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The New York Times: Aetna's former chief executive ponders the new health law

Insurers continue to "ponder" their future under the new order of the health law and, in California, rate increases trigger a blame game.

10 Dec 2010

Deals, expansions and ACOs mark hospital sector activity

Hospitals and health systems are the subject of proposed deals and acquisitions. Meanwhile, the concept of accountable care organizations continues to trigger interest and curiosity within the health care sector.

10 Dec 2010

Weightlifting may help prevent lymphedema following breast cancer treatment

Weightlifting may play a key role in the prevention of the painful limb-swelling condition lymphedema following breast cancer treatment, according to new research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Combined with the team's previous findings that the exercise limits a worsening of symptoms among women who already have lymphedema, the new data cements the reversal of long-running advice that breast cancer survivors should avoid lifting anything heavier than five pounds after they finish treatment.

10 Dec 2010

31-year-old mother with Gorham-Stout syndrome goes home with virtually rebuilt spine

Laurie Harms, Los Angeles, feared she'd never hold her infant daughter, Sky, again. A devastating and extremely rare bone-eroding disease - Gorham-Stout syndrome - had left the 31-year-old crumpled in a hospital bed - her neck broken, arms limp and useless, and voice muted by tubes.

10 Dec 2010

Tru-D UV-C device effective in reducing pathogens on all environmental surfaces in hospital patient rooms

Results of an eight-month hospital study, "Room Decontamination with UV Radiation," were published in the October 2010 issue of "Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology." The study evaluated the ability of an automated UV device, Tru-D, to decontaminate patient rooms contaminated with MRSA, VRE, C. difficile and a MDR strain of Acinetobacter baumannii.

10 Dec 2010

First Edition: December 10, 2010

In today's health policy headlines, reports about the Obama administration lawyer charged with defending the health law as well as the latest action in this lame duck Congress.

10 Dec 2010

Process of activating helicopter EMS delays treatment for heart attacks beyond recommended times

Helicopter emergency medical services can be a life saver for patients needing immediate care. But, according to a University of Cincinnati study, the process of activating them often delays treatment beyond recommended times.

10 Dec 2010

Alliance of Specialty Medicine calls for new, permanent Medicare reimbursement formula

The Alliance of Specialty Medicine (Alliance) today called on Congress to permanently fix Medicare's Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) after lawmakers once again passed a temporary fix, thereby postponing unprecedented reimbursement cuts to Medicare doctors until 2012.

10 Dec 2010

STENTYS initiates international APPOSITION III self-apposing stent study in AMI patients

STENTYS S.A., which develops innovative stents to treat Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI), announced today that it has begun the international APPOSITION III study of its self-apposing stent, with 50 patients already enrolled out of a total of 500. The trial primary endpoint is Major Adverse Cardiac Events at 12 months post-procedure.

10 Dec 2010

Access problems for psychiatric patients to Medicaid medication leads to increased hospital, emergency care

Too often, mental health patients have problems accessing or paying for their prescription drugs under Medicaid. The results — longer hospital stays and more emergency room visits — are hard on patients and costly for the entire health care system, a new study finds.

10 Dec 2010

Harvard Bioscience files two major patents in regenerative medicine

Harvard Bioscience, Inc., a global developer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialized products used to advance life science research and regenerative medicine, has filed two major patents in the field of regenerative medicine, the first covering 61 claims for its stem cell therapy injectors and the second for 338 claims for bioreactors for organ growth.

From Harvard Bioscience 10 Dec 2010

Depression treatment may help obese women to lose weight

The new study, which appears in the November/December issue of the journal General Hospital Psychiatry, cites past surveys that show having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more — classified as obese — increases a person's risk of depression by 50 percent to 150 percent.

10 Dec 2010

Nuss Procedure safe and effective for chest deformity

Since 1987, when a surgeon at Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters developed a minimally-invasive surgery to correct sunken chest, the procedure has been adopted world-wide as a standard of care and continually refined to increase its effectiveness and safety, according to a paper published in the December issue of the Annals of Surgery.

10 Dec 2010

Using buprenorphine to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies

Using buprenorphine instead of methadone — the current standard of care — to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies, suggests new findings from an international team led by Johns Hopkins researchers and published in the Dec. 9 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

10 Dec 2010

COPD becomes third leading cause of death in the U.S.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) released a report today, "Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2008," confirming that Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) became the third leading cause of death in the U.S. for 2008.

10 Dec 2010

Haitian cholera pathogen closely related to 'El Tor O1' variant from South Asia

Scientists from Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. and Harvard Medical School have successfully employed single molecule, real-time (SMRT™) DNA sequencing technology to rapidly characterize the pathogen responsible for the recent deadly cholera epidemic in Haiti. Published online Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine, the results provide the first whole genome sequence analysis and most detailed genetic profile to date of the Haitian Vibrio cholerae outbreak strain.

10 Dec 2010

State roundup: Facing budget 'cliff'; Medicaid woes; Arizona transplant program; Another Florida health vote?

U.S. states are preparing for more budget cuts next year as tax revenue isn't likely to rebound enough to replace almost $38 billion in aid that will be gone as federal economic stimulus ends, according to a report. At least 31 states and Puerto Rico are forecasting deficits of $82.1 billion in the next fiscal year even as tax receipts are picking up, the National Conference of State Legislatures said today.

10 Dec 2010

Low phosphate diets may increase dialysis patients' risk of premature death

Doctors often ask kidney disease patients on dialysis to limit the amount of phosphate they consume in their diets, but this does not help prolong their lives, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology.

10 Dec 2010

TeleHealth Services announces extended partnership with Central Baptist Hospital

TeleHealth Services, the nation's leading provider of healthcare-grade televisions and interactive patient education solutions, today announced an extended partnership with Central Baptist Hospital. The 383-bed hospital, an early adopter to on-demand education, implemented TIGR as their interactive patient education and entertainment solution as a part of their "meaningful use" project, and the further utilization of advanced technologies to increase the quality of healthcare at the facility.

10 Dec 2010

Southwest Washington Health System announces formal affiliation agreement with PeaceHealth

Southwest Washington Health System and PeaceHealth today announced a formal affiliation between the two organizations. As part of the agreement, Southwest's two hospital campuses, clinics, foundation, medical group, and other programs will join the PeaceHealth system of hospitals and health services, effective January 1, 2011, pending final regulatory approvals.

10 Dec 2010

Hospital News and Research

The New York Times: Aetna's former chief executive ponders the new health law

Deals, expansions and ACOs mark hospital sector activity

Weightlifting may help prevent lymphedema following breast cancer treatment

31-year-old mother with Gorham-Stout syndrome goes home with virtually rebuilt spine

Tru-D UV-C device effective in reducing pathogens on all environmental surfaces in hospital patient rooms

First Edition: December 10, 2010

Process of activating helicopter EMS delays treatment for heart attacks beyond recommended times

Alliance of Specialty Medicine calls for new, permanent Medicare reimbursement formula

STENTYS initiates international APPOSITION III self-apposing stent study in AMI patients

Access problems for psychiatric patients to Medicaid medication leads to increased hospital, emergency care

Harvard Bioscience files two major patents in regenerative medicine

Depression treatment may help obese women to lose weight

Nuss Procedure safe and effective for chest deformity

Using buprenorphine to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies

COPD becomes third leading cause of death in the U.S.

Haitian cholera pathogen closely related to 'El Tor O1' variant from South Asia

State roundup: Facing budget 'cliff'; Medicaid woes; Arizona transplant program; Another Florida health vote?

Low phosphate diets may increase dialysis patients' risk of premature death

TeleHealth Services announces extended partnership with Central Baptist Hospital

Southwest Washington Health System announces formal affiliation agreement with PeaceHealth

Revolutionizing Life Science: An Interview with SCIEX on ASMS, the SCIEX 7500+ System, and AI-Driven Quantitation

From Discovery Biology to ELRIG Chair

Breathing New Life into Diagnostics: Plasmion's SICRIT Technology

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