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Top hospitals have 27 percent lower mortality: Annual HealthGrades study

Medicare patients treated at top-rated hospitals nationwide across the most common Medicare diagnoses and procedures are 27 percent less likely to die, on average, than those admitted to all other hospitals, according to a study released today by HealthGrades, the leading independent healthcare ratings organization.

29 Jan 2009

Lung transplants: Doing more is better and safer

Transplant surgeons at Johns Hopkins have evidence that hospitals performing at least 20 lung transplant procedures a year, on average, have the best overall patient survival rates and lowest number of deaths from the complex surgery.

29 Jan 2009

Protease inhibitor found to aid diabetic retinopathy treatment

Researchers from Joslin Diabetes Center, Boston, and ActiveSite Pharmaceuticals, Inc., San Francisco, announced today that they have demonstrated that a specific inhibitor of the protease plasma kallikrein, ASP-440, developed by ActiveSite Pharmaceuticals, may provide a new therapeutic approach for treatment of diabetic retinopathy, the most common eye-related complication of diabetes.

21 Jan 2009

Researchers show how anthracycline class of chemotherapeutics block blood vessel growth, slow cancer spread

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have discovered how a whole class of commonly used chemotherapy drugs can block cancer growth.

21 Jan 2009

Stents can be placed in the brain to treat a stroke as it's occurring

Stents can be placed in the brain to treat a stroke as it's occurring, suggests preliminary data being presented at the 21st Annual International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET).

19 Jan 2009

Cream containing tretinoin associated with death in clinical trial, but relationship does not appear causal

Patients using a cream containing tretinoin, a retinoid commonly used to treat acne and other conditions, appeared more likely to die than those using a placebo in a clinical trial that was halted early as a result, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Dermatology.

19 Jan 2009

Stroke telemedicine assessed

Stroke telemedicine is a lifesaving practice that deserves further advancement, Mayo researchers write in the January 2009 issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

19 Jan 2009

Two out of three Canadians not aware of peripheral arterial disease

Two out of three Canadians are not aware of peripheral arterial disease (P.A.D.), a common vascular disease that affects as many as 800,000 Canadians, according to a study published in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology.

19 Jan 2009

Transarterial chemoembolization as liver cancer treatment

Using tiny chemotherapy-soaked beads to choke off and kill cancerous liver tumors is becoming more successful, according to research being presented at the 21st annual International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET).

19 Jan 2009

Obesity centre behind major staff expansion

The University of Sydney is embarking on one of its largest ever recruitment drives in the wake of recent federal funding for an international centre of expertise in obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

19 Jan 2009

Invatec launches drug-eluting balloon to treat atherosclerosis below the knee

Invatec, a comprehensive innovator of interventional products, today announced the European launch of a new peripheral balloon, the IN.PACT Amphirion paclitaxel-eluting PTA balloon catheter.

15 Jan 2009

Strong relationship between our health as adults and our early diet

If you have trouble keeping weight off and you're wondering why - the surprising answer may well be the cheeseburgers you ate - when you were a toddler.

15 Jan 2009

Oral contraceptives may be safe, but information gaps remain

Introduced in the 1960s, oral contraceptives have been used by about 80 percent of women in the United States at some point in their lives.

15 Jan 2009

HRT linked to brain shrinkage, but not lesions

Two new studies show that commonly prescribed forms of postmenopausal hormone therapy may slightly accelerate the loss of brain tissue in women 65 and older beyond what normally occurs with aging.

12 Jan 2009

Diabetes associated with different types of brain injury in patients with dementia

Patients with dementia and diabetes appear to display a different pattern of injuries in their brains than patients with dementia but without diabetes, according to an article posted online today that will appear in the March print issue of Archives of Neurology.

12 Jan 2009