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Lead exposure can cause mental retardation in children living near sites

Children living near toxic waste sites in lower and middle income countries such as India, Philippines and Indonesia may experience higher blood lead levels, resulting in a loss of IQ points and a higher incidence of mental retardation, according to a study presented today by Kevin Chatham-Stephens, MD, Pediatric Environmental Health Fellow at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting on May 6 in Washington, DC.

6 May 2013

Cancer Institute of NJ assigns tobacco control expert as co-leader of Cancer Prevention and Control Program

A Monmouth Junction (Middlesex County) resident has been named as co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at The Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

6 May 2013

Tipsheet of story ideas from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

In an effort to better protect women from heart disease, Irene Pollin, a widely respected public health advocate who founded the nation's first organization dedicated to preventing heart disease in women, has donated $10 million to the Barbra Streisand Women's Heart Center at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute.

6 May 2013

Dennis Herrera applauds FDA for addressing health risks posed by highly caffeinated energy drinks

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration earlier today announced that it has launched a formal investigation into the safety of added caffeine in food products—noting "particularly its effects on children and adolescents"—in response to an unfortunate growing trend in which beverage and food manufacturers are adding caffeine to their products.

5 May 2013

ApolloMed net revenues climbed 52.2% to $7.8 million during fiscal 2013

Apollo Medical Holdings, Inc., an integrated physician-driven healthcare delivery company that puts 'Patients First,' today announced its fiscal year-end results for the three and twelve months ended January 31, 2013.

5 May 2013

Experts suggest ways to reduce morbidity, mortality caused by tobacco use

The full implementation of traditional public health control strategies and integration of new regulatory authorities has the potential to significantly reduce tobacco-related deaths in the U.S., according to experts at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and the Center for Tobacco Products at the Food and Drug Administration.

5 May 2013

Protecting children from gun violence

Pediatric leaders and researchers will tackle the complex and often politically charged subject of gun violence during a special symposium on Saturday, May 4, at the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in Washington, DC.

5 May 2013

Mount Sinai researcher presents novel findings in environmental health at PAS annual meeting

Toxic waste sites with elevated levels of lead and chromium cause a high number of "healthy years of life lost" in individuals living near 373 sites located in India, Philippines and Indonesia, according to a study by a Mount Sinai researcher published online today in Environmental Health Perspectives.

5 May 2013

Viewpoints: Liberals refuse to acknowledge evidence of Oregon Medicaid study; Politics is roiling science in emergency contraception decisions

A familiar critique of liberal governance is that the results always matter less than its grand social ambitions. The latest evidence of this truth comes in the reaction to disappointing new findings from one of the most important public-policy experiments since the 1970s. A team of varsity health economists, mostly at Harvard and MIT, is studying the relationship between health outcomes and health insurance delivered by Medicaid (5/2).

4 May 2013

Researchers issue statement regarding use of unproven stem cell therapies

An international group of leading stem cell researchers has issued a statement that specifies concerns about the development and use of unproven stem cell therapies.

4 May 2013

Oregon study offers insights into reach of health law's Medicaid expansion

The landmark study, which was appears in The New England Journal of Medicine, analyzed data from the Oregon Health Study, which compared low-income people in that state who had access to Medicaid with a similar population that did not. The findings offer insights into how Medicaid coverage affects overall health and health costs.

3 May 2013

Study identifies the vector that transmitted malaria from apes to humans

In 2010, a study revealed that the main agent of malaria in humans, called Plasmodium falciparum, arose from the gorilla. Today, the vector which transmitted the parasite from apes to humans has just been identified.

3 May 2013

Public-private partnerships can help advance global health goals

"Three people die every minute from tuberculosis -- a treatable and largely preventable disease. Resistant forms continue to thrive, and increased travel makes the global threat very real. We face a public health emergency," Vince Forlenza, chair, CEO, and president of the medical technology firm Becton, Dickinson and Company, writes in the Harvard Business Review Blog Network.

3 May 2013

Martindale Pharma announces UK launch of Prenoxad Injection for opioid overdose

Martindale Pharma, a leader in the manufacture and supply of specialty pharmaceuticals, is pleased to announce the UK launch of Prenoxad Injection, the world's first licensed emergency treatment for acute opioid related overdose for use at home or other non-medical settings.

3 May 2013

Viewpoints: S.C. House race spotlights Dems' discomfort with health law; Cannon, Cohn offer contrasting views of Medicaid study

The media tittering over Mrs. Colbert Busch's decision to publicly slap the former Republican governor over his extramarital affair obscured the more notable political comment of the night.

3 May 2013

Men who take statins are less likely to die from prostate cancer, study finds

Men with prostate cancer who take cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins are significantly less likely to die from their cancer than men who don't take such medication, according to study led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

3 May 2013

First Edition: May 2, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about a new study detailing how expanded Medicaid access impacts beneficiaries' utilization of health care services and their overall physical health.

2 May 2013

May issue of WHO Bulletin available online

The May issue of the WHO Bulletin features an editorial examining policy coherence for improved medical innovation and access, a public health news roundup, several research papers on maternal and child health, and a review of 12-month antiretroviral therapy outcomes in low- and middle-income countries, among other articles (May 2013).

2 May 2013

Exercise ineffective in reducing depression among elderly care home residents

Researchers at the University of Warwick and Queen Mary, University of London have shown that exercise is not effective in reducing burden of depression among elderly care home residents.

2 May 2013

New study examines injuries to children related to amusement rides

A new study by researchers in the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital examined injuries to children related to amusement rides, which included rides at amusement parks (fixed-site rides), rides at fairs and festivals (mobile rides) and rides found at local malls, stores, restaurants or arcades (mall rides).

2 May 2013