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Simple wrist sensor could gauge severity of epileptic seizures

In this week's issue of the journal Neurology, researchers at MIT and two Boston hospitals provide early evidence that a simple, unobtrusive wrist sensor could gauge the severity of epileptic seizures as accurately as electroencephalograms (EEGs) do - but without the ungainly scalp electrodes and electrical leads.

27 Apr 2012

Aspirin reduces bowel cancer death and lung cancer incidence: Research suggests

There is previous evidence suggesting aspirin might prevent certain cancers from developing in the first place. And more recent work suggests it might also work as a cancer therapy - slowing down or preventing a cancer's spread. But the drug can also have unpleasant and dangerous side effects, causing irritation of the stomach lining and internal bleeds in a very small minority of patients.

26 Apr 2012

LWW releases iPad eBook version of A Trail Guide for the Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgeon

Leading healthcare publisher Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) today announced the release of the iPad eBook version of the recently published The Cowboy's Companion: A Trail Guide for the Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgeon, written by Dr. Stephen Burkhart. LWW is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals, and pharmacy.

26 Apr 2012

Minimally-invasive spinal surgery helps Motocross rider return to racing

Since he was a young five years old, New Jersey resident Demetrius Economou has been tearing through the woods on a Motocross bike. A long-time family passion, Demetrius learned to ride when he was just 5 years old and riding quickly consumed his life and became a constant thought on his mind. While many children were playing team sports like baseball or soccer, Demetrius was learning how to modify his 70cc bike to keep up with the bigger bikes.

26 Apr 2012

Helpful roles of rank, toxic substances

Usually, we think of mold, feces, nitric oxide, hydrogen sulfide and rat poison as rank, toxic or both. But scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health are learning more about the helpful roles these substances can play.

26 Apr 2012

Kidney donated two weeks after transplant

For the first time, a kidney that had been donated to a patient in need was removed and implanted into a new patient, the third individual to have the organ, after it failed in the first transplant recipient. Ray Fearing, a 27-year-old Arlington Heights resident received the organ from his sister, Cera, after a long battle with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), a disease in which scar tissue develops on the part of the kidney that filters waste out of the blood, ultimately causing kidney failure.

26 Apr 2012

Health care not structured in the interest of the patient

You're enjoying a quiet weekend at home when suddenly you double over in pain. You need emergency appendectomy surgery. How much should it cost? And how much price shopping are you able to do?

26 Apr 2012

Hospital debt collector puts 'the squeeze' on patients

A report released Tuesday by the Minnesota Attorney General spotlights aggressive practices used by one of the nation's largest collectors of medical debts, including demanding payments from people seeking care in emergency rooms, cancer wards and delivery rooms.

26 Apr 2012

Robot assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy better than other surgical techniques

Outcomes from use of a robot to assist surgeons in removal of a cancerous prostate are at least as good, if not better, than the other two techniques used for a radical prostatectomy -- open or laparoscopic surgery -- according to a large meta analysis led by researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell.

26 Apr 2012

Gender differences in musculoskeletal health are not solely due to hormones

Osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, fractures, and spinal disorders are among the most common reasons for doctor visits. These conditions have more than one thing in common: they are all musculoskeletal problems and are more prevalent in women.

26 Apr 2012

Study examines role of NLRP3 inflammasome in ventilator-induced lung injury

Mechanical ventilation is often lifesaving, but can also initiate or aggravate lung injury. A new study in the May issue of Anesthesiology examined the role of one particular receptor in the inflammatory pathway, the NLRP3 inflammasome, and whether it impacts ventilator-induced lung injury.

26 Apr 2012

Prostate cancer screening recommendations not heeded by 44% men: Survey

81-year-old billionaire Warren Buffett was diagnosed with prostate cancer after having the finding initially detected through a screening blood test to measure a cancer marker called prostate specific antigen or PSA.

25 Apr 2012

Health system 'sticker shock' and other critiques

NPR reports on how one cancer specialist diagnoses the health system's ills, while The Associated Press reports on how the costs for a common operation to remove the appendix ranged from $1,500 to $180,000 in one state.

25 Apr 2012

UT Southwestern lung transplant recipient lives through 19 years

UT Southwestern Medical Center has performed more than 300 lung transplants in recent decades, and Michael Young represents a remarkable success story.

25 Apr 2012

First Edition: April 25, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that Medicare is proposing a change in how it decides hospital reimbursements and the latest on the GOP Capitol Hill budget strategy.

25 Apr 2012

Bile plays a critical role in development of Barrett's esophagus

For many people with gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD, acid reflux drugs are the answer to their woes, curbing the chronic heartburn and regurgitation of food or sour liquid characteristic of the disorder. But when it comes to Barrett's esophagus, a condition commonly found in people with GERD, acid control may be less important than beating back another bodily fluid - bile.

25 Apr 2012

New microfluidic device can harvest rare circulating tumor cells from blood

A research collaboration between the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Children's Hospital Boston has created a microfluidic device that can harvest rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood to enable their expansion in culture for analysis.

25 Apr 2012

Sheffield researchers investigate ways to improve treatment for elderly patients with breast cancer

Sheffield researchers are investigating ways to improve the treatment and survival rate of elderly patients diagnosed with breast cancer.

25 Apr 2012

Providers can and should work toward 'sustainable anesthesia'

Anesthesia providers can and should begin taking steps toward practicing "sustainable anesthesia," according to the May special issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society.

25 Apr 2012

Study confirms overuse of blood transfusions during surgery

Citing the lack of clear guidelines for ordering blood transfusions during surgery, Johns Hopkins researchers say a new study confirms there is still wide variation in the use of transfusions and frequent use of transfused blood in patients who don't need it.

25 Apr 2012