"s RENASYS(TM)-F NPWT system has been lifted.
Onset Therapeutics, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused in dermatology, announced the FDA approval and commercial launch of HYLATOPIC™ Emollient Foam, a unique, non-steroidal prescription product indicated to manage and relieve the burning, itching and pain experienced with various types of dermatoses, including atopic dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis and radiation dermatitis.
Caregivers of children under five years of age can now answer five simple questions to determine if their child"s breathing problems are not under control. AstraZeneca funded a research project to create the Test for Respiratory and Asthma Control in Kids, or TRACK, the first validated respiratory- and asthma-control assessment test specifically for patients under five years of age. TRACK helps evaluate respiratory control based on guidelines -- defined asthma impairment and risk.
Single mother Marça Carmen del Bousada de Lara, a retired shop worker from Cadiz in Spain, has died at the age of 69, orphaning her two and a
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) on Tuesday announced plans to invest $97 million over 10 years "to improve research, development and access to AIDS drugs in Africa," Reuters reports. GSK also put forth "a new free voluntary licensing agreement for AIDS drug abacavir, or Ziagen with South African generic drugmaker Aspen Pharmacare." According to Reuters, Aspen will be able to "manufacture a cheaper generic version of the drug."
A team of researchers has mapped patterns of illicit drug use across the state of Oregon using a method of sampling municipal wastewater before it is treated.
Animas Corporation announcedthe approval of its OneTouch® Ping™ Glucose Management System by Health Canada. OneTouch Ping is the first full-feature insulin pump that wirelessly communicates with a blood glucose meter-remote. Using the OneTouch Ping meter-remote, a person can calculate insulin doses and opt to wirelessly instruct the pump to deliver them without touching the pump at all, giving patients more freedom and flexibility in using their insulin pump.
NHS clinical teams will have access to data showing their performance against a set of more than 200 indicators of high quality care in the NHS in one place. It is the next phase in the drive to help NHS professionals improve the quality of care they deliver to patients, and will also support providers and commissioners of NHS services.
What is going on in teenagers" brains as their drive for peer approval begins to eclipse their family affiliations? Brain scans of teens sizing each other up reveal an emotion circuit activating more in girls as they grow older, but not in boys. The study by Daniel Pine, M.D., of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of National Institutes of Health, and colleagues, shows how emotion circuitry diverges in the male and female brain during a developmental stage in which girls are at increased risk for developing mood and anxiety disorders.
Valeo Pharma announced a new study recently published that demonstrated the efficacy and safety of Hydrosal®, a novel high strength topical antiperspirant with 15% aluminum chloride and 2% salicylic acid in proprietary gel base for patients with moderate-to-severe hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating).
More than three-quarters of parents would be willing to permit the use of their children"s newborn screening samples for research purposes if their permission were obtained beforehand, a University of Michigan survey shows.
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released the second in a series of health care success story reports that document innovative programs and initiatives that can serve as models for a reformed American health care system. Today"s report highlights the Nebraska WISEWOMAN program. WISEWOMAN is a community intervention program funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that helps prevent heart disease and stroke by providing screenings and counseling for low-income women. The report is available at http://www.healthreform.gov.
PolyMedix, Inc. (OTCBB: PYMX), an emerging biotechnology company developing acute care products for infectious diseases and acute cardiovascular disorders, announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued a patent assigned to PolyMedix relating to angiogenesis inhibitors. The patent, number 7,553,876, entitled "Polycationic Compounds and Uses Thereof," relates to therapeutic uses of PolyMedix compounds for inhibiting angiogenesis.
The research team led by Dr. Timm Schroeder, stem cell researcher at Helmholtz Zentrum MĂønchen, has developed a new bioimaging method for observing the differentiation of hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC) at the single-cell level. With this method the researchers were able to prove for the first time that not only cell-intrinsic mechanisms, but also external environmental factors such as growth factors can control HPC lineage choice directly. The findings, published in the current issue of the prestigious journal Science, provide an essential building block for understanding the molecular mechanisms of hematopoiesis and are an important prerequisite for optimizing therapeutic stem cell applications.
Springer Science+Business Media is offering all journal articles which deal with the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, free of charge on its online information platform http://www.springerlink.com. The articles can be found by using the search term "H1N1." A total of 318 scientific articles will be available to print out or download from now until 31 December 2009.
