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AMPK activates autophagy by activating ATG1 enzyme

Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have discovered how AMPK, a metabolic master switch that springs into gear when cells run low on energy, revs up a cellular recycling program to free up essential molecular building blocks in times of need.

24 Dec 2010

Research Roundup: Surgery and health costs; ACOs and independent doctors; Stroke's long-term effects; Improving low-income care

Archives of Surgery: Profile Of Inpatient Operating Room Procedures In U.S. Hospitals In 2007 - Understanding operating room (OR) procedures in the hospital "is critical in debates about how to improve the population's health while attempting to constrain growth in health care costs," write the authors of this study that provides an overview of inpatient operating room procedures in the U.S. from 1997 to 2007.

24 Dec 2010

Scientists tweak gene to mimick heart-strengthening effects of endurance training in sedentary mice

By tweaking a single gene, scientists have mimicked in sedentary mice the heart-strengthening effects of two weeks of endurance training, according to a report from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).

24 Dec 2010

Scientific American examines efforts to increase influenza virus monitoring in pigs to prevent pandemics in humans

Scientific American examines how, in an attempt to improve early recognition of viruses that could give rise to pandemics in people, such as last year's H1N1 swine flu, scientists are looking to better understand "the viruses that infect the estimated 941 million domesticated pigs around the world." However, as the article notes, "[i]ntensive monitoring of pig viruses is unlikely to come any time soon … Most pork-producing countries do not test their pigs at all, and in some that do - such as the U.S. - the testing is done on behalf of the pork producers.

24 Dec 2010

Texas doctor arrested in whistle-blowing case; Mass. judge dismisses hospital payment lawsuit against the state

Texas officials have filed criminal charges against a West Texas physician over accusations that they say he orchestrated against two nurses who had filed a complaint against him with the state medical board (Sack, 12/23).

24 Dec 2010

Electronic health records have only limited effect on improving quality of medical care: RAND study

Use of electronic health records by hospitals across the United States has had only a limited effect on improving the quality of medical care, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

24 Dec 2010

Today's opinions: Ariz. hospital and abortion; Wall Street Journal's issues with PolitiFact; Calif.'s anti-smoking success

St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix announced on Tuesday that it will continue to provide life-saving abortion care to patients even though it means losing its affiliation with the local Roman Catholic Diocese (12/23).

24 Dec 2010

Over 36,000 people visit interactive infection research exhibition in 2010

The travelling exhibition organised by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), "Humans and Microbes - Robert Koch's Legacy and Modern Infection Research", has already proved to be a visitor magnet during its very first year. In total, the interactive exhibition attracted more than 36,000 visitors at its three ports of call (Berlin, Bonn and Würzburg), including 400 school classes.

23 Dec 2010

Baylor Sammons Cancer Center, Sarah Cannon, and Virginia Cancer join Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium

The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) today announced that it has expanded its clinical research network to include Baylor Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center (Dallas, TX), Sarah Cannon /Research Institute (SCRI, Nashville, TN) and Virginia Cancer Specialists (Fairfax, VA). These new centers join the 13 existing MMRC Member Institutions in promoting and facilitating collaborative research and accelerating drug development in multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer.

23 Dec 2010

UMMC improves delivery turnaround time, enhances nurse satisfaction with MedEx system

Using MedEx, Aethon's comprehensive medication tracking system, the University of Maryland Medical Center has improved delivery turnaround time, reduced personnel costs and enhanced nurse satisfaction. This was the overriding theme of a presentation by UMMC at the American Society of Health System Pharmacists midyear conference in Anaheim.

23 Dec 2010

Dec. 31st healthcare reform deadline limits patient choice and encourages business as usual

In 10 days, thousands of workers will put down their tools and halt construction at 45 hospitals across the country, simply because the hospitals have physician owners.

23 Dec 2010

Jury returns $7M verdict for failure to diagnose and treat cardiac tamponade in bypass surgery patient

A New York State Supreme Court Queens County jury returned a $7,000,000.00 verdict against Patrick Monteleone M.D. and Newell Robinson, M.D. where they failed to diagnose and treat cardiac tamponade (bleeding into the chest) in their patient who underwent cardiac bypass surgery on November 17, 2004.

