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LCA-CA issues 2nd Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer

Today, Lung Cancer Alliance-California (LCA-CA) issued its 2nd Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer. The 2009 Report Card is an assessment of progress being made against this lethal disease in the state of California.

26 Nov 2009

LCA-GA issues 4th Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer

Today, Lung Cancer Alliance-Georgia (LCA-GA) issued the 4th Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer. This Report is an assessment of progress being made against this lethal disease in the state of Georgia.

26 Nov 2009

Parent mentors can help in reducing asthma complications in minority children

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found that informed adults can help families stave off complications associated with asthma. The findings, available online and in the December issue of Pediatrics, suggest that interventions by parent mentors - caregivers of asthmatic children who have received specialized topical training - can effectively reduce wheezing, asthma attacks, emergency room visits and missed adult workdays.

26 Nov 2009

Under-five child mortality up 20% in Zimbabwe, new data shows

UNICEF and the government of Zimbabwe announced Tuesday that, according to new social development data, the mortality rate for children under age five has risen by 20 percent since 1990, Reuters reports.

25 Nov 2009

SBI urges Congress to exclude the USPSTF guidelines from health care legislation

Several sections of Senate health care reform legislation contain language stipulating that insurance entities such as private insurers, Medicare and Medicaid would only be required to cover services receiving a specific grade from the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force. Presently, this would exclude mammography services for women 40-49, would only require coverage of biennial (every other year) coverage for women 50-74, and exclude coverage for those 74 and older.

25 Nov 2009

Study finds no significant difference in hospital angioplasty volume and death rates in patients with myocardial infarction

A study based on a contemporary registry of patients with myocardial infarction (heart attack) indicates that even though hospitals that perform a higher number of angioplasties are more likely to follow evidence-based guidelines and have shorter times to the angioplasty procedure, there appears to be no significant difference in outcomes such as length of hospital stay or risk of death, according to a study in the November 25 issue of JAMA.

25 Nov 2009

Comparison study finds no significant differences in post-transplant survival rates of NASH and ETOH groups

Researchers at the University of Miami School of Medicine compared the outcomes of cirrhotic patients who underwent liver transplants for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) versus alcoholic liver disease (ETOH) and found no statistically significant differences in post-transplant survival rates between the NASH and ETOH groups

25 Nov 2009

Reboxetine drug does not alleviate depression, says new study

There is no scientific proof that people suffering from depression can benefit from taking reboxetine. However, clinical trials do provide proof of benefit of bupropion XL and mirtazapine: both agents can alleviate symptoms. This is the conclusion of the final report of the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) published on 24 November 2009.

24 Nov 2009

Also in Global Health news: Home HIV treatment; voluntary testing in Kenya; women/HIV scorecard; Global Fund Zimbabwe grant; contraceptives in Tanzania

The New York Times reports on a Lancet study that found treating Ugandan HIV patients at home is cheaper and just as effective as treating them in a clinic.

24 Nov 2009

Medical advances abound while surgeons report concerns about medical errors

The Wall Street Journal reports on "20 health-care advances to give thanks for this Thanksgiving." Among the most key: "Life expectancy in the U.S. reached an all-time high of 77.9 years in 2007, the latest year for which statistics are available, continuing a long upward trend. (That's 75.3 years for men and 80.4 years for women.) ... Death rates dropped significantly for eight of the 15 leading causes of death in the U.S., including cancer, heart disease, stroke, hypertension, accidents, diabetes, homicides and pneumonia, from 2006 to 2007."

24 Nov 2009

Americans with hepatitis C are at increased risk of developing liver cancer, says NVHR

New peer-reviewed data finding that fewer than one-fifth of the nearly 4 million Americans infected with chronic hepatitis C virus have received anti-viral therapy in recent years should be a wake-up call that Congress needs to move urgently on bipartisan legislation to support new state-based detection, research, and surveillance efforts, the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable (NVHR) said today.

24 Nov 2009

New MEMS sensor may help clinicians distinguish stable and unstable plaque during cardiac emergencies

University of Sourthern California biomedical engineer and cardiologist Tzung "John" Hsiai hopes to develop a new tool to help clinicians distinguish cardiac emergencies requiring immediate surgery from chronic problems manageable with drugs and lifestyle change.

