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Attenuated psychosis syndrome shows clinical significance

The community prevalence of attenuated psychosis syndrome is sufficient to make it a valid addition to the DSM-5, but only with revisions to the current criteria, findings from the BEAR Study show.

9 Jan 2014

Viewpoints: Health law debate on contraceptive coverage; Cuccinelli: No investigators for Medicaid fraud; 50 years after the famed report on smoking

The Little Sisters of the Poor, an organization of Roman Catholic nuns that runs nursing homes around the country, is testing the contraceptive coverage mandate of the Affordable Care Act. Last week, we're sorry to say, the nuns won a temporary reprieve from Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Under the law, most employers are required to provide their employees with health insurance that covers birth control. But the Obama administration agreed to a compromise for nonprofit religious groups that object to contraception, exempting them from paying for such coverage. Instead, insurers agreed to absorb the cost. All the religious organization has to do is fill out a simple form attesting to its situation. Unfortunately, even that was too much for the Little Sisters of the Poor (1/7).

9 Jan 2014

Hebrew University research could lead to efficient and fast-acting antidepressant drugs

The World health Organization calls depression "the leading cause of disability worldwide," causing more years of disability than cancer, HIV/AIDS, and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases combined.

8 Jan 2014

IQWiG study finds no added benefit of teriflunomide

Teriflunomide (trade name: Aubagio) has been approved in Germany since August 2013 for adults with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to the Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products, the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined whether this new drug offers an added benefit over the appropriate comparator therapy specified by the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA).

8 Jan 2014

10 simple points to know and monitor alcohol intake

Much the same way individuals are encouraged to know their blood pressure and cholesterol numbers to maintain a healthy lifestyle, a new editorial in the Journal of Psychopharmacology urges the European public to know and monitor their alcohol intake number using a simple 10 point plan.

7 Jan 2014

Synthetic cannabinoid molecule created for osteoarthritis

Chemical compounds synthesised in the laboratory, similar to those found in cannabis, could be developed as potential drugs to reduce the pain of osteoarthritis.

7 Jan 2014

USAMRMC to develop strategic research plan that identifies critical research priority areas in TBI

The U.S. Department of Defense funds more than 500 neurotrauma research projects totaling over $700 million. Yet there remains a large unmet medical need for effective treatments of traumatic brain injury (TBI), a major cause of disability and mortality.

6 Jan 2014

Rates of smoking, drinking and drug use are higher among people with psychotic disorders

In the largest ever assessment of substance use among people with severe psychiatric illness, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Southern California have found that rates of smoking, drinking and drug use are significantly higher among those who have psychotic disorders than among those in the general population.

2 Jan 2014

Consumption of nuts promotes health and longevity, finds study

In a study published November 20, 2013 in the New England Journal of Medicine1, researchers looked at the association of nut consumption with total and cause-specific mortality among 76,464 women in the Nurses' Health Study and 42,498 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Consumption of nuts, including tree nuts (such as pistachios, almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, pecans, pine nuts, and walnuts), was inversely associated with total mortality in both men and women, independent of other predictors for death.

28 Dec 2013

Surgery leads to greater long-term improvement for patients with herniated discs in lower spine

For patients with herniated discs in the lower (lumbar) spine, surgery leads to greater long-term improvement in pain, functioning, and disability compared to nonsurgical treatment, concludes an eight year follow-up study in Spine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

27 Dec 2013

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent delays neuropathy progression, preserves quality of life

Among patients with familial amyloid polyneuropathy, a lethal, genetic neurodegenerative disease, use of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent diflunisal compared with placebo for 2 years reduced the rate of progression in neurological impairment and preserved quality of life, according to a study appearing in the December 25 issue of JAMA.

27 Dec 2013

Combination of medication and psychological therapy effective for treating chronic migraines in children

Psychological therapy plus medication appears to be the most effective treatment strategy for chronic migraine in children, but it may take time for the medical system to widely adopt this approach, says an editorial in the current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association by Mark Connelly, PhD, a pain psychologist and co-director of the Comprehensive Headache Clinic at Children's Mercy Hospital.

26 Dec 2013

Cognitive behavioral therapy reduces headache frequency, migraine-related disability in children

Among children and adolescents with chronic migraine, the use of cognitive behavioral therapy resulted in greater reductions in headache frequency and migraine-related disability compared with headache education, according to a study appearing in the December 25 issue of JAMA.

25 Dec 2013

Viewpoints: Impact of 'meddling with' health law; antibiotics on farms; 'Let thirtysomethings' join Medicare

[A]ll of these last-minute policy shifts confuse people who were already struggling to understand a complex new system, ... The cumulative effect is that at least some people - we hope not many - will misunderstand their responsibilities under the law or be deterred from seeking coverage. The biggest danger is that the Obama administration is encouraging politicians to meddle in the health-care system every time a few vocal constituents get upset about its requirements (12/21).

24 Dec 2013

Rutgers New Jersey Medical School's David Perlin explains how fungal infections can become deadly

Ask someone what the term 'fungus' brings to mind, and chances are it will be an image of something that smells or looks disgusting. Ask David Perlin, executive director of the Public Health Research Institute at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and the response will be far more somber - because he knows how deadly fungi can be.

24 Dec 2013

Inosine drug raises blood and cerebrospinal fluid urate levels in Parkinson disease patients

The drug inosine appears to be a safe and effective way to raise blood and cerebrospinal fluid urate levels in patients with early Parkinson disease, suggesting it may be a potential strategy to slow the disability progression of the degenerative neurological disorder, according to a report published by JAMA Neurology, a JAMA Network publication.

23 Dec 2013

Hazards of dietary supplements, new birth control device explored

Dietary supplements account for nearly 20 percent of drug-related liver injuries reported by hospitals, according to The New York Times, while a surge in adverse event reports about Essure, a device hailed as next generation birth control, is explored by the Chicago Tribune. NPR looks at the increase in newborn screening tests.

23 Dec 2013

First Edition: December 23, 2013

The early morning highlights from the major news organizations examine today's deadline for enrolling for health insurance that would begin Jan. 1, as well as a variety of other health law stories and several articles on mental health issues:

23 Dec 2013

Icahn School of Medicine receives $1.3M grant to build collaborative research infrastructure for stroke center

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai joins a top-flight network of 25 regional stroke centers announced by the National Institute of Health that will focus on prevention, treatment, and recovery from stroke.

23 Dec 2013

Kessler Foundation scientists awarded subcontract to study ways to improve disability statistics

Kessler Foundation scientists John O'Neill, PhD, CRC and Amanda Botticello, PhD, MPH, were awarded a subcontract on the University of New Hampshire's Rehabilitation Research and Training Center grant on Disability Statistics and Demographics. The five-year grant is funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research under cooperative agreement H133B130015. Economist Andrew Houtenville, PhD, of UNH's Institute on Disability, is project director of the StatsRRTC grant, which totals $4.3 million.

22 Dec 2013

Disability News and Research

Attenuated psychosis syndrome shows clinical significance

Viewpoints: Health law debate on contraceptive coverage; Cuccinelli: No investigators for Medicaid fraud; 50 years after the famed report on smoking

Hebrew University research could lead to efficient and fast-acting antidepressant drugs

IQWiG study finds no added benefit of teriflunomide

10 simple points to know and monitor alcohol intake

Synthetic cannabinoid molecule created for osteoarthritis

USAMRMC to develop strategic research plan that identifies critical research priority areas in TBI

Rates of smoking, drinking and drug use are higher among people with psychotic disorders

Consumption of nuts promotes health and longevity, finds study

Surgery leads to greater long-term improvement for patients with herniated discs in lower spine

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent delays neuropathy progression, preserves quality of life

Combination of medication and psychological therapy effective for treating chronic migraines in children

Cognitive behavioral therapy reduces headache frequency, migraine-related disability in children

Viewpoints: Impact of 'meddling with' health law; antibiotics on farms; 'Let thirtysomethings' join Medicare

Rutgers New Jersey Medical School's David Perlin explains how fungal infections can become deadly

Inosine drug raises blood and cerebrospinal fluid urate levels in Parkinson disease patients

Hazards of dietary supplements, new birth control device explored

First Edition: December 23, 2013

Icahn School of Medicine receives $1.3M grant to build collaborative research infrastructure for stroke center

Kessler Foundation scientists awarded subcontract to study ways to improve disability statistics

Lab Matters host Harriet Gould on building a more connected lab community

The Critical Role of Sample Storage in Drug Discovery and Development

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

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