Cardiovascular
A new study from Thomson Reuters found that patients with bipolar disorder were at greater risk for a wide range of medical conditions than a control group of patients with no mental health diagnoses.
Cancer researchers are turning to mathematical models to help answer important clinical questions, and a new paper in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, illustrates how the technique may answer questions about Herceptin resistance.
Edema, is swelling caused by fluid retention - excess fluid is trapped in the body"s tissues. In the UK/Ireland/Australasia and some other countries the word is spelled oedema. Swelling caused by edema commonly occurs in the hands, arms, ankles, legs and feet. It is usually linked to the venous or lymphatic systems. Edema was formerly known as dropsy or hydropsy.
What
Healthcare Advocates Will Present Congressmembers with "Happy Birthday Medicare" Cakes-And a Plea to Improve and Expand the Beloved Program
The number of people killed by individuals suffering from mental illness in England and Wales increased between 1997 and 2005, figures show. The rise occurred in people who were not under mental health care and was not found in mental health patients.
A recently released AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition report says that although there has been a renewed focus on discovery, innovation and basic science in vaccine research, action is needed to ensure that research funding continues during the economic downturn, VOA News reports. AVAC executive director Mitchell Warren said the report is "about putting all the pieces together ... not just the search for an AIDS vaccine, but in fact the entire HIV prevention response." He added, "[T]he good news is we have some new pieces of the puzzle, and we"re expecting additional new pieces of understanding through research this year." Warren said that AVAC believes HIV/AIDS vaccine research is in "one of the most exciting times," with "new energy, new commitment to unlocking some of the basic scientific roadblocks that have impeded our ability to find a vaccine." For example, a study released earlier this week examined efforts to produce a vaccine through genetic transfer. Regarding the study, Warren said, "It doesn"t mean we have an AIDS vaccine, but it means we have an entirely new approach to trying to deliver protection." Warren said that the field of HIV/AIDS vaccine research has shown a renewed commitment since Merck canceled its vaccine trial in 2007. According to Warren, the new AVAC report examines knowledge gained from the Merck study, which has provided "an unimaginable amount of information." Meanwhile, the effect of the economic crisis on research funding is concerning, Warren said, adding, "I believe that every dollar spent is going to be held up to a greater scrutiny as budgets tighten and as funders have to re-examine their priorities." According to Warren, without renewed funding commitments, "we will not only incur a much greater public health catastrophe, but I would argue that the economic catastrophes to come, if we don"t respond aggressively to HIV, will actually have repercussions that will ... make the economic crisis pale in comparison" (DeCapua, VOA News, 5/18).
An experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) has been withdrawn from clinical trials after it failed to delay progression of the condition in a late-stage trial.
"In a benchmark case dealing with the obligations of hospitals toward uninsured illegal immigrants, a jury in Stuart, Fla., decided Monday that Martin Memorial Medical Center did not act unreasonably when it chartered a plane and repatriated a severely brain-injured Guatemalan patient against the will of his guardian," The New York Times reports.
The nation"s struggles with physician and nurse shortages are evident as health care reform takes shape.
Various states weigh in about health care reform with particular concerns about financial difficulties and different reform models. Massachusetts looks to its own experience to offer advice.
U.N. Releases 1.5M For Sahrawi Refugees
Illinois health officials contend that images seen in the media, social influences, and a lack of "frank" discussion on STDs in schools, among other issues, might be contributing to increases in STD rates across the state, the State Journal-Register reports. "According to recently released data, new cases of chlamydia in Illinois reached an all-time high statewide in 2008 - 59,169 - while the number of gonorrhea cases outside Chicago has been rising in recent years and totaled 10,165 in 2008," the Journal-Register reports. In addition, about 35,000 state residents have HIV/AIDS, the article states. Charlie Rabins, chief of the STD program at the Illinois Department of Public Health, said a bill (SB 212) currently awaiting Gov. Pat Quinn"s (D) approval might help reduce STD rates. The bill "would allow what is called "expedited partner therapy," in which medical professionals who treat patients for gonorrhea or chlamydia can give those patients single-dose antibiotics to pass on to sexual partners without first examining the partners," according to the Journal-Register (Olsen, 7/27).
The Illinois attorney general on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the Center for AIDS Prevention for unlawful fundraising and falsifying official documents, ProPublica reports (Weaver, 7/27). Attorney General Lisa Madigan said the state revoked the organization"s registration 20 years ago, but its director, Steve Neely, also known as Morrell Neely, has continued to solicit donations in the state. "The state says the group tried to reregister as a nonprofit using a phony Chicago address, though its boss, ň€¦ lives in Riverside, Calif.," Courthouse News Service reports (Freeland, 7/27). "If the suit is successful, Illinois could seize money illegally raised there, bar Neely and others involved with the center from future charitable work in the state, freeze their assets, force them to pay back donations they may have "misused and/or wasted" with interest, and attempt to shut the group down for good by revoking its corporate status," ProPublica reports (7/27).
TCT will also host forum on electronic medical records
Mitochondrial diseases disrupt the power generating machinery within cells and increase a person"s susceptibility to bacterial infection, particularly in the lungs or respiratory tract. A new study published in Disease Models & Mechanisms (DMM), shows that infection with the pneumonia causing bacteria Legionella, is facilitated by an increased amount of a signaling protein that is associated with mitochondrial disease.
