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Study quantifies risk for gastrointestinal illness due to E. coli bacteria at inland beach

New research shows a clear link between increasing levels of E. coli bacteria in an inland Ohio lake and a greater risk that swimmers in the water will suffer a gastrointestinal illness.

19 Aug 2010

Asian Americans still face barriers to quality healthcare, say researchers

Two University at Buffalo researchers are challenging the "myth of the well-adjusted Asian American," detailing how members of one of the country's fastest-growing ethnic groups face crucial disadvantages preventing them from receiving quality health care taken for granted by other, more culturally assimilated Americans.

19 Aug 2010

Hospitals grapple with increasing ER visits; LA officials order changes to boost patient safety; Mass. nurse fired after reporting problem

"Hartford Hospital opened an expanded emergency department this month, with new rooms and triage areas meant to keep up with an increase in patient visits. Across town, St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center is preparing to double its emergency department space as part of a new 10-story tower set to open next spring. UConn's John Dempsey Hospital expanded its emergency department earlier this year in response to rising patient volume, but there are still days when patients wait in the hallways because the rooms are full. Emergency department visits are increasing in Connecticut and across the country, and doctors say they are likely to become even busier as health reform rolls out."

19 Aug 2010

Dr. Hartung receives Agilent Thought Leader Award for developmental neurotoxicity research

Agilent Technologies Inc. and the Agilent Foundation today announced that Dr. Thomas Hartung has received an Agilent Thought Leader Award in support of his research for the use of toxicity pathways to predict developmental neurotoxicity. This work could help identify possible contributions of chemicals to disorders such as autism and attention hyperactivity disorders.

19 Aug 2010

State insurance regulators approve guidelines for health plans' spending

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a guideline for what insurers can count as medical costs - as opposed to administrative expenses - under new health law rules, Politico reports. The health law requires large group insurance plans to spend at least 85 percent of premiums on medical expenses. Small group plans must spend 80 percent.

19 Aug 2010

Experts debate government's decision to ring fence NHS funding

Is the government's decision to ring fence NHS funding fair? Two experts debate the issue on bmj.com today.

19 Aug 2010

Prenatal pesticide exposure increases susceptibility to ADHD in children

Exposure to organophosphate (OP) pesticides before birth can increase susceptibility to attention disorders such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to new research published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP). The new study is part of a growing body of research indicating that exposure to OP pesticides can adversely affect brain development.

19 Aug 2010

24% more children with progeria discovered

Spectrum, a health and science communications firm, announced the results of a global awareness campaign that "found" 24 percent more children identified with a rare, fatal, and rapid aging disease called Progeria. The findings are being shared at a Centers for Disease Control national conference on health communications.

19 Aug 2010

U.S. children and adolescents become fatter over the last decade: Study

Overweight American children and adolescents have become fatter over the last decade, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and National Institute on Aging (NIA). They examined adiposity shifts across socio-demographic groups over time and found U.S. children and adolescents had significantly increased adiposity measures such as body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and triceps skinfold thickness (TST).

19 Aug 2010

New 'Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database' tracks published epidemiologic and real world exposure studies

Links to pesticide exposure are being found in a growing number of studies that evaluate the causes of preventable diseases -- including asthma, autism and learning disabilities, birth defects and reproductive dysfunction, diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, and several types of cancer. A new database, released today, tracks published epidemiologic and real world exposure studies.

19 Aug 2010

Researchers participate in Alzheimer's Breakthrough Ride to urge Congress make the disease a national priority

This summer, more than 55 researchers participating in the Alzheimer's Breakthrough Ride are cycling relay-style across the country, collecting petition signatures asking Congress to make Alzheimer's disease a national priority. The public response to the petition has been so overwhelming that as the Alzheimer's Breakthrough Riders hit the halfway point in their 67-day route from San Francisco to Washington, D.C. on August 18, they are already more than 80% of the way to their goal of 50,000 signatures.

18 Aug 2010

NASN encourages parents to vaccinate their children against meningococcal disease

More than half of adolescents 13 to 17 years of age have not been vaccinated against meningococcal disease, a rare but serious disease that can cause meningitis and take the life of a child in just a single day. In a recent Ipsos national survey, the majority of mothers with children in this age group had not vaccinated their children because they were not fully aware of the need for vaccination.