Scientists at The Florida State University"s Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies (COAPS) have developed a new computer model that they hope will predict with unprecedented accuracy how many hurricanes will occur in a given season.
Accelr8 Technology Corporation (NYSE Amex:AXK) announced the start of a comprehensive study that integrates its BACcel™ test methods using respiratory clinical specimens from ICU patients. Accelr8"s scientists had previously developed each of its test methods using cultured strains. Development then progressed to clinical specimens, focused on optimizing each individual step. The next stage of combining the steps begins with the new study. The study will test ICU respiratory specimens and compare results with those from standard culturing methods (the "gold standard" for testing). Study completion will constitute a major technical milestone toward commercialization.
An innovative treatment for infections of the respiratory tract in cystic fibrosis patients has received a second orphan drug designation in the US only weeks after a first designation was granted. The recent designation relates to Burkholderia cepacia pathogens that can cause lethal infections in cystic fibrosis patients. For Axentis Pharma AG of Zurich, Switzerland, both designations affirm the therapeutic potential of its product candidate Fluidosomes(TM)-tobramycin, whose unique microbiological profile sets it apart from other antibiotic formulations (including free tobramycin).
With entries for the 2009 Wellness Run closing on Sunday 17 May, families and individuals wanting to take part in the popular fitness run are being urged to register now.
In a week that has seen the British swine flu death toll reach 29 and it is estimated that 55,000 people have caught the virus, hospitalizing 652 of them, the
A national program to help mentally ill people on Social Security disability programs find jobs could spur greater independence while saving the federal government $368 million annually, according to a study by Robert Drake of Dartmouth Medical School and colleagues in the May-June 2009 issue of Health Affairs.
Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) said he plans to introduce an amendment to the House health care overhaul bill (HR 3200) that would prohibit insurers from being required to cover abortion, unless the woman"s life is at risk or the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest, CQ Today reports. Pitts said he will offer the amendment Thursday at the first House Energy and Commerce Committee mark-up session.The House bill would authorize the Obama administration to craft minimum benefit standards for health insurance plans, CQ Today reports. President Obama has said that he considers reproductive health care an essential service. Democrats say Republicans are trying to expand the Hyde amendment"s exclusion on using federal Medicaid funding to cover abortion to all health care services. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), vice chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said, "I think that if anti-choice Republicans or others see this as an opportunity to expand prohibitions on a legally allowed and medically appropriate practice, then they are wrong." She added, "We are not going to use the health care bill to expand prohibitions on a legal medical practice, period." Pitts, Rep. Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) and other supporters of the amendment say it is necessary to block the administration from requiring abortion coverage. The committee has blocked three of Smith"s abortion-related amendments so far this year (Wayne, CQ Today, 7/15).
The conservative message on health care is that President Obama"s revamp of the health care system in America will produce a costly government-run program that limits patient choice, The Associated Press reports.
"A hospital that serves thousands of indigent Massachusetts residents sued the state on Wednesday, charging that its costly universal health care law is forcing the hospital to cover too much of the expense of caring for the poor," according to the New York Times.
Georgetown Policy Report: Long-Term Care in Health Care Reform: Policy Options to Improve Both - Policy - Long-term care reform belongs in health care reform -- "The well-being and financial security of families depend not only on access to affordable medical services, but also on access to affordable, reliable long-term care - the daily assistance and supports that many individuals need because of serious medical conditions or disabilities." This policy brief presents four policy options that merit serious consideration in the current health care reform discussion. ... The first two options would improve long-term care for people with low incomes and limited financial res. These options would modernize Medicaid in important ways, tailoring services better to individual needs and using res more effectively. The third and fourth options aim to strengthen long-term care protections for the broader population; one with better coordination of medical and long-term care for Medicare enrollees; the other by establishing insurance protection for people of all ages and incomes" (Komisar, Tumlinson, Feder, Burke, 7/16). (Note: KHN"s coverage of aging and long term care issues is supported by a grant from The SCAN Foundation.)
Researchers have sequenced the genomes of two parasites that cause bilharzia or schistosomiasis - a disease transmitted by water-borne snails that affects more than 200 million people worldwide - "revealing potential weaknesses that could be exploited by drug developers," Nature reports (Smith, 7/15).
