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Study explores risk of re-hospitalization among stroke patients

Stroke patients receiving in-patient rehabilitation are more likely to land back in the hospital within three months if they are functioning poorly, show signs of depression and lack social support according to researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston. Hospital readmission for older adults within 30 days of discharge costs Medicare roughly $18 billion annually.

7 Apr 2012

Miss. Senate passes bill that could shut state's only abortion clinic; Arizona lawmakers get knitted uteruses as protest

The Mississippi bill, which would require doctors working at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges to a local hospital, passed the House last month and is expected to be signed by the governor. Meanwhile, 32 Republican lawmakers in Arizona received knitted uteruses as part of a national protest against government regulation of women's health.

7 Apr 2012

NIMH honors SUNY Downstate professor with MERIT award

Todd C. Sacktor, M.D., distinguished professor of physiology and pharmacology and of neurology at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, has received a MERIT (Method to Extend Research in Time) award from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) for his research on memory.

7 Apr 2012

Lilly, Avid receive FDA approval for Amyvid to treat Alzheimer's

Eli Lilly and Company and Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Lilly, today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of Amyvid, a radioactive diagnostic agent indicated for brain imaging of beta-amyloid plaques in patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for Alzheimer's Disease and other causes of cognitive decline.

7 Apr 2012

Research roundup: Effects of health exchanges; Improving provider performance; Governors' 2013 budgets and Medicaid

Authors analyzed the cost and coverage implications of various scenarios of the health insurance exchanges that are called for in the health law. They predicted that about 1 million uninsured people in the state would get insurance through the exchanges and said that premiums in the small group and individual market would be lower than if the health law was not in effect.

7 Apr 2012

Hot topics in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery

Airport security screening has increased substantially during the past decade, while joint replacement procedures also continue to rise. According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), in 2009, nearly 300,000 total hip replacements (THR) were performed in the United States.

6 Apr 2012

Innate patient factors, overall morbidity affect neurodevelopment in infants with single-ventricle disease

In the largest multicenter clinical trial of children undergoing early-stage surgery for single-ventricle heart defects, differences in intraoperative management did not significantly affect neurodevelopmental outcomes at 14 months of age. Instead, the strongest influences were innate patient characteristics and general medical morbidity during the child's first year of life.

6 Apr 2012

Antibiotics may have absolutely no effect within a few decades

The increased resistance of bacteria to antibiotics is a global problem. Antibiotics are increasingly less effective. Microbiologist Dr. John Hays of Erasmus MC in Rotterdam is sounding the alarm: "The problem is so dire that within a few decades antibiotics will have absolutely no effect".

6 Apr 2012

Ohio AIDS advocates, patients protest against rationing of lifesaving HIV medicines

A group of Ohio AIDS advocates, patients and medical providers hosted a protest in Columbus today in conjunction with a public hearing held by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and its Director, Theodore E. Wymyslo, M.D., on proposed rule changes that would restrict access to lifesaving AIDS drugs for low-income Ohioans based on medical criteria.

6 Apr 2012

Contraception, abortion, fetal care issues flare up in state legislatures

Women's health issues continue to roil politics in Texas, Mississippi and Nebraska.

6 Apr 2012

Methylphenidate may help induce recovery from propofol anesthesia

The ability of the commonly used stimulant methylphenidate (Ritalin) to speed recovery from general anesthesia appears to apply both to the inhaled gas isoflurane, as previously reported, and to the intravenous drug propofol. Members of the same Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) research team that reported the isoflurane study are publishing similar results for propofol in the May issue of Anesthesiology, and their paper has been issued online.

6 Apr 2012

ACMG Foundation, Genzyme announce recipients of Medical Genetics Training Award

Carlos E. Prada, MD of Cincinnati Children's Hospital and James D. Weisfeld-Adams, MD of Mount Sinai School of Medicine, NY were honored as the 2012-2013 recipients of the Genzyme/ACMG Foundation Medical Genetics Training Award in Clinical Biochemical Genetics at the ACMG 2012 Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting in Charlotte, NC.

6 Apr 2012

Public not as willing to pay for effective mental illness treatments

An analysis of a nationally representative sample of 710 adult respondents reveals that the public is less willing to pay to avoid mental illnesses compared to paying for treatment of medical conditions.

6 Apr 2012

JHI sponsors international scholarship program for medical students

An international scholarship program for medical students from outside the United States to study at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine is the institution's latest initiative aimed at nurturing the next generation of health care leaders. Johns Hopkins Medicine International (JHI), the global arm of the Baltimore, Maryland-based Johns Hopkins Medicine, is sponsoring this program.

6 Apr 2012

Bayshore Community Hospital introduces new personal concierge service

At Bayshore Community Hospital, making patients and guests feel at home while they're away from home for a hospital stay is top of mind. While clinical care remains the Hospital's top priority, it is now enhancing the total hospital experience of patients with a new service called Concierge Care. Concierge Care was formed to consistently address personal or "non-clinical needs," making patients and their guests as comfortable as possible.

6 Apr 2012

TJUH medical oncologist to receive ASCO Humanitarian Award

Edith Mitchell, M.D., FACP, a medical oncologist at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center (KCC) and Clinical Professor of Medicine and Medical Oncology in the Department of Medical Oncology at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, has been named the 2012 recipient of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Humanitarian Award for her personification of the society's mission and values, and for going above and beyond the call of duty in providing outstanding patient care.

6 Apr 2012

Electronic pathology report more accurately identifies nonmelanoma skin cancer

Henry Ford Hospital dermatology researchers are urging caution about using claims data for identifying nonmelanoma skin cancer, suggesting that the commonly used method, which previously had not been validated, may be unreliable.

6 Apr 2012

Researchers generate endodermal progenitor cells for future diabetes treatments

Researchers have generated a new type of human stem cell that can develop into numerous types of specialized cells, including functioning pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin. Called endodermal progenitor (EP) cells, the new cells show two important advantages over embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells: they do not form tumors when transplanted into animals, and they can form functional pancreatic beta cells in the laboratory.

6 Apr 2012

Novel technology to grow new primordial lung progenitors

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have derived a population of pure lung and thyroid progenitor cells in vitro that successfully mimic the developmental milestones of lung and thyroid tissue formation.

6 Apr 2012

State roundup: Advocates in Va. back shifting disability care from state institutions; New Vt. law overhauls mental health system; Aetna mistakenly tells thousands in Calif. their doctors were dropped

A state agency that looks out for the rights of people with disabilities is advocating for a proposed settlement that would shift the care of Virginians with intellectual disabilities from state-run institutions.

6 Apr 2012