Research News and Research

RSS

Studies explore geography's influence on medical practice, spending

Reuters: "Doctors in some parts of the United States are more likely to tell Medicare patients they are sick than in other parts, researchers said on Wednesday in a finding that could explain regional differences in health spending. The study is the latest from the Dartmouth Atlas Project, which [has uncovered] wide differences in spending by region, a finding that became a touchstone in the debate about the need for healthcare reform in the United States."

14 May 2010

Immunosuppressive drug sirolimus improves kidney health of patients with ADPKD: Study

The immunosuppressive drug sirolimus considerably improves the kidney health of patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology.

14 May 2010

New England Journal offers perspectives on health law

The New England Journal of Medicine dedicates a significant amount of its current issue to research and perspectives on the new health reform law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which is abbreviated as ACA (5/12).

14 May 2010

Transdel Pharmaceuticals reports lower net loss of $0.9 million for first-quarter 2010

Transdel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing topically administered products using its proprietary transdermal delivery platform, today announced financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. The Company also highlighted recent achievements.

14 May 2010

Sinovac Biotech's sales for first-quarter 2010 decrease 32% to $4.4M

Sinovac Biotech Ltd., a leading China-based vaccine manufacturer, announced today its unaudited financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2010.

14 May 2010

Study: Healthy retirees pay more for health care over the long term

A new study from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College found that people "who enter retirement in good health are likely to pay more for medical expenses throughout the rest of their life than those who retire after developing a chronic condition," writes U.S. News & World Report.

14 May 2010

States take different actions in plans for implementing health overhaul law

WPRI: Rhode Island Governor, Donald Carcieri, continues to ask Attorney General Patrick Lynch to file a lawsuit against the federal health reform law. "But Lynch says he will not do it. In a statement, Lynch says he believes quality health care is a right for all citizens. He also says the law does not infringe on the rights of states" (Gouthro, 5/10).

14 May 2010

UGA researchers discover SERS method to identify rotavirus strains, genotypes

Using nanotechnology and a patented signal enhancing technique developed at the University of Georgia, UGA researchers have discovered a rapid, sensitive and cost-effective method to detect and identify a number of rotavirus strains and genotypes in less than one minute with greater than 96 percent accuracy.

14 May 2010

Osteoporosis screening of women increased from 34% in 2001 to 64% in 2006: AHRQ

The proportion of women age 65 and over on Medicare who said that they had been screened for osteoporosis increased from 34 percent in 2001 to 64 percent in 2006, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

14 May 2010

Study results of Cameron Health's S-ICD- System published online in NEJM

Cameron Health, Inc. today announced the publication of study results online in the New England Journal of Medicine highlighting the development and potential benefits of the company's S-ICD- System, the first minimally invasive, subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator, for the treatment of sudden cardiac arrest.

14 May 2010

Interruptions in ER may harm patient care, researchers find

CNN: "Interruptions in the emergency room may exact an unhealthy toll on patient care, a group of Australian researchers reported Thursday. The researchers, from the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales, found that interruptions led emergency department doctors to spend less time on the tasks they were working on and, in nearly a fifth of cases, to give up on the task altogether.

14 May 2010

Response Genetics first-quarter total revenue up 140%

Response Genetics Inc., a company focused on the development and sale of molecular diagnostic tests for cancer, today announced its consolidated financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2010.

14 May 2010

Minnesota lawmakers debate budget, Medicaid expansion

More budget talks were expected Thursday as Minnesota's legislative session hurtled toward a midnight Sunday deadline with no deal on a $3 billion deficit. The Democratic-controlled Legislature defied another veto threat from Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty late Wednesday and sent him a health and welfare package he opposes.

14 May 2010

GE Healthymagination Fund invests $5M in CardioDx

GE Healthcare, the healthcare business of GE and CardioDx, a pioneer in cardiovascular genomic diagnostics, announced today that the companies have entered into a strategic alliance to advance and co-develop diagnostic technologies to improve the care and management of patients with cardiovascular disease.

14 May 2010

Nephros reports 57% increase in revenues for first-quarter 2010

Nephros, Inc. announced today financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2010.

14 May 2010

KHN Column -- Rescissions: Much ado about nothing

In this Kaiser Health News column, John Goodman writes: "How many times have you heard President Obama say, 'Health insurers won't be able to drop your coverage just because you get sick?

14 May 2010

Justice Dept. defends health law implementation from court injunction

The Justice Department released a statement yesterday defending the federal health overhaul law from legal critics. "A conservative public interest group, the Thomas More Law Center, had filed a lawsuit in Michigan on March 23, the day Obama signed the law, and asked the court for an injunction to block it from taking effect.

14 May 2010

GOP launches attacks on CMS nominee Berwick

Republicans have begun attacking Donald Berwick, a doctor and Harvard professor nominated to head the Obama administration's Medicare and Medicaid agency, The Boston Globe reports. If confirmed, Berwick would run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, an agency with 4,500 employees and an annual budget of $780 billion.

14 May 2010

HIV disease tends to progress at faster rate in infected individuals who consume more alcoholic drinks

HIV disease tends to progress at a faster rate in infected individuals who consume two or more alcoholic drinks a day, according to an important new paper in AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

14 May 2010

Groups plead for more health funding as Chairman warns about cuts to proposed HHS budget

House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wis., said Wednesday that groups pressing for $14 billion more in funding for education, health and labor programs will likely be disappointed because the budget proposed by President Barack Obama already faces cuts of about $3.5 billion in those areas.

14 May 2010