Rodger McFarlane, a leader in gay rights and HIV/AIDS advocacy efforts, died on Friday in New Mexico at age 54, the New York Times reports. According to McFarlane"s brother, John, he committed suicide. In a letter, McFarlane wrote that he did not want to become further debilitated by heart and back problems, the Times reports. McFarlane was the director of the Gay Men"s Health Crisis from 1982 to 1985, and served as the executive director of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS from 1989 to 1994. He also served as president of the HIV/AIDS and housing organization Bailey House, and from 2004 to 2008 was the executive director of the Gill Foundation in Denver. "AIDS pointed to the inequitable status of gays," McFarlane said in the Times in 1983, adding, "We were forced to take care of ourselves because we learned that if you have certain diseases, certain lifestyles, you can"t expect the same services as other parts of society" (Hevesi, New York Times, 5/19). Tim Sweeney, president of the Gill Foundation, said in a statement, "We will eternally be in his debt as a result of his many, lasting contributions" (AP/Google.com, 5/18).
The GMC has launched a series of challenging online tutorials that tackle tricky ethical scenarios.
Maternal exposure to nanoparticles of titanium dioxide (TiO2) affects the expression of genes related to the central nervous system in developing mice. Researchers writing in BioMed Central"s open access journal Particle and Fibre Toxicology found that mice whose mothers were injected with the nanoparticles while pregnant showed alteration in gene expression related to neurological dysfunction.
E-mail, search engines, smart phones and other new technologies that can disseminate new medical information quickly led to an almost immediate change in clinical practice for drug-eluting stents, according to a study reported in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.
Georgia has received $63.9 million in Ryan White Program grants to fund treatment and other services for people living with HIV, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Grant recipients include county health departments and community organizations. The funding will be used to provide outpatient health services, health insurance coverage and support services, such as transportation and housing. According to the Journal-Constitution, more than $1.79 billion in Ryan White funding was allocated nationwide. Several HIV/AIDS organizations said that the funding is necessary to continue providing services for people living with the disease. Tracy Elliot, executive director of AID Atlanta, said that the funding is "critical," noting that more than 18,000 HIV/AIDS cases have been reported in Georgia. He continued, "We would have a lot of deaths without [the funding]. There would be significantly more illnesses without it and significantly more transmission of the disease without it." According to Elliot, "[m]edical treatment and medications are of no value if people cannot have access to them" (Poole, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5/19).
Newly Designed Comprehensive Health Care Database May Advance Medical Research and Improve Patient Care
England"s ethnic minorities are just as likely to access GP services as their white counterparts and have similarly positive clinical outcomes, a study published this month has found.
Cervical screening in women aged 20-24 has little or no impact on rates of invasive cervical cancer up to age 30, concludes a study published on bmj.com.
New research released by the Royal Pharmaceutical
For many women, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can alleviate the physical symptoms associated with the change of life. But despite the initial hype generated by post-menopausal women who noticed a marked improvement in their skin"s appearance while on HRT, dermatologists argue that scientific studies of estrogen do not show definitive improvements for skin rejuvenation of photodamaged skin and the potential risks when used long-term outweigh any potential skin benefits.
Sanofi-aventis U.S. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Sculptra(R)Aesthetic (injectable poly-L-lactic acid) for the correction of shallow to deep nasolabial fold (smile lines) contour deficiencies and other facial wrinkles which are treated with the appropriate injection technique in healthy patients. Sculptra(R)Aesthetic works gradually to offer natural-looking results that can last up to two years.
"Although the number of mentally ill immigration detainees" at the La Mesa, Calif.-based private psychiatric hospital Alvarado Parkway Institute "at any one time seems to range from as few as two to only five or so, their situation needs to be addressed quickly," a San Diego Tribune editorial states (San Diego Tribune, 5/19). Some disability rights lawyers and advocates for the mentally ill say that conditions at many of the private facilities, including API, violate state and federal laws governing treatment of mentally ill people. Ann Menasche, a lawyer with the legal advocacy group Disability Rights California, last month sent a letter to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement claiming that after visiting API and interviewing detainees, she found that the conditions are "excessive, unjustifiable and punitive" (Kaiser Health Disparities Report, 5/18).According to the Tribune, "California"s strict patients" rights laws specify that psychiatric patients can have daily visitors, use the telephone, exercise, socialize and be free from restraint unless the chief of the facility determines that a specific individual is a threat to himself or others," but, according to Menasche, patients at API are being denied those rights. The editorial adds that the conditions Menasche describes "may sound appalling, but it is unclear whether they are proper for the circumstances," and an "independent probe by the state Department of Public Health ... is needed to determine whether the detainees are being treated properly" (San Diego Tribune, 5/19).
Today, there are more ways than ever before to "get a little work done." From skin fillers to fat-reduction procedures, the options are endless for those looking to improve their appearance and boost their self-esteem. But with so many physicians and options from which to choose, consumers can be confused about where to start and who to trust to perform a cosmetic procedure.
Scientists in New York and North Carolina are reporting assembly of the first functioning prototype of an artificial Golgi organelle. That key structure inside cells helps process and package hormones, enzymes, and other substances that allow the body to function normally. The lab-on-a-chip device could lead to a faster and safer method for producing heparin, the widely used anticoagulant or blood thinner, the researchers note. Their study is scheduled for the Aug. 12 issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, a weekly publication.
