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FDA approves addition of 10 sites to WorldHeart's Levacor VAD BTT clinical study

World Heart Corporation, a developer of mechanical circulatory systems, announced today that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the addition of ten sites to the Levacor ventricular assist device (VAD) Bridge-to-Transplant (BTT) clinical study. WorldHeart's pivotal BTT study is now approved to enroll patients at 20 sites in the U.S.

28 Jul 2010

Scientists unveil new biomarkers for stroke, coronary heart disease

Analysis of blood protein data from the Women's Health Initiative cohorts has revealed new biomarkers for stroke and coronary heart disease (CHD). Research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Medicine found that beta-2 microglobulin (B2M) levels were significantly elevated in postmenopausal women with CHD, and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 4 (IGFBP4) was strongly associated with stroke.

28 Jul 2010

Early weaning linked to chronic diseases later in life: Study

Lack of breastfeeding in infancy may lead to chronic diseases later in life say researchers. At present 90% of people aged between 35 and 40 were not breastfed as babies.

27 Jul 2010

ProTron Technologies creates Stethotron Intra-vascular Atherosclerotic Detector

Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease are the major causes of death in the world. Atherosclerotic plaque, the narrowing of blood vessels, causes audible turbulence in the bloodstream. Standard and electronic stethoscopes are designed to listen to heart and lung signals between 10-300 Hz. But as these waves do not travel in straight paths, and this frequency is a physiological sound, this uncertainty of origin may cause diagnosis errors.

27 Jul 2010

First Edition: July 27, 2010

Today's health policy news includes reports about the continuing Senate backlash to Dr. Donald Berwick's appointment to head the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services as well as findings from a new poll that reveal seniors really don't understand health reform.

27 Jul 2010

Process improvement program improves adherence to evidence-based CRT, ICD and drug therapy

Results of the largest U.S. outpatient heart failure clinical study show that implementation of a process improvement program significantly improved adherence to evidence-based, guideline-recommended cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) and drug therapy.

27 Jul 2010

Researchers reveal biological rationale for why corticosteroids help people with lupus

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered the biological rationale for why large doses of corticosteroids given repeatedly over several weeks may help individuals with lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease that affects more than 1 million people in the U.S.

27 Jul 2010

Economic uncertainty, healthcare issues have hit nation's cardiologists, survey shows

The economic uncertainty and healthcare issues affecting millions of Americans have hit the nation's cardiologists as well, according to a new survey: they are seeing more "baby boomer" patients than ever as Americans get older and demand more care. But they are being reimbursed less for those services by Medicare and insurance firms, in what one cardiologist calls "a revenue roller coaster of uncertainty."

27 Jul 2010

Study tests new performance intervention to improve heart failure patients in outpatient setting

A study led by UCLA tested a new performance intervention to help improve adherence to national guideline-recommended therapies for heart failure patients in an outpatient setting.

27 Jul 2010

Life-saving interventions can save 11 million African women, children over next five years: Countdown report

In the next five years, 11 million African women and children could be saved by creating near-universal availability of key life-saving interventions, according to The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health and the Countdown to 2015 Decade Report (2000-2010).

27 Jul 2010

Scientists discover mechanism behind flushing reaction caused by nicotinic acid treatment

Cholesterol influences the health of our hearts and blood vessels. Conventional treatment attempts to reduce the level of "bad" cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, in the blood plasma. The opposite approach, which involves increasing the concentration of "good" HDL cholesterol using nicotinic acid, has proven unpopular among patients up to now. The reason for this is that treatment with nicotinic acid has an unpleasant but harmless side-effect: the drug makes patients turn quite red in the face. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research in Bad Nauheim have now discovered the mechanism behind this effect, which is known as flushing. This will enable the development of flush inhibitors and thereby the more effective prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

27 Jul 2010

Psychologists to host China's first-ever conference on positive psychology

The ranks of China's millionaires continue to grow, but the increased wealth has done little to boost the country's gross domestic happiness, according to psychologists at the University of California, Berkeley. They say the pursuit of prosperity in the nation is fast outpacing mental health and well-being, and are seeking to correct that imbalance by spreading the science of happiness in China.

