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Dress to impress in the ICU

Dressing in “traditional” medical attire may help physicians in the intensive care unit to get relationships with their patients’ families off to a good start, research suggests.

20 Feb 2013

Researchers analyze more than 60 brands of cheese available in supermarkets for pollutants

Researchers at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain) have analysed more than 60 brands of cheese commonly available in supermarkets. The concentration of organochloride contaminants in the majority of the samples was lower than levels set by European legislation, but in a few cases it was higher.

20 Feb 2013

State roundup: Calif. opens prison psychiatric ward, hopes to shed fed oversight

Virginia is among the last states to begin dismantling its large institutions for the developmentally disabled, a decision that was made as part of a year-old settlement agreement with the Justice Department, which argued in a lawsuit that Virginia was discriminating against training center residents by keeping them institutionalized.

20 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Obama needs to offer plan on entitlements and spending; Assessing the paycheck crimp from health costs

President Barack Obama owes it to himself and to the country to make one more good shot at a Grand Bargain on spending, investment and tax reform before he opts for a strategy of trying to pummel the Republican Party. ... He has to lead with his chin and put a concrete, comprehensive package on the table, encompassing three areas. First, new investments that would combine immediate jobs in infrastructure with some long-term growth-enablers like a massive build-out in the nation's high-speed broadband capabilities.

19 Feb 2013

Computer models can reduce violence in tight budget times

As cities across America work to reduce violence in tight budget times, new research shows how they might be able to target their efforts and police attention - with the help of high-powered computers and loads of data.

19 Feb 2013

First Edition: February 19, 2013

Kaiser Health News staff writer Jay Hancock, working in collaboration with The Philadelphia Inquirer, reports: "Computer mistakes like the one that produced incorrect prescriptions for thousands of Rhode Island patients are probably far more common and dangerous than the Obama administration wants you to believe, says Drexel University's Dr. Scot Silverstein."

19 Feb 2013

Cholesterol metabolism regulated by bacteria in the small intestine

Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, show that cholesterol metabolism is regulated by bacteria in the small intestine. These findings may be important for the development of new drugs for cardiovascular disease.

19 Feb 2013

Age not a major factor in asthma allergic sensitization rates

Results from a US study suggest that there is no significant difference in allergic sensitization rates between younger and older patients with asthma.

18 Feb 2013

MIR names Aetna as Health Insurer of the Year

Aetna a leading global diversified health care benefits company, has been named "Health Insurer of the Year" for 2013 by MENA Insurance Review (MIR), a leading magazine covering the insurance sector in the Middle East and North Africa.

18 Feb 2013

Prions may be crucial in brain development during childhood

A molecule that is not only dangerous, but can help the brain grow. A few years ago it was found that certain proteins, the prions, when defective are dangerous, as they are involved in neurodegenerative syndromes such as the Creutzfeldt-Jakob and the Alzheimer diseases.

16 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Bowles and Simpson urge Obama to seek Medicare savings; Health care industry helps stabilize the economy

The president deserves credit for putting forward Medicare savings in his budget and offering further entitlement savings in the negotiations, but he and his fellow Democrats must be willing to do more to reform our entitlement programs.

16 Feb 2013

Protein-restricted diet supplemented with IGF-I may protect from Alzheimer's

Mice with many of the pathologies of Alzheimer's Disease showed fewer signs of the disease when given a protein-restricted diet supplemented with specific amino acids every other week for four months.

15 Feb 2013

Weekend reading: What your doctor should tell you, new stages of grief

Dr. Jim Dougher climbs into his white SUV, plugs the address of his next patient into the GPS, and he's off. The SUV is well stocked: He has a large Tupperware bin in the back full of bandages and wound cleaning supplies; he has a variation on the old-time doctor's bag with a stethoscope and blood-pressure cuff; and he has a dedicated cellular wifi hotspot and a laptop that can communicate with HealthCare Partner's electronic medical record.

15 Feb 2013

House GOP chairman seeks permanent solution to Medicare doc pay problem

Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told physicians this week that he hopes to send "doc fix" legislation to the House floor this summer. Meanwhile, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., plans hearings for President Barack Obama's pick to head the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

15 Feb 2013

Aspen Dental to inaugurate new office in Gallatin, TN on Feb. 21

Aspen Dental is proud to announce that a new Aspen Dental office is opening in Gallatin, TN on Thursday, Feb. 21. Located at 1007 Nashville Pike, the practice will provide dental services that range from dentures and preventive care to general dentistry and restoration.

15 Feb 2013

Aspen Dental to inaugurate new office in Canton, GA

Aspen Dental is proud to announce that a new Aspen Dental office is opening in Canton, GA on Thursday, Feb. 21. Located at 2030 Cumming Hwy., the practice will provide dental services that range from dentures and preventive care to general dentistry and restoration.

15 Feb 2013

Castle Biosciences launches MyUvealMelanoma website

Castle Biosciences Inc., a leading developer of prognostic tests for rare cancers, announced today the launch of MyUvealMelanoma.com, a website created to educate newly diagnosed patients, their families and healthcare providers about the most common form of eye cancer. MyUvealMelanoma tells the story of this disease, its treatment and the importance of prognostic testing, through the experience of patients who recently faced this devastating diagnosis first-hand.

15 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: FDA needs more power to regulate compounding pharmacies; Time to revamp military benefits, including health

Traditionally, the licensing and control of pharmacies has been left to the states, but their performance has been uneven. The federal role has been thrown into question in recent years by lawsuits. ... compounding pharmacies are not generally required to inform the FDA that they are in business nor to register with the FDA or disclose what products they are making.

15 Feb 2013

Roundup: States get insurance exchange weapon on abortion; N.Y. budget woes include Medicaid money worry; Ga. hospital 'bed tax' might not offer budget solution

Abortion opponents have found a new way to restrict access to abortion -- by using the authority states have over the new health insurance exchanges, which will be up and running in a year. At least 21 states have legislation in place or in the works that will stop health insurance companies from paying for abortions for women.

15 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Obama prescription for Medicare is 'modest;' GOP doubts entitlement plan is serious

Somewhat more substantively, he called for a larger deficit-reduction deal built around loophole-closing tax reform and what he called "modest" reforms to Medicare and entitlements. In an apparent effort to rally Democrats to this cause, he called on "those of us who care deeply about programs like Medicare" to "embrace" reform.

14 Feb 2013