Intensive Care News and Research

RSS

Hospital readmission rates reflect problem in addressing hospital failures

If you're a Medicare patient admitted to the hospital, the odds are about one in six that you'll end up back in the hospital within a month. And there was very little progress made in reducing that rate between 2004-09.

30 Sep 2011

First patient in Turkey with Total Artificial Heart attends TUYOD meeting

In May 2011, Omer Bayrak made headlines when he became the first patient in Turkey to be discharged from the hospital using the Freedom® portable driver to power his SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart. Since returning home to wait for a matching donor heart, Mr. Bayrak has been enjoying his new-found celebrity as "the only man in Turkey who lives without a heart."

30 Sep 2011

JDRF, iCo Therapeutics collaborate for iCo-007 Phase 2 trial in DME

iCo Therapeutics Inc. today announced that the company has entered into a research collaboration agreement with JDRF, the worldwide leader for research to cure, treat, and prevent type 1 diabetes (T1D), to support the previously announced Phase 2 investigator sponsored clinical trial investigating iCo-007 in Diabetic Macular Edema.

26 Sep 2011

Asthma patients admitted to hospital with H1N1 are half as likely to die from infection

People with asthma who are admitted to hospital with pandemic influenza H1N1 (swine flu) are half as likely to die or require intensive care than those without asthma, according to new research.

26 Sep 2011

Percutaneous hepatic perfusion extends survival time for melanoma patients

Melanoma of the eye frequently spreads to the liver and, once this has happened, there is no effective treatment and patients die within an average of two to four months. Only about one in ten patients live for a year. Now, final results from a phase III study have demonstrated that a new treatment significantly extends the time patients can live without the disease progressing.

26 Sep 2011

VUMC announces partnership with NorthCrest, Maury Regional and Williamson Medical Center

Leaders of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Maury Regional Medical Center, Northcrest Medical Center and Williamson Medical Center today announced affiliation agreements establishing a partnership between these medical centers to work collaboratively to create new jointly operated programs and services in the counties where these hospitals reside.

26 Sep 2011

Project REACH to reduce risk of postpartum depression in adolescent mothers

More than 400,000 adolescent girls will give birth in the United States each year, and about one in four of them will experience postpartum depression.

23 Sep 2011

Neurocritical Care Society announces comprehensive set of guidelines on brain aneurysms

The Neurocritical Care Society is releasing a comprehensive set of guidelines this week to guide physicians and hospitals on how to optimally care for patient's ruptured brain aneurysms. One of the strongest recommendations is that all patients receive specialized care at high-volume stroke centers that treat at least 60 cases per year.

20 Sep 2011

Phytel launches new suite of automated care management solutions

Phytel today launched the next generation of automated care management solutions with its integrated Atmosphere™ platform, which enables providers to better manage quality and proactively improve chronic and preventive care across their populations. These scalable, Software-as-a-Service automation tools together comprise the first comprehensive, integrated population health management solution designed for providers.

19 Sep 2011

OptiScan's new bedside glucose monitoring system receives European CE Mark

OptiScan Biomedical Corporation, a developer of innovative continuous glucose monitoring systems for use in intensive care units (ICU), today announced that the company's OptiScanner Automatic Bedside Glucose Monitoring System has received CE Mark certification for use in the European Union.

19 Sep 2011

Shannon installs Toshiba's Infinix CF-i single plane vascular X-ray system

Performing cardiac catheterizations through the radial artery is proven to lower the risk of vascular complications, reduce major bleeding and improve patient recovery time when compared to femoral access. Shannon Medical Center, in San Angelo, Texas, installed Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.'s Infinix CF-i single plane vascular X-ray system to conduct radial interventions more easily and improve patient safety and outcomes while reducing costs.

19 Sep 2011

NeuroVive, Selcia sign research collaboration agreement to develop new mitochondrial drugs

UK-based contract research organisation Selcia Limited and Swedish drug development company NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB have signed a significant research collaboration agreement to develop new medicines and drug compounds targeting mitochondrial physiology and pathophysiology.

19 Sep 2011

Viewpoints: Support for HPV vaccinations; Compassion and GOP debates

Imagine that scientists invented a vaccine that was proved to safely prevent cancer. Imagine that it was licensed and recommended in the U.S. for all preadolescent girls and available to boys as well, yet five years later only 11 percent of children were receiving the full course of shots.

17 Sep 2011

Simple strategies prevent bloodstream infections and save hundreds of patient lives

Following some basic rules of central line hygiene and maintenance, Johns Hopkins Children's Center and 87 other pediatric hospitals have, over five years, saved hundreds of patient lives and more than $100 million by preventing nearly 3,000 central line bloodstream infections, hospital officials announced on Monday, Sept. 12.

16 Sep 2011

Memphis operation successfully separates twins joined at the spine

Joshua and Jacob Spates, all of seven months old spent their initial months outside the womb as conjoined twins. Now they are recovering in the pediatric intensive care unit of a Memphis hospital after a successful 13-hour surgery to separate them.

15 Sep 2011

New Johns Hopkins building with healing environment can improve patients' state of mind

Most HGTV fans will agree that good design can improve one's state of mind. Designers at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore also believe it can help patients heal, which is why its new 1.6 million square-foot patient care building, scheduled to open in April 2012, features an elegant design with peace and quiet for patients as a priority.

15 Sep 2011

Consensus panel calls for specialized nutrition therapy to manage obesity

A newly published consensus report prepared by a panel of clinical experts, with sponsorship from Nestle Health Science, reveals that there are opportunities to do more to manage the impact of obesity on the delivery of critical care, particularly in the area of nutrition therapy.

15 Sep 2011

Scientist granted over $138,000 to explore Vitamin C therapy in sepsis

Sepsis kills more people than breast, colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancers combined. Outside of coronary care units, it is the leading cause of mortality in intensive care units. Every year 18 million people worldwide develop this potentially fatal disease. Thanks to a generous grant of $138,238.65 from the Jesse and Julie Rasch Foundation, Lawson Health Research Institute's Dr. Michael Sharpe is exploring a new sepsis therapy using Vitamin C.

15 Sep 2011

More pediatric subspecialists entering private practice could mean fewer at academic centers

An increasing number of pediatric subspecialists are entering private practice, a trend that could mean a smaller proportion working at academic centers, conducting research, teaching or advancing specialty care, a University of Michigan study finds.

13 Sep 2011

New contraceptive website for young women

Friends, the mainstream media and the internet, all potentially unreliable sources, continue to be the way America's young adults find their health information. Research has found that while they trust health professionals and health educators, they often do not turn to them for information, especially when it comes to their sexual health.

13 Sep 2011