Medicine News and Research

RSS

Book explains complex world of personalized medicine

Personalized medicine has promised to radically change the way we look at health and disease. Talk of tailored drug therapies and early detection of cancer has captured the attention of scientists and lay people alike. So when will patients start to reap the benefits of this medical revolution?

11 Jul 2012

Connections between daily stressors of police work and obesity, suicide

The daily psychological stresses that police officers experience in their work put them at significantly higher risk than the general population for a host of long-term physical and mental health effects. That's the overall finding of a major scientific study of the Buffalo Police Department called Buffalo Cardio-Metabolic Occupational Police Stress (BCOPS) conducted over five years by a University at Buffalo researcher.

11 Jul 2012

Common barnyard chicken might offer new ways to attack cancer

The common barnyard chicken could provide some very un-common clues for fighting off diseases and might even offer new ways to attack cancer, according to a team of international researchers that includes a Texas A&M University professor.

11 Jul 2012

Agencies place unqualified, possibly criminal caregivers in homes of vulnerable seniors

If you hire a caregiver from an agency for an elderly family member, you might assume the person had undergone a thorough criminal background check and drug testing, was experienced and trained for the job.

11 Jul 2012

Viewpoints: Obama's 'ideological gymnastics;' Health law's promise of mental health parity; Perry's 'platitudes' on care in Texas

Mitt Romney is under fire for flip-flopping when he declared that the individual mandate is a tax, after a campaign adviser said it was not. In a front-page story, the New York Times wrote that Romney's statement "prompted renewed criticism that he was willing to adjust his views for political expediency." Bill Burton of the pro-Obama super PAC Priorities USA opined on what he called "Romney's ideological gymnastics."

11 Jul 2012

Abused children may become obese adults

Severity of abuse in childhood or adolescence is associated with an increased risk for overall and central obesity in adulthood, report researchers.

10 Jul 2012

Obese achieve functional improvements after trauma rehab

Obese patients participating in a rehabilitation program for orthopedic trauma can achieve meaningful functional independence before discharge, US research shows.

10 Jul 2012

Lessons learned from transfusion refusal

Jehovah’s Witness patients who refuse blood transfusions during cardiac surgery are not at risk for surgical complications or long-term mortality compared with non-Witnesses who receive transfusions, report US researchers.

10 Jul 2012

Psychologic well-being reduced in schizophrenia patients

Patients with schizophrenia have significantly lower psychologic well-being compared with mentally healthy individuals, say researchers.

10 Jul 2012

K2M expands biologics portfolio

K2M, Inc., a spinal device company developing innovative solutions for the treatment of complex spinal pathologies and minimally invasive procedures, today announced a major expansion of the company’s U.S. biologics offering with the launch of its VESUVIUS™ Osteobiologic Systems and new additions to its VIKOS® Allograft Systems. K2M is working with LifeNet Health®, a leading allograft bio-implant and regenerative medicine company, to bring to market quality implants to enhance bone regeneration and osteoconductivity.

10 Jul 2012

Telephone monitoring improves drug use, psychiatric symptoms

Patients being treated for a substance use disorder achieve significant short-term improvements in their drug use and psychiatric symptoms when receiving telephone continuing care, show study findings.

10 Jul 2012

Osteopathic technique effective for people with work-related dysphonia

Vocal tract function can be substantially improved by the use of osteopathic myofascial techniques in people with work-related voice disorders, suggest study results.

10 Jul 2012

High-dose vitamin D recommended for over 65s

Meta-analysis findings support recommendations from the Institute of Medicine that people aged 65 years and older should routinely receive 800 IU of vitamin D per day.

10 Jul 2012

Postoperative delirium has lasting cognitive consequences

Patients may take a long time to recover from the cognitive impact of cardiac surgery if they develop postoperative delirium, research shows.

10 Jul 2012

Laparoscopic appendectomy preferable for obese patients

Obese patients with appendicitis have fewer postoperative complications, a shorter stay in hospital, and shorter operative times when treated with laparoscopic appendectomy rather than open appendectomy, study findings show.

10 Jul 2012

Cannabis use may reduce mortality risk in psychosis patients

Cannabis use is associated with reduced mortality risk in patients with psychotic disorders, study results suggest.

10 Jul 2012

Genetic test helps avoid needless thyroid surgery

US researchers report that a gene-based test may help to identify patients who have cytologically indeterminate thyroid nodules that are benign.

10 Jul 2012

High ferritin warns of bone loss

Individuals with high levels of ferritin, an indicator of iron stores within the body, have accelerated bone loss at the proximal femur, Korean researchers report.

10 Jul 2012

Alcohol has toxic effect on critical care services

Alcohol may account for more than one in 10 emergency department admissions, a study from the UK suggests.

10 Jul 2012

Diaphragm muscles show osteopathic training potential

Osteopathic manipulative intervention to obtain functional equilibrium of the diaphragm increases lower esophageal sphincter pressure in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease, researchers have found.

10 Jul 2012