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Study: Stigmatizing language in medical records may play a role in how the patient is treated

A Johns Hopkins study found that physicians who use stigmatizing language in their patients' medical records may affect the care those patients get for years to come.

9 May 2018

Beaumont and GVSU team up to develop lifesaving cough-assist device

The act of coughing may seem annoying, but for those who can no longer cough on their own because of a medical condition, it's a matter of life and death. Today, more people are surviving brain/spinal cord injuries caused by stroke and automobile accidents.

7 May 2018

As proton centers struggle, a sign of a health care bubble?

The Maryland Proton Treatment Center chose "Survivor" as the theme for its grand opening in 2016, invoking the reality-TV show's tropical sets with its own Tiki torches, palm trees and thatched booths piled with pineapples and bananas.

2 May 2018

How a drug company under pressure for high prices ratchets up political activity

Business looked challenging for Novo Nordisk at the end of 2016. As pressure mounted over the pharma giant's soaring insulin prices, investors drove its stock down by a third on fears that policymakers would take action, limit prices and hurt profits.

30 Apr 2018

Dissecting the rhetoric vs. reality of Trump’s tough talk on drug prices

President Donald Trump has railed against the high price of prescription drugs and famously bemoaned how pharmaceutical companies are "getting away with murder." Yet, many Americans aren't seeing a change in what they pay out-of-pocket.

27 Apr 2018

UConn researchers develop new composite for healing broken load-bearing bones

University of Connecticut researchers have created a biodegradable composite made of silk fibers that can be used to repair broken load-bearing bones without the complications sometimes presented by other materials.

20 Apr 2018

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What the Health?’ Nothing in health care ever goes away

Congressional Republicans have struck a decidedly different tone when talking about the Affordable Care Act, and the Democrats have introduced a new Medicare expansion bill.

20 Apr 2018

What we know and don’t know about memory loss after surgery

Two years ago, Dr. Daniel Cole's 85-year-old father had heart bypass surgery. He hasn't been quite the same since.

12 Apr 2018

The brain fights neurodegenerative diseases by shifting resources

The brain continues to put up a fight even as neurodegenerative diseases like dementia damage certain areas and functions. In fact, recent findings in a Baycrest-University of Arizona study suggest that one method the brain uses to counter these diseases is the reassigning of tasks to different regions.

11 Apr 2018

Is there such a thing as normal aging?

For 93-year-old Joseph Brown, the clearest sign of aging was his inability the other day to remember he had to have his pants unzipped to pull them on.

11 Apr 2018

Binge drinking by adolescents predicts health-risk behaviors

Underage drinking can lead to risky or harmful behaviors that include unintentional and unprotected sex, physical and sexual assault, traffic and other injuries, suicide, homicide, and overdoses.

10 Apr 2018

Dance promotes general feeling of wellbeing in older adults

Queensland Ballet and QUT today released the results of a joint project examining the health and wellbeing benefits of ballet for older Australians.

5 Apr 2018

Training programs tailored to address specific memory difficulty can be effective, study suggests

When people hear that their memory will worsen as they age, the question on their minds becomes: what can we do to remember better?

3 Apr 2018

Medicare Advantage plans cleared to go beyond medical coverage — even groceries

Air conditioners for people with asthma, healthy groceries, rides to medical appointments and home-delivered meals may be among the new benefits added to Medicare Advantage coverage when new federal rules take effect next year.

3 Apr 2018

Don’t get tripped up by the IRS’ tweak to health savings accounts

It's tax time, and this week I answered questions from readers about the penalty for not having health insurance as well as changes to health savings accounts. I also discuss health insurance coverage options for a reader's parents who are immigrants and green card holders.

3 Apr 2018

Scrutinizing Medicare coverage for physical, occupational and speech therapy

For years, confusion has surrounded the conditions under which older adults can receive physical, occupational and speech therapy covered by Medicare.

29 Mar 2018

Students propose innovative concept to diagnose infectious diseases

Imagine a small paper device that can rapidly reveal from a drop of blood whether an infection is bacterial or viral. The device could help reduce the overuse of antibiotics – which kill bacteria, not viruses. Misuse of antibiotics has led to antimicrobial resistance, a growing global public health issue.

28 Mar 2018

Study suggests detailed neuropsychological assessment for brief cardiac arrest survivors

Patients who survive a brief cardiac arrest and who appear neurologically intact should nonetheless receive a detailed neuropsychological assessment before being discharged, suggests a joint study by researchers at Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute and Israel's Rambam Medical Center.

22 Mar 2018

Alzheimer’s disease on the rise

A new report shows that Alzheimer’s disease cases and the costs of treatment and hospitalization due to this disease and deaths due to this condition are on the rise. The report finds that at present 5.7 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and of these 5.5 million are over the age of 65 years. Of these 3.4 million are women.

20 Mar 2018

Congress tackles the opioid epidemic. But how much will it help?

The nation's opioid epidemic has been called today's version of the 1980s AIDS crisis. In a speech Monday, President Donald Trump pushed for a tougher federal response, emphasizing a tough-on-crime approach for drug dealers and more funding for treatment.

20 Mar 2018