23 Dec 2010

Fraunhofer MEVIS initiates research partnership with ARTORG Center

In a research partnership between the Fraunhofer Institute for Medical Image Computing MEVIS in Bremen and the ARTORG Center for Biomedical Engineering Research at the University of Bern, this navigation technique will be intensively evaluated and developed further at the Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital in Shanghai.

23 Dec 2010

Earlier diagnosis in Cowden syndrome patients predisposed to breast and kidney cancer

Researchers at Cleveland Clinic's Genomic Medicine Institute have revealed multiple genetic discoveries that may permit easier diagnosis and disease management for Cowden syndrome patients who are predisposed to breast and kidney cancer.

23 Dec 2010

Columbia Asia opens new hospitals in India and Malaysia

Columbia Asia, a fast-growing hospital company with Pacific Northwest roots, has opened hospitals in two cities near New Delhi, India, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

23 Dec 2010

Arsenic agent for leukemia beneficial in treating medulloblastoma, Ewing's Sarcoma

Researchers at the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, a part of Georgetown University Medical Center, have found that an arsenic-based agent already FDA-approved for a type of leukemia may be helpful in another hard-to-treat cancer, Ewing's Sarcoma (ES). The research, based on animal studies, also suggests the drug might be beneficial in treating medulloblastoma, a highly malignant pediatric brain cancer.

23 Dec 2010

Promising initial data from STABLE clinical trial for endovascular treatment of Type B aortic dissection

Study investigators reported positive steps in Cook Medical's efforts to gain FDA approval of the treatment assessed in the STABLE clinical trial, designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a proximal endograft and a distal uncovered stent for the endovascular treatment of Type B aortic dissection for purposes of seeking FDA approval. The findings were presented by Dr. Joseph Lombardi at the 37th annual VEITHsymposium.

23 Dec 2010

St. Luke’s second in nation to perform EVAR with Endurant AAA Stent Graft System

An 80-year-old patient at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital (St. Luke's) in Houston became the second in the nation to be treated with a newly approved FDA device for an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The condition, often called, "the silent killer," is a dangerous bulge or ballooning in the main artery of the body that typically causes no symptoms until it ruptures.

23 Dec 2010

Researchers find 37° C body temperature is warm enough to ward off fungal infection

Two researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that our 98.6° F (37° C) body temperature strikes a perfect balance: warm enough to ward off fungal infection but not so hot that we need to eat nonstop to maintain our metabolism.

23 Dec 2010

Certain drugs may block tumor host interactions but do not destroy cancer cells

A class of drugs thought to kill cancer cells may in fact block "cross talk" between the cancer cell and normal immune cells, resulting in reduced cancer growth and spread-a discovery that could significantly alter the way cancer drugs are evaluated in the future.

23 Dec 2010

Hospital News and Research

AMPK activates autophagy by activating ATG1 enzyme

Research Roundup: Surgery and health costs; ACOs and independent doctors; Stroke's long-term effects; Improving low-income care

Scientists tweak gene to mimick heart-strengthening effects of endurance training in sedentary mice

Scientific American examines efforts to increase influenza virus monitoring in pigs to prevent pandemics in humans

Texas doctor arrested in whistle-blowing case; Mass. judge dismisses hospital payment lawsuit against the state

Electronic health records have only limited effect on improving quality of medical care: RAND study

Today's opinions: Ariz. hospital and abortion; Wall Street Journal's issues with PolitiFact; Calif.'s anti-smoking success

Over 36,000 people visit interactive infection research exhibition in 2010

Baylor Sammons Cancer Center, Sarah Cannon, and Virginia Cancer join Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium

UMMC improves delivery turnaround time, enhances nurse satisfaction with MedEx system

Dec. 31st healthcare reform deadline limits patient choice and encourages business as usual

Jury returns $7M verdict for failure to diagnose and treat cardiac tamponade in bypass surgery patient

Fraunhofer MEVIS initiates research partnership with ARTORG Center

Earlier diagnosis in Cowden syndrome patients predisposed to breast and kidney cancer

Columbia Asia opens new hospitals in India and Malaysia

Arsenic agent for leukemia beneficial in treating medulloblastoma, Ewing's Sarcoma

Promising initial data from STABLE clinical trial for endovascular treatment of Type B aortic dissection

St. Luke’s second in nation to perform EVAR with Endurant AAA Stent Graft System

Researchers find 37° C body temperature is warm enough to ward off fungal infection

Certain drugs may block tumor host interactions but do not destroy cancer cells

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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