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Study: One in every 200 Ontarians diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease

One in every 200 Ontarians has been diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), with the number of people living with the disease increasing by 64 per cent between 1999 and 2008, according to a study by researchers at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, and the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute.

29 Aug 2014

Study: Patients with 2 or more ED visits in one year account for disproportionate costs

Almost one-third of acute heart failure syndrome patients seen in hospital emergency departments (EDs) in Florida and California during 2010 had ED visits during the following year, findings that suggest a lack of appropriate outpatient care.

21 Aug 2014

Acetyl fentanyl is more potent and dangerous than heroin

Emergency physicians should expect "an upswing in what on the surface appear to be heroin overdoses," but are actually overdoses tied to acetyl fentanyl, an opiate that is mixed into street drugs marketed as heroin.

19 Aug 2014

New model shows how faculty development programs can affect institutional behaviors

Methods used to demonstrate the impact of faculty development programs have long been lacking.

19 Aug 2014

Microbes influence human eating behavior, dietary choices

It sounds like science fiction, but it seems that bacteria within us — which outnumber our own cells about 100-fold — may very well be affecting both our cravings and moods to get us to eat what they want, and often are driving us toward obesity.

17 Aug 2014

Washington State Supreme Court: Psychiatric boarding in emergency department is unconstitutional

In a potentially precedent-setting ruling, the Washington State Supreme Court determined last week that psychiatric boarding — the process by which patients are admitted to a hospital, but remain in the emergency department for hours, even days, until psychiatric beds become available — is unconstitutional and violates the state's Involuntary Treatment Act.

16 Aug 2014

UCSF study shows price differences for ten common blood tests across California hospitals

New UC San Francisco research shows significant price differences for ten common blood tests in California hospitals, with some patients charged as little as $10 for one test while others were charged $10,169 for the identical test.

16 Aug 2014

More than ½ of emergency department patients age 65 and older are malnourished

More than half of emergency department patients age 65 and older who were seen at UNC Hospitals during an 8-week period were either malnourished or at risk for malnutrition.

14 Aug 2014

Researchers examine why older adults are at risk for malnutrition

More than half of older adults who visit emergency departments are either malnourished or at risk for malnutrition, but not because of lack of access to health care, critical illness or dementia.

13 Aug 2014

Pelvic x-rays unnecessary for children with blunt force trauma

Pelvic x-rays ordered as a matter of course for children who have suffered blunt force trauma do not accurately identify all cases of pelvic fractures or dislocations and are usually unnecessary for patients for whom abdominal/pelvic CT scanning is otherwise planned.

7 Aug 2014

Emergency department closures can affect death rates, finds UCSF research

In the first analysis of its kind, UC San Francisco research shows that emergency department closures can have a ripple effect on patient outcomes at nearby hospitals.

5 Aug 2014

Diabetics who live in low-income neighborhoods are up to 10 times more likely to lose toe, foot, leg

It's no secret that poverty is bad for your health. Now a new UCLA study demonstrates that California diabetics who live in low-income neighborhoods are up to 10 times more likely to lose a toe, foot or leg than patients residing in more affluent areas of the state.

5 Aug 2014

Five-year $10.7M grant to study control, prevention of sexually-transmitted infections

The University of Maryland Schools of Dentistry (UM SOD) and Medicine (UM SOM) jointly announced today that they have received a five-year $10.7 million grant award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health to study the causes, prevention and treatment of sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs).

30 Jul 2014

Clinical judgement with ECG and blood test effective in reducing hospital admissions for chest pain

Clinical judgement, combined with an electrocardiogram (ECG) and blood test on arrival, is effective in reducing unnecessary hospital admissions for chest pain, a new study shows.

From The University of Manchester 26 Jul 2014

Study: New EMS system increases survival rate for sudden cardiac arrest victims in Arizona

A new system that sent patients to designated cardiac receiving centers dramatically increased the survival rate of victims of sudden cardiac arrest in Arizona, according to a study published online yesterday in Annals of Emergency Medicine.

26 Jul 2014

Wake Forest Baptist shares tips to help avoid heat-related illnesses

Working out when it's hot isn't such a hot idea. Just ask Bret Nicks, M.D., associate professor of emergency medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

24 Jul 2014

Study: L-carnitine has neuroprotective effects on injured sciatic nerve of rats

Several studies have demonstrated that L-carnitine exhibits neuroprotective effects on injured sciatic nerve of rats with diabetes mellitus.

21 Jul 2014

Young adults reduce binge drinking after receiving text messages following visit to ER

Young adults who screened positive for a history of hazardous or binge drinking reduced their binge drinking by more than 50 percent after receiving mobile phone text messages following a visit to the emergency department, according to a study published online yesterday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ("A Text Message Alcohol Intervention for Young Adult Emergency Department Patients: A Randomized Clinical Trial").

14 Jul 2014

90.7% of non-cannabis users meet criteria for problematic drug use, shows study

Of emergency patients who reported any drug other than marijuana as their primary drug of use, 90.7 percent met the criteria for problematic drug use.

10 Jul 2014

Loyola University Health System condemns Chicago violence, treats it as a disease

Approximately 82 people in Chicago were reportedly injured and 14 died due to gun violence during the extended Fourth of July weekend.