The insurance industry opposes a long-term care proposal called the CLASS Act, currently included in two major health care reform measures.
Sex differences in how the brain processes visual information could be a legacy of our hunter-gather past. This is the conclusion of a paper published online today, 30th July 2009, in the British Journal of Psychology.
The Senate Appropriations Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee on Tuesday approved by voice vote its fiscal year 2010 spending bill draft, which excludes funding for abstinence-only sex education programs and, unlike the House bill, does not include language lifting the ban on the use of federal funding for needle exchange programs, CQ Today reports. According to the article, Committee Chair Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) "confirmed that the bill will not contain funding for abstinence-only education programs when the full committee marks it up on Thursday. Instead, the draft will contain funding for more comprehensive sex education, which can include teaching abstinence." Harkin also said that the Senate bill does not contain language lifting the ban on the needle exchange funding because that is "a matter for conference" (Wolfe, 7/28).
Commenting on figures released on Tuesday on Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) in Scotland, Dr Charles Saunders, chairman of the BMA"s Scottish Consultants Committee, said:
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The National Prescribing Service (NPS) warns people are playing Russian roulette with their health when they take medicines inappropriately. Media reports this week about people mixing sleeping tablet, zolpidem (Stilnox), with energy drink Red Bull™ have failed to highlight the risks people are taking when they intentionally misuse pharmaceuticals.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) and the International
Recycling is a critical component in the process of transmitting information from one neuron to the next, and a large protein called Tweek plays a critical role, said an international consortium of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine in a report in the current issue of the journal Neuron.
Rates of severe childhood obesity have tripled in the last 25 years, putting many children at risk for diabetes and heart disease, according to a report in Academic Pediatrics by an obesity expert at Brenner Children"s Hospital, part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.
By systematically analysing MRI changes occuring in the brains of children with the metabolic disease glutaric aciduria type I researchers at Heidelberg University Hospital have succeeded for the first time in demonstrating reversible and permanent brain damage as well as elucidating its temporal evolution.
Helicobacter pylori, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use and smoking are the most important risk factors for peptic ulcer. Alcohol intake may also play a role in the development of gastric ulcers. Psychological stress may also have an impact on the onset and course of ulcer disease. However, very little is known as to whether childhood adversities involving financial problems, conflicts in the family, problems with alcohol, and matters of personal security are associated with peptic ulcer.
The ability to mount an immune response to influenza A (H1N1) infection is significantly compromised by a low level of arsenic exposure that commonly occurs through drinking contaminated well water, scientists at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Dartmouth Medical School have found.
A study published online ahead of press in the Gerontology Society of America"s Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences reports that the condition of frailty in older adults is associated with a critical mass of abnormal physiological systems, over and above the status of each individual system, and that the relationship is nonlinear. This research is the first evidence that frailty is related to the number of abnormal physiological systems, rather than a specific system abnormality, a chronic disease, or chronological age. It suggests significant alterations in system biology with aging, and underlying frailty. Clinical implications are that prevention and treatment may be more likely to be effective if any given intervention improves multiple systems, not just one.
A new study published in a leading medical journal today shows that in Western Cambodia, the parasites that cause malaria have developed
Patients with the autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have an increased risk of infection, due to both disturbances in their immune responses and treatment with immunosuppressive drugs. Because morbidity and mortality related to influenza are increased in immunocompromised patients, it is recommended that patients with SLE get annual flu shots, which are safe and do not increase disease activity. Both antibody and cell-mediated responses are involved in the immune response to influenza; in SLE, antibody responses to the vaccine are diminished, but it is not known if the same effect is seen in cell-mediated responses. A new study was the first to examine cell-mediated responses in SLE patients prior to and following influenza vaccination. The study was published in the August issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism .
UCLA researchers have uncovered a new way to scan brain tumors and predict which ones will be shrunk by the drug Avastin - before the patient ever starts treatment. By linking high water movement in tumors to positive drug response, the UCLA team predicted with 70 percent accuracy which patients" tumors were the least likely to grow six months after therapy.
Stem Cell Therapeutics Corp. ("SCT" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:SSS) is pleased to announce the acceptance and publication of the paper entitled "Open labeled, uncontrolled pharmacokinetic study of single intramuscular hCG dose in healthy male volunteers" by the International Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Vol. 47, August 2009. This paper was authored by Drs. Alan Moore, President & CEO, Allen Davidoff, VP Product Development and Yan Yang, Clinical Research Associate, all of SCT; Dr. Michael D. Hill of Foothills Hospital at the University of Calgary, and Dr. Steven C. Cramer, from the University of California, Irvine.
United Therapeutics Corporation (Nasdaq: UTHR) announced that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved TYVASO (treprostinil) Inhalation Solution for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) using the TYVASO Inhalation System (which includes the Optineb-ir device and accessories). TYVASO is indicated to increase walk distance in patients with NYHA Class III symptoms associated with WHO Group I PAH, which includes multiple etiologies such as idiopathic and familial PAH as well as PAH associated with scleroderma and congenital heart disease.
Numerous pathogens contain an "internal time bomb", a deadly mechanism that can be used against them. After years of work, VIB researchers at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) were able to determine the structure and operating mechanism of the proteins involved. This clears the road for finding ways to set the clock on this internal time bomb and, hopefully, in the process developing a new class of antibiotics. The research was accepted for publication by top journal Molecular Cell, with congratulations from the editorial board.
