Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Size of hippocampus may be linked to early dementia

The size of the part of the brain known as the hippocampus may be linked to future dementia, reveals a thesis from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

16 Nov 2010

New 3M Littmann auscultation device can transfer digitally captured patient sounds

With new technology announced today by 3M, a doctor in Minnesota can in real-time detect a murmur in the heart of a child in rural Arizona. Through the new 3M Littmann Scope-to-Scope Tele-Auscultation System, clinicians can transfer digitally captured patient sounds in real-time, from one stethoscope to another, no matter the distance.

16 Nov 2010

Hospira launches two-gram vial of gemcitabine hydrochloride for injection

Hospira, Inc., the world leader in generic injectable pharmaceuticals, today announced it has launched a two-gram vial of gemcitabine hydrochloride for injection.

16 Nov 2010

National campaign to highlight significance of antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic resistance is one of the world's most pressing public health threats. To bring attention to this increasing problem, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other government partners will observe its third annual Get Smart About Antibiotics Week on Nov. 15-21, 2010.

16 Nov 2010

BTE Technologies acquires patented recumbent strength-training system, Eccentron

BTE Technologies, a leading global innovator in objective evaluation and rehabilitation equipment for physical therapy, occupational therapy, and sports medicine, announces its acquisition of Eccentron™ - a patented recumbent strength-training system that works the muscles eccentrically for rapid strength gains, explosive muscle power, and unparalleled benefits for joint stability and fall prevention - all with minimal strain on the cardiovascular system.

16 Nov 2010

KINARM Assessment Station to help healthcare workers assess patients suffering from brain injuries

A Queen's University neuroscientist is launching a medical tool at the world's largest neuroscience conference in San Diego on Monday, Nov. 15.

16 Nov 2010

Reducing salt intake can enhance health of young adults in future: Research

Cutting back on salt in teenagers' diets by as little as one-half teaspoon, or three grams, a day, could reduce the number of young adults with high blood pressure by 44 to 63 percent, according to new research presented Sunday, Nov. 14 at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2010 meeting in Chicago.

16 Nov 2010

Universal Health Services acquires Psychiatric Solutions

Universal Health Services, Inc. announced today that it has completed its previously announced acquisition of Psychiatric Solutions, Inc.

16 Nov 2010

Leaders speak at Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health conference

Education for women is the most important factor for positively influencing the health of women and children, Indian President Pratibha Patil said on Saturday at a meeting in New Delhi of The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), IANS/Sify News reports. "Education is a powerful driver of health. The relationship between poverty, lack of education and limited access to health services, is well recognised," Patil said at the start of the two-day conference (11/13).

16 Nov 2010

New i-phone application provides instant access to HIV drug interactions

The University of Liverpool has launched an i-phone application, HIV iChart,that provides healthcare professionals and HIV patients with instant and easy access to information about drug interactions.

16 Nov 2010

Medicare cuts looming for doctors; Debt panel's health suggestions questioned

"The scheduled cuts [to doctors' reimbursements from Medicare] -- the result of a failed system set up years ago to control costs -- have raised alarms that real damage to Medicare could result if the lame-duck Congress winds up in a partisan standoff and fails to act by Dec. 1. That's when an initial 23 percent reduction would hit. ... Doctors have muddled through with temporary reprieves for years. ... there's no agreement among lawmakers and the Obama administration on how long a reprieve to grant or whether the cost -- about $1 billion per month -- should be added to the deficit or paid for with spending reductions elsewhere" (Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/13).

16 Nov 2010

Texas Republicans talk tough about dropping Medicaid; other states consider steep cuts

As the Medicaid program continues to consume more of states' budgets each year, Republican lawmakers and the just-reelected GOP governor, Rick Perry have an idea: Opting-out of the program altogether, the Houston Chronicle reports.

16 Nov 2010

Republicans increase challenges to health law, repeal rhetoric

With their eyes on the 2012 election, Republicans are preparing to maximize conflict with Democrats over healthcare in the new Congress and minimize potential compromises, according to GOP strategists, lawmakers and lobbyists. That strategy is setting the stage for a bitter stalemate on Capitol Hill over the next two years ... Republican leaders and strategists think a renewed battle over healthcare will help the party expand its electoral gains and drive President Obama from the White House.

16 Nov 2010

HHS seeking to publish new health insurance data

The Department of Health and Human Services is working on regulations that would allow it to publish additional in-depth health insurance data, including the number of people enrolled in each insurance plan.

16 Nov 2010

BIDMC, IPFnet to conduct clinical trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) will join the Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Clinical Research Network (IPFnet), a clinical research network sponsored by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to conduct randomized clinical trials to evaluate new and existing medications for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The network is made up of healthcare institutions from around the United States.

16 Nov 2010

Physician-owned hospitals gear up to fight health law restrictions

Doctors are challenging provisions of the new health law that seemed to spell the demise of physician-owned specialty hospitals, a fast-growing phenomenon in states such as Texas where hospital growth is largely unregulated.

15 Nov 2010

National health disparities conference wraps up with creative approaches, expectations for new healthcare reform

Focusing on the disparities in the quality of health care across demographic groups, the Fourth Annual National Conference on Health Disparities brought together White House officials and national and local healthcare executives to address a series of key questions about non-medical determinants of health quality and to recommend strategies to bring more equitable healthcare access to the underserved. The determinants discussed at the four-day-long conference, which began November 10, 2010 and concluded Saturday, November 13, 2010, included education levels, health literacy, poverty, public safety, community design, access to care, environmental quality and personal, government and corporate responsibility.

15 Nov 2010

MEDecision earns NCQA Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set Software Certification

MEDecision, Inc., a leading provider of collaborative healthcare management solutions, has earned the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) Software Certification for its programs that identify "care opportunities."

15 Nov 2010

BioTime third quarter total revenues increase 82% to $815,284

BioTime, Inc. today reported financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2010 and provided an update on recent corporate developments.

15 Nov 2010

MedClean enters distribution agreement with SunBelt

MedClean Technologies, the leading provider of on-site technology for the treatment and disposal of medical waste and the destruction of confidential documents and related media, today announced it has signed a distribution agreement with SunBelt Medical Services, Inc. With this agreement, MedClean now has 11 regional distributors covering 41 states, one national partner targeting the Veteran's Administration, and one international partner covering Canada.

15 Nov 2010