Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Thousands with type 2 diabetes at risk bacause they do not take their drugs

According to Diabetes UK, in excess of 650,000 people with obesity-related diabetes do not take their drugs and the charity says they are putting themselves at risk of developing serious health problems such as stroke and blindness.

27 May 2008

FDA will monitor medical records of Medicare beneficiaries to identify potential prescription drug, medical device safety problems

HHS on Thursday announced the creation of a new program that will allow FDA, state agencies and academic researchers to use medical record data to ensure drugs and medical devices are safe for consumers after they enter the market, the Washington Post reports (Stein, Washington Post, 5/23).

25 May 2008

Massachusetts Medical Society sues group insurance commission over physician rankings

The Massachusetts Medical Society on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the state's Group Insurance Commission, which purchases health insurance for most state employees and retirees, over its physician ranking system, the AP/Boston Herald reports (AP/Boston Herald, 5/21).

25 May 2008

The emerging role of infection in Alzheimer’s

A number of chronic diseases are in fact caused by one or more infectious agents. For example, stomach ulcers are caused by Helicobacter pylori, chronic lung disease in newborns and chronic asthma in adults are both caused by Mycoplasmas and Chlamydia pneumonia, while some other pathogens have been associated with atherosclerosis. The realization that pathogens can produce slowly progressive chronic diseases has opened new lines of research into Alzheimer's disease.

25 May 2008

$50 billion needed for global AIDS control

As Congress considers the renewal of PEPFAR (the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), the successful US global AIDS program, over the coming weeks, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) President Michael Weinstein offers the following commentary regarding what is needed in the global fight against HIV/AIDS.

25 May 2008

New efforts to improve medical products for patient safety

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today announced efforts underway at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that will complement each other to improve patient safety and the quality of medical care.

22 May 2008

Digital Healthcare appointed to major NHS Framework contract

NHS Connecting for Health, on behalf of the NHS, has appointed Digital Healthcare to the NHS Additional Supply Capability & Capacity (ASCC) Framework following open competition bids to provide additional capacity and capability in the supply of IT products and services to the NHS.

21 May 2008

New biological classification of ovarian cancer

A thesis from The Sahlgrenska Academy in Sweden shows that it might be possible to predict with great probability which women with ovarian cancer will survive the disease before painful treatment with antineoplastic agents. A better prognosis would considerably improve the quality of life of patients since the treatment could be made more effective and thereby result in fewer side effects.

21 May 2008

New clinical research and imaging centre for Bristol

The University and United Bristol Healthcare Trust (UBHT) are joining forces to establish a new state-of-the-art Clinical Research and Imaging Centre (CRIC) at St Michael's Hospital on St Michael's Hill

21 May 2008

Michael Parkinson becomes a 'dignity' ambassador for the elderly

An initiative by the British Government to encourage more respect for older people in care has been given added impact by the recruitment of TV talk show host Sir Michael Parkinson as a "dignity ambassador".

21 May 2008

Old age is the new middle age - Health Secretary Alan Johnson says

Health Secretary Alan Johnson today called on the NHS to rise to the challenge of providing more and better preventative care for older people.

21 May 2008

Mayo Clinic research shows U.S. intensive care units' prevention of pneumonia in critically-ill generally strong; identifies area of improvement

Mayo Clinic researchers found that the frequency with which critically-ill patients developed ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is approximately the same at a multidisciplinary medical center such as Mayo Clinic compared to the average VAP-risk rate for 211 hospitals in the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN).

20 May 2008

Rifampin provides new way to treat latent tuberculosis

A new way to treat patients with latent tuberculosis (TB), who are infected with TB but without symptoms, can effectively treat it in less than half the time and at a lower cost than the current standard treatment, according to researchers who conducted a multi-center, randomized controlled trial. The results will be presented at the American Thoracic Society's 2008 International Conference in Toronto on Tuesday, May 20.

20 May 2008

Erection problems may signal serious heart disease

Erectile dysfunction is always a matter of the heart, but new research shows that more than romance is at stake. Two new studies of men with type 2 diabetes found that erectile dysfunction (ED) was a powerful early warning sign for serious heart disease, including heart attack and death.

19 May 2008

Blood pressure confusion for diabetics

For people with diabetes, high blood pressure poses a special threat, multiplying their risk of heart attacks, strokes and kidney problems.

19 May 2008

Average 2008 employee out-of-pocket costs for family health care to increase 10.5%, according to Milliman Index

The cost of health care for the average U.S. family with employer-sponsored health coverage will increase 7.6% this year, due in part to rising prescription drug prices, according to a Milliman study released on Wednesday, Dow Jones reports.

19 May 2008

Coalition proposes using Medicaid, SCHIP funds to purchase private coverage for uninsured

Officials from the Healthcare Leadership Council, a coalition of health insurers, academics, hospitals and other health care groups, proposed using Medicaid and SCHIP funds to purchase private coverage for uninsured U.S. residents, CQ HealthBeat reports.

19 May 2008

NYT examines limited options for disabled children who reach age 18

The New York Times on Wednesday examined how as "medical advances have allowed patients who might have died as children to survive into adulthood, the patients are falling into a void in a health care system that has yet to develop institutions for the young and 'medically fragile.'"

19 May 2008

Cancer Research UK and AstraZeneca announce innovative deal for promising anti-cancer compound

Cancer Research UK and Cancer Research Technology (CRT) - the charity's development and commercialisation arm - today announced an innovative new arrangement to progress into clinical development a potential anti-cancer compound from AstraZeneca.

19 May 2008

Despondent nurse practitioners - disabling postmodern punishment

The essence of postmodernism theme is that of an epochal shift, discontinuity, or rupture with modernity, bringing new social conditions and sociological principles with it (Baudrillard, 1988). Postmodernism views that the authority and status of the medical professionals does not exist anymore in the area of health care consistent with the postmodern message about the deconstruction of traditional centers of postindustrial authority (Cockerham et.al, 1997).

19 May 2008