The Pig Veterinary Society"s revised 2009 edition of Casualty Pig, funded by the BVA Animal Welfare Foundation (BVA AWF) is now available.
A Geographic Information System (GIS)-driven digital map of past and predicted malaria outbreak hotspots has been used in India as part of a national control program. Researchers writing in BioMed Central"s open access International Journal of Health Geographics describe the creation of the GIS and its implementation in the malaria-stricken Madhya Pradesh region.
Newly announced National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding will expand the reach of ongoing University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) research into a unique nanostructured coating to improve the performance and longevity of total joint replacement components. The broadened UAB research opportunity is funded by a four-year, $790,931 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant through the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS).
Young people with asthma have nearly twice the incidence of depression compared to their peers without asthma, and studies have shown that depression is associated with increased asthma symptoms and, in some cases, death.
According to the latest thinking, eating healthily and taking more exercise are not enough by themselves to combat the nation"s rising obesity levels. Instead we need a better understanding of the issues underpinning compulsive eating so that psychological help can be successfully targeted.
Mothers of premature infants shouldn"t rely solely on breast pumps to establish and maintain their breast milk supply, researchers at Lucile Packard Children"s hospital and the Stanford University School of Medicine have found. Moms already have a simple, safe and free tool for assisting breast milk production: their own hands.
Based on serum bank material, BA profiling was applied in IBD patients and healthy controls which showed that most but not all BA species were decreased to a different extent in CD and UC. BA decreases were highly pronounced in CD patients with surgical interventions in the gut. On the other hand, UC patients with additional liver and gallbladder diseases showed clearly increased levels of those BAs that are synthesized directly in the liver (primary BAs), or subsequently modified by intestinal bacteria (secondary BAs). Furthermore, a marked decrease in the toxic BA lithocholic acid (LCA) was found together with a marked increase in its physiological detoxification product, hyodeoxycholic acid (HDCA), irrespective of the IBD phenotype or clinical manifestation, which showed accelerated detoxification activity in IBD patients. Thus, serum BA profiling might serve as an additional diagnostic tool for IBD characterization and differentiation. In combination with expression profiles of nuclear pregnane X receptor (PXR)-regulated genes, it might allow us to estimate the BA detoxification potential of IBD patients.
AstraZeneca and The Mental Health Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia, today announced that they have entered into a research collaboration agreement to develop new ways of identifying Alzheimer"s disease patients at early stages of the disease.
Correspondence and a linked Editorial in this week"s Lancet criticise the election tactics employed by the British National Party (BNP) prior to the recent European Elections.
Respiratory infectious diseases continue to be a huge and rising burden to health-care systems and societies worldwide. Published by Wiley-Blackwell, the latest issue of Respirology includes an invited review series focused on infectious pulmonary diseases.
Highly intelligent adults with Asperger Syndrome still have difficulties in day-to-day social interaction. These difficulties may be explained by "mindblindness", the idea that they are unable to predict what other people will do by thinking about their mental states, that is, their knowledge and beliefs. If this is true then why do people with Asperger syndrome pass all the standard tests of mental state attribution? Is the theory wrong or are the tests insensitive? This study reports evidence from eye movements, that adults with Asperger Syndrome do not spontaneously anticipate another person"s behaviour on the basis of that person"s mental state. This is in stark contrast with typical adults, and even young toddlers.
