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Physicians diagnose rare parasitic infection in people who consumed raw crayfish

If you're headed to a freshwater stream this summer and a friend dares you to eat a raw crayfish - don't do it. You could end up in the hospital with a severe parasitic infection.

27 May 2010

Montana and other states struggle to contain medical marijuana boom, related violence

The Wall Street Journal: "Fourteen states plus the District of Columbia have passed laws intended to give certain ill people legal access to medical marijuana. But, in many instances, municipalities are left to figure out how to implement state laws that are often vague when it comes to the day-to-day operations of the medical-pot business. Those laws have led to confusion in communities and pushed states including Colorado and Maine to clarify what is legal for the industry."

27 May 2010

GSK Consumer Healthcare announces update of alli product label

GSK Consumer Healthcare today announced it will update the alli product label to alert consumers to certain symptoms that have been associated with rare instances of severe liver injury reported in people taking orlistat, the active ingredient in alli. This update follows FDA's completion of its safety review of orlistat and is being implemented in conjunction with Roche, the manufacturer of the prescription dose of orlistat (Xenical). The agency stated that a cause and effect relationship has not been established.

27 May 2010

Democrats struggle to line up votes on bill containing 'doc fix,' COBRA subsidy extension

A jobs and benefits bill that would extend subsidies to help laid-off workers keep their health insurance and would avert payment cuts to Medicare doctors is still pending in Congress.

27 May 2010

Feds crack down on health care fraud in California, Florida

The Sacramento Bee reports: "Three Sacramento-area residents are among 11 people, including five doctors, accused of participating in a Medicare fraud ring. ... From February 2006 through August 2008, the defendants are alleged to have operated three health-care clinics -- in Sacramento, Carmichael and Richmond -- that submitted more than $5 million in allegedly fraudulent claims to Medicare" (Locke, 5/25).

27 May 2010

Humana named nation's top payer for the second consecutive

For the second year in a row and third time in five years, Humana Inc. ranks #1 in overall performance - making it the easiest payer for health care providers to do business with - in a review of 2009 claims-payment data conducted by athenahealth Inc., a provider of Internet-based business services to doctors, and Physician's Practice magazine.

26 May 2010

Alliance Technologies integrates PacketSure Managed DLP platform to provide Data Loss Prevention solution

Palisade Systems, the leader in Data Loss Prevention solutions for the small and medium-sized enterprise, said today that Alliance Technologies has integrated the PacketSure Managed DLP platform to provide a Data Loss Prevention solution engineered for large, shared network environments. Alliance Technologies becomes one of the growing number of managed service providers to offer PacketSure Managed DLP to its customers.

26 May 2010

Study finds disagreement between RA patients and doctors on assessment of disease severity

A novel study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco found that nearly one-third of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients differed from their physicians in assessment of their disease severity. The disagreement between patient and doctor evaluation of RA activity was most prevalent in patients with depressive symptoms, and those who had poor overall function.

26 May 2010

Federal funding to support health IT training; New web tools for patients

A federally-funded health information training program is now underway, Modern Healthcare reports. "Last month, HHS' Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology awarded $112 million of stimulus funds to dozens of universities and community colleges.

26 May 2010

Penn. doc creates medical home as part of health care transformation

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports on Joseph Mambu, a Pennsylvania doctor who created a medical home in 2001. At the beginning "Mambu didn't know where he was headed. Now he's at the vanguard of a movement sweeping America - the patient-centered medical home - in which physicians have more time for complex cases and are much more proactive in promoting the health of all patients, who have same-day access to their medical team."

26 May 2010

Kidney Health Week, experts criticise government inaction

Kidney Health Week is being observed at Broken Hill Hospital this week by the Broken Hill Health Service. As a part of this the residents will receive complete kidney check ups including blood pressure and blood sugar and advice regarding kidney health.

26 May 2010

State Roundup: Oklahoma, S.C. and Ill. facing tough choices on health costs

States around the country are debating how to deal with health costs and tight budgets.

