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Study: Catholic, other church-owned health systems show more efficient care than for-profit health systems

A study released today by Thomson Reuters found that Catholic and other church-owned health systems demonstrated significantly better, more efficient care than for-profit health systems.

9 Aug 2010

Remote monitoring of chronic heart failure patients can reduce pressure on resources

Providing patients with chronic heart failure access to remote monitoring, for example by telephone or telemonitoring using wireless technology, reduces deaths and hospitalisations and may provide benefits on health care costs and quality of life. These are the conclusions of a new Cochrane Systematic Review by an international team of researchers.

9 Aug 2010

Patient navigator program to educate Hmong women on cervical cancer

The Asian-American community of Hmong women in California carries a stunning burden of cervical cancer and resulting mortality four times as high as non-Hispanic white women in California do.

7 Aug 2010

Clinical trials in Asia, Africa confirm safety, effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine

Two studies published online Thursday in the Lancet show that the rotavirus vaccine is safe and effective at preventing much of the gastrointestinal illness in developing countries, where rotavirus kills more than 400,000 children under age 5 annually, Reuters reports. Based on the findings in Asia and Africa, the studies' authors "urged the governments of developing nations to make the vaccines a priority," the news service writes.

7 Aug 2010

Medtronic completes enrollment in Complete SE vascular stent superficial femoral artery clinical study

With an expanded focus on addressing peripheral arterial disease (PAD), Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), today announced that it has completed enrollment in a clinical trial of the company's Complete SE (self-expanding) vascular stent for the treatment of atherosclerosis in the superficial femoral artery (SFA), including the proximal popliteal artery (PPA), which runs under the skin of the thigh.

7 Aug 2010

Surgery offers high survival rate for prostate cancer patients: Study

Surgery for localized prostate cancer offers a significantly higher survival rate than either external-beam radiation or hormonal therapies, according to a new study led by researchers at UCSF.The differences among therapies were more prominent at higher levels of cancer risk, and suggest, the researchers say, that in many cases surgery should play a greater role in treatment strategies for patients with prostate cancer that is likely to recur or spread.

7 Aug 2010

Research Roundups: Expanding Medicaid; More spending doesn't reduce mortality; Colonoscopy cost effectiveness; Kids, asthma and access to care

Health Affairs: Little Evidence Of Correlation Between Growth In Health Care Spending And Reduced Mortality - This study examines differences in hospital mortality and cost between 2000 and 2004 for patients at 122 U.S. hospitals, with seven common medical diagnoses: acute myocardial infarction, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, community-acquired pneumonia, congestive heart failure, cerebrovascular accident (also called ischemic stroke), sepsis, or urinary tract infection.

7 Aug 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

According to a Lancet Comment, "alcohol remains conspicuously absent from the larger field of research and programming in HIV and substance use. ... Patterns of hazardous alcohol consumption prevail in countries with the most severe HIV epidemics, notably eastern and southern Africa." In addition, "hazardous drinking patterns also dominate in the concentrated epidemics of eastern Europe and Asia, where alcohol use by injecting drug users and other marginalised groups might be an additional barrier to effective efforts to prevent HIV infection."

7 Aug 2010

Alnylam publishes research findings of Sort1 gene role in cardiovascular disease development

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today the publication of new research findings in the journal Nature describing the discovery and validation of the role of the gene Sort1 in the development of cardiovascular disease, including myocardial infarction (MI). This work was done with collaborators at University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) School of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and the Broad Institute. The collaborative effort combined genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and RNAi technology to identify and validate novel genes as targets for new therapies for heart disease.

6 Aug 2010

Scientific findings reveal combination antibiotic therapy effective for ulcerative colitis

The link between Hormone Replacement Therapy and reduced risk of distal large bowel cancer in women; a promising combination antibiotic therapy for ulcerative colitis patients; and the high-rate of alcoholic liver disease mortality, are among the scientific findings featured in the August issue of The American Journal of Gastroenterology.

6 Aug 2010

Researchers map malaria parasite P vivax; Nearly 3B people at risk of infection in 2009

A new evidence-based map estimates that in 2009 2.85 billion people lived "at risk of infection" with the malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax, BMJ News reports. As described in a study, published Tuesday in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, P vivax "is more widespread and potentially represents a greater burden on human health in some parts of the world than P falciparum, the species usually associated with the greatest mortality and morbidity," BMJ News writes (Moszynski, 8/3).

