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Clostridium difficile's five genetic regions identified

Five genetic regions have been identified that are unique to the most virulent strain of Clostridium difficile (C. difficile), the hospital superbug. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Biology studied the genome of the bacterium, looking for genes relating to motility, antibiotic resistance and toxicity.

25 Sep 2009

Commitments announced at the Clinton Global Initiative

The second day of the Fifth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) came to a close with a special session on Northern Ireland, following afternoon plenary and breakout sessions that focused on harnessing innovation for development.

24 Sep 2009

Women usually tightlipped about bladder problems

Women may be known as the more talkative sex, but when it comes to a certain sensitive health topic, their lips are sealed, according to a new "Bladder Talk" survey of 780 women aged 35 and older in North America (U.S. and Canada) sponsored by TENA(R), the worldwide leader in the management of bladder protection, and conducted by Harris Interactive.

24 Sep 2009

Pregnant women must be vaccinated against H1N1 and seasonal flu

Pregnant women should be sure to get all their flu shots as soon as the vaccines become available this year to protect them against both the seasonal flu and the H1N1 (swine) flu, according to eight leading national maternal and infant health organizations.

24 Sep 2009

Children’s Hospital offers tips on H1N1 and seasonal flu

With the early onset of flu season coinciding with the start of school this year, parents are concerned about the flu. Experts from The Children’s Hospital in Denver, Colo., offer a pediatric perspective on all types of flu, including H1N1, also known as swine flu.

23 Sep 2009

Free dental care for California's foster-care students

More than four hundred foster-care students within the Twin Rivers Unified School District will be able to receive free dental care thanks to a new telemedicine project created jointly by the California Dental Association Foundation, University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry and the California HealthCare Foundation with start-up funding from Verizon.

22 Sep 2009

Three German laboratories utilize Bruker’s molecular identification solution

At the 61st Annual Meeting of the German Society for Hygiene and Microbiology on September 20-23, 2009 in Goettingen, Bruker Daltonics announces that three major German private clinical microbiology laboratories have extended their accreditation according to DIN EN ISO 15189 to include the use of Bruker’s MALDI Biotyper molecular identification solution.

21 Sep 2009

New Healthier Habits Rewards Program educates families on healthy hygiene routines

LYSOL((R)), the number one pediatrician recommended brand, announced today the launch of the Healthier Habits Rewards Program, an initiative to educate families on healthy hygiene routines. Through the Healthier Habits Rewards program, parents can learn valuable tips to help protect themselves and their children from potential illness-causing germs at home or at school.

18 Sep 2009

New CLF survey on the unawareness of Canadians in contracting food-related illnesses

A new survey from the Canadian Liver Foundation (CLF) reveals more than half of Canadians over the age of 25 (57 per cent) are concerned about contracting food-related illnesses like hepatitis A, but many are unaware that their everyday food preparation and consumption habits may put them at risk for this liver disease

17 Sep 2009

Infections due to handwashing failures cause 100,000 deaths annually

At Bay Medical Center in Panama City, Florida, Compirion Healthcare Solutions, a healthcare consulting firm that was engaged to help improve ED Throughput, Finance and Core Measures compliance, found only 30% of the staff regularly washed their hands between visits with patients.

17 Sep 2009

Researchers discover HIV Nef protein's role in cell mobility inhibition

In order to be able to ward off disease pathogens, immune cells must be mobile and be able to establish contact with each other. The working group around Professor Dr. Oliver Fackler in the Virology Department of the Hygiene Institute of the Heidelberg University Hospital has discovered a mechanism in an animal model revealing how HIV, the AIDS pathogen, cripples immune cells: Cell mobility is inhibited by the HIV Nef protein.

17 Sep 2009

Wireless sensor being studied at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center

A wireless, credit-card-sized sensor that can detect whether health care workers have properly washed their hands upon entering a patient's room is being studied at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. The device could greatly reduce the number of hospital acquired infections nationwide since most are transmitted through contact due to poor hand-washing practice.

17 Sep 2009

Pan American Health Organization calls for preventing sickness to curtail health care costs

According to every major health organization, many costly and disabling conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic infectious diseases are linked by common preventable risk factors -- smoking, poor dietary habits, physical inactivity and poor hygiene.

16 Sep 2009

MDVIP's medical director suggests preventive measures for flu

Dr. Bernard Kaminetsky, the medical director of MDVIP, a national network of affiliated primary care doctors focused on preventive care, recommends, “Talk to your primary care physician now about the flu, both seasonal and H1N1 flu. Your primary care doctor is the one who can best prepare you for the upcoming season with vaccinations as well as information specific to you.”

16 Sep 2009

1-800-DENTIST re-launches its popular dental blog

1-800-DENTIST®, the nation's leading free resource for consumers in search of a dentist, is re-launching its popular dental blog, DentistLove.com. The revamped site offers more features and bloggers, adding a variety of 1-800-DENTIST® employees blogging about their own unique stories regarding dentistry and oral hygiene.

15 Sep 2009

Children's Hospital and eClinicalWorks collaborate to implement PCHR

Children's Hospital Boston and eClinicalWorks(R) today announced a collaboration that will enable patients who are seen at Children's ambulatory programs and in primary care practices in the Pediatric Physicians' Organization at Children's (PPOC) to aggregate health data from both sites of care into a single personally controlled health record (PCHR).

15 Sep 2009

Sage Products and EngagementHealth partner to launch health promotion programs

Sage Products, Inc. an established innovator in the manufacture of healthcare products and EngagementHealth, LLC, announced today the successful launch of comprehensive disease prevention and health promotion programs. All employees and spouses at Sage Products were invited to participate in the EngagementHealth's biometric screenings, health counseling calls, and individualized targeted risk programs.

15 Sep 2009

Mortality index can be misleading in major specialties

A key statistic that consumer groups and the media often use when compiling hospital report cards and national rankings can be misleading, researchers report in a new study.

15 Sep 2009

eClinicalWorks to open new offices at Pleasanton, California and New York City

eClinicalWorks®, a market leader in ambulatory clinical systems, today announced the opening of new locations in Pleasanton, Calif., and New York City, both set to open in October. Currently, the company is headquartered in Westborough, Mass., and has additional offices in New York City and Alpharetta, Ga. The Bay Area location will provide a West coast presence and focus on implementation.

14 Sep 2009

Wash and dry hands to fight against H1N1

Countries around the world are trying to tackle the escalating H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic in different ways. Advice from all authorities, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), remains the same: good hand hygiene, particularly in public places. Despite this, there are still too few people who know how to wash and dry their hands in the most hygienic way.

14 Sep 2009