24 Nov 2009

MRSA making its way into hospitals, says study

The community-associated strain of the deadly superbug MRSA-an infection-causing bacteria resistant to most common antibiotics-poses a far greater health threat than previously known and is making its way into hospitals, according to a study in the December issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

24 Nov 2009

USC University Hospital receives Heart Transplant Excellence Award

The University of Southern California (USC) University Hospital received a Heart Transplant Excellence Award from the independent healthcare ratings organization Health Grades, ranking among the top one percent of hospitals in the U.S. that perform heart transplants.

24 Nov 2009

Human-derived UCB stem cell transplant has positive therapeutic effects on specific lung and heart disorders

Two separate studies published in the current issue of Cell Transplantation (18:8), - now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct - have shown that transplanted human-derived umbilical cord blood (UCB) stem cells transplanted in an animal model had positive therapeutic effects on specific lung and heart disorders the animal models.

24 Nov 2009

Vitamin D: A multi-purpose nutrient for overall health

A string of recent discoveries about the multiple health benefits of vitamin D has renewed interest in this multi-purpose nutrient, increased awareness of the huge numbers of people who are deficient in it, spurred research and even led to an appreciation of it as "nature's antibiotic."

24 Nov 2009

LCA-NY issues 2009 Report Card on Lung Cancer

Today, Lung Cancer Alliance-New York (LCA-NY) issued its 1st Report Card on Lung Cancer. This Report is an assessment of progress being made against lung cancer in the state of New York. LCA-NY is a chapter of Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA), the only national organization dedicated exclusively to patient support and advocacy for people living with or at risk for lung cancer.

23 Nov 2009

UT Southwestern Medical Center among 10 institutions to share $56 million from NIH as part of ICAC

UT Southwestern Medical Center is among 10 institutions selected by the National Institutes of Health to share $56 million over five years as part of the Inner City Asthma Consortium (ICAC).

23 Nov 2009

FDA grants Fast Track designation for ARCA biopharma's Gencaro

ARCA biopharma, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated as a Fast Track development program the investigation of GencaroTM, the Company’s investigational, pharmacologically unique beta-blocker and mild vasodilator, for the reduction of cardiovascular mortality and cardiovascular hospitalizations in a genotype-defined heart failure population.

23 Nov 2009

Medical report showing the devastating impacts of coal on human body released

Physicians for Social Responsibility today released a groundbreaking medical report, "Coal's Assault on Human Health," which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body.

23 Nov 2009

Mortality News and Research

LCA-CA issues 2nd Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer

LCA-GA issues 4th Annual Report Card on Lung Cancer

Parent mentors can help in reducing asthma complications in minority children

Under-five child mortality up 20% in Zimbabwe, new data shows

SBI urges Congress to exclude the USPSTF guidelines from health care legislation

Study finds no significant difference in hospital angioplasty volume and death rates in patients with myocardial infarction

Comparison study finds no significant differences in post-transplant survival rates of NASH and ETOH groups

Reboxetine drug does not alleviate depression, says new study

Also in Global Health news: Home HIV treatment; voluntary testing in Kenya; women/HIV scorecard; Global Fund Zimbabwe grant; contraceptives in Tanzania

Medical advances abound while surgeons report concerns about medical errors

Americans with hepatitis C are at increased risk of developing liver cancer, says NVHR

New MEMS sensor may help clinicians distinguish stable and unstable plaque during cardiac emergencies

MRSA making its way into hospitals, says study

USC University Hospital receives Heart Transplant Excellence Award

Human-derived UCB stem cell transplant has positive therapeutic effects on specific lung and heart disorders

Vitamin D: A multi-purpose nutrient for overall health

LCA-NY issues 2009 Report Card on Lung Cancer

UT Southwestern Medical Center among 10 institutions to share $56 million from NIH as part of ICAC

FDA grants Fast Track designation for ARCA biopharma's Gencaro

Medical report showing the devastating impacts of coal on human body released

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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