The "religious right and its Republican enablers" are "playing the abortion card" with health care reform legislation by contending that "federal government dollars will pay directly for abortions," according to an American Prospect opinion piece by Dana Goldstein, an associate editor for the magazine. It is "unlikely" that federal money would be used this way, but the groups "want grassroots conservatives to believe it will, hoping the resulting outcry will scuttle attempts to reform our expensive health care system," Goldstein continues. She writes, "This rhetoric is beyond hyperbolic -- it is downright deceptive."Goldstein quotes Adam Sonfield, a senior policy associate at the Guttmacher Institute, who said discussion of family planning in federal law ""never includes abortion."" She adds, "In actuality, "family planning" language refers exclusively to contraceptive services, in part because of the Hyde Amendment," which bars the use of federal Medicaid dollars for abortion. She also notes that reproductive health issues are "so politicized ... that even to offer birth control to poor women who do not meet Medicaid"s strict eligibility requirements, individual states must apply for a waiver from the federal government." About half of states have done so, she says. In "choosing what services to cover under any potential public insurance plan," the HHS secretary "will likely be bound by all of the existing laws that prevent the federal government from financing abortion," according to Goldstein. She adds, "None of these restrictions would be explicitly overturned by any of the health reform proposals currently being considered in Congress."Antiabortion-rights Senate Republicans have said they will oppose any health reform bill "that subsidizes abortion coverage or even includes, in the proposed health insurance exchanges, private insurers that cover abortion," Goldstein writes. She adds that 87% of existing health plans include some abortion coverage, meaning that most women would lose coverage under the Republicans" demands. "The result would be a near-blanket restriction on women"s access to insurance-subsidized abortion, one far more radical than the Hyde Amendment," Goldstein says. Meanwhile, women"s health advocates have said that overturning the Hyde Amendment is not currently their top priority because "they are simply too busy playing defense on health reform" and do not have the votes, Goldstein writes.According to Goldstein, by "playing the abortion card, the real goal of anti-choicers is not only to maintain existing restrictions on abortion access, but to use health reform as a vehicle to expand them to the majority of American women." She writes, "If such efforts lead to legislative impasse, many conservatives will be delighted." She concludes, "After all, they"ve never really put any political muscle behind fixing our inadequate health care system" (Goldstein, American Prospect, 7/14).
MorphoSys AG (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced the start of a further two oncology-focused therapeutic antibody programs within its collaboration with DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED (TSE: 4568, hereinafter Daiichi Sankyo). By exercising two options available under the parties" existing agreement, Daiichi Sankyo has selected two new target molecules against which MorphoSys will generate antibodies using its proprietary HuCAL technology. Daiichi Sankyo will carry out pre-clinical and clinical development and has worldwide marketing rights for all resulting products. MorphoSys receives exclusive license fees and stands to receive milestones and royalties for the therapeutic antibody programs, as per the terms of the companies" existing agreement. Further financial details were not disclosed.
"Congress"s chief budget analyst delivered a devastating assessment yesterday of the health-care proposals drafted by congressional Democrats, fueling an insurrection among fiscal conservatives in the House and pushing negotiators in the Senate to redouble efforts to draw up a new plan that more effectively restrains federal spending," the Washington Post reports.
A Battle looms over possible funding cuts for MRIs amid health care reform efforts.
When hospitals agreed to accept a $155 billion pay cut from the federal government to help Washington raise money for reform efforts earlier this month, it was "to the amazement of many," the Economist reports. "How can they justify giving away such a vast sum? There are several explanations, not all of them altruistic. Taken together, they show that the industry"s leaders are bracing themselves for a period of upheaval."
Why The Cheers? The Washington Post
What happens if the next big influenza mutation proves resistant to the available anti-viral drugs? This question is presenting itself right now to scientists and health officials this week at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, as they continue to do battle with H1N1, the so-called swine flu, and prepare for the next iteration of the ever-changing flu virus.
A proposed amendment to Washington, D.C."s federal appropriation for 2010 "would prohibit the city from using federal funds to distribute needles for the "injection of illegal drugs ̣€¦ within 1,000 feet of a public or private day care center, elementary school, vocational school, secondary school, college, junior college, university, public swimming pool, park, playground, video arcade or youth center,"" the Washington Post reports. Local HIV/AIDS advocates "are concerned that [the] proposed amendment ̣€¦ would drastically reduce public funding for needle exchange programs and take away a weapon in the fight against HIV and AIDS," according to the Post. A companion bill in the Senate does not contain language prohibiting the use of federal dollars for needle exchange programs. "Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) urged her colleagues to fight the amendment which is before the full House this afternoon," the article states. The district has provided $700,000 in the past year to four non-profit organizations for needle exchange programs (Fears, 7/16).
By manipulating individual atoms in DNA and forming unique molecules, a Georgia State University researcher hopes to open new avenues in research towards better understanding the mechanisms of DNA replication and transcription, and perhaps leading to new treatments for diseases.
You can tell without looking whether you"ve been stuck by a pin or burnt by a match. But how? In research that overturns conventional wisdom, a team of scientists from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), have shown that this sensory discrimination begins in the skin at the very earliest stages of neuronal information processing, with different populations of sensory neurons--called nociceptors--responding to different kinds of painful stimuli.
