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Early-term births associated with higher neonatal morbidity, shows study

Early-term births (37 to 38 weeks gestation) are associated with higher neonatal morbidity (illness) and with more neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) or neonatology service admissions than term births (39 to 41 weeks gestation), according to a study by Shaon Sengupta, M.D., M.P.H., now of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and formerly of the University at Buffalo, N.Y., and colleagues.

1 Oct 2013

NIH award strengthens pioneering work in cystic fibrosis at Dartmouth's School of Medicine

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a $5.9 million grant to support an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Lung Biology Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth.

1 Oct 2013

Patients treated by ID physicians less likely to die in hospital

In a first-of-its-kind study to evaluate the impact of a medical specialty on patient outcomes, researchers found that hospitalized patients with severe infections such as meningitis and Clostridium difficile are significantly less likely to die if they receive care from an infectious diseases specialist. The study, which analyzed nearly 130,000 Medicare patient cases, is now available online and will be published in the December 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.

30 Sep 2013

Dextrose gel could treat neonatal hypoglycemia

A cheap and easy-to-administer dextrose gel should be used to treat low blood sugars in newborns (neonatal hypoglycaemia), a common problem that affects up to 15% of otherwise healthy babies, and a preventable cause of brain damage, according to new research published in The Lancet.

27 Sep 2013

Johns Hopkins receives $7.3M contract to reduce ventilator-associated pneumonia

The Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality has been awarded a three-year, $7.3 million contract from the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality to bring its proven checklist for reducing ventilator-associated pneumonia — the most lethal of all hospital-acquired infections — to hospitals nationwide.

25 Sep 2013

Researchers identify molecular pathway linking ICU ventilation to brain damage

At least 30 percent of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) suffer some form of mental dysfunction as reflected in anxiety, depression, and especially delirium. In mechanically-ventilated ICU patients, the incidence of delirium is particularly high, about 80 percent, and may be due in part to damage in the hippocampus, though how ventilation is increasing the risk of damage and mental impairment has remained elusive.

25 Sep 2013

Pretravel consultations, malaria preventive medications save money for travelers to West Africa

Not only do U.S. travelers to West Africa who consult health providers before they leave and take prescribed preventive medications substantially reduce their risk of contracting malaria, they also reduce costs to their health insurance providers and, in most cases, to themselves.

24 Sep 2013

Bipolar suicide characteristics found

Italian researchers have identified clinical and psychologic characteristics that could help predict the risk for suicide in patients with bipolar disorder.

19 Sep 2013

First Edition: September 19, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about future health spending projections from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Actuaries as well as the latest on the upcoming House vote on a stopgap funding measure that would also defund the health law.

19 Sep 2013

Midwifery care costs less and just as safe as standard maternity care

Continued care from a named midwife throughout pregnancy, birth, and after the baby is born (caseload midwifery) is just as safe as standard maternity care (shared between different midwives and medical practitioners) for all women irrespective of risk, and is significantly cheaper, according to new research published in The Lancet.

19 Sep 2013

Caseload midwifery care is feasible for women of all risk types

A world-first University of Sydney randomised controlled trial comparing continuity of midwifery care throughout pregnancy with standard public hospital care found that caseload midwifery reduced interventions in birth and reduced costs.

17 Sep 2013

Successful bedside ultrasound training program expands from UC Irvine to UCLA

A successful training program in bedside ultrasound is expanding from UC Irvine to UCLA, thanks to a $250,000 University of California grant to improve patient care.

13 Sep 2013

Three organizations team up to raise $1M to save lives of Central Florida's tiniest babies

JetBlue Airways, Golf Channel, and Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill Club & Lodge have teamed up to raise $1 million over the next five years to help save the lives of Central Florida's tiniest babies.

13 Sep 2013

Longer looks: Understanding the mind; facebook depression; planning for a successful end of life

Every week reporter Ankita Rao selects interesting reading from around the Web.

13 Sep 2013

Dartmouth researchers find that protein cyclin A plays important role in cell division process

In a study to be published in the journal Nature, two Dartmouth researchers have found that the protein cyclin A plays an important but previously unknown role in the cell division process, acting as a master controller to ensure the faithful segregation of chromosomes during cell division.

12 Sep 2013

Researchers assess prevalence, cost of critical care therapies seen as futile by doctors

In one of the first studies of its kind, a joint UCLA/RAND Corporation study addressed the prevalence and cost of critical care therapies provided in intensive care units that were perceived by physicians as "futile."

10 Sep 2013

European launch of new version of REVIVE™ SE Thrombectomy Device for treatment of acute ischemic stroke announced by Codman Neuro

Codman Neuro*, part of DePuy Synthes Companies of Johnson & Johnson, announced the European launch of the REVIVE™ SE Thrombectomy Device, a next generation clot removal device offering enhanced navigation through the cerebral vasculature and rapid restoration of blood flow to the brain after an ischemic stroke.

9 Sep 2013

Research roundup: The financial burden of hospital acquired infections

Health care–associated infections (HAIs) account for a large proportion of the harms caused by health care and are associated with high costs. ... [Using a simulation, the researchers found that the] total annual costs for the 5 major infections were $9.8 billion (95% CI, $8.3-$11.5 billion), with surgical site infections contributing the most to overall costs (33.7% of the total), followed by ventilator-associated pneumonia (31.6%), central line–associated bloodstream infections (18.9%), C difficile infections (15.4%), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (<1%). ... recent analyses indicate that at least 50% are preventable. ...

7 Sep 2013

Cedars-Sinai accepts nominations for 2014 Eliot Corday Prize in Heart Research

The Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute is accepting nominations for the 2014 Eliot Corday, MD, International Prize in Heart Research, which annually honors a physician or scientist conducting groundbreaking research or individuals who significantly advance the practice of heart medicine.

6 Sep 2013

Critically ill patients benefit from new program designed to improve care at Mayo Clinic

Critically ill patients are benefiting from a new program designed to improve care and shorten hospital stays. Mayo Clinic's Enhanced Critical Care program offers 24/7 remote monitoring of the sickest patients at six Mayo Clinic Health System hospitals.

6 Sep 2013

Intensive Care News and Research

Early-term births associated with higher neonatal morbidity, shows study

NIH award strengthens pioneering work in cystic fibrosis at Dartmouth's School of Medicine

Patients treated by ID physicians less likely to die in hospital

Dextrose gel could treat neonatal hypoglycemia

Johns Hopkins receives $7.3M contract to reduce ventilator-associated pneumonia

Researchers identify molecular pathway linking ICU ventilation to brain damage

Pretravel consultations, malaria preventive medications save money for travelers to West Africa

Bipolar suicide characteristics found

First Edition: September 19, 2013

Midwifery care costs less and just as safe as standard maternity care

Caseload midwifery care is feasible for women of all risk types

Successful bedside ultrasound training program expands from UC Irvine to UCLA

Three organizations team up to raise $1M to save lives of Central Florida's tiniest babies

Longer looks: Understanding the mind; facebook depression; planning for a successful end of life

Dartmouth researchers find that protein cyclin A plays important role in cell division process

Researchers assess prevalence, cost of critical care therapies seen as futile by doctors

European launch of new version of REVIVE™ SE Thrombectomy Device for treatment of acute ischemic stroke announced by Codman Neuro

Research roundup: The financial burden of hospital acquired infections

Cedars-Sinai accepts nominations for 2014 Eliot Corday Prize in Heart Research

Critically ill patients benefit from new program designed to improve care at Mayo Clinic

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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