5 Aug 2010

Alnylam second-quarter revenues increase to $26.6 million

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, today reported its consolidated financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2010, and company highlights.

5 Aug 2010

Study says quality not hurt when nurse anesthetists work without doc guidance

A new study published Tuesday in Health Affairs suggests that nurse anesthetists' quality of work is not lower when they aren't supervised by a doctor, The Wall Street Journal Health Blog reports. "The background for this is that Medicare won't reimburse for anesthesia services unless a physician is supervising what's going on.

5 Aug 2010

Study supports efficacy of brief intervention in reducing alcohol use, violence among adolescents

Brief interventions among adolescents reporting to emergency departments may be associated with a reduction in the experience of peer violence and alcohol misuse in this population, according to a study in the August 4 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on violence and human rights.

4 Aug 2010

Report examines effects of traumatic events on mental health status of adults in Central African Republic

More than three-quarters of adults in the Central African Republic report witnessing or personally experiencing traumatic events during the most recent wave of violence, and more than half meet criteria for depression or anxiety, according to a report in the August 4 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on violence and human rights.

4 Aug 2010

Prairie dog study holds significant implications for understanding spread of infectious diseases

Prairie dogs, once abundant in the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains, have been decimated in recent decades by plague - a virulent bacterial disease spread by fleas.Plague outbreaks periodically sweep through large prairie dog towns with thousands of inhabitants, killing virtually the entire population within months. Other prairie dogs move in and build a new colony, which eventually is wiped out when the disease returns.

4 Aug 2010

Study analyzes prevalence of pediatric patient-safety events at hospitals

Hospital-acquired infections are the leading cause of potentially preventable mortality among pediatric patients, according to a study of pediatric patient-safety incidents issued today by HealthGrades, the leading independent health care ratings organization.

4 Aug 2010

Foreign doctors provide care as good as that of Americans, study finds

Physicians trained in other countries provide care just as good as -- and perhaps better than some U.S. doctors, a report published in the journal Health Affairs found.

4 Aug 2010

Lack of understanding about anesthesia may lead patients to postpone surgery

Lack of understanding and apprehension about anesthesia may lead as many as one in four patients to postpone surgery according to the Vital Health Report, a quarterly health survey of Americans released today by the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA).

4 Aug 2010

Obesity-related Quality-Adjusted Life Years lost by U.S. adults doubles from 1993 to 2008

Although the prevalence of obesity and obesity-attributable deaths has steadily increased, the resultant burden of disease associated with obesity has not been well understood. A new study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine indicates that Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) lost to U.S. adults due to morbidity and mortality from obesity have more than doubled from 1993-2008 and the prevalence of obesity has increased 89.9% during the same period.

3 Aug 2010

Mortality News and Research

Study: Catholic, other church-owned health systems show more efficient care than for-profit health systems

Remote monitoring of chronic heart failure patients can reduce pressure on resources

Patient navigator program to educate Hmong women on cervical cancer

Clinical trials in Asia, Africa confirm safety, effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine

Medtronic completes enrollment in Complete SE vascular stent superficial femoral artery clinical study

Surgery offers high survival rate for prostate cancer patients: Study

Research Roundups: Expanding Medicaid; More spending doesn't reduce mortality; Colonoscopy cost effectiveness; Kids, asthma and access to care

Recent releases in Global Health

Alnylam publishes research findings of Sort1 gene role in cardiovascular disease development

Scientific findings reveal combination antibiotic therapy effective for ulcerative colitis

Researchers map malaria parasite P vivax; Nearly 3B people at risk of infection in 2009

Alnylam second-quarter revenues increase to $26.6 million

Study says quality not hurt when nurse anesthetists work without doc guidance

Study supports efficacy of brief intervention in reducing alcohol use, violence among adolescents

Report examines effects of traumatic events on mental health status of adults in Central African Republic

Prairie dog study holds significant implications for understanding spread of infectious diseases

Study analyzes prevalence of pediatric patient-safety events at hospitals

Foreign doctors provide care as good as that of Americans, study finds

Lack of understanding about anesthesia may lead patients to postpone surgery

Obesity-related Quality-Adjusted Life Years lost by U.S. adults doubles from 1993 to 2008

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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