With just days to go before the implementation of the 48-hour working week for junior doctors, the BMA"s junior doctors" leader warns that not all of the NHS is prepared for the European Working Time Directive.
The future use of Independent Sector Treatment Centres (ISTCs) in the NHS, will be fairer and on the same terms as other providers of NHS services, Health Minister Mike O"Brien announced today.
Janet Davison Rowley, MD, a pioneer in demonstrating that cancer is a genetic disease, will receive the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom the White House announced Thursday. President Barack Obama will award the Medals of Freedom, the nation"s highest civilian honor, to Rowley and 15 others at a ceremony Wednesday, August 12.
Americans spent $33.9 billion out-of-pocket on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) over the previous 12 months, according to a 2007 government survey1. CAM is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products such as herbal supplements, meditation, chiropractic, and acupuncture that are not generally considered to be part of conventional medicine. CAM accounts for approximately 1.5 percent of total health care expenditures ($2.2 trillion2) and 11.2 percent of total out-of-pocket expenditures (conventional out-of-pocket: $286.6 billion2 and CAM out-of-pocket: $33.9 billion1) on health care in the United States.
Thousands of scientists and hundreds of software programmers studying the process by which RNA inside cells normally degrades may soon broaden their focus significantly.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a blood-borne disease that causes inflammation of the liver and to which there is currently no vaccine available. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 3% of the world"s population, approximately 170 million people, are infected with HCV and it is a leading cause of liver cirrhosis, end stage liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver transplantation.
"Earnings from the nation"s big health insurers show signs of a new uptick in medical costs related to the recession: As unemployment rises, people who have lost their jobs or are fearful of losing them are rushing to see doctors to get medical tests before their benefits expire," the Wall Street Journal reports. WellPoint, the nation"s largest insurer by volume, reported a 7.6 percent dip in profits and the loss of 338,000 members in the second quarter, further illuminating the trend. Other insurers have experienced similar patterns in which policyholders are seeking more - and more expensive - health services.
During a meeting in Atlanta on Wednesday, a "federal advisory committee issued sweeping guidelines ň€¦ for a vaccination campaign against the pandemic swine flu strain, identifying more than half the U.S. population as targets for the first round of vaccinations," CNN reports (Hellerman, 7/29).
Low donation levels are causing the World Food Programme (WFP) to fall short of feeding the most critically hungry people in the world, and the agency "has so far received only $1.8 billion and has had to cut back rations and programs to the 108 million people it serves, said Josette Sheeran," WFP"s executive director, Reuters reports (Rampton, 7/29).
Rush University will award 536 baccalaureate and graduate degrees at its 37th commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 13, at 1:45 p.m. at the UIC Pavilion, 525 South Racine, Chicago.
Shire plc 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.
An annual report by the Health Council of East Central Florida released on Wednesday said that nearly 800 new cases of HIV were reported in Central Florida in 2008 and blacks and Hispanics remain disproportionately affected, the Orlando Sentinel reports. The report was presented to the Ryan White Planning Council, according to the Sentinel. The report said that there are now more than 4,000 people living with HIV in the area, and another 4,400 living with AIDS. In addition, a majority of the new cases of HIV were among blacks and Hispanics, according to the report (Maza, 7/29). In an interview with the Sentinel, Debbie Tucci, the Orange County Health Department"s HIV/AIDS program coordinator, discussed the findings. She said, "HIV/AIDS is not in the forefront the way it used to be. We"ve been talking about this for a long time, and people just don"t think it"s going to happen to them." She added, "The disease doesn"t care what your race or ethnicity is. Now we target minorities more, and what"s happened is that they"re getting tested more. Prevention strategies are absolutely working. There"s always room for improvement, but we"ve come a long way - especially among minorities" (Maza, 7/30).
Columnist George Curry on Tuesday in the Hudson Valley Press discussed how HIV/AIDS is impacting the black community, particularly in Washington, D.C. The piece includes comments from Phill Wilson, CEO of the Black AIDS Institute and C. Virginia Fields, president and CEO of the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, who discuss statistics and recommendations to address HIV/AIDS among the black community, including routine HIV testing. Curry writes, "If C. Virginia Fields and other activists get their wish and have [HIV] testing incorporated into routine health testing, that will place a heavier burden on crowded counseling and treatment facilities. But it"s not an insurmountable burden. The question is: Do we have the national will to take on this epidemic?" (7/29).
Nine-year-olds can and should learn CPR. A study of 147 schoolchildren, published in BioMed Central"s open access journal Critical Care, has shown that, although the smallest may lack the requisite strength, the knowledge of how to perform basic life support is well retained by young children.
Health plans reiterated their strong support for new market rules and consumer protections to cover all Americans and guarantee coverage for pre-existing conditions.
A study of almost 25,000 coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) patients has shown that receiving blood from another person is associated with a two-fold increase in post-operative infection rates. The research, published in the open access journal BMC Medicine, also found considerable hospital variation in transfusion practices.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposed 2.2 percent home health market basket update to the home health prospective payment system (HH PPS) rates for calendar year (CY) 2010. Also, as part of ongoing efforts to address potential fraud and abuse with regards to outlier payments under the HH PPS, CMS is proposing modifications to its outlier policy.
