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Sigmoidoscopy comes up short for women in detection of polyps in the colon

A new multi-center study has reaffirmed the difference between the sexes – at least when it comes to colorectal cancer detection and prevention.

20 May 2005

New kidney test better elder mortality predictor

A study at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC) has found that a test of kidney function that measures blood levels of cystatin C -- a protein produced by most cells in the body -- is a far more accurate predictor of mortality risk in elderly people than the current standard kidney function test, which measures levels of the protein creatinine.

20 May 2005

EraGen Biosciences and Bayer announce agreements for new cystic fibrosis (CF) assay

EraGen Biosciences, a rapidly growing molecular diagnostics company and Bayer HealthCare LLC, Diagnostics Division, announced today that EraGen has licensed its patented MultiCode-PLx® System to Bayer HealthCare in an exclusive worldwide agreement for Cystic Fibrosis.

18 May 2005

Routine, inexpensive blood test sharpens heart disease risk predictions

Routine measurements of white blood cell counts that provide a ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes may offer a simple and low-cost way to refine predictions of heart attack or death, according to a new study in the May 17, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

18 May 2005

Exposure to radioactive iodines in childhood is associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer

Exposure to radioactive iodines, mainly iodine 131 (I-131), in childhood is associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer. Importantly, both iodine deficiency and supplementation appear to modify this risk, according to a new study in the May 18 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

17 May 2005

Mathematical way to identify babies at risk for epilepsy

Confusion and speech problems are frequent signs of seizures, but babies offer few such clues as to what ails them.

17 May 2005

Rifaximin is effective in preventing attacks of diarrhea

An antibiotic can be safely used to prevent attacks of diarrhea that plague millions of globe-trotting vacationers and business travelers, a Houston research team reports this week in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

17 May 2005

Routinely reformatting computed tomography (CT) scans to view organs from several different directions may help radiologists improve diagnosis

"You can see things in one view that you might miss in another," said Craig Barnes, M.D., section head of pediatric radiology at Wake Forest Baptist's Brenner Children's Hospital. "It costs no more as relates to scan time or radiation exposure, and we believe it provides added value in diagnosis."

17 May 2005

"Streaming detection" ultrasound could reduce number of diagnostic procedures for breast lumps

"Streaming detection" ultrasound accurately differentiated fluid-filled cysts from solid masses in a recent pilot study and has the potential to reduce the number of cyst aspirations and imaging follow-ups for breast masses that are indeterminate at conventional ultrasound, say researchers from Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC.

17 May 2005

Digital mammography leads to significant decreases in the number of patients called back to the hospital for further mammograms

The use of digital mammography instead of conventional screen film mammography can lead to significant decreases in the number of patients called back to the hospital for further mammograms, making it easier on the patient and saving money, says a new study.

17 May 2005

Over-the-phone transmission of diagnostic-quality ultrasound images is possible

Over-the-phone transmission of diagnostic-quality ultrasound images is possible, potentially paving the way for ultrasound examinations to be performed in poorer areas of the world, inexpensively transmitted via the Internet, and read by experienced radiologists elsewhere, a new study shows.

17 May 2005

Association between maternal exposure to toxoplasmosis and increased risk for developing schizophrenia

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection that can develop from eating undercooked meat and unwashed fruits and vegetables, drinking contaminated water, or not washing one's hands after gardening or changing cat litter boxes. Researchers found a potential link between high maternal toxoplasmosis gondii antibody titers and development of schizophrenia spectrum disorders in the adult offspring.

16 May 2005

Hour of day and time of year has significant impact on blood pressure levels

The odds of measuring an elevated blood pressure can vary by as much as 40 percent depending on the time of day and time of year, according to researchers from the Center for Health Research and Rural Advocacy at Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. They recommend that clinicians anticipate changes in blood pressure due to these temporal factors when diagnosing and considering treatment options for their patients.

16 May 2005

Significant non-coronary findings found during heart CT scans point to importance of trained radiologists

A significant percentage of patients undergoing targeted CT of the heart have abnormalities outside the coronary arteries, some of which could be life threatening, and as a result need the experience of trained radiologists to interpret them, say researchers from the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center in Ann Arbor.

16 May 2005

Tungsten-antimony breast shield reduces radiation dose to the female breast during chest CT by 43% to 73%

A new custom-designed tungsten-antimony breast shield reduces radiation dose to the female breast during chest CT by 43% to 73% without compromising diagnostic image quality, say researchers from the VCU Health System, Medical College of Virginia Hospitals and Physicians, in Richmond.

16 May 2005

Accuracy of CT colonography is excellent in comparison with conventional colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening

The diagnostic accuracy of CT colonography is excellent in comparison with conventional colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening, an analysis of previous studies shows.

16 May 2005

Women more vulnerable to chronic drinking than men are

A study in the May issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research addresses this gap in research, using computed tomography (CT) to examine brain atrophy in the brains of alcoholic men and women. The findings support and build upon a prior hypothesis that women develop alcohol-related brain damage more readily than men.

16 May 2005

Primary care clinics at Veterans Affairs hospitals are not recognizing posttraumatic stress disorder

The study, conducted Dr. Kathryn M. Magruder and colleagues, showed that the clinics examined recognized less than half (46.5 percent) the PTSD cases identified by the researchers.

16 May 2005

No glass ceiling for women when it comes to dying from heart disease, say experts

While many of us assume that heart disease mainly strikes men, the fact is 12,000 Australian women die each year from illnesses like stroke, heart attack and heart failure - that's four and a half times the number of lives claimed by breast cancer.

10 May 2005

First DNA-based blood test to help detect cystic fibrosis

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first DNA-based blood test to help detect cystic fibrosis. The Tag-It Cystic Fibrosis Kit directly analyzes human DNA to find genetic variations indicative of the disease. The test will be used to help diagnose cystic fibrosis in children and to identify adults who are "carriers" of the gene variations.

10 May 2005

Diagnostic News and Research

Sigmoidoscopy comes up short for women in detection of polyps in the colon

New kidney test better elder mortality predictor

EraGen Biosciences and Bayer announce agreements for new cystic fibrosis (CF) assay

Routine, inexpensive blood test sharpens heart disease risk predictions

Exposure to radioactive iodines in childhood is associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer

Mathematical way to identify babies at risk for epilepsy

Rifaximin is effective in preventing attacks of diarrhea

Routinely reformatting computed tomography (CT) scans to view organs from several different directions may help radiologists improve diagnosis

"Streaming detection" ultrasound could reduce number of diagnostic procedures for breast lumps

Digital mammography leads to significant decreases in the number of patients called back to the hospital for further mammograms

Over-the-phone transmission of diagnostic-quality ultrasound images is possible

Association between maternal exposure to toxoplasmosis and increased risk for developing schizophrenia

Hour of day and time of year has significant impact on blood pressure levels

Significant non-coronary findings found during heart CT scans point to importance of trained radiologists

Tungsten-antimony breast shield reduces radiation dose to the female breast during chest CT by 43% to 73%

Accuracy of CT colonography is excellent in comparison with conventional colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening

Women more vulnerable to chronic drinking than men are

Primary care clinics at Veterans Affairs hospitals are not recognizing posttraumatic stress disorder

No glass ceiling for women when it comes to dying from heart disease, say experts

First DNA-based blood test to help detect cystic fibrosis

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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