26 May 2010

Experts question 'doc fix' as Reid threatens weekend work on bill with COBRA, Medicare provisions

Politico: Experts are questioning the virtues of the three-year Medicare "doc fix" that would stave off cuts to Medicare doctors' pay but set up a larger fight down the road. ... In health policy circles, the 'doc fix' has become emblematic of Washington's worst habits: a potentially solvable policy problem run amok for about a decade now, bogged down in pure politics and accounting gimmicks. The 'doc fix,' a last-minute infusion of funds to head off a looming doctor pay cut under Medicare, hits the floor this week via the tax extenders bill ..."

25 May 2010

Researchers examine relationship between visiting primary care physician and effect blood pressure

Frequent doctor visits helped diabetes patients lower their high blood pressure to normal quicker, according to a large study reported in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.

25 May 2010

AAPA, ACP release policy monograph on critical health care issue

The American Academy of Physician Assistants and the American College of Physicians today released a policy monograph that supports the critical roles physician assistants and physicians play in improving access to high-quality primary care. The paper, "Internists and Physician Assistants: Team-based Primary Care," results from a months-long collaborative project.

25 May 2010

Round-up: Mississippi struggles with mental health services funding cuts; A drug discount bill advances in Mass.

"Lawmakers earlier this year vigorously fought Gov. Haley Barbour's proposal to close four state mental health hospitals and six crisis centers as a budget-saving measure. Now, nonprofit-run centers that offer front-line services for the mentally ill in some of the poorest communities across Mississippi could face closure."

25 May 2010

Toshiba launches new Web site for patients receiving diagnostic imaging exams

To help patients work with their physicians to better understand medical imaging, Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. has launched myimagingexam.com, an educational resource Web site for patients receiving diagnostic imaging exams. The new site provides educational tools for patients to download and use with their physician before undergoing a medical imaging exam to better understand the imaging process and manage their own health.

24 May 2010

Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical pleads guilty for promoting epilepsy drug Topamax for psychiatric use

Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical LLC, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, pled guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boston to one count of misdemeanor violation of the Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act for illegally promoting its epilepsy drug Topamax for uses that were not approved by the FDA. The company was also sentenced at today's hearing.

24 May 2010

MediConnect Global renames PassportMD online portal to myMediConnect

MediConnect Global today announced that it has changed the name of its personal health record and consumer health portal, PassportMD, to myMediConnect.

24 May 2010

Researchers develop new therapy for psychological treatment of patients suffering from fibromyalgia

Researchers of the Labpsictec at the Universitat Jaume I of Castellon and the LahHuman Group at the Universidad Politecnica of Valencia and the University of Valencia have developed a new therapy based on the use of mobile devices and virtual reality for the psychological treatment of patients suffering from fibromyalgia.

24 May 2010

Doctor News and Research

Physicians diagnose rare parasitic infection in people who consumed raw crayfish

Montana and other states struggle to contain medical marijuana boom, related violence

GSK Consumer Healthcare announces update of alli product label

Democrats struggle to line up votes on bill containing 'doc fix,' COBRA subsidy extension

Feds crack down on health care fraud in California, Florida

Humana named nation's top payer for the second consecutive

Alliance Technologies integrates PacketSure Managed DLP platform to provide Data Loss Prevention solution

Study finds disagreement between RA patients and doctors on assessment of disease severity

Federal funding to support health IT training; New web tools for patients

Penn. doc creates medical home as part of health care transformation

Kidney Health Week, experts criticise government inaction

State Roundup: Oklahoma, S.C. and Ill. facing tough choices on health costs

Experts question 'doc fix' as Reid threatens weekend work on bill with COBRA, Medicare provisions

Researchers examine relationship between visiting primary care physician and effect blood pressure

AAPA, ACP release policy monograph on critical health care issue

Round-up: Mississippi struggles with mental health services funding cuts; A drug discount bill advances in Mass.

Toshiba launches new Web site for patients receiving diagnostic imaging exams

Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical pleads guilty for promoting epilepsy drug Topamax for psychiatric use

MediConnect Global renames PassportMD online portal to myMediConnect

Researchers develop new therapy for psychological treatment of patients suffering from fibromyalgia

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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