Without knowing how much of an industrial chemical is being produced, it is almost impossible for scientists to determine if it poses any threat to the environment or human health.
Cancer researchers at Georgetown University"s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center have successfully tested a small, engineered antibody they say shuts down growth of human glioblastoma tumors in cell and animal studies. Glioblastoma is the deadliest of brain cancers; there is no effective treatment.
The second wave of Integrated Care Pilots should be developed among existing promising commissioners and providers to encourage a complete restructuring of the way primary and secondary work together.
Front-line staff in the nursing and care sector would welcome sensor and robot technology in nursing homes and the homes of elderly people.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) and AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ONGLYZA™ (saxagliptin), a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) inhibitor. ONGLYZA is indicated as an adjunct to diet and exercise to improve blood sugar (glycemic) control in adults for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. ONGLYZA once daily can be used in combination with commonly prescribed oral anti-diabetic medications metformin, sulfonylureas or thiazolidinediones (TZD) or as a monotherapy to significantly reduce glycosylated hemoglobin (A1C) levels. ONGLYZA should not be used for the treatment of type 1 diabetes or for the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis (high levels of certain acids, known as ketones, in the blood or urine). ONGLYZA has not been studied in combination with insulin.
The advantages of volunteering reported by adults aged 55 and older are largely dependent upon the characteristics of the activities in which they participate, according to a recent article appearing in The Gerontologist (Vol. 49, No. 1). The lead author is Nancy Morrow-Howell, PhD, of Washington University in St. Louis.
The American Dietetic Association has released an updated position paper on food and water safety that reviews the current situation in this country, identifies new tools that can help decrease illness and encourages continued research, education and technological advances to keep the food and water supply safe.
The following summarizes selected women"s health-related blog entries.~ "A Taxing Problem," Jessica Arons, Huffington Post blogs: The five Democrats who last week sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) "suggesting a "common ground" solution to the abortion "roadblock" in health care reform" should be "applauded" for keeping the debate"s focus on covering the uninsured and "for being unwilling to sacrifice health care reform on the altar of abortion politics," writes Jessica Arons, director of the Women"s Health & Rights Program at the Center for American Progress. Arons adds that while the proposal, led by antiabortion-rights Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), "is in welcome contrast to the stonewalling and ultimatums coming from Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and his allies," it is "based on a misguided and attenuated definition of government spending, and it conflicts with what Americans want and expect from health care reform." She continues that the "suggestion that a health plan might offer abortion coverage, and it might be used by someone, who might have paid a lower premium than someone else, because the government might have helped pay their premium is a horrible reason for Congress to carve out an explicit exception to a bill that is otherwise entirely silent on coverage options." Taxpayers "do not have the right to specify how their tax money should be spent," she writes, adding, "I understand why people would want to withhold their taxes from purposes they oppose, but our system does not -- nor should it -- work that way" (Arons, Huffington Post blogs, 7/30).~ "The Breakup of the Pro-Life Movement," Cristina Page, Birth Control Watch: Rep. Ryan is "in many ways a typical pro-life American" who opposes abortion rights and, "like most pro-life Americans, ... supports every effort to prevent the need for it," including contraception, Page writes. However, because of his support for contraception and sponsorship of the "Preventing Unintended Pregnancies, Reducing the Need for Abortion and Supporting Parents Act," Ryan was "banished" from the board of Democrats for Life of America, Page writes, adding that antiabortion-rights publications have "taken to qualifying his pro-life status as "allegedly" pro-life or referring to him as someone "who claims to be" pro-life." The bill, also known as the Ryan-DeLauro bill, would increase funding for contraception, and support comprehensive sex education and services for women who choose to carry unintended pregnancies to term, Page writes. She notes that the bill is supported by "many prominent pro-life individuals" and groups that support abortion rights, though "[n]ot one leading pro-life group signed onto the bill." Page writes, "Pro-life Americans favor expanding access to contraception because of the undeniable pro-life results," adding, "Unintended pregnancy is the root cause of abortion. We know when used properly, contraception works." It is "time for the disagreement over contraception to be addressed by the pro-life community at large," she writes, adding, "We will have no chance of making a real impact on unintended pregnancy and abortion rates without dramatic, informed strategies on prevention" (Page, Birth Control Watch, 7/28).~ "Senate Subcommittee: Ab-Only Out, Syringe Ban Still In; Advocates Hope for Further Changes in Conference Committee," Jodi Jacobson, RH Reality Check: The spending bill approved yesterday by the Senate Appropriations Committee "zeroes out funding" for the Community-Based Abstinence Education program, which has "for years [been] the main of support for now-discredited abstinence-only programs," Jacobson writes. The "elimination of these funds parallels similar action in the House, ... so unless amendments are proposed, accepted and passed during either the full committee vote or on the Senate floor, this bill spells "the end of abstinence-only programs as we know them," said one advocate, "at least for this year,"" Jacobson writes. The Senate version of the bill allocate
"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is trying to unite her divided caucus around a common enemy - the health insurance industry - previewing an August recess line of attack by Democrats trying to maintain momentum on health care reform," Politico reports. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said yesterday, "They are the villains in this. They have been part of the problem in a major way. They are doing everything in their power to stop a public option from happening, and the public has to know" (Thrush, 7/31).
