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CPF to kick off 'Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month'

Each year around the world, as many as 48,000 people are diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis and 40,000 people die – the same number of people who are lost to breast cancer annually. Pulmonary fibrosis is a devastating disease that robs people of their ability to breathe. To help raise awareness about this unknown deadly disease, the Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis (CPF) is kicking off "Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month" this September.

10 Sep 2012

Tight blood sugar control does not benefit pediatric patients undergoing heart surgery

Although some studies have portrayed tight blood sugar control as a potential means of lowering infection rates in critically ill adults, a new study-led by principal investigator Michael Agus, MD, director of the Medicine Critical Care Program at Boston Children's Hospital-found no indication that the approach benefits pediatric patients undergoing heart surgery.

10 Sep 2012

Antibiotic treatment more effective than placebo in patients with mild-to-moderate COPD

Antibiotic treatment with amoxicillin/clavulanate improves moderate exacerbations in patients with mild-to-moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and significantly prolongs the time between exacerbations, according to a new study from researchers in Spain.

10 Sep 2012

Phthalates may be asthma trigger

Research suggests that exposure to two phthalates may be a trigger for asthma-related airway inflammation.

7 Sep 2012

Untreated severe OSA may increase risk of cardiovascular death in the elderly

Untreated severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality in the elderly, and adequate treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) may significantly reduce this risk, according to a new study from researchers in Spain.

7 Sep 2012

Exposure to phthalates increases risk of asthma-related airway inflammation in children

Children exposed to diethyl phthalate (DEP) and butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP)-phthalate chemicals commonly found in personal care and plastic products-have elevated risk of asthma-related airway inflammation, according to researchers at Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health (CCCEH) at the Mailman School of Public Health.

6 Sep 2012

VIDA releases Apollo 1.2 SaaS for endobronchial emphysema treatment

VIDA Diagnostics, a leading developer of quantitative imaging analysis software for the diagnosis and treatment planning of major pulmonary disease, announced today the release and commercial availability of Apollo 1.2, here at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) meeting in Vienna, Austria.

3 Sep 2012

CT scan appears to predict risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations

The respective size of two major arteries, visible on a simple computed tomography, or CT, scan, is a strong predictor of the risk of exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to new research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham published online Sept. 3, 2012, in the New England Journal of Medicine.

3 Sep 2012

SPIRIVA to mark 10th anniversary with European Respiratory Society Congress

Coinciding with the annual European Respiratory Society Congress, ERS 2012, SPIRIVA (tiotropium), the first once-daily long-acting inhaled anticholinergic maintenance treatment for patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) will mark its 10th anniversary since launch.

3 Sep 2012

Potential new COPD drug

A study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has shown that a compound used in some skin creams may halt the progression of emphysema and reverse some of the damage caused by the disease. When the compound Gly-His-Lys (GHK) was applied to lung cells from patients with emphysema, normal gene activity in altered cells was restored and damaged aspects of cellular function were repaired.

1 Sep 2012

UCSF’s intensive care unit study receives $2.1 million Moore Foundation grant

A multi-center study of intensive care units (ICU) led by UCSF faculty has received a Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation grant of $2.1 million. The study of ICUs, including two at UCSF, aims to better understand the nature of team-based care and patient involvement in ICU settings.

30 Aug 2012

ICU misdiagnosis alarmingly common in the acute care setting

Each year as many as 40,500 critically ill U.S. hospital patients die with an unknown medical condition that may have caused or contributed to their death, Johns Hopkins patient safety experts report in a recent study.

28 Aug 2012

XJB-5-131 prevents secondary damage of severe traumatic brain injury

Treatment with an agent that blocks the oxidation of an important component of the mitochondrial membrane prevented the secondary damage of severe traumatic brain injury and preserved function that would otherwise have been impaired, according to a research team from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Graduate School of Public Health and Department of Chemistry in a report published online today in Nature Neuroscience.

27 Aug 2012

Childhood asthma link shows it is never too soon for mums to quit smoking

Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk for asthma and wheezing in early childhood, even if children are not exposed to smoke after birth, a European study shows.

21 Aug 2012

NYU Langone's Hospital for Joint Diseases achieves Magnet recognition by ANCC

NYU Langone Medical Center's Hospital for Joint Diseases (HJD) has achieved Magnet recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), the international accrediting body that recognizes healthcare organizations focused on nursing excellence.

18 Aug 2012

Smoking during pregnancy associated with wheezing and asthma in preschool children

Maternal smoking during pregnancy is associated with wheeze and asthma in preschool children, even among children who were not exposed to maternal smoking late in pregnancy or after birth, according to a new study.

17 Aug 2012

U of U researchers receive NIH grant to study cellular and molecular causes of blood clots

University of Utah Department of Medicine researchers have received $16 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to set up a translational research center to study the cellular and molecular causes of blood clots, a serious threat to millions of people who have diabetes, are obese or have other metabolic disorders.

15 Aug 2012

U-M Survival Flight helicopters can save lives of all the Great Lakes states

Three new maize-and-blue helicopters will soon be saving lives in the air above the Great Lakes states, and speeding patients toward advanced care at the University of Michigan Health System's hospitals.

15 Aug 2012

Heat wave safety tips from Children's Hospital Los Angeles

With July 2012 on record as being one of the hottest months in U.S. history and the August heat showing no let up in many parts of the country, how can parents protect their children's health during a heat wave? "While kids and teens may think of themselves as invincible, they're prone to heat-related illnesses," says Megan Summers, a registered nurse in the Children's Hospital Los Angeles' Rehabilitation Unit.

12 Aug 2012