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VA clears the air on talking to patients about marijuana use

"Don't ask, don't tell" is how many veterans have approached health care conversations about marijuana use with the doctors they see from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

9 Jan 2018

EMQ attends Arab Health for the second year to showcase healthcare revolution in Birmingham

Edgbaston Medical Quarter are once again returning to Arab Health 2018 to showcase the vast range of pioneering healthcare and life sciences companies that are located within Birmingham.

9 Jan 2018

New ACOEM statement provides recommendations for managing obesity in workplace

Effective prevention and treatment steps- including coverage for bariatric surgery, when indicated- can help employers to control the health and economic impact of obesity in the workplace, according to an ACOEM Guidance Statement, published in the January Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

8 Jan 2018

Despite prod by ACA, tax-exempt hospitals slow to expand community benefits

The federal health law’s efforts to get nonprofit hospitals to provide more community-wide benefits in exchange for their lucrative tax status has gotten off to a slow start, new research suggests.

8 Jan 2018

An opioid remedy that works: Treat pain and addiction at the same time

Seven years ago, Robert Kerley, who makes his living as a truck driver, was loading drywall when a gust of wind knocked him off the trailer. Kerley fell 14 feet and hurt his back.

8 Jan 2018

Drug overdose deaths soar nationally but plateau in some Western states

The opioid crisis on the East Coast and in the Midwest has fueled a national surge in drug deaths, even as fatal overdoses have decreased or remained stable in parts of the West, new federal data show.

8 Jan 2018

Sangamo and Pfizer partner for development of new zinc finger protein gene therapy to treat ALS

Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc. and Pfizer Inc. today announced a collaboration for the development of a potential gene therapy using zinc finger protein transcription factors (ZFP-TFs) to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) linked to mutations of the C9ORF72 gene.

8 Jan 2018

Long-term night shift work among women may increase risk of cancers

Night shift work was associated with women having an increased risk of breast, skin, and gastrointestinal cancer, according to a meta-analysis.

8 Jan 2018

New program improves outcomes for older people undergoing elective surgery

Compared to younger adults, older people have higher rates of complications from surgery. But many problems can be avoided by intervening with assessments and risk-reduction strategies before, during and after procedures.

5 Jan 2018

Running on empty: CHIP funding could run out Jan. 19 for some states

Some states are facing a mid-January loss of funding for their Children's Health Insurance Program despite spending approved by Congress in late December that was expected to keep the program running for three months, federal health officials said Friday.

5 Jan 2018

Grassley calls for ‘corrective action’ on abuses in herpes vaccine research

A Republican senator is demanding that the Trump administration and a university scrutinize how a researcher was able to inject an experimental herpes vaccine into human subjects without routine safety oversight.

5 Jan 2018

Training and support could help pediatricians screen more children for mental health issues

A new study suggests many more pediatricians would make mental health screenings an integral part of a child's annual checkup if they received training and support through a proven and powerful method used to improve health care processes and outcomes.

5 Jan 2018

New study uncovers why sauna bathing provides health benefits

Over the past couple of years, scientists at the University of Eastern Finland have shown that sauna bathing is associated with a variety of health benefits.

5 Jan 2018

New analysis finds dramatic increases in maternal mortality rates

A new Birth analysis has uncovered dramatic increases in the rates of maternal mortality—the death of a mother during pregnancy, childbirth, or post-partum—in Texas in recent years.

5 Jan 2018

From retirement to the front lines of hepatitis C treatment

When a hepatitis C treatment called Harvoni was released in 2014, Dr. Ronald Cirillo knew it was a big deal.

5 Jan 2018

Trump administration rule paves way for association health plans

The Department of Labor on Thursday released proposed new rules that proponents say will make it easier for businesses to band together in "associations" to buy health insurance.

4 Jan 2018

Cancer death rate continues decades-long drop in the United States

The cancer death rate dropped 1.7% from 2014 to 2015, continuing a drop that began in 1991 and has reached 26%, resulting in nearly 2.4 million fewer cancer deaths during that time.

4 Jan 2018

MGH study points toward potential strategy for treating X-linked disorders

A study from a team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators points toward a potential strategy for treating X-linked disorders - those caused by mutations in the X chromosome - in females.

4 Jan 2018

LivaNova enrolls first patient in RESTORE-LIFE study for treatment-resistant depression

LivaNova PLC, a market-leading medical technology company, today announced the launch and enrollment of the first patient in the Global Prospective, Multi-center, Observational Post-market Study to Assess Short-, Mid- and Long-term Effectiveness and Efficiency of Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy® as Adjunctive Therapy in Real-world Patients with Difficult to Treat Depression.

4 Jan 2018

High praise: Pot churches proliferate as states ease access to marijuana

Services at the Coachella Valley Church begin and end with the Lord's Prayer. In between, there is the sacrament. "Breathe deep and blow harder," intoned Pastor Grant Atwell after distributing small marijuana joints to 20 worshipers on a recent Sunday afternoon. "Nail the insight down, whether you get it from marijuana or prayer. Consider what in your own life you are thankful for."

4 Jan 2018