Health Affairs: Annual Medical Spending Attributable to Obesity: Payer- and Service-Specific Estimates -- Using data from 1998 and 2006 Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys (MEPS) - "a nationally representative survey of the civilian noninstitutionalized population that quantifies a person"s total annual medical spending by type of service and of payment" - the authors estimate the health cost of obesity in the U.S. is $147 billion. "Across all payers, per capita medical spending for the obese is $1,429 higher per year, or roughly 42 percent higher, than for someone of normal weight. In aggregate, the annual medical burden of obesity has increased from 6.5 percent to 9.1 percent of annual medical spending and could be as high as $147 billion per year (in 2008 dollars) based on the NHEA [National Health Expenditure Accounts] estimate," according to the study. In conclusion, the authors write, "The take-home message is that without a strong and sustained reduction in obesity prevalence, obesity will continue to impose major costs on the health system for the foreseeable future. And although health reform may be necessary to address health inequities and rein in rising health spending, real savings are more likely to be achieved through reforms that reduce the prevalence of obesity and related risk factors, including poor diet and inactivity" (7/27).
Patients with second primary lung cancers (SPLC), when compared to those with one primary lung cancer (OPLC), are more likely to have localized disease at the time of diagnosis and are more likely to receive surgical treatment rather than radiation treatment. However, patients with SPLC have a 12% higher lung cancer specific mortality, Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers reported at the annual meeting of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.
Gastroesophageal reflux diseases , or GERD, affects about 10 million people in the United States, yet the cause and an unexpected increase in its prevalence over the last three decades remains unexplainable. Now, researchers have discovered that GERD is associated with global alteration of the microbiome in the esophagus. The findings, reported in the August 1, 2009 issue of Gastroenterology, may provide for the foundation for further study of the condition as a microecological disease with new treatment possibilities.
A study, "Sibling risk of Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome and Adenotonsillar Hypertrophy," in the Aug. 1 issue of the journal SLEEP indicates that children have an increased risk of developing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) if they have at least one sibling who has been diagnosed with the sleep disorder.
Transposons are mobile genetic elements found in the hereditary material of humans and other organisms. They can replicate and the new copies can insert at novel sites in the genome. Because this threatens the whole organism, molecular mechanisms have evolved which can repress transposon activity. Professor Klaus Förstemann of the Gene Center of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich and a team of researchers working with the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster have now uncovered a new type of cellular defence that acts against DNA sequences present in high copy numbers inside the cell, even if they have not integrated into the genome. Small molecules of RNA (a class of nucleic acid closely related to the genetic material DNA) play the central role. "Transposons are genomic parasites, so to speak", says Förstemann. "If they are allowed to proliferate, the genome can become unstable or cancers can develop. We now want to find out whether mammalian cells possess this newly discovered defence mechanism and to elucidate precisely how it works." (EMBO Journal online, 30 July 2009.)
Some people who are serious about wanting to reduce their "carbon footprint" on the Earth have one choice available to them that may yield a large long-term benefit - have one less child.
Common and clumsy-looking, the blow fly is a true artist of flight. Suddenly changing direction, standing still in the air, spinning lightning-fast around its own axis, and making precise, pinpoint landings - all these maneuvers are simply a matter of course. Extremely quick eyesight helps to keep it from losing orientation as it races to and fro. Still, how does its tiny brain process the multiplicity of images and signals so rapidly and efficiently?
Low blood pressure is also known as hypotension. For millions of people who suffer from hypertension (high blood pressure) hypotension may seem great. If symptoms are mild hypotension usually requires no treatment. However, it can cause serious heart disorders, fainting and also lead to neurological and endocrine disorders. If hypotension is severe key organs can become deprived of oxygen and nutrients and the body can go into shock, a life-threatening condition.
UroToday.com - A recent European study demonstrated that 10-year mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer was decreased in a population of 70 to 90 year olds who adhered to a Mediterranean diet, were physically active, had moderate alcohol consumption and did not smoke. There are also reports suggesting an inverse association between physical activity and risk of prostate cancer (CaP). Yet mechanisms linking lifestyle and longevity are not well investigated. This report in The Prostate investigates an animal model for the association between physical activity and development of CaP.
The ghrelin hormone not only stimulates the brain giving rise to an increase in appetite, but also favours the accumulation of lipids in visceral fatty tissue, located in the abdominal zone and considered to be the most harmful. This is the conclusion of research undertaken at Metabolic Research Laboratory of the University Hospital of Navarra, published recently in the International Journal of Obesity.
UroToday.com - Empirical medical treatment for idiopathic male factor infertility is a controversial issue. Several medications are used empirically for the treatment of idiopathic male factor infertility, including follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), antiestrogen, L-carnitine, and antioxidants. In this study, we attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of the combination of clomiphene citrate and vitamin E in the management of men with idiopathic infertility.
UroToday.com - We undertook a systematic review of the literature in reference to the use of ipsilateral adrenalectomy at the time of radical nephrectomy for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma. Important in the understanding of this is accurately defining..
Scientists who found a new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in a Cameroonian woman living in Paris, have discovered it is an unusual
A study of hospitalizations for severe injury in Ontario"s designated trauma centres shows alcohol was involved in at least 12% of major trauma cases in 2007-2008. 2008 Major Injury in Ontario, released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), shows 526 patients hospitalized for severe injury were found to have blood alcohol concentration levels over the legal limit of 0.08% last year.
