Bioethics News and Research

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South African government should take responsibility for HIV/AIDS treatment

Noting the many successes of PEPFAR, Stuart Rennie, co-principal investigator of NIH/Fogarty bioethics grants for the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa, writes in his "Global Bioethics Blog," "HIV requires lifelong treatment, and it is not healthy to have your existence depend on the decisions of a foreign government, especially an economically sputtering and lurching superpower."

6 Feb 2013

Hastings Center Report special report on ethical oversight of learning health care systems

The longstanding ethical framework for protecting human volunteers in medical research needs to be replaced because it is outdated and can impede efforts to improve health care quality, assert leaders in bioethics, medicine, and health policy in two companion articles in a Hastings Center Report special report, "Ethical Oversight of Learning Health Care Systems."

24 Jan 2013

Bioethics leader proposes bold and controversial approach to fight obesity epidemic

Arguing that obesity "may be the most difficult and elusive public health problem the United States has ever encountered" and that anti-obesity efforts having made little discernible difference, Daniel Callahan, co-founder and President Emeritus of The Hastings Center, proposes a bold and controversial approach to fighting the epidemic.

24 Jan 2013

New technique may prevent inheritance of mitochondrial diseases in children

A joint team of scientists from The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Laboratory and Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) has developed a technique that may prevent the inheritance of mitochondrial diseases in children.

21 Dec 2012

Physicians should not prescribe cognitive enhancers to healthy people

Physicians should not prescribe cognitive enhancers to healthy individuals, states a report being published today in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ).

18 Dec 2012

Maryland researchers launch groundbreaking study into spread of drug-resistant malaria in Burma

University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers have launched groundbreaking research into the spread of potentially deadly drug-resistant malaria in the developing Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar, also known as Burma.

17 Dec 2012

Scientists identify two genetic risk factors for sagittal craniosynostosis

Seattle Children's Research Institute, together with an international team of scientists and clinicians from 22 other institutions, have identified two genetic risk factors for the most common form of non-syndromic craniosynostosis, a birth defect in which the bony plates of an infant's skull prematurely fuse. The condition is known as sagittal craniosynostosis and often results in an abnormal head shape and facial features.

20 Nov 2012

Destruction of newborn screening left over samples may be detrimental to medical research

The tremendous potential public health benefits of research with blood samples left over after routine newborn screening must not be lost amidst controversy and litigation, say medical and bioethics experts in a commentary published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

8 Nov 2012

Ethical issues in organ transplantation

The MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics will focus its 24th Annual Dorothy J. MacLean Fellows Conference on ethical issues in organ transplantation and other broader ethical topics, including global health, pediatric immunization and end-of-life care.

8 Nov 2012

Online forum for healthcare ethics consultants

Healthcare ethics consultants are called upon in the most difficult of circumstances; where do they turn for advice? The American Society For Bioethics and Humanities' Clinical Ethics Consultation Affairs Committee (CECA) is taking a community approach, creating an online forum for feedback and shared experiences to accompany a paper published in the Fall 2012 issue of the Journal of Clinical Ethics.

8 Nov 2012

UC Santa Barbara reports key discovery in interdisciplinary study of split-brain research

UC Santa Barbara has reported an important discovery in the interdisciplinary study of split-brain research. The findings uncover dynamic changes in brain coordination patterns between left and right hemispheres.

3 Nov 2012

Examining ethics surrounding Taliban's ban on polio vaccination in Pakistan

Writing in the Global Bioethics Blog, Stuart Rennie, a bioethics researcher and professor, notes another polio worker was killed in Pakistan last week and describes Taliban opposition to U.S.-supported polio vaccination efforts in Pakistan.

23 Oct 2012

Consumer Genetics Conference to take place from October 3-5

Advancements in sequencing and diagnostics technology are the underlying elements driving the genomic revolution. With the free-falling cost of sequencing, richer reference data and improved interpretation methods, the use of personal genomics is beginning to take greater root in clinical practice.

