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Telemedicine is the use of medical information exchanged from one site to another via electronic communications to improve a patient's health. Electronic communication means the use of interactive telecommunications equipment that includes, at a minimum, audio and video equipment permitting two-way, real time interactive communication between the patient, and the physician or practitioner at the distant site. Telemedicine is viewed as a cost-effective alternative to the more traditional face-to-face way of providing medical care (e.g., face-to-face consultations or examinations between provider and patient).
Physician gender has no impact on patients’ healthcare costs or mortality

Physician gender has no impact on patients’ healthcare costs or mortality

Female doctors' patients do not use health-care services more or die less frequently than patients treated by male doctors, a prospective, observational study by researchers at UC Davis Health System has found. [More]
Telemedicine house calls may be comparable to in-person care for people with Parkinson’s

Telemedicine house calls may be comparable to in-person care for people with Parkinson’s

A small study of 20 people with Parkinson’s disease suggests that “virtual house calls” using Web-based video conferencing provide clinical benefits comparable to in-person physician office visits, while saving patients and their caregivers time and travel. [More]
Virtual house calls provide clinical benefits for patients with Parkinson's

Virtual house calls provide clinical benefits for patients with Parkinson's

A small study of 20 people with Parkinson's disease suggests that "virtual house calls" using Web-based video conferencing provide clinical benefits comparable to in-person physician office visits, while saving patients and their caregivers time and travel. [More]
Telemedicine use appears to help urban communities achieve blood pressure goals

Telemedicine use appears to help urban communities achieve blood pressure goals

Using a telemedicine system to engage people in underserved, urban communities to measure and report their blood pressure remotely-outside of the doctor's office-appears to help them achieve blood pressure goals and improve adherence to lifestyle changes and medication recommendations, according to research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 62nd Annual Scientific Session. [More]
Workshop to help physicians and clinicians increase job satisfaction and prevent burnout

Workshop to help physicians and clinicians increase job satisfaction and prevent burnout

On Saturday, May 11, the Center for Mindfulness at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine is hosting a workshop to help physicians and clinicians increase job satisfaction and prevent burnout. The program will show participants how to incorporate the concept of mindfulness into their daily clinical practice with the long-term goal of enhancing patient-centered care and physician well-being through compassionate communication. [More]

Close-up look at sexting practices of urban ethnic minority youths

Sexting, the use of technology to send or receive sexually explicit messages, photos, or videos, is a relatively new trend and, in many cases, has legal implications. As many as 25-50% of young people may participate in sexting. [More]

New center to help Virginia patients and healthcare workers access specialists through telemedicine

To make it easier for residents of Southside Virginia and other rural localities to receive specialty care not readily available locally, a new state grant will help patients and healthcare workers access specialists through telemedicine. [More]

FSMB announces recipients of 2013 medical awards

The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) announced the recipients of its 2013 awards recognizing outstanding service and leadership in the field of medical regulation. [More]

Computer-based cognitive/behavioral training program can benefit patients with fragile X

Researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute will examine whether children and youth with fragile X syndrome can improve their working memory, cognition and behavior by using an online computer-based cognitive training program, through a new $1 million grant from The John Merck Fund. [More]
Research sheds light on how E. coli thrive in the intestine of people with IBD

Research sheds light on how E. coli thrive in the intestine of people with IBD

​Scientists have long puzzled over why "bad" bacteria such as E. coli can thrive in the guts of those with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), causing serious diarrhea. Now UC Davis researchers have discovered the answer-one that may be the first step toward finding new and better treatments for IBD. [More]

Roundup: Conn. governor's budget proposal would shed thousands from Medicaid; Insurance rates to rise 2.7% in Mass.; Calif. group wants tighter doc narcotic control

Gov. Dannel Malloy said he would close Connecticut's $1.2 billion budget gap with a mix of spending cuts, including to hospitals and programs for the poor, and new revenues, including the extension of some business taxes that were scheduled to expire. [More]

Roundup: Calif. missing out on millions of dollars because of disagreements, software problems; Mass. finds more problems at compounding pharmacies; Hope for Kan. Medicaid managed care

California's court-run prison health care program is missing out on tens of millions of dollars a year in federal funds because of disagreement with counties and software problems, a new legislative report states. The legislative analyst's office found increasing numbers of prison inmates who, because of their low income status, are eligible for the state's Medicaid program. [More]
Cloaked nanoparticles escape immune system surveillance to reach desired target

Cloaked nanoparticles escape immune system surveillance to reach desired target

By cloaking nanoparticles in the membranes of white blood cells, scientists at The Methodist Hospital Research Institute may have found a way to prevent the body from recognizing and destroying them before they deliver their drug payloads. The group describes its "LeukoLike Vectors", or LLVs, in the January issue of Nature Nanotechnology. [More]

FDA allows Arteriocyte to commence Magellan System Phase I trial in thermal burn wounds

Arteriocyte, a leading biotechnology company with offices in Cleveland, Ohio and Hopkinton, Massachusetts announced today approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to initiate a Phase I clinical trial using its Magellan System technology in the treatment of thermal burn wounds. [More]
iRobot’s RP-VITA Remote Presence Robot receives FDA clearance

iRobot’s RP-VITA Remote Presence Robot receives FDA clearance

iRobot Corp., a leader in delivering robotic solutions, announced that the RP-VITA Remote Presence Robot has received 510(k) clearance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in hospitals. RP-VITA is the first autonomous navigation remote presence robot to receive FDA clearance. [More]
Roundup: Ariz. Gov. proposing hospital tax for Medicaid expansion as Nev. ponders options; Vt. hospitals form ACO

Roundup: Ariz. Gov. proposing hospital tax for Medicaid expansion as Nev. ponders options; Vt. hospitals form ACO

Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer, who has become something of a conservative icon for her aggressive opposition to Mr. Obama's policies, surprised many Legislature watchers at her State of the State address last week by saying she wanted to expand the state's Medicaid program to include anyone who makes up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, or $14,856 for an individual. [More]
Low blood flow to the premature brain disrupts cells' ability to fully mature

Low blood flow to the premature brain disrupts cells' ability to fully mature

Physician-scientists at Oregon Health & Science University Doernbecher Children's Hospital are challenging the way pediatric neurologists think about brain injury in the pre-term infant. In a study published online in the Jan. 16 issue of Science Translational Medicine, the OHSU Doernbecher researchers report for the first time that low blood and oxygen flow to the developing brain does not, as previously thought, cause an irreversible loss of brain cells, but rather disrupts the cells' ability to fully mature. [More]

Racial and ethnic minorities less likely to be screened for colorectal cancer in the U.S.

A new study conducted in the Center for Health Policy at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Public Health has determined that racial and ethnic minorities are less likely to be screened for colorectal cancer in the United States. [More]

Parkinson’s assessment devices from Great Lakes NeuroTechnologies receive TGA approval

Great Lakes NeuroTechnologies announced today that they received TGA approval to market Kinesia technology in Australia. The Kinesia™ product line includes patient-worn motion sensors and a tablet computer to quantitatively assess tremor, bradykinesia, and dyskinesia associated with Parkinson’s disease and in response to treatments. [More]
Researchers deploy sensitive brain-testing methods on injured high school athletes

Researchers deploy sensitive brain-testing methods on injured high school athletes

The ability to focus and switch tasks readily amid distractions was compromised for up to two months following brain concussions suffered by high school athletes, according to a study at the University of Oregon. [More]