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First trial to test shared decision making for weight-loss surgery

A video-based decision aid helped severely obese people to make more informed choices about bariatric surgery and reach more certainty about them, according to a trial involving 152 Group Health patients, e-published in Obesity in advance of print. This randomized controlled trial is the first to test shared decision making for weight-loss surgery.

8 Apr 2011

ASBMB to honor 11 scientists with annual awards for biomedical research

The winners of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology annual awards will give lectures at the Experimental Biology 2011 conference April 9-13 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

8 Apr 2011

GlaxoSmithKline, XenoPort receive FDA approval for Horizant to treat RLS

On April 6, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Horizant Extended Release Tablets, a once-daily treatment for moderate-to-severe restless legs syndrome.

8 Apr 2011

Long-term delivery of CNTF slows loss of visual acuity caused by geographic atrophy

A phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of a severe form of age-related macular degeneration called geographic atrophy (GA) has become the first study to show the benefit of a therapy to slow the progression of vision loss for this disease. The results highlight the benefit of the use of a neurotrophic factor to treat GA and provide hope to nearly one million Americans suffering from GA.

8 Apr 2011

Bruker receives Health Canada approval for IVD MALDI Biotyper

At the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, the companies i2A Canada and Bruker Ltd. announced together that they have met the relevant Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada regulations for the Bruker IVD MALDI Biotyper, and that this product is now available for sale as a Class 1 Medical Device to all clinical microbiology sites in Canada.

8 Apr 2011

Though Congressional leaders cite progress, current-year spending deal still in play

If lawmakers fail to reach agreement on the 2011 budget, the government will shut down at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. Federal agencies have contingency plans in place in the event this happens. Media outlets report that Medicare and Medicaid would operate normally in the short run. Meanwhile, considerable discussion continues regarding what the political fallout will be and whether the public will hold Democrats or Republicans accountable.

8 Apr 2011

Targacept's TC-5619 Phase 2 trial data in schizophrenia presented at ICOSR

Targacept, Inc. today announced the presentation of data from a Phase 2 clinical proof of concept trial to assess TC-5619 as an augmentation therapy to improve cognition in patients with schizophrenia at the International Congress on Schizophrenia Research in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

8 Apr 2011

House subcommittee plans hearings on ACOs

In related news, Politico Pro reports that five leading health systems announced a plan to partner in sharing electronic health records. These systems note that the ability to share patient data with EHRs is key to success in creating ACOs.

8 Apr 2011

Male abuse victims more likely to suffer from psychological trauma

Men who are abused by their female partners can suffer significant psychological trauma, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and suicidal thoughts, according to two new papers published by the American Psychological Association.

8 Apr 2011

New discovery in cancer and gene therapy

DNA's role as the master blueprint of the cell means that even small sequence changes can have catastrophic consequences. For this reason, much of our understanding of cancer development comes from studying how cells copy DNA and repair sequence errors--and how these processes can go wrong.

8 Apr 2011

NAFC honors UT Southwestern nurse with Continence Care Champion Award

The National Association For Continence presented Tamara Dickinson, RN, CURN, CCCN, BCB-PMD, with its Rodney Appell Continence Care Champion Award at the Society of Urologic Nurses and Associates luncheon on March 11, held during the 2011 SUNA Annual Symposium in New Orleans.

8 Apr 2011

Cosmic radiation can increase risk of atherosclerosis in astronauts

Astronauts anticipate more trips to the moon and manned missions to Mars. But exposure to cosmic radiation outside the Earth's magnetic field could be detrimental to their arteries, according to a study by University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers published April 6, 2011, online in the journal Radiation Research.

8 Apr 2011

Longer looks: Could Ryan's plan be a pitfall for Democrats?; the cost of military health care; revealing more about doctors' billing practices

Every week, reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reading from around the Web.

8 Apr 2011

Hope4Cancer offers gentle non-invasive therapies for patients with brain tumor

Linda Roberts was puzzled when her favorite food, chocolate ice cream, suddenly did not taste good, and her prized orchids didn't smell nice either. When she began having sudden, severe headaches, she mentioned the changes in taste and smell to her doctor. After several tests, Roberts was diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive form of brain tumor.

8 Apr 2011

New insight into acute pancreatitis

Timing is everything. That's especially true when it comes to the activation of enzymes created by the pancreas to break down food. When the timing is right, those enzymes are activated only when they reach the gut, where they get to work releasing and distributing nutrients that we need to survive.

8 Apr 2011

Virtual reality games can improve motor function in stroke patients

Virtual reality and other video games can significantly improve motor function in stroke patients, according to research from St. Michael's Hospital.

8 Apr 2011

ASBMB honors South Carolina researcher with Avanti Award for sphingolipid work

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology has named Yusuf Hannun, professor and department chairman at the Medical University of South Carolina, in Charleston, S.C., the winner of the Avanti Award in Lipids.

8 Apr 2011

Michigan's CQI model improves patient outcomes, reduces health care costs

In a paper published today in the professional health care journal, Health Affairs, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and the University of Michigan Health System report that their model for collaborative health care quality improvement has measurably improved safety and quality in several clinical areas, and has saved millions in health care costs.

8 Apr 2011

AJG publishes new review on Inflammatory Bowel Disease management

The American College of Gastroenterology published a new evidence-based systematic review on the management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease as a supplement to The American Journal of Gastroenterology for April 2011, a special issue entirely dedicated to IBD.

8 Apr 2011

One-third of senior doctors are still working full time

More than 1 in 10 Canadian physicians is age 65 and older, but many doctors remain active in clinical practice after reaching the traditional retirement age, according to a study released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

8 Apr 2011