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"Fist bumping" transmits significantly fewer bacteria than handshaking

"Fist bumping" transmits significantly fewer bacteria than either handshaking or high-fiving, while still addressing the cultural expectation of hand-to-hand contact between patients and clinicians, according to a study published in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

29 Jul 2014

Norovirus vaccines: an interview with Dr Benjamin Lopman, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA

Noroviruses are a group of viruses. They're the leading cause of gastroenteritis, which causes diarrhea and vomiting. They affect the whole age range from young children to the elderly, and, in the US, they cause about 20 million cases annually.

28 Jul 2014

Childhood obesity linked to early puberty

A new link has been identified between obesity in childhood and the lowering of the age of puberty.

28 Jul 2014

Minister Ambrose calls for proposals to tackle prescription drug abuse

The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Health, today issued a national Call for Proposals to improve the prescribing practices for prescription drugs that have a high risk of abuse or addiction.

26 Jul 2014

New York City moves forward to implement law banning tobacco discounting schemes

Tobacco companies have abandoned their legal challenge to New York City's innovative new law prohibiting tobacco discounting schemes, as they chose not to appeal a federal court ruling that upheld the law. The deadline for the tobacco companies to appeal was July 18.

26 Jul 2014

Trinidad & Tobago Ministry of Health approves hepatitis C drug telaprevir

The Chemistry, Food & Drugs Division of the Trinidad & Tobago Ministry of Health approved the introduction of Telaprevir to the market, an innovative therapy that significantly increases the cure rate from Hepatitis C, and it is indicated for patients infected with the genotype 1 virus. Telaprevir is available in Trinidad under the trade brand INCIVO®.

26 Jul 2014

NYUCD to offer accelerated AAS degree in dental hygiene from January 2015

New York University College of Dentistry is pleased to announce that, effective January 2015, it will offer an accelerated, continuous, 17-month, Associate in Applied Science degree in dental hygiene.

26 Jul 2014

New book describes worldwide initiatives to prevent the crisis of obesity and diabetes

Prediabetes and Diabetes increasingly consume the healthcare community and remain priority areas that require immediate attention.

26 Jul 2014

State highlights: Public comments on Mass. hospital deal; Wash. insurance case brings allegations; Mo. clinic reaps dividends from new law

Quite an "only in Massachusetts" moment. Patriots owner Robert Kraft and leaders of Raytheon, Suffolk Construction and Putnam Investments have all filed letters in support of an anti-trust agreement that would not normally see the light of day before a judge approves the deal. The opposition includes public health professors, a group of top economists and politicians battling Attorney General Martha Coakley in the governor's race. This show of force is weighing in on a deal Coakley negotiated with Partners HealthCare. It would let the state's largest hospital network expand its market power, but with constraints, some of which would last for 10 years (Bebinger, 7/24).

26 Jul 2014

Early life experiences influence risk of cognitive impairment in later life

Early life experiences, such as childhood socioeconomic status and literacy, may have greater influence on the risk of cognitive impairment late in life than such demographic characteristics as race and ethnicity, a large study by researchers with the UC Davis Alzheimer's Disease Center and the University of Victoria, Canada, has found.

26 Jul 2014

ESMO: Proposed EU General Data Protection Regulation may impact cancer research

The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), the leading pan-European association representing medical oncology professionals, has expressed concern that the proposed EU General Data Protection Regulation could make cancer research impossible and add a significant burden to both doctors and cancer patients.

25 Jul 2014

Mexico, US sign statement of intent to promote safety of fresh agricultural products

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the government of Mexico's National Service for Agro-Alimentary Public Health, Safety and Quality (SENASICA) and Federal Commission for the Protection from Sanitary Risks (COFEPRIS) signed a statement of intent forming a partnership to promote the safety of fresh and minimally processed agricultural products.

25 Jul 2014

Cedars-Sinai launches applied research center to improve value of patient care

Cedars-Sinai has launched an applied research center to improve the value of patient care inside the medical center and beyond its walls by strengthening patient-doctor bonds and bringing greater efficiency to the delivery of clinical services.

25 Jul 2014

Longer looks: the economics of infertility; placebos as treatment raises ethical dilemmas

About a decade ago, Medicaid programs were struggling to keep up with skyrocketing prescription drug costs. Between 1997 and 2002, drug spending in the program for low-income Americans grew by about 20 percent annually. ... Medicaid directors began looking for ways to tamp down on those costs. One of the most popular policies was something called "prior authorization" for a new wave of more expensive, anti-psychotic drugs ,... These policies, in a sense, worked: they helped rein in how much Medicaid spent filling prescriptions. But in another sense, they may not have worked at all: a growing body of research has begun questioning whether restricting drug spending may have just shifted costs elsewhere - particularly, into the prison system (Sarah Kliff, 7/22).

25 Jul 2014

Direct medical costs projected to increase to $49 billion annually by 2020

The American College of Chest Physicians announced today the Online First publication of 'Total and State-Specific Medical and Absenteeism Costs of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Among Adults Aged ≥18 Years in the United States for 2010 and Projections Through 2020' in the journal CHEST.

25 Jul 2014

UTHealth's Bhavani Iyer awarded grant to help Harris County residents with vision problems

Bhavani Iyer, O.D., a low vision specialist at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Medical School, has been awarded a grant to help Harris County residents whose vision problems cannot be corrected with eyeglasses, medication or surgery.

25 Jul 2014

Highlights: Texas abortion rates falls dramatically; start-up problems for Virginia's psychiatric reforms

A four-month-old psychiatric-bed registry that is supposed to provide up-to-the-minute information for Virginians who need emergency mental health treatment is being updated as seldom as once a day, state officials told a panel of lawmakers this week (Shin, 7/22).

25 Jul 2014

Public Health News and Research

"Fist bumping" transmits significantly fewer bacteria than handshaking

Norovirus vaccines: an interview with Dr Benjamin Lopman, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA

Childhood obesity linked to early puberty

Minister Ambrose calls for proposals to tackle prescription drug abuse

New York City moves forward to implement law banning tobacco discounting schemes

Trinidad & Tobago Ministry of Health approves hepatitis C drug telaprevir

NYUCD to offer accelerated AAS degree in dental hygiene from January 2015

New book describes worldwide initiatives to prevent the crisis of obesity and diabetes

State highlights: Public comments on Mass. hospital deal; Wash. insurance case brings allegations; Mo. clinic reaps dividends from new law

Early life experiences influence risk of cognitive impairment in later life

ESMO: Proposed EU General Data Protection Regulation may impact cancer research

Mexico, US sign statement of intent to promote safety of fresh agricultural products

Cedars-Sinai launches applied research center to improve value of patient care

Longer looks: the economics of infertility; placebos as treatment raises ethical dilemmas

Direct medical costs projected to increase to $49 billion annually by 2020

UTHealth's Bhavani Iyer awarded grant to help Harris County residents with vision problems

Highlights: Texas abortion rates falls dramatically; start-up problems for Virginia's psychiatric reforms

Blacks with depression and diabetes receive inadequate mental health treatment

Unemployment increases risk of death, but recessions decrease it

HPV vaccination may be effective in reducing abnormal Pap test results even after sexual debut

News Medical 2025: Healthcare Shifts That Mattered Most eBook

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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