A group of chemists from the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) has developed a method to quantify the fragrance allergens found in baby bathwater. The researchers have analysed real samples and detected up to 15 allergen compounds in cosmetics and personal hygiene products.
Many California hospitals would face substantial net losses if there were a large scale shift of individuals with private coverage to a government-run plan that reimburses providers at Medicare rates or Medicare rates plus 10 percent, according to a new hospital-by-hospital analysis released today by America"s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), based on data from California"s Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD).
IntraOp Medical Corporation (OTCBB: IOPM), a provider of Intra-Operative Electron-beam Radiation Therapy (IOERT) solutions for the treatment and eradication of cancer, announced today two new orders for its Mobetron system from its Chinese distribution partner, Hui Long New Technology Co. LTD.
Rice University"s Andrew Barron and his group, working with labs in Italy, Germany and Greece, have identified specific molecules that could block the means by which the deadly virus spreads by taking away its ability to bind with other proteins.
Genentech, Inc. announced that an international Phase III study demonstrated that oral Xeloda® plus oxaliplatin (XELOX) is superior to a commonly used intravenous chemotherapy, 5-FU/LV (infused 5-fluorouracil plus leucovorin), in increasing the time people with adjuvant colon cancer lived without their cancer returning when given immediately after surgery. The data show those who participated in the study and took XELOX immediately after surgery lived longer without their cancer being detectable than those who took intravenous 5U/LV. No new adverse events related to Xeloda were observed in the study.
Researchers at Mayo Clinic compared two popular television shows, CSI and CSI: Miami, to actual U.S. homicide data, and discovered clear differences between media portrayals of violent deaths versus actual murders. This study complements previous research regarding media influences on public health perception. Mayo Clinic researchers presented their findings at the American Psychiatric Association annual meeting in San Francisco.
Following the rapid rise in the spread of swine flu, the QSurveillance® primary care tracking database has increased the level of detail provided in its weekly and daily reports to government and health authorities.
A study of oyster reefs in a once-pristine California coastal estuary found them devastated by invasive Atlantic Coast crabs and snails, providing new evidence of the consequences when human activities move species beyond their natural borders.
Fungi (Singular: fungus) are classified within their own kingdom - The Kingdom Fungi, while some are in The Kingdom Protista. A fungus is neither a plant nor an animal. It is similar to a plant, but it has no chlorophyll and cannot make its own food like a plant can through photosynthesis. They get their food by absorbing nutrients from their surroundings.
Zimmer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ZMH; SWX: ZMH) announced that data from a comparative clinical study conducted by researchers at the Mayo Clinic and the Joint Replacement Surgeons of the Indiana Research Foundation describes the low stiffness and osteoconductive properties of Zimmer"s Trabecular Metal Technology. The study, published in The Journal of Arthroplasty, found significant reductions in acetabular bone loss adjacent to the Trabecular Metal device compared to the titanium component, and a significant relative increase in bone mineral density (BMD) after total hip arthroplasty (THA) using implants made with Zimmer"s proprietary Trabecular Metal Technology.
Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: HGSI) and GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) announced that BENLYSTA(TM) (belimumab, formerly LymphoStat-B(R)) met the primary endpoint in BLISS-52, the first of two pivotal Phase 3 trials in patients with serologically active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In the placebo-controlled BLISS-52 study, the results showed that belimumab plus standard of care achieved a clinically and statistically significant improvement in patient response rate at Week 52, compared with standard of care alone. Study results also showed that belimumab was generally well tolerated, with adverse event rates comparable between belimumab and placebo treatment groups.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in men in the United States(1). Yet it"s often not until the untimely passing of a celebrity from a cardiac event - such as Billy Mays or Tim Russert - that the issue is brought to the forefront of Americans" health and wellness routine. And even then, when there"s a heightened focus on heart health, a recent survey(2) uncovered that only 14 percent of people would be inclined to start regularly monitoring their blood pressure at home - a preventive measure highly recommended by the American Heart Association (AHA)(3) since it can help signal impending cardiac distress caused by high blood pressure.
