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New organ donation rules under consideration

Surgeons retrieving organs for transplant just after a donor's heart stops beating would no longer have to wait at least two minutes to be sure the heart doesn't spontaneously start beating again under new rules being considered by the group that coordinates organ allocation in the United States.

21 Sep 2011

Pakistan officials move to contain dengue epidemic that has infected thousands

"On top of a raging insurgency and devastating seasonal floods, Pakistan is reeling from a particularly acute outbreak of dengue fever that has left local authorities scrambling to contain the epidemic" and has put a strain on the health care system, the Washington Post reports, adding that the disease "has already infected thousands across the country and killed as many as two dozen people."

21 Sep 2011

UAB surgeons perform second toe-to-thumb transplant

Cary Ramey has the word Carpe tattooed on the underside of his right wrist and Diem tattooed on the left. He loves extreme sports, especially mountain biking and "rock climbing without the ropes."

21 Sep 2011

World leaders unanimously approve NCD political declaration

World leaders attending the first-ever U.N. High-level Meeting on Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) kicked off the summit on Monday by "unanimously approving a 'political declaration' meant to stem a rising tide of NCDs, now the world's leading killer," CNN reports.

21 Sep 2011

AIDS 2012 CCC selects Turning The Tide Together as theme for XIX international conference

The AIDS 2012 Conference Coordinating Committee (CCC) have selected Turning The Tide Together as the theme for the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012), which will be held in Washington, D.C. from 22 - 27 July 2012.

21 Sep 2011

Berson UV used to treat hospital wastewater prior to discharge

Berson’s medium pressure UV systems are being used in a trial in the Netherlands to treat hospital wastewater prior to discharge. In the trial, UV is applied in combination with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to generate OH- radicals in a so-called “Advanced Oxidation Process” (AOP). The very reactive OH- radicals attack the pharmaceutical residues in the wastewater, breaking them down into H2O, CO2 and harmless metabolites.

21 Sep 2011

Global health experts discuss curbing rise of NCDs at Washington Post live event

The Washington Post reports on an event hosted last week by Washington Post Live, the division of the newspaper that organizes forums and debates, which brought together a number of attendees of the U.N. summit on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) wrapping up today in New York, as well as other key thinkers on global health, to discuss curbing the rise of NCDs.

21 Sep 2011

Aetna supports mHealth diabetes initiative in India

Aetna, a leading global diversified health care benefits company, announced that it is participating in a diabetes prevention program in India led by non-profit Arogya World that strives to reach one million consumers via mobile text messages.

21 Sep 2011

Polio in Pakistan prompts India to implement border crossing vaccination campaign

Officials in Pakistan on Monday "announced targeted, three-day anti-polio campaigns in affected areas, which include Karachi and districts in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas," the Wall Street Journal's "India Real Time" blog reports.

21 Sep 2011

Tips for recognizing stroke symptoms

Drs. Savita Khanna and Cameron Rink, both assistant professors of surgery in the College of Medicine at The Ohio State University Medical Center are part of a research team that has been working for more than a decade to identify ways to reduce brain injury during stroke.

21 Sep 2011

Obama budget plan includes $320 billion in Medicare, Medicaid cuts over 10 years

The squeeze will be felt by future Medicare recipients, in reduced payments to drug companies and hospitals, and with higher costs to states. And, though many parts of the health sector are grumbling about the proposal, some advocates say the president's vision is less painful than some of the ideas that have recently been on the table.

21 Sep 2011

Poor neighborhoods linked to higher risk of out-of-hospital cardiac deaths

People living in poor neighborhoods are at higher risk of dying of heart disease outside a hospital than are people who live in wealthier neighborhoods, research suggests.

21 Sep 2011

Major health insurers agree to supply health claims data to new academic institute

This agreement, which The New York Times described as "unusual," will create a database for research on health care costs and utilization, according to The Wall Street Journal.

21 Sep 2011

UIC wins HRSA-MCHB grant to expand disabilities training program

A successful University of Illinois at Chicago-based interdisciplinary effort to train leaders in programs that help children with developmental disabilities and autism has won a $3.3 million five-year grant from the Department of Health and Human Services' Health Resources and Services Administration-Maternal and Child Health Bureau.

21 Sep 2011

Viewpoints: Mixing politics and deficit cutting; transparency in health care; doctors' salaries

On the spending side, the president's plan takes a sensible approach toward saving money in Medicare and Medicaid. More than 90 percent of the $248 billion in Medicare cuts over 10 years would come from reducing payments to drug companies and health care providers that are unnecessarily high.

21 Sep 2011

Survey confirms low BPA exposure levels in food packaging

Today's supermarket survey of a handful of canned food products by the Breast Cancer Fund offers further confirmation that only a very small amount of bisphenol A (BPA) is found in food packaging, and those levels are well within the safety recommendations of government agencies.

21 Sep 2011

Study examines long-term use of Standard Days Method among women

A simple-to-use, fertility-awareness based method of family planning developed by researchers from the Institute for Reproductive Health at Georgetown University Medical Center so effectively meets the needs of users that they continue to rely on it for years.

21 Sep 2011

Politics, posturing swirl around Obama plan

President Barack Obama made clear that any cuts to entitlement programs like Medicare and Medicaid had to be accompanied by increased taxes for wealthy people and corporations. Many news outlets are analyzing the impact of the line in the sand he drew on the issues.

21 Sep 2011

Financial and political commitments to improve health of women and children

In only one year, more than 100 countries, foundations, multilateral organizations, the UN, the private sector, and academic and professional associations have made unprecedented financial and political commitments to greatly improve the health of women and children.

21 Sep 2011

Tips for parents to keep their family physically fit and healthy

Pick up any newspaper, magazine or online publication and news about obesity is everywhere. While some parents feel helpless in the fight to keep their family physically fit and healthy, other parents are taking action. Studies show that exercising as a family not only promotes good health but also helps strengthen the emotional bonds between family members.

21 Sep 2011