Bleeding News and Research

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More nurses improves the quality of hospital care

A study in the January/February 2006 issue of the journal Health Affairsconcludes that increasing the number of registered nurses and hours of nursing care per patient would save 6,700 lives and 4 million days of patient care in hospitals each year.

10 Jan 2006

Uterine fibroid embolization shows high rate of long-term symptom control

In the first long term study of patients receiving uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) for the relief of symptoms from fibroid tumors 73% report continued relief five years later.

10 Jan 2006

Polyphosphate speeds blood clotting and helps clots last longer

A serendipitous comparison prompted by an old scientific image and involving an ancient but understudied molecule may lead to a new treatment strategy for injuries or illnesses in which blood clotting is paramount to survival.

9 Jan 2006

Treating gum disease may reduce heart problems

The Journal of Dental Research has just published the results of a study showing that treatment of gum disease may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

5 Jan 2006

Pharmacogenetics can reduce health care costs

Chances are good that a medication you take is one of several drugs that can be affected by genetic factors, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the St. Louis College of Pharmacy.

5 Jan 2006

Too high blood-thinner doses harmful to patients

According to a new analysis by cardiologists at the Duke Clinical Research Institute, in the prescribing of common but powerful anti-clotting drugs, 42 percent of patients rushed to emergency rooms with symptoms of a heart attack received doses intended to stop clotting in coronary arteries above the recommended range.

29 Dec 2005

Proper home care can assist would healing

A slip with a kitchen knife, a spill off a bike or a fall on the sidewalk. It’s not uncommon to have a mishap that breaks the skin. When a wound occurs, your body quickly begins regeneration and repair. You can facilitate healing with proper home care.

29 Dec 2005

Misdosing anti-clotting drugs leads to heart attack symptoms

Because of inaccuracies in prescribing, 42 percent of patients rushed to emergency rooms with symptoms of a heart attack received doses of powerful drugs intended stop clotting in coronary arteries outside of the recommended range, a new analysis by Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) cardiologists has found.

28 Dec 2005

New treatment for chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura

Data from a Phase II study of eltrombopag, an oral investigational drug that increases the production of platelets, demonstrate that the compound was effective in increasing platelet counts in patients with chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a disorder characterized by episodes of frequent spontaneous bruising, mucosal bleeding, and in severe cases intracranial hemorrhage, and acute episodes of severe bleeding.

12 Dec 2005

High-intensity ultrasound waves heats and destroys uterine fibroids

A totally noninvasive procedure using high-intensity ultrasound waves to heat and destroy uterine fibroid tissue significantly relieves fibroid-related symptoms in women, according to the results of a multicenter clinical trial.

7 Dec 2005

New anti-clotting treatment

Volunteers at the Jack and Linda Gill Heart Institute at the University of Kentucky were the first ever to receive a new anti-clotting therapy.

7 Dec 2005

Liver transplants may not be suitable for all cystic fibrosis patients

A new study on patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) who have had abnormal bleeding from ruptured blood vessels in the esophagus (variceal hemorrhage) as a result of liver disease found that transplant may not be indicated if there are no other indications of advanced liver disease.

5 Dec 2005

Bats possible carriers of Ebola virus

According to recent research scientists say that three species of bats that are eaten by people in central Africa may be carriers of the Ebola virus that has killed hundreds of humans and great apes.

2 Dec 2005

Low doses of aspirin increase chance of developing ulcers

Aspirin has long been hailed as one of the most effective, low-cost ways to help guard against a heart attack or stroke. However, international medical researchers caution that low doses of aspirin also increase a patient's chance of developing an ulcer, often without warning signs.

28 Nov 2005

Five dead, 45 infected, with haemorrhagic fever in Pakistan

According to health officials in Pakistan, haemorrhagic fever has killed at least five people, including a woman doctor, and infected around 45 people the country's biggest city of Karachi.

28 Nov 2005

Left ventricular assistant devices extend lives of patients too sick for transplant

Pumps implanted into the chest to maintain circulation can significantly extend the lives of the sickest patients in end-stage heart failure who are not candidates for heart transplantation, according to the results of a clinical trial led by Duke University Medical Center cardiologists.

28 Nov 2005

Age alone influences risks for people in their eighties after heart surgery

Patients aged 80 and older have a higher risk of death and disease than younger patients after undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery or valve surgery, and age alone influences these outcomes, according to a study in the November issue of Archives of Surgery.

26 Nov 2005

Aspirin can significantly reduce the risk of stroke in women

A meta-analysis of more than 95,000 patients has shown that aspirin can significantly reduce the risk of stroke in women, but it appears to have no protective effect in men, according to a new analysis by Duke University Medical Center cardiologists.

21 Nov 2005

American physicians may be too liberal in their use of blood transfusions

In an analysis of some 24,000 patient records, the researchers found that Americans rushed to the hospital with heart attack symptoms have significantly higher rates of bleeding and transfusions after treatment than similar patients throughout the world.

21 Nov 2005

Aspirin advice ignored by those who need it

A daily dose of aspirin is an inexpensive, proven strategy for reducing the likelihood of heart disease among those most at risk for such disorders, yet a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine shows that aspirin therapy is being used by fewer than one-third of the U.S. outpatients who would benefit from it.

20 Nov 2005