Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

JAMA reports HIV spike among gay men; AHF says routine testing, effective prevention needed

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), today expressed alarm over a Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) article that reported a startling 13% increase in HIV/AIDS cases among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States over the past four years.

27 Nov 2007

Endocrine Society urges Congress to protect patient access to dual X-ray absorptiometry

The Endocrine Society strongly urges Congress to protect patient access to DXA (dual X-ray absorptiometry) - the leading diagnostic tool for the early detection and management of osteoporosis.

27 Nov 2007

Unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women

The past decade has seen an unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

27 Nov 2007

Screening for dementia red flags in primary care: Is it time?

Primary care physicians should focus on "dementia red flags" rather than routinely screen individuals with no dementia symptoms just because they've reached a certain age, according to Malaz Boustani, M.D., MPH, of the Indiana University School of Medicine and the Regenstrief Institute, Inc. and colleagues from the University of Kent and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom in a commentary published in the Nov. 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

27 Nov 2007

Dirty ambulances may be a culprit in spread of superbugs

The debate in the UK over the spread of so-called superbugs such as MRSA has taken a nasty turn with the national union for ambulance staff saying dirty ambulances are the culprits.

27 Nov 2007

Many people mistrust Britain's NHS even though it is improving, research shows

Research carried out by Professor Peter Taylor-Gooby and Dr Andrew Wallace at the Department of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, University of Kent, shows that many people mistrust the NHS even though spending has increased hugely, waiting lists have fallen rapidly and death rates in the priority areas (heart disease and cancer) have improved sharply.

27 Nov 2007

Smoking and depression often go hand-in-hand for new mothers

Smoking and depression often go hand-in-hand for new mothers, according to a study in the November 2007 issue of Preventive Medicine by Temple University researcher Dr. Robert Whitaker.

27 Nov 2007

Low levels of "good" cholesterol make it difficult to recover from stroke

People are at an increased risk of memory problems and greater disability after stroke if they have low levels of “good” cholesterol and high levels of homocysteine, an amino acid acquired mostly from eating meat.

27 Nov 2007

Communication key to tackling cardiovascular disease

Despite the increasing evidence that managing high cholesterol reduces cardiovascular events, many people do not achieve recommended lipid levels.

27 Nov 2007

GlaxoSmithKline obtains U.S. OTC marketing rights to MEVACOR (lovastatin) from Merck

GlaxoSmithKline, Philadelphia, PA, USA (GSK) and Merck & Co., Inc., Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA (Merck), announced today that they have entered into an agreement for over-the-counter (OTC) marketing rights for MEVACOR (lovastatin).

27 Nov 2007

Dirty ambulances could help the spread of MRSA

Dirty ambulances could help the spread of MRSA and other superbugs, UNISON warned.

27 Nov 2007

Electronic patient tracking technologies versus manual whiteboards

Proper design of computational tools is critical if they are to be used with success in patient-care settings, particularly in hospital emergency rooms, a field study conducted by researchers at the University at Buffalo and other institutions recently revealed.

27 Nov 2007

Cultural differences in understanding of mammography

Black and Hispanic women have a different understanding of screening mammography compared with that of Caucasian women, according to the findings of a Boston University Medical Center survey presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

27 Nov 2007

India to provide 2nd-line AIDS treatment to 5,000 patients, bows to activists' pressure

Bowing to an increasing need for more effective AIDS treatments in India and recent high-profile public advocacy from a broad coalition of AIDS activists, India's National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) and Health Minister A. Ramadoss will announce the rollout of lifesaving second-line antiretroviral treatment (ART) in India in a ceremony on World AIDS Day, Saturday December, 1st .

22 Nov 2007

New model to predict the spread of emerging diseases

A new model to predict the spread of emerging diseases has been developed by researchers in the US, Italy, and France.

21 Nov 2007

FDA approves formulations of Zyrtec (cetirizine HCl) for nonprescription use

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved tablet, chewable tablet, and syrup formulations of Zyrtec (cetirizine HCl) for nonprescription use.

21 Nov 2007

The science of cancer health disparities in racial/ethnic minorities and the medically underserved

The latest biological, clinical and social research behind how cancer affects different racial and ethnic groups will be the focus of the first American Association for Cancer Research conference on the topic, entitled "The Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved."

21 Nov 2007

Rapid response teams in children's hospitals reduce risk of death, cardiac arrests

A children's hospital that added a rapid response medical team for patients not in the intensive care unit saw an 18 percent decrease in the death rate, and about a 70 percent decline in the rate of cardiac and respiratory arrests, according to a study in the November 21 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

21 Nov 2007

National UK patient database a non-starter with doctors

A scheme by the British government to put the medical records of 50 million National Health (NHS) patients on a national electronic database, is in danger of being boycotted by as many as two-thirds of family doctors.

20 Nov 2007