Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

AstraZeneca, FibroGen partner to develop, commercialize anemia drug candidate FG-4592

AstraZeneca and FibroGen today announced that they have entered into a strategic collaboration to develop and commercialize FG-4592, a first-in-class oral compound in late stage development for the treatment of anemia associated with chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease.

31 Jul 2013

Study reveals breast reduction surgery can improve health and quality of life

Breast reduction surgery produces measurable improvements in several important areas of health and quality of life, reports a study in the August issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery-, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

31 Jul 2013

FibroGen, Astellas initiate Phase 2 study of ASP1517/FG-4592 for treatment of anemia linked with CKD

Astellas Pharma Inc. (Tokyo:4503) (Astellas) and FibroGen, Inc. (FibroGen) announced today the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical study in Japan of ASP1517/FG-4592 for treatment of anemia associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in patients on dialysis.

31 Jul 2013

Researchers create computational model to track VRE spread among hospitals

A moderate increase in vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) at one hospital can lead to a nearly 3 percent increase in VRE in every other hospital in that county, according to a study in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

31 Jul 2013

Viewpoints: Rove warns against government shutdown; 'despicable' GOP tactics; Medicare database a tool to control costs

President Obama would love nothing more than Republicans' providing him a bully pulpit and big stick with which he can beat them daily through the 2014 midterm elections. That's what the Republicans would give Mr. Obama if they shut down the government by trying to defund Obamacare in the Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the federal government after October 1. That's because the Continuing Resolution only affects discretionary spending. Virtually all of Obamacare costs are mandatory spending, unaffected by what's in the CR (Karl Rove, 7/26).

30 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 30, 2013

Today's headlines include a USA Today story reporting that personal health care costs rose in the 12 months ending in May at the slowest rate in the last 50 years -- a finding that makes the White House happy.

30 Jul 2013

Federal appeals court rejects company's contraception coverage challenge

The court's divided decision makes it more likely the Supreme Court will have to decide if companies making a secular product have to provide contraception coverage to their employees -- a major tenet of the 2010 health care law.

30 Jul 2013

New CardioChek Plus analyzer delivers rapid test results for lipids and glucose

Polymer Technology Systems, Inc. (PTS, Inc.), the U.S.-based manufacturer of the CardioChek family of point-of-care diagnostic products, introduced the CardioChek Plus analyzer today at the annual American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) in Houston.

30 Jul 2013

Healthcare professionals are urged to counsel patients on healthy sex life after stroke

A new statement from American and European cardiology experts advises heart patients and their partners to receive individually tailored counseling from healthcare professionals about resuming sexual activity.

30 Jul 2013

Patient-reported outcomes may lead to new insights for improving cataract care

Cataract surgery can lead to good results from a clinical standpoint yet have poor outcomes from the patient's point of view, reports a study, "Analyzing Patient-Reported Outcomes to Improve Cataract Care", appearing in the August issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry.

30 Jul 2013

Research: Cancer and serious illnesses leave traces of their presence in patients' saliva

Current research at Malmö University's Faculty of Odontology in Sweden shows that cancer and other serious illnesses leave traces of their presence in patients' saliva. In the future, it may be possible to detect serious illnesses in their early stages with the help of a simple saliva test.

30 Jul 2013

Effort to defund health law complicates budget talks

The Wall Street Journal reports that Obama administration officials are stepping up meetings with Senate Republicans in hopes of avoiding a deadline clash over federal spending this fall. One of the flashpoints is the Republican demand to defund Obamacare as part of any deal.

30 Jul 2013

Selling of Obamacare begins in earnest

President Barack Obama tells the New York Times that his plan to build support for the health law is simply to implement it. Meanwhile, high level aides and supporters meet to craft a new message, while volunteers for the nonprofit Enroll America fan out across the country to tell the uninsured about new coverage options.

30 Jul 2013

State highlights: Mass. insurers back out of disabled adults experiment

Massachusetts health insurers' reluctance to join a national experiment to improve care for disabled lower-income adults has forced the state to scale back the program even before it starts. Massachusetts is among the first states to roll out the national program, but half the insurers that were expected to participate backed out because they feared losing money. That will mean fewer options for patients when enrollment opens for the voluntary "One Care" program in October (Conaboy, 7/29).

30 Jul 2013

Maryland regulators approve premium rates much lower than insurers sought

The Maryland insurance commissioner Therese M. Goldsmith approved premium increases Friday for nine insurance companies who applied to sell plans to individuals through a state exchange, which was established by the health law.

30 Jul 2013

Houston Methodist, Istanbul University Hospitals to collaborate on educational projects

Houston Methodist Global Health Care Services, the global subsidiary of Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, USA, and Istanbul University Hospitals - General Directorate in Istanbul, Turkey, have signed a collaboration agreement in the areas of education and training.

30 Jul 2013

Hepatitis C (HCV) testing for baby boomers: an interview with Dr. Donald Jensen, Director, Center for Liver Diseases, University of Chicago

The USPSTF agreed with the CDC that since most patients (75%) who are currently infected with hepatitis C were born between 1945 - 1965, and since risk-based screening has not been successful in identifying these individuals, that a one time age-based hepatitis C blood test was necessary.

29 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 29, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about the White House's strategy for building support for the health law.

29 Jul 2013

Saudi and UK scientists provide detailed picture of MERS coronavirus

Saudi and UK scientists provide the most detailed picture yet of the clinical and laboratory characteristics of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, revealing a wide range of clinical symptoms and an extremely high death rate among patients with co-existing medical conditions.

29 Jul 2013

Trovagene adopts RainDance's RainDrop digital PCR system for eventual use in CLIA laboratory

Trovagene, Inc. (NASDAQ: TROV) and RainDance Technologies announced today that Trovagene has adopted RainDance's RainDropTM Digital PCR System for research and development, and for eventual use in the Trovagene CLIA laboratory.

29 Jul 2013