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Study: Drug control efforts have caused a drop in methamphetamine treatment admissions in Mexico

A study published today in the scientific journal Addiction shows that the Mexican government's recent efforts to control the manufacture of methamphetamine have caused a drop in methamphetamine treatment admissions in Mexico and in neighbouring Texas.

6 Aug 2010

Research on human disease origins to predict, prevent next outbreak

Most infectious diseases infect multiple host species, but to date, efforts to quantify the frequency and outcome of cross-species transmission (CST) of these diseases have been severely limited.This lack of information represents a major gap in knowledge of how diseases emerge, and from which species they will emerge.A paper published this week in the journal Science by a team of researchers led by Daniel Streicker of the University of Georgia has begun to close that gap.

6 Aug 2010

FDA issues comprehensive evaluations that address key objectives of agency's public health mission

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued two comprehensive evaluations containing recommendations that address three key objectives of the agency's public health mission as it relates to medical devices – foster device innovation, create a more predictable regulatory environment, and enhance device safety.

5 Aug 2010

CNA commends CMA for new report on health-care transformation

A new Canadian Medical Association report on health-care transformation was met with a mix of optimism and concern by the Canadian Nurses Association.

5 Aug 2010

Diabetes Self-Management Training helps to prevent complications in pre diabetes patients

Citing research that demonstrates the cost savings and health benefits of providing Diabetes Self-Management Training (DSMT) to patients with pre-diabetes, the American Association of Diabetes Educators today called on private insurers and Medicare to include education as a covered benefit for this population.

5 Aug 2010

Nature News examines how scientists, farmers are working to meet the growing demand for artemisinin

"From bust to boom to bust again: artemisinin, the key ingredient of front-line antimalarial drugs, is entering the third chapter of its turbulent history," Nature News writes in an article that examines the challenges scientists and farmers are facing as they attempt to keep up with the growing demand for the compound just as a "$343-million initiative starts to battle malaria through hugely subsidized medicines."

5 Aug 2010

President Obama, Sec. of State discuss U.S. commitment to development, fighting disease in Africa with young African leaders

During a gathering of over 100 young African business and civil leaders at the White House on Tuesday, President Barack Obama "urged [them] to help spur economic development and fight corruption, disease and extremism on the continent," MSNBC's "First Read" blog reports.

5 Aug 2010

HGC publishes guidelines to protect people using DIY genetic tests

A set of guidelines has been published to protect people using DIY genetic tests for inherited diseases, such as certain types of breast cancer.The guidelines have been drawn up by the Human Genetics Commission (HGC), which hopes to provide the public with greater confidence in genetic testing kits.Companies - many of which are based in the US - have started to sell DIY testing kits over the internet, providing users with an estimate of their risk of inheriting diseases.

5 Aug 2010

Excess maternal weight gain predicts high birth weight: Research

Expectant mothers who gain large amounts of weight tend to give birth to heavier infants who are at higher risk for obesity later in life. But it's never been proven that this tendency results from the weight gain itself, rather than genetic or other factors that mother and baby share. A large population-based study from Children's Hospital Boston, looking at two or more pregnancies in the same mother, now provides evidence that excess maternal weight gain is a strong, independent predictor of high birth weight.

5 Aug 2010

Sigma-Aldrich, NHLBI and BU collaborate in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease research

Sigma-Aldrich® today announced it has entered into an agreement with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health, and Boston University (BU) to develop methods to measure several potential biomarkers of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) using plasma samples from the NHLBI's Framingham Heart Study (FHS), one of the most prestigious clinical studies in medicine. Funding for the project is provided by the NHLBI to Sigma-Aldrich under a research subaward agreement with BU.

5 Aug 2010

First Edition: August 4, 2010

Today's health policy headlines include reports about yesterday's Missouri vote on a ballot measure to challenge the health reform law and the latest on today's likely Senate consideration of Medicaid assistance for states.

4 Aug 2010

Arthritis treatment costs more than $128 billion a year in the U.S.

Arthritis is the single greatest cause of chronic pain and disability among Americans and the treatment of arthritis costs the nation more than $128 billion a year in medical care and lost earnings. Persistent, chronic joint pain determines the choices people make and limits their ability to perform basic tasks for themselves and their family. Eighty percent of Americans either have, or know someone who has, arthritis and these numbers continue to escalate.

