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Combined use of enalapril and folic acid can significantly reduce risk of first stroke

In a study that included more than 20,000 adults in China with high blood pressure but without a history of stroke or heart attack, the combined use of the hypertension medication enalapril and folic acid, compared with enalapril alone, significantly reduced the risk of first stroke, according to a study appearing in JAMA. The study is being released to coincide with its presentation at the American College of Cardiology Annual Scientific Session.

16 Mar 2015

Physicians develop new quality measures for treatment of childhood obstructive sleep apnea

A work group of physicians from leading academic medical centers across the country, including NYU Langone Medical Center, has developed new quality measures for the detection and treatment of childhood obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a potentially morbid, life-altering condition that affects hundreds of thousands of children and adolescents nationwide.

16 Mar 2015

AASM publishes new quality measures for common sleep disorders

Today the American Academy of Sleep Medicine published new quality measures for five common sleep disorders, which represents a landmark achievement in the promotion of high quality, patient-centered care in the medical subspecialty of sleep medicine.

16 Mar 2015

Exposure to diesel exhaust may exacerbate respiratory diseases

Researchers in the UK have, for the first time, shown how exhaust pollution from diesel engines is able to affect nerves within the lung. Air pollution is a significant threat to health, they say, and identifying potential mechanisms linking exposure to diesel exhaust and the exacerbation of respiratory diseases may lead to treatments for those affected.

16 Mar 2015

Study sheds light on cell migration mechanisms involved in wound-healing process

Researchers at the University of Arizona have discovered what causes and regulates collective cell migration, one of the most universal but least understood biological processes in all living organisms.

16 Mar 2015

Combining CT measurements assists pulmonary hypertension prediction

Research suggests that combining pulmonary artery and ventricular measurements improves the chances of identifying pulmonary hypertension in patients undergoing computed tomography pulmonary angiography.

13 Mar 2015

Metabolic derangement may facilitate cell proliferation in PAH

An enzyme that facilitates modification of proteins via a glucose metabolism pathway may promote cell proliferation in the lung tissue of patients with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, say researchers.

13 Mar 2015

Prognostic potential for pericardial effusion in PAH patients

Monitoring pericardial effusion on serial transthoracic echocardiograms provides useful prognostic information in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, research suggests.

13 Mar 2015

New study finds no connection between hip width and efficient locomotion

Among the facts so widely assumed that they are rarely, if ever studied, is the notion that wider hips make women less efficient when they walk and run.

13 Mar 2015

Increasing minimum age of legal access to tobacco products would reduce smoking, save lives

Increasing the minimum age of legal access (MLA) to tobacco products will prevent or delay initiation of tobacco use by adolescents and young adults, particularly those ages 15 to 17, and improve the health of Americans across the lifespan, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

13 Mar 2015

When you eat is just as important as what you eat

If you're looking to improve your heart health by changing your diet, when you eat may be just as important as what you eat.

13 Mar 2015

New statin guidelines may be too generic, shows study

The newest guidelines for the use of cholesterol-lowering statins in people at risk of heart disease may be too generic, excluding middle-aged adults who could benefit from the drugs, and over-prescribing in older adults, according to a new study from the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

13 Mar 2015

New device can detect cyanide exposure within 70 seconds

A victim of cyanide poisoning can die within 30 minutes. The diagnostic test to determine cyanide exposure takes 24 hours.

13 Mar 2015

Slow-growing tumors have treatment-resistant stem cells, shows study

Scientists are eager to make use of stem cells' extraordinary power to transform into nearly any kind of cell, but that ability also is cause for concern in cancer treatment.

12 Mar 2015

AMA and CDC join forces to Prevent Diabetes STAT

With more than 86 million Americans living with prediabetes and nearly 90 percent of them unaware of it, the American Medical Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today announced that they have joined forces to take urgent action to Prevent Diabetes STAT and are urging others to join in this critical effort.

12 Mar 2015

Medicine-loaded nanoparticles could help patients achieve corneal transplant success

There are about 48,000 corneal transplants done each year in the U.S., compared to approximately 16,000 kidney transplants and 2,100 heart transplants. Out of the 48,000 corneal transplants done, 10 percent of them end up in rejection, largely due to poor medication compliance. This costs the health care system and puts undue strain on clinicians, patients and their families.

12 Mar 2015

New study explores patient outcomes one year after TAVR procedure

In an analysis of outcomes of about 12,000 patients who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement, death rate after one year was nearly one in four; of those alive at 12 months, almost half had not been rehospitalized and approximately 25 percent had only one hospitalization, according to a study in the March 10 issue of JAMA.

12 Mar 2015

Rehospitalizations after severe sepsis may be potentially preventable

In an analysis of about 2,600 hospitalizations for severe sepsis, readmissions within 90 days were common, and approximately 40 percent occurred for diagnoses that could potentially be prevented or treated early to avoid hospitalization, according to a study in the March 10 issue of JAMA.

12 Mar 2015

Organ-on-a-chip could replace use of animals to test drugs for safety and efficacy

When University of California, Berkeley, bioengineers say they are holding their hearts in the palms of their hands, they are not talking about emotional vulnerability.

12 Mar 2015

Clinical trial examines uncertainty about when to give blood transfusions after cardiac surgery

New research has shown that patients having heart surgery do not benefit if doctors wait until a patient has become substantially anaemic before giving a transfusion.

12 Mar 2015