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Lifting therapy caps proves a load off Medicare patients’ shoulders

Physical therapy helps Leon Beers, 73, get out of bed in the morning and maneuver around his home using his walker. Other treatment strengthens his throat muscles so that he can communicate and swallow food, said his sister Karen Morse. But in mid-January, his home health care agency told Morse it could no longer provide these services because he had used all his therapy benefits allowed under Medicare for the year.

14 Mar 2018

Patients with multimorbidity in affluent areas receive higher level of care

Patients with multimorbidity--two or more long-term medical conditions--have complex health care needs, often requiring higher levels of care than other patients.

14 Mar 2018

Study reports evidence of 'systemic bias' in alcohol screening after TBI

"Has this patient been drinking?" It's a critical question for neurosurgical nurses and other professionals when evaluating patients with traumatic brain injury. But some groups of TBI patients are less likely to be screened for alcohol use, including women and younger patients, reports a study in the March issue of the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, official journal of the American Association of Neuroscience Nurses.

13 Mar 2018

Electronic consultation system reduces wait times, increases access to specialty care

An electronic consultation system designed to reduce excessive wait times for appointments with specialists experienced exponential growth during a recent five-year period.

13 Mar 2018

Participants in rogue herpes vaccine research take legal action

Three people injected with an unauthorized herpes vaccine by a Southern Illinois University researcher have filed suit against his company, demanding compensation for alleged adverse side effects from the experiments.

13 Mar 2018

Perioperative beta blockers could increase deaths and strokes one year after surgery

During the 12 months after undergoing noncardiac surgery, patients with or at risk for heart disease who were treated with the beta blocker metoprolol for 30 days were less likely than patients who received a placebo to have a heart attack, but more likely to die or have a stroke, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 67th Annual Scientific Session.

13 Mar 2018

Bone density scans could also aid in identifying cardiovascular disease, study finds

Researchers from Hebrew SeniorLife's Institute for Aging Research, University of Western Australia, University of Sydney, and Edith Cowan University have discovered that bone density scans, typically used to determine fracture risk, could also be an aid in identifying cardiovascular disease.

13 Mar 2018

Study sheds new light on viral replication

Viruses are intracellular parasites that cause disease by infecting the cells in the body and, in a study published today in Nature Microbiology, researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine showed how a common virus hijacks a host cell's protein to help assemble new viruses before they are released.

13 Mar 2018

Study identifies two new biomarkers for common form of childhood cancer

Two new biomarkers for a type of cancer in children called neuroblastoma have been identified in a study published in the journal Cancer Cell. The findings are expected to have immediate significance for disease prognosis, and eventually also for treatment.

13 Mar 2018

Black men’s blood pressure is cut along with their hair

Amid the buzz of hair clippers and the beat of hip-hop, barber Corey Thomas squeezes in a little advice to the clients who come into his Inglewood, Calif., shop for shaves and fade cuts. Watch what you eat, he tells them. Check your blood pressure. Don't take life so hard.

13 Mar 2018

Six tips for seniors to help limit confusion after surgery

The longer you live the more likely you will develop a medical condition that requires surgery or a procedure. In fact, half of all people 65 and older will have at least one surgical procedure in their lifetime.

13 Mar 2018

Campus voices: Should student health centers offer abortion pills?

Forty-five years after Roe v. Wade made abortions legal, a growing number of states — and the federal government — are restricting access to them.

12 Mar 2018

Newer non-invasive method provides cost savings for heart patients needing PCI

Doctors evaluating patients for blockages in the heart are aided by having a good roadmap of the vascular terrain before they can insert stents to clear the impasse.

12 Mar 2018

Statins may provide benefits to patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention

Getting a large dose of a statin did not have an impact on major adverse cardiac events among a broad population of patients slated to undergo percutaneous coronary intervention, a procedure to clear blocked arteries, in a trial being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 67th Annual Scientific Session.

12 Mar 2018

New technologies help seniors age in place — and not feel alone

Nancy Delano, 80, of Denver has no plans to slow down anytime soon. She still drives to movies, plays and dinners out with friends. A retired elder care nurse who lives alone, she also knows that "when you reach a certain age, emergencies can happen fast." So, when her son, Tom Rogers, talked to her about installing a remote monitoring system, she didn't hesitate.

12 Mar 2018

Medicaid is rural America’s financial midwife

Brianna Foster, 23, lives minutes away from Genesis Hospital, the main source of health care and the only hospital with maternity services in southeastern Ohio's rural Muskingum County.

12 Mar 2018

Telemonitoring benefits remain unclear for patients with cardiac disorders

To prevent cardiac death, people with certain cardiac disorders are implanted with electronic devices designed to automatically stimulate the heartbeat or counteract serious arrhythmia if necessary.

12 Mar 2018

Mercy Medical Center offers minimally invasive bunion surgery for patients with foot and ankle concerns

Mercy Medical Center orthopedic surgeon Dr. Rebecca Cerrato is one of the first surgeons in the United States to offer minimally invasive bunion surgery, an alternative to traditional surgery that can reduce post-surgical scarring, swelling and pain, Dr. Clifford Jeng, Medical Director, Institute for Foot & Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy, has announced.

9 Mar 2018

No-go for Idaho: Back to the drawing board on state-based health plans

No, you can't. That's what federal officials told Idaho regulators and the state's governor late Thursday regarding the state's plan to allow insurers to sell health plans that fall short of the Affordable Care Act's requirements.

9 Mar 2018

Study explores more about food insecurity among older adults

Social issues such as hunger, inadequate housing, social isolation, and poverty are linked to poor health, especially as we age. When community organizations and healthcare systems coordinate with each other, they are better able to help us address these concerns individually and as a society.

9 Mar 2018