IVIg treatments, the addition of good antibodies into the blood stream, may hold promise for lowering the risk of Alzheimer"s disease and other similar brain disorders, according to research published in the July 21, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
An FDA-approved drug used for preventing recurrence of breast cancer shows promise in fighting life-threatening fungal infections common in immune-compromised patients, such as infants born prematurely and patients with cancer. Some scientists suspected that tamoxifen has antifungal properties; now new research from the University of Rochester Medical Center shows that it actually kills fungus cells and stops them from causing disease.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced yesterday that it has approved a vaccine for 2009-2010 seasonal influenza in the United
Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 Avant/AMSA Student Research Fellowship:
The Washington Post reports that Regina Benjamin -- President Obama"s nominee for U.S. surgeon general -- shares Obama"s position on reproductive health issues, a position that could put her "at odds" with the Catholic Church"s positions on reproductive rights, according to s familiar with her selection. White House spokesperson Reid Cherlin said, "Like [Obama], she believes that this is an issue where it is important to try and seek common ground and come together to try and reduce the number of unintended pregnancies." Cherlin added, "As a physician, she is deeply committed to the philosophy of putting her patients" needs first when it comes to providing care." The White House would not specifically comment on her views on abortion rights, and an HHS spokesperson says Benjamin is not permitted to speak publicly until she is confirmed. s close to Benjamin, who is Catholic, say that she does support abortion rights, the Post reports. However, several individuals who know Benjamin said her views would not affect her role as surgeon general. David Satcher -- a surgeon general in the Clinton administration who taught community health to Benjamin at the Morehouse School of Medicine -- said, "We all have our religions, but when you speak as the surgeon general to the American people, it"s not about your religion." He added, "I don"t see why the surgeon general has to get involved in a discussion about abortion." Jorge Alsip -- president of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama -- said abortion-related issues occasionally arose when he and Benjamin served on the Alabama State Committee on Public Health. Alsip, who is Catholic, said he does not know her position on the issue, adding, "You kind of have to park your personal beliefs at the door when they conflict with what your role is."Sister Carol Keehan, president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, said, "This is not pivotal to the surgeon general"s job." She added, "From the perspective of being a practicing Catholic, you can certainly say that it matters. I think being willing to work to reduce (abortion) is a good thing."Robert Lawrence, a director at Johns Hopkins University"s Bloomberg School of Public Health and chair of the board of Physicians for Human Rights, served with Benjamin on the group"s board from 1996 until 2002. He said, "I would think that as surgeon general she would uphold the law of the land, and the law of the land guarantees women a choice for reproductive health." He added, "The charge of the surgeon general is to be the people"s doctor and ensure that all those health services guaranteed under federal law are available to the people" (Thompson, Washington Post, 7/19).
The House Education and Labor Committee on Friday voted 26-22 to approve the House health reform bill (HR 3200) after adopting 20 amendments, many of which sought to expand the scope of coverage and increase the number of U.S. residents eligible for purchasing coverage through a health insurance exchange, CQ Today reports. The panel voted 19-28 to reject two amendments offered by Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) that would have precluded plans participating in the health insurance exchange -- including the proposed public insurance plan -- from covering abortion services. The committee agreed to allow some existing state and federal programs to obtain waivers from the bill"s requirements. Among the approved amendments was a 400-page amendment by committee Chair George Miller (D-Calif.) that would open the exchange to more small businesses, certain retirees, and families whose premiums and out-of-pocket costs total more than 11% of their income. The amendment was adopted by voice vote (Demirjian, CQ Today, 7/17).
Although several studies have shown that circumcision, removal of the foreskin which contains cells that are particularly susceptible to HIV, appears to reduce a man"s risk of contracting HIV from his female sex partner, it does not reduce the female sex partners" risk of contracting the virus, according to a study in the Lancet, Reuters reports. Maria Wawer of Johns Hopkins University and colleagues in Uganda followed 922 HIV-positive, uncircumcised men ages 15 to 49. Some of the men immediately underwent a circumcision, and some had the procedure two years later. The researchers also followed 163 female partners of the men.The researchers decided to end the study early when they found that male circumcision did not convey the expected benefits to women. The study also found that men"s partners were no less likely to contract other sexually transmitted infections, except for trichomonas.However, based on observational studies, researchers say that circumcision is so effective in protecting men that it will still likely benefit women indirectly by reducing circulation of the virus in general (Fox, Reuters, 7/16).