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Exercise and back support improves balance in elderly

By wearing a unique weighted back support device and participating in a special exercise program, women over 60 with osteoporosis-caused curvature of the spine improved their balance and experienced diminished back pain, giving researchers at Mayo Clinic a promising therapy to reduce falls among this population.

6 Jul 2005

Medical brain drain from poorer to richer nations must be stopped

A doctor working in Ghana says that even though the migration of health workers from poorer to richer nations is unlikely to stop, policies must be put in place to minimise the damage it causes

4 Jul 2005

Mammography use exceeds targets although some are still reluctant

Mammography use by women over 40 is on the rise and already exceeds the target set by the government-led Healthy People 2010 initiative, according to a new study that also shows, for the first time, that breast cancer screening rises with age.

1 Jul 2005

Medical school does not prepare doctors for the reality of working life in the NHS

Over the last ten years, the BMA has tracked a cohort of 543 doctors who qualified in 1995. In the final annual survey, the doctors were asked how their working lives compared with what they had expected when they graduated from medical school.

29 Jun 2005

Patients not convinced new computer record system will be secure

Members of the public recognise the value of the Government’s plans for their health records to be centrally held on a computer, but many are still seriously concerned about the security of the new system, according to a public opinion poll published today

29 Jun 2005

Medical experts say that yearly checkup not necessary - doctors and patients disagree

Though you and your doctor might think that yearly checkup is just a routine part of staying healthy, that practice isn't endorsed by a panel of experts.

29 Jun 2005

The picture looks grim for older Americans when it comes to health insurance

A new survey has found that almost 70 percent of older Americans in order to cover medical expenses in their later years, endorse the concept of individual health savings accounts.

29 Jun 2005

BMA says Health Minister Gibbons has better understanding of NHS

According to Dr Tony Calland, the British Medical Association's (BMA) chairman in Wales, the Welsh Assembly Government's understanding of the NHS is better under Health Minister Dr Brian Gibbons.

29 Jun 2005

Major study says for diabetics with high blood pressure diuretics are the best option

A major new study has found that for people with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, cheaper diuretic medications may be the most cost-effective option in reducing hypertension.

29 Jun 2005

HRT safe for women with menopause and cancer survivors

Research shows that short-term hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is appropriate for peri- and postmenopausal women.

28 Jun 2005

Researchers recommend pelvic floor disorders be part of routine physical exams for all women

While most women suffer from pelvic floor disorders (PFD), the majority don’t seek help until they are incontinent.

28 Jun 2005

Ethnicity makes little difference in the quality of outpatient care

A new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine has found that once U.S. patients visit a doctor for outpatient care, their race and ethnicity make little difference in the quality of care they receive.

28 Jun 2005

This is not live aid, it's reverse aid

In a message setting a "very clear moral and ethical priority for the new Government as it chairs the G8 summit", the leader of the UK’s doctors, BMA Chairman James Johnson yesterday (Monday 27 June) criticised developed countries for draining skilled health professionals from some of the world’s poorest countries. The "rape of the poorest countries must stop" he said.

27 Jun 2005

Do singlehanded general practices have a future in the NHS

Between 1994 and 2004, the number of singlehanded general practitioners in England fell from 2,959 to 1,918 (from 11% to 6% of all general practitioners). This contrasts sharply with the United States, where 46% of family practitioners and 34% of general internists were practising alone in 1998.

27 Jun 2005

How can the U.S. health-care system prepare for the huge wave of dementia patients expected by 2010?

How can the U.S. health-care system and more specifically, primary care doctors - the physicians from whom older adults receive most of their care - prepare for the huge wave of dementia patients expected to engulf us in 2010, the year the baby boomers begin to reach 65?

27 Jun 2005

Tsunami leaves patients with unusual infections

According to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine, the December tsunami which left more than 200 000 people dead or missing in Asia and Africa, appears to have caused some unusual lung and sinus infections and also a paralysing brain infection.

27 Jun 2005

Marijuana activists nervous after raids

Marijuana activists in the U.S. fear that recent raids by federal agents are the beginning of an attempt by authorities to wipe out local dispensaries which provide marijuana for medical purposes.

27 Jun 2005

Patients lose trust at U.S.hospital after hydraulic fluid incident

Officials at Duke Health Raleigh Hospital has sent letters this week to about 4,000 patients whose surgeons unknowingly used instruments washed in hydraulic fluid.

23 Jun 2005

Thank God, most doctors believe in God

According to a recent study most doctors believe in God and an afterlife. This conclusion apparently contradicts earlier research which showed that in general, people tend to become less religious as education and income levels rise.

23 Jun 2005

Antibiotics not effective for many coughs

In a study of more than 500 patients who were suffering from acute bronchitis or pharyngitis it was found that whether or not antibiotics were prescribed, the irritating bouts of coughing still continued for an average of almost 12 days after the visit to the doctor.

22 Jun 2005