18 Aug 2010

Experts to discuss the problem of antibiotic resistance

The growing problem of antibiotic resistance, which compromises our ability to treat common infections, represents one of the greatest threats to public health worldwide. Researchers, politicians and representatives from public health organisations and the pharmaceutical industry will gather in Uppsala from 6-8 September to discuss global strategies.

18 Aug 2010

North Carolina Healthcare Information Exchange to be launched

The North Carolina Hospital Association (NCHA) and The North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) along with Moses Cone Health System and WakeMed Health & Hospitals, today announced they are working with Thomson Reuters and CareEvolution to develop and launch the North Carolina Healthcare Information Exchange (NCHEX).

18 Aug 2010

Consortium on Aging created at The University of Texas Health Science Center

To meet the escalating patient care, research and healthcare education needs for a rapidly aging population, a university-wide Consortium on Aging has been established at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

18 Aug 2010

Pharmacists in all states authorized to administer influenza vaccines

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) is encouraging consumers to get immunized against influenza and to consider their local pharmacy as the site to receive their vaccine. Pharmacists in all 50 states including the District of Columbia are authorized to administer influenza vaccines and, as of June 30, 2010, more than 120,000 U.S. pharmacists have been trained to administer immunizations.

18 Aug 2010

Trauma center care cost-effective for all patients: Report

Trauma center care not only saves lives, it is a cost-effective way of treating major trauma, according to a new report from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Center for Injury Research and Policy. Although treatment at a trauma center is more expensive, the benefits of this approach in terms of lives saved and quality of life-years gained outweigh the costs. The study finds that the added cost of treatment at a trauma center versus nontrauma center is only $36,319 for every life-year gained or $790,931 per life saved.

18 Aug 2010

Luminex donates new MAGPIX system to Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Luminex Corporation, the worldwide leader in multiplexed solutions, today announced it has donated the first commercial unit of its newly launched MAGPIX® instrument to Professor Peter Siba and his scientific team at the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research. The instrument will be used onsite in Papua New Guinea to progress malaria research led by Dr. Peter Zimmerman, Professor of International Health, Genetics and Biology at the Center for Global Health and Diseases at Case Western Reserve University.

From Luminex 18 Aug 2010

NACTN receives grant to expand spinal cord injury research

The United States Department of Defense (DoD) awarded the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation a $5.4 million grant to support the expansion of translational research to find treatments for military men and women with spinal cord injuries.

18 Aug 2010

Study finds black patients receive fewer opoid medications than whites

Black patients are prescribed fewer pain medications than whites and few women receive medications strong enough to manage their chronic pain, according to a study in the August issue of Journal of Pain.University of Michigan Health System researchers studied nearly 200 patients with chronic pain who sought help from a specialty pain center. Researchers analyzed the number and potency of medicines they were already taking and the adequacy of pain management.

18 Aug 2010

Public Health News and Research

Study quantifies risk for gastrointestinal illness due to E. coli bacteria at inland beach

Asian Americans still face barriers to quality healthcare, say researchers

Hospitals grapple with increasing ER visits; LA officials order changes to boost patient safety; Mass. nurse fired after reporting problem

Dr. Hartung receives Agilent Thought Leader Award for developmental neurotoxicity research

State insurance regulators approve guidelines for health plans' spending

Experts debate government's decision to ring fence NHS funding

Prenatal pesticide exposure increases susceptibility to ADHD in children

24% more children with progeria discovered

U.S. children and adolescents become fatter over the last decade: Study

New 'Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database' tracks published epidemiologic and real world exposure studies

Researchers participate in Alzheimer's Breakthrough Ride to urge Congress make the disease a national priority

NASN encourages parents to vaccinate their children against meningococcal disease

Experts to discuss the problem of antibiotic resistance

North Carolina Healthcare Information Exchange to be launched

Consortium on Aging created at The University of Texas Health Science Center

Pharmacists in all states authorized to administer influenza vaccines

Trauma center care cost-effective for all patients: Report

Luminex donates new MAGPIX system to Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

NACTN receives grant to expand spinal cord injury research

Study finds black patients receive fewer opoid medications than whites

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