15 Sep 2012

Viewpoints: Medicaid's role in lowering uninsured rate; Need to protect physicians 'compelled by conscience' to provide abortions

The number of Americans who lack health insurance declined last year, the first drop since 2007. This is, in large part, the result of the health care reform law and better coverage under public programs like Medicaid. This also shows why repealing the health care law or revamping and shrinking Medicaid, as many Republicans want to do, would be disastrous moves.

14 Sep 2012

Facebook and other social media can enhance organ and tissue donation

When Facebook introduced a feature that enables people to register to become organ and tissue donors, thousands did so, dwarfing any previous donation initiative, write Blair L. Sadler and Alfred M. Sadler, Jr., in a commentary in Bioethics Forum, the blog of the Hastings Center Report, which analyzes the "Facebook effect" on donation.

12 Sep 2012

Albert Einstein College of Medicine to educate faculty members and students on social media

Social media is increasingly popular but engaging in its proper use can prove confusing and challenging - especially in the medical and healthcare arenas. Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University has been awarded a two-year grant to educate faculty members and medical students on using social media appropriately and effectively.

11 Sep 2012

Medical ethics: an interview with Anita Silvers

Medical ethics assists healthcare professionals to make decisions respectful of persons who happen to be their patients.

13 Aug 2012

Organ donation: an interview with David Shaw

Most donors die in intensive care units, frequently after car accidents. Once it is clear that recovery is out of the question, families will be told that further treatment is futile and the issue of donation can be sensitively raised.

9 Aug 2012

Roundup: Seeking medical malpractice alternatives part of Mass. cost control law; Low-Income Health Program signs up 400k in Calif.

It may not seem like big news, but if you've followed the long-running, stubborn and mostly dug-in debate over reforming medical malpractice in the U.S., you know that when doctors and lawyers issue a joint news release, something is really going on. ... Formally, it's called "Disclosure, Apology and Offer" and it's a key provision of the new state health cost law. Massachusetts doctors and lawyers have agreed to work side by side on this less hostile (and potentially cost-saving) approach to dealing with medical errors and malpractice.

9 Aug 2012

Risky prenatal use of steroid to prevent intersex, tomboys and lesbians

A new paper just published in the Journal of Bioethical Inquiry uses extensive Freedom of Information Act findings to detail an extremely troubling off-label medical intervention employed in the U.S. on pregnant women to intentionally engineer the development of their fetuses for sex normalization purposes.

3 Aug 2012

Bioethics News and Research

South African government should take responsibility for HIV/AIDS treatment

Hastings Center Report special report on ethical oversight of learning health care systems

Bioethics leader proposes bold and controversial approach to fight obesity epidemic

New technique may prevent inheritance of mitochondrial diseases in children

Physicians should not prescribe cognitive enhancers to healthy people

Maryland researchers launch groundbreaking study into spread of drug-resistant malaria in Burma

Scientists identify two genetic risk factors for sagittal craniosynostosis

Destruction of newborn screening left over samples may be detrimental to medical research

Ethical issues in organ transplantation

Online forum for healthcare ethics consultants

UC Santa Barbara reports key discovery in interdisciplinary study of split-brain research

Examining ethics surrounding Taliban's ban on polio vaccination in Pakistan

Consumer Genetics Conference to take place from October 3-5

Viewpoints: Medicaid's role in lowering uninsured rate; Need to protect physicians 'compelled by conscience' to provide abortions

Facebook and other social media can enhance organ and tissue donation

Albert Einstein College of Medicine to educate faculty members and students on social media

Medical ethics: an interview with Anita Silvers

Organ donation: an interview with David Shaw

Roundup: Seeking medical malpractice alternatives part of Mass. cost control law; Low-Income Health Program signs up 400k in Calif.

Risky prenatal use of steroid to prevent intersex, tomboys and lesbians

Biotechnology eBook

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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