Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

AIDS Healthcare Foundation names new chief of medicine: Homayoon Khanlou, M.D.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today announced that it is has named Homayoon Khanlou, M.D. as its Chief of Medicine, U.S. Prior to assuming his new role as Chief, Dr. Khanlou served as AHF's Associate Director of Medicine, Regional Medical Director of Western Region while also holding the posts of AHF's Associate Director of Research and the Medical Director and attending physician for the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley Healthcare Centers. Dr. Khanlou has also served as Chair of the Pharmacy and Therapeutic Committee at AHF.

28 Aug 2007

High stress and genetic risk factor lead to increased memory decline

High stress levels may contribute to memory loss among people