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Paoli Hospital granted Level II Trauma Center Accreditation status

Level II Trauma Center Accreditation status has been granted to one additional hospital in Pennsylvania for the period from October 1, 2010 through September 30, 2011: Paoli Hospital, Paoli, PA

4 Aug 2010

PCV-7 vaccine introduction leads to changing patterns of hemolytic uremic syndrome

Introduction of the PCV-7 vaccine to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) has led to a shift in the types of bacteria causing hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS)—an important cause of acute kidney failure in children, reports a study in the August issue of The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal.

4 Aug 2010

Researchers identify TACI; MyD88 activates immune system against infection

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found a new mechanism that explains how certain immune cells are activated to create protective antibodies against infections or pathological antibodies such as those present in autoimmune diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. The research is published online in the September issue of Nature Immunology.

4 Aug 2010

Siteman Cancer Center to test radiotherapy system from ViewRay

Researchers at the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, a national leader in the early adoption and use of advanced treatments for cancer patients, will soon become the first in the world to test an innovative radiotherapy system from ViewRay, Inc. The ViewRay system is designed to improve the accuracy of cancer treatments through a combination of medical imaging and radiotherapy delivery.

4 Aug 2010

Scientists discover single-chain protein to destroy GBM cancer cells

A major breakthrough in how to target and destroy the most malignant and aggressive brain cancer cells has been made by researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.Scientists have identified a way to target and destroy Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells without harming healthy cells.

4 Aug 2010

Mass. towns find savings in municipal-based health insurance plans; Conn. hospitals' earnings improve; Free dental clinic in Virginia

"Fourteen cities and towns that have moved their employees, retirees, and elected officials from their own municipal-based health care insurance plans into the state's much larger, more flexible system collectively saved more than $30 million their first year in the program, according to a new report. … The study relies on self-reported fiscal data on the communities' first year in the Group Insurance Commission, the state health care program, which covers some 300,000 state employees, retirees, and elected officials" (Murphy, 8/3).

4 Aug 2010

Study analyzes prevalence of pediatric patient-safety events at hospitals

Hospital-acquired infections are the leading cause of potentially preventable mortality among pediatric patients, according to a study of pediatric patient-safety incidents issued today by HealthGrades, the leading independent health care ratings organization.

4 Aug 2010

GE and Intel create new health IT venture focused on home-based care

General Electric Co. and Intel Corp. announced Monday they will create a company to provide new medical technologies for the elderly and chronically ill.

4 Aug 2010

Spectrum Health selects Aternity FPI Platform for strategic end user experience management initiatives

Aternity Inc., the industry's technology leader in end user experience management solutions for Global 1000 enterprises, announced today that Spectrum Health, a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan that offers a full continuum of care that includes the Spectrum Health Hospital Group, has selected the Aternity Frontline Performance Intelligence (FPI) Platform for its strategic end user experience management initiatives.

4 Aug 2010

CRICO/RMF achieves highest level of accreditation

CRICO/RMF has been awarded the highest level of accreditation, "Accreditation with Commendation," as a provider of Continuing Medical Education for physicians. This six-year accreditation is the result of an extensive (re)survey by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education in which CRICO/RMF demonstrated compliance in all 22 of its criteria.

4 Aug 2010

Administration touts Medicare savings report; Republicans complain it misleads seniors

A report issued Monday by the Obama administration found that the new health care law "will save Medicare $8 billion by the end of 2011, and $575 billion over the next decade, largely by improving care quality and preventing waste and fraud." The report also predicts that the overhaul will "extend the life of the program more than a decade.

4 Aug 2010

RehabCare second-quarter consolidated operating revenues increase 62.8% to $334.0 million

RehabCare Group, Inc. today reported financial results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2010. Comparative results for the quarter and six months follow.

4 Aug 2010

ZymoGenetics second-quarter net loss declines to $3.8 million

ZymoGenetics, Inc. today reported substantially improved financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2010. For the second quarter of 2010, the company's net loss declined to $3.8 million, or $0.04 per share, a $23.2 million improvement from the $27.0 million loss, or $0.39 per share, reported for the second quarter of 2009. The improvement resulted from higher revenues as well as reduced operating expenses.

4 Aug 2010

Boston Scientific initiates enrollment in EVOLVE clinical trial of SYNERGY Coronary Stent

Boston Scientific Corporation today announced the start of patient enrollment in the EVOLVE clinical trial, which is designed to assess the safety and performance of its fourth-generation SYNERGY™ Coronary Stent. The first patient was enrolled by Ian Meredith, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., Professor and Director of MonashHeart, at Monash Medical Centre in Melbourne, Australia.

4 Aug 2010

SVH launches Guiding Stars nutrition guidance program

The highly regarded Guiding Stars nutrition guidance program - now available in more than 1,500 grocery stores and schools - today announces its partnership with Sebasticook Valley Hospital (SVH) in Pittsfield, Maine to launch the nutrition guidance program in a hospital for the first time. Guiding Stars will rate prepared meals, snacks, and grab-and-go items according to their nutritional value in the hospital cafeteria. Each item rated will receive zero to three stars for an at-a-glance summary of the food's nutritional quality.

4 Aug 2010

Surgical intervention in elderly people improves quality of life

Age alone should not determine surgical risk in a person age 80 or over, according to expert commentary from Mark Katlic, M.D., director of Thoracic Surgery at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Dr. Katlic's commentary complements a McGill University Health Science Center trend study, appearing in this week's edition of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ). The study finds an increase in coronary artery bypass grafts (CABGs) and percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) with better results in people previously believed to be too old for these procedures.

4 Aug 2010

Cornerstone licenses global rights to alpha-7 technology to Targacept

Cornerstone Therapeutics Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on acquiring, developing and commercializing significant products primarily for the respiratory and related markets, today announced that the Company has licensed to Targacept, Inc. the worldwide rights to its nicotinic-receptor based patents and library of preclinical compounds that target the alpha-7 or other nicotinic receptors originally licensed to Cornerstone from the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research.

4 Aug 2010

Bisphenol A may decrease sperm quality, concentration: Research

In one of the first human studies of its kind, researchers have found that urinary concentrations of the controversial chemical Bisphenol A, or BPA, may be related to decreased sperm quality and sperm concentration.However, the researchers are quick to point out that these results are preliminary and more study is needed. Several studies have documented adverse effects of BPA on semen in rodents, but none are known to have reported similar relationships in humans.

4 Aug 2010

Akorn second-quarter consolidated revenue increases 24% to $20.2 million

Akorn, Inc., a niche generic pharmaceutical company, today reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2010.

4 Aug 2010

Today's OpEds: WSJ on Virginia court ruling; Health law politics; For-profit insurers; Mass. doc shortage; Physician errors

All the smart people in the political, media and legal classes know that ObamaCare is constitutional and anyone who says otherwise is frivolous. This faux consensus, however, does not include a U.S. district court judge in Virginia, who yesterday rejected the Administration's argument that one of the key constitutional challenges should be dismissed outright. Now the case will proceed to arguments on the merits this fall (8/3).

4 Aug 2010