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Further evidence against sun bed use

Results from a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the BMJ confirm those from previous studies linking sun bed use with an increased risk for skin cancer.

12 Oct 2012

State roundup: Minn. says health exchange will cost $40 million

Minnesota budget officials estimate it could cost the state as much as $40 million to run its health insurance exchange in 2015. The state-based online insurance marketplaces are a cornerstone of the federal health care overhaul.

12 Oct 2012

Romney takes moderate position on abortion, causes stir on both sides of issue

GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has shifted to more moderate policy positions on a number of issues, including health care and abortion.

12 Oct 2012

Premature babies from low-income families more likely to develop brain hemorrhages

Babies born prematurely to low-income parents have a disproportionately high risk for developing dangerous brain bleeds that require multiple surgeries and extensive follow-up, according to a small Johns Hopkins Children's Center study.

12 Oct 2012

Fruits and vegetables appear to improve mental wellbeing

Happiness and mental health are highest among people who eat seven portions of fruit and vegetables a day, according to a new report.

12 Oct 2012

Public reporting states have low angioplasty rates

US states in which public reporting of percutaneous coronary intervention rates by catheterization laboratories is required may have a reduced rate of the procedure in acute myocardial infarction patients, research suggests.

11 Oct 2012

People living near livestock may be at increased risk of LA-MRSA

People who live near livestock or in livestock farming communities may be at greater risk of acquiring, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), according to a new study led by an international team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Dutch Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) and VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam.

11 Oct 2012

Health care second most important issue for likely voters in deciding 2012 presidential vote

A new analysis of 37 national opinion polls conducted by 17 survey organizations finds that health care is the second most important issue for likely voters in deciding their 2012 presidential vote.

11 Oct 2012

Stroke on the rise among young people

New research reveals that stroke may be affecting people at a younger age. The study is published in the October 10, 2012, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

11 Oct 2012

Addiction and mental health burden higher than all cancers in Ontario

Mental illnesses and addictions take more of a toll on the health of Ontarians than cancer or infectious diseases, according to a new report by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and Public Health Ontario - yet this burden could be reduced with treatment, say scientists from Canada's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

11 Oct 2012

Migraine therapy alleviates more than just the headache

Treating the pain associated with migraine can also improve the social and psychologic problems experienced by individuals affected by the condition, findings from a systematic review suggest.

10 Oct 2012

EHRs enhance quality of patient care in community-based settings

A new study by Weill Cornell Medical College researchers, published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, provides compelling evidence that electronic health records (EHRs) enhance the quality of patient care in a community-based setting with multiple payers, which is representative of how medicine is generally practiced across the United States.

10 Oct 2012

Johns Hopkins honors former NHTSA administrator with Community Hero award

Joan Claybrook, President Emeritus of Public Citizen and former administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), has received the 2012 Community Hero award from the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, part of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

10 Oct 2012

Vitamin C actively protects against osteoporosis

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have shown for the first time in an animal model that vitamin C actively protects against osteoporosis, a disease affecting large numbers of elderly women and men in which bones become brittle and can fracture. The findings are published in the October 8 online edition of PLoS ONE.

10 Oct 2012

GSK, Aeras to advance clinical development of TB vaccine

Aeras announces that it has signed an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline Vaccines, S.A. (GSK) to jointly advance the clinical development of an investigational tuberculosis (TB) vaccine containing GSK's proprietary M72 antigen and AS01E adjuvant.

10 Oct 2012

Roundup: Labor activist's work for Blue Shield raises conflict concerns; R.I. to mandate flu shots for health workers; Minn. safety net hospitals brace for cuts

At a time when public-sector unions across the country are fighting to hold on to generous retirement and health benefits, one of the loudest voices standing up for their rights is Dave Low. A longtime labor activist, Low carries considerable clout as executive director of the California School Employees Assn., a 215,000-member union that represents bus drivers, custodians and other school workers.

10 Oct 2012

Nurses accurate barometers of hospital quality: Study

A new study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing affirms a straightforward premise: Nurses are accurate barometers of hospital quality.

9 Oct 2012

People from disadvantaged neighborhoods may be at increased risk of problem drinking

Some people living in disadvantaged neighborhoods may be at increased risk of problem drinking-though much may depend on race and gender, according to a new study in the November issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

9 Oct 2012

Outreach through social media can encourage condom use in young adults

Sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention messages delivered by Facebook can be effective in promoting condom use among young adults in the short term, a new study has found. Few students and young adults receive comprehensive sexuality education or guidance on HIV and other STI risks.

9 Oct 2012

Polio vaccination campaign in Darfur shows immunizations possible in 'emergency and conflict settings'

In an Inter Press Service opinion piece, Siddharth Chatterjee, chief diplomat and head of strategic partnerships at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and Sam Agbo, an independent public health adviser in the U.K., write about the unstable situation in Darfur, Sudan, in 2004, and how "UNICEF and WHO in Sudan along with important NGO partners started planning with local authorities on how best to immunize all children in Darfur."

9 Oct 2012