27 Jul 2010

Report finds geographic variation in the use of carotid endarterectomy, carotid stenting

Medicare beneficiaries in some parts of the United States appear more likely to receive carotid endarterectomy, a surgical procedure to clear blockages in the artery supplying blood to the head, whereas those in other regions more often receive stents for the same condition, according to a report in the July 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

27 Jul 2010

Researchers find new way to diagnose heart problems

A statistical analysis of publicly available heart rate data using three classification tools - Random Forests, Logistic Model Tree and Neural Network - could lead to a rapid and precise way to diagnose heart problems, according to research in the International Journal of Electronic Healthcare.

27 Jul 2010

Report by Sen. Lugar criticizes Haitian leadership, calls for reforms

Senator Richard Lugar, the senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released a paper (.pdf), which "sharply criticized Haiti's president Thursday, portraying him as an ineffectual leader who is hindering recovery from January's devastating earthquake," the Canadian Press reports. Lugar "advised U.S. legislators to reconsider sending money to Haiti if reforms are not made."

27 Jul 2010

Local chapters raise $100,574 with the help of CAHU CCF

California Association of Health Underwriters is proud to announce that local chapters raised $100,574 this year with the assistance of CAHU CCF, through events including a fashion show, golf tournaments and Holiday Meetings.

27 Jul 2010

Four research teams to study role of exercise in preventing, treating chronic diseases

Canadians will benefit from new insights into the link between physical activity and health as the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health, today announced funding for four research teams through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. These teams will study the effects of exercise on the body and its role in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases including arthritis, breast cancer and heart disease.

27 Jul 2010

Abbot's innovative solutions to be highlighted at AACC

A first-of-its-kind test that detects HIV infection earlier than ever before in the United States; a molecular assay for identification of two common sexually transmitted diseases; and an enhanced integrated analyzer offering significant workflow improvements; are among the many new advances Abbott will highlight at this year's American Association for Clinical Chemistry Lab Expo which starts today in Anaheim.

27 Jul 2010

Childhood cancer survival associated with high risk of abnormal cardiac function

Childhood cancer survival is associated with increased risk of long-term abnormalities in cardiac function, according to a report in the July 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

27 Jul 2010

Lack of dental insurance a problem for millions

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Lack of dental insurance is an "endemic problem" that affects millions of people, largely those without jobs, health coverage or solid incomes. "It began with a toothache. Tori Pence, 23, could feel the hole that had suddenly developed on her tooth, and she couldn't stand either hot or cold food.

27 Jul 2010

Heart News and Research

FDA approves addition of 10 sites to WorldHeart's Levacor VAD BTT clinical study

Scientists unveil new biomarkers for stroke, coronary heart disease

Early weaning linked to chronic diseases later in life: Study

ProTron Technologies creates Stethotron Intra-vascular Atherosclerotic Detector

First Edition: July 27, 2010

Process improvement program improves adherence to evidence-based CRT, ICD and drug therapy

Researchers reveal biological rationale for why corticosteroids help people with lupus

Economic uncertainty, healthcare issues have hit nation's cardiologists, survey shows

Study tests new performance intervention to improve heart failure patients in outpatient setting

Life-saving interventions can save 11 million African women, children over next five years: Countdown report

Scientists discover mechanism behind flushing reaction caused by nicotinic acid treatment

Psychologists to host China's first-ever conference on positive psychology

Report finds geographic variation in the use of carotid endarterectomy, carotid stenting

Researchers find new way to diagnose heart problems

Report by Sen. Lugar criticizes Haitian leadership, calls for reforms

Local chapters raise $100,574 with the help of CAHU CCF

Four research teams to study role of exercise in preventing, treating chronic diseases

Abbot's innovative solutions to be highlighted at AACC

Childhood cancer survival associated with high risk of abnormal cardiac function

Lack of dental insurance a problem for millions

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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