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Ethanol, nonalcoholic compounds in red wine may reduce risk of vascular disease

Observational epidemiologic studies relating wine and alcohol to health all suffer from the fact that they, of necessity, compare people who prefer certain beverages, but not the beverages themselves. While there have been many intervention trials in animals, randomized trials in humans are less common. Randomized crossover trials, in which each subject receives all interventions in sequence, can be especially important as they tend to avoid baseline differences among subjects and can detect effects of different interventions with smaller numbers of subjects.

18 Jan 2012

Ore. Governor proposes 'coordinated care organizations' to reform state's Medicaid program

Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber is proposing to change the state's iteration of Medicaid by ending its fee-for-service model and instituting "coordinated care organizations" to manage patients' chronic care to keep them out of hospital rooms.

18 Jan 2012

New combination treatment more effective in treating cutaneous T-Cell lymphoma

Promising findings on a novel combination treatment approach for a chronic type of skin lymphoma are being published in JAMA's Archives of Dermatology by clinical researchers from Seidman Cancer Center at University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

18 Jan 2012

Survey provides valuable information to tackle global nursing shortage

If organisations want to retain qualified nurses they need to tackle the different work factors that are important to the three key age groups and build on the strong attachment that many nurses feel to the profession.

18 Jan 2012

Ivera receives new FDA clearance for Curos disinfecting port protector

Ivera Medical Corporation today announced it has received a new FDA 510(k) clearance for its Curos disinfecting port protector which reflects the company's ongoing determination to continuously improve its products to better deliver solutions designed to reduce hospital-acquired catheter related bloodstream infections.

18 Jan 2012

Scientists use gold-filled silicon wafers to target and burn breast cancer cells

By shining infrared light on specially designed, gold-filled silicon wafers, scientists at The Methodist Hospital Research Institute have successfully targeted and burned breast cancer cells. If the technology is shown to work in human clinical trials, it could provide patients a non-invasive alternative to surgical ablation, and could be used in conjunction with traditional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, to make those treatments more effective.

18 Jan 2012

Counterfeit, substandard drugs threaten progress in controlling malaria in Africa, researchers report

"Hopes of controlling malaria in Africa could be wrecked by criminals who are circulating counterfeit and substandard drugs, threatening millions of lives, scientists" said in a study published in the Malaria Journal last month, the Guardian reports.

18 Jan 2012

SERI researchers receive NEI grant to understand origins of eye allergies

The National Eye Institute has awarded researchers at the Schepens Eye Research Institute, a subsidiary of Mass. Eye and Ear, a five year-grant totaling more than $2.4 million to understand the origins of eye allergies.

18 Jan 2012

Two new studies focus on causes of arrhythmia and SCD

Researchers in Rhode Island Hospital's Cardiovascular Research Center have published two new studies focusing on the causes of arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death (SCD) when a genetic disorder is present.

18 Jan 2012

Neuronal energy deficits may contribute to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Turning off a protein that helps cells balance energy increases animal mobility and reduces the death of nerve cells that control movement in animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a study in the January 18 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The findings may one day guide new directions for the treatment of the progressive neurodegenerative disorder, for which there is currently no cure.

18 Jan 2012

Children with neurologic impairment account for increasing hospital resources

Because of care advances, more infants and children with previously lethal health problems are surviving. Many, however, are left with lifelong neurologic impairment. A Children's Hospital Boston study of more than 25 million pediatric hospitalizations in the U.S. now shows that neurologically impaired children, though still a relatively small part of the overall population, account for increasing hospital resources, particularly within children's hospitals.

18 Jan 2012

Innovative computer algorithm identifies clinically prognostic marker for cancer

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have used an innovative mathematical technique to find markers that effectively predict how deadly a cancer will be. The discovery, which in this case concerned bladder cancer, could lead to faster, less expensive and more accurate analysis of cancer risk and better treatment of the disease.

18 Jan 2012

With new poll showing low public approval, Congress returns to D.C.:'Doc fix,' tax cuts on agenda

The Associated Press reports that in order to prevent a 27 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors, negotiators are trying to find $39 billion in cuts elsewhere in health spending. A deal could be reached faster than initially expected.

18 Jan 2012

Immobilization of one hand causes rearrangement of brain matter

What happens in the brain of right-handed people if their dominant hand is immobile for two weeks? This is the question addressed in the latest study led by Professor Lutz J-ncke and the Trauma Surgery Department at Zurich University Hospital.

18 Jan 2012

Food insecurity forces families to 'stretch' infant formula

Despite receiving supplemental food benefits, some families cannot afford enough infant formula and resort to the dangerous practice of formula "stretching" - watering down formula - to feed their babies, according to a Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center study conducted at urban pediatric clinics.

18 Jan 2012

Scientists develop new gallbladder endoscopy

For more than 100 years, the traditional treatment for the painful growths called gallstones has been removal of the gallbladder, or cholecystectomy. But a new device, patented in China, promises to make removing the entire organ unnecessary. A group of scientists from the Second People's Hospital of Panyu District and Central South University in China have developed an endoscope specially designed for locating and clearing out gallstones and other gallbladder lesions.

18 Jan 2012

State roundup: State lawmakers, governors planning health legislation; Some Pa. kids losing Medicaid

Iowa House and Senate Republicans could support legislation requiring lawmakers to contribute to the cost of their state-provided health-care benefits, party leaders told the Des Moines Register's editorial board this morning. The health-care packages now offered by the state - in which most employees, including legislators, are not required to make contributions from their salaries - are "out of touch" with the plans available to average Iowans, ... House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, R-Hiawatha, said.

18 Jan 2012

New Yorker mistakenly billed for $44.8 million from hospital

Unemployed doorman Alexis Rodriguez says he almost became ill when he received a $44.8 million bill from the Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center. Rodriguez was hospitalized last spring with pneumonia and was afraid the bill was legitimate. His actual bill stood at $300.

17 Jan 2012

Vitamin D provides no relief from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Earlier studies have suggested that up to three quarters of people with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, are deficient in the vitamin. So it was thought that giving them extra vitamin D might help prevent exacerbations in symptoms or trips to the hospital because of shortness of breath or mucus in the airways. Belgian researchers have refuted this claim.

17 Jan 2012

Gastric bypass superior to lap banding finds study

A new study evaluates the best option in terms of weight loss surgery for those who need it. Researchers found gastric bypass patients lose more weight than gastric banding patients and keep it off longer. Even though banding is a simpler operation, nearly half of those patients were still obese after six years.

17 Jan 2012