4 Aug 2010

Research examines effects of orthostatic hypotension in adults, children

A simple variation to the tried and true method of checking blood pressure can reveal startling information about both older and younger persons, new research suggests.

4 Aug 2010

MOM Project increases access to maternal health care services for internally displaced woman

A community-based maternal health delivery strategy known as the MOM Project dramatically increased access to maternal health care services for internally displaced woman in eastern Burma, according to a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Among the findings, the study showed a ten-fold increase in the proportion of women assisted at delivery by workers skilled in providing emergency obstetric care, including preventing and treating hemorrhage, injectable antibiotics and anticonvulsants, and community-based blood transfusion.

4 Aug 2010

Ties between global health, national security, jobs emphasized at recent meeting in Washington State

The message that U.S. investment in global health "helps advance longer term security and development goals" while also supporting a "small but growing industry with good paying jobs and world class research" was the focus of a recent meeting between officials from Washington, D.C. and Washington State, the Seattle Times' "Business of Giving" blog writes.

4 Aug 2010

Study shows link between fructose and pancreatic cancer proliferation

Pancreatic cancers use the sugar fructose, very common in the Western diet, to activate a key cellular pathway that drives cell division, helping the cancer to grow more quickly, a study by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found.

4 Aug 2010

Mass. towns find savings in municipal-based health insurance plans; Conn. hospitals' earnings improve; Free dental clinic in Virginia

"Fourteen cities and towns that have moved their employees, retirees, and elected officials from their own municipal-based health care insurance plans into the state's much larger, more flexible system collectively saved more than $30 million their first year in the program, according to a new report. … The study relies on self-reported fiscal data on the communities' first year in the Group Insurance Commission, the state health care program, which covers some 300,000 state employees, retirees, and elected officials" (Murphy, 8/3).

4 Aug 2010

SVH launches Guiding Stars nutrition guidance program

The highly regarded Guiding Stars nutrition guidance program - now available in more than 1,500 grocery stores and schools - today announces its partnership with Sebasticook Valley Hospital (SVH) in Pittsfield, Maine to launch the nutrition guidance program in a hospital for the first time. Guiding Stars will rate prepared meals, snacks, and grab-and-go items according to their nutritional value in the hospital cafeteria. Each item rated will receive zero to three stars for an at-a-glance summary of the food's nutritional quality.

4 Aug 2010

Bisphenol A may decrease sperm quality, concentration: Research

In one of the first human studies of its kind, researchers have found that urinary concentrations of the controversial chemical Bisphenol A, or BPA, may be related to decreased sperm quality and sperm concentration.However, the researchers are quick to point out that these results are preliminary and more study is needed. Several studies have documented adverse effects of BPA on semen in rodents, but none are known to have reported similar relationships in humans.

4 Aug 2010

One-on-one talk with therapist reduces peer aggression

A brief, motivational talk in the emergency room reduced by half the chances that teenagers would experience peer violence or problems due to drinking, according to a study published Aug. 4 in a theme issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

4 Aug 2010

Public Health News and Research

Study: Drug control efforts have caused a drop in methamphetamine treatment admissions in Mexico

Research on human disease origins to predict, prevent next outbreak

FDA issues comprehensive evaluations that address key objectives of agency's public health mission

CNA commends CMA for new report on health-care transformation

Diabetes Self-Management Training helps to prevent complications in pre diabetes patients

Nature News examines how scientists, farmers are working to meet the growing demand for artemisinin

President Obama, Sec. of State discuss U.S. commitment to development, fighting disease in Africa with young African leaders

HGC publishes guidelines to protect people using DIY genetic tests

Excess maternal weight gain predicts high birth weight: Research

Sigma-Aldrich, NHLBI and BU collaborate in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease research

First Edition: August 4, 2010

Arthritis treatment costs more than $128 billion a year in the U.S.

Research examines effects of orthostatic hypotension in adults, children

MOM Project increases access to maternal health care services for internally displaced woman

Ties between global health, national security, jobs emphasized at recent meeting in Washington State

Study shows link between fructose and pancreatic cancer proliferation

Mass. towns find savings in municipal-based health insurance plans; Conn. hospitals' earnings improve; Free dental clinic in Virginia

SVH launches Guiding Stars nutrition guidance program

Bisphenol A may decrease sperm quality, concentration: Research

One-on-one talk with therapist reduces peer aggression

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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