Data presented today at the 8th European Congress on Menopause
A marked and broad expansion in antidepressant treatment occurred among Americans older than 6 years between 1996 and 2005, although treatment rates remain low among racial and ethnic minorities, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
By combining the art of origami with nanotechnology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers have folded sheets of DNA into multilayered objects with dimensions thousands of times smaller than the thickness of a human hair. These tiny structures could be forerunners of custom-made biomedical nanodevices such as "smart" delivery vehicles that would sneak drugs into patients" cells, where they would dump their cargo on a specific molecular target.
A school-based program that integrates information about healthy relationships into the existing ninth-grade curriculum appears to reduce adolescent dating violence and increase condom use two and a half years later, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The effects of the low-cost intervention appear stronger in boys.
Sedentary behaviors such as TV viewing and "screen time" involving computer use, videos and video games appear to be associated with elevated blood pressure in children, independent of body composition, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
As people age, the potential exists for those years to be the most rewarding and fulfilling time of their lives. However, major illness, retirement, the death of a spouse, and a shrinking circle of friends all may, in some cases, contribute to increased levels of stress and depression in the elderly. For that reason the chief of geropsychiatry for the Los Angeles Jewish Home - the largest single- provider of senior residential housing in the western United States - is offering seniors and their loved ones 10 warning signs that may trigger the need for assistance with mental health issues.
A paper just published in the British Journal of Pharmacology reports that a compound originally isolated from a soft coral (Capnella imbricate) could lead scientists to develop a new variety of treatments for neuropathic pain. This composite is collected at Green Island off Taiwan and could be a new option for treatment. Neuropathic pain is chronic and occasionally follows damage to the nervous system. Presently this type of pain is very poorly controlled by the usual analgesics: aspirin like drugs (NSAIDS) or even opioids like morphine. New treatments are urgently required.
Drug companies "boosted their lobbying in Washington during the three months (that) ended June 30 amid a flurry of congressional action on health care," while overall, "Washington"s lobbying business continued to slump as the economy pinched budgets at some big companies and trade associations," The Wall Street Journal reports. "Drug manufacturers increased lobbying spending 13% to $68 million in the second quarter from a year earlier, according to the data ň€¦ Overall, the health-care sector reported a 5% increase in lobbying expenditures to $133 million, making it the single largest spender on lobbying of the 10 major industry sectors tracked by the Center for Responsive Politics. Health-insurance companies increased lobbying activity by 11% to $7.8 million, according to the data" (Mullins and Farnam, 8/3).
The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed an amendment to their broad health reform bill giving drug makers 12 years of exclusive rights to market new biologic drugs, "a setback" to the administration and consumer advocates who hoped to make generic drugs more widely available, the Wall Street Journal reports. The panel voted 47-11 on the measure, which "would also allow "evergreening," the practice by pharmaceutical companies of making minimal adjustments to their drugs, such as creating extended-release versions, as a way to lengthen their monopoly."
"Money can"t buy me love" the Beattles famously sang. And now a new paper by University of Notre Dame economist Kasey Buckles and colleagues suggests "money" or more precisely the price of marriage, can significantly affect the decision to marry.
A new diagnostic tool developed by Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) scientists has shown promising results when used with patients of pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of cancer due to the difficulty of diagnosing it in its early stages. The method, which studies carbohydrate structures in the bloodstream, could lead to the development of blood tests that can detect cancer more effectively.
Brain scientists and cardiac surgeons at Johns Hopkins have evidence from 227 heart bypass surgery patients that long-term memory losses and cognitive problems they experience are due to the underlying coronary artery disease itself and not ill after-effects from having used a heart-lung machine.
There is mounting evidence that omega-3 fatty acids from fish or fish oil supplements not only help prevent cardiovascular diseases in healthy individuals, but also reduce the incidence of cardiac events and mortality in patients with existing heart disease. A new study, published in the August 11, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, extensively reviews data from a broad range of studies in tens of thousands of patients and sets forth suggested daily targets for omega-3 consumption.
La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology researchers studying an enzyme believed to play a role in allergy onset, instead have discovered its previously unknown role as a tumor suppressor that may be important in myeloproliferative diseases and some types of lymphoma and leukemia. Myeloproliferative diseases are a group of disorders characterized by an overproduction of blood cells by the bone marrow and include chronic myeloid leukemia. Lymphoma and leukemia are cancers of the blood.
Middle aged people who smoke, have high blood pressure or diabetes are far more likely to develop dementia in later life, suggests research published ahead of print in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.
The Australian Medical Students" Association acknowledges the Australian Medical Association"s call for action concerning the difficulties that doctors face in maintaining involvement in teaching and research activities.
With the epidemic of childhood obesity in the United States, there is concern that overweight and obese children need to be screened for chronic medical conditions, including high cholesterol levels.
Small-scale farmers in Africa, Asia and Latin America are
New research helps explain why infection with herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2), which causes genital herpes, increases the risk for HIV infection even after successful treatment heals the genital skin sores and breaks that often result from HSV-2.
John F. Alcorn, Ph.D., a biologist in the John G. Rangos Sr. Research Center at Children"s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, has been selected as one of ten 2009 recipients of the prestigious Parker B. Francis Fellowship, awarded each year to scientists conducting pulmonology research.
Of the 600,000-800,000 people trafficked across international borders each year, 50 percent are under 17. It is estimated that by 2010, human trafficking will be the No. 1 crime worldwide.
Palatin Technologies, Inc. (NYSE Amex: PTN) announced that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its U.S. Patent Application Number 11/694,260, titled "Cyclic Natriuretic Peptide Constructs." Allowed claims cover a family of cyclic compounds that bind to natriuretic peptide receptor A (NPRA), including PL-3994, Palatin"s lead heart failure drug candidate. Palatin expects the patent will issue in the second half of 2009; the patent"s 20-year term would expire in 2027.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton kicked off a seven country, 11-day trip - "her longest overseas journey to date as the top U.S. diplomat - by flying Monday night to Kenya where she will address an African trade and development forum, meet top Kenyan officials and see the beleaguered president of lawless Somalia"s interim government," the Associated Press reports. During the trip, Clinton is expected to "underscore the importance of efforts to combat HIV/AIDS and pledge continuing U.S. backing for health care initiatives in Africa," the AP writes (Lee, 8/3).
Third Person In China Dies Of Pneumonic Plague, Officials Seal-Off Area
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) is leading a project to provide technical assistance to the Libyan government to finalise the development of a national HIV strategy and programme of support. The project is supported by a 1 million euro grant from the Delegation of the European Commission to Libya.
Researchers from The University of Texas at Austin will participate in a $3 million, five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fight influenza and other diseases by creating models that simulate the complex interplay between human behavior and the spread of disease.
Children have certainly mastered the art of selecting, negotiating and even refusing the chores their parents assign to them. This growth in personal autonomy at home over the last few decades could be the result of shrinking opportunities to participate in activities outside the home, without Mom and Dad looking over their shoulder, according to Dr. Markella Rutherford from Wellesley College in the US. Her analysis1 of back issues of the popular US magazine, Parents, maps how the portrayal of parental authority and children"s autonomy has changed over the last century. Her findings are published online in Springer"s journal Qualitative Sociology.
On average, not-for-profit nursing homes deliver higher quality care than do for-profit nursing homes, according to a study published on bmj.com today.
When planning for surgery, patients too often don"t consider the kind of anesthesia they will receive. In fact, the choice of anesthesia can improve recovery, even outcomes.
In many types of cancer, parts of the genetic material of tumor cells are switched off by chemical labels called methyl groups. This kind of methyl labeling ranges among the epigenetic changes that do not change the sequence of DNA building blocks. Such labels are found particularly often in genes which act as important inhibitors of pathogenic cell growth.
Statistics released yesterday by the NHS Information Centre reflect a year when dentists were working hard to make the new dental contract of 2006 work, according to the British Dental Association (BDA). The Dental Earnings and Expenses, England and Wales, 2007/08 report, which considers the earnings of dentists who undertook NHS work in England or Wales in the second year of the new contract, paints a picture of earnings settling after a transitional year in 2006/07.
GP Surgeries in Camden are successfully sending out text messages advising patients on what to do if they think they have Swine Flu.
UroToday.com - Microdissection testicular sperm extraction is a procedure used to extract sperm from patients with irreversible non-obstructive azospermia. Sperm extracted are then used for in vitro fertilization (IVF). While this technique has improved the sperm retrieval rate compared to other biopsy techniques, sperm are still often not retrieved. The purpose of our research was to develop a technique for identifying small foci of sperm for retrieval for use in IVF.
Nationally, about ten percent of women in the US are recalled for a second mammogram after an abnormality is detected on the first one - for most women this can be very stressful. However the use of digital breast tomosynthesis and full-field digital mammography combined may be associated with a substantial decrease in recall rate, according to a study performed at UPMC in Pittsburgh, PA. Some researchers believe that digital breast tomosynthesis depicts the breast tissue in a way which may allow radiologists to identify some tumors which could be missed with standard two-dimensional mammography.
"As they work to overhaul the nation"s healthcare system, President Obama and his congressional allies have pledged to help small-business owners such as Rhonda Ealy and Kelli Glasser," The Los Angeles Times reports. "Both businesswomen desperately want help. But they have strongly divergent views about what Washington should do, reflecting a broader debate about how to relieve the burden on the nation"s roughly 6 million small businesses." Ealy owns a coffee roasting company in Bend, Ore. with 13 employees, she says she "loves a Democratic proposal to create a government-run insurance plan, which she hopes will allow her to get her employees better coverage for less." Glasser, who "makes museum and trade-show exhibits" and has 87 employees, "hates a separate provision in the legislation that would place a new requirement on many businesses to cover their employees."
Both combination and sequential single-agent chemotherapy are reasonable options to treat metastatic breast cancer, but the choice between the two should ultimately be based on patient- and disease-related factors, according to a new commentary published online August 5 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCMP), an international biopharmaceutical company, announced that its subsidiary, Sucampo Pharma, Ltd., has initiated enrollment and completed the randomization of the first patient into the pivotal phase 3 efficacy trial of lubiprostone for chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) in Japan.
Siemens Corporate Research (SCR), Inc. announced that it developed the RAPID2 system to speed the biomarker discovery process for the development of rapid diagnostic tests. This system marries the power of information technology with today"s improved genomic sequencing to quickly identify genomic signatures unique to the set of organisms to be detected. These signatures are the foundation for a new generation of molecular diagnostic tests for the rapid detection of healthcare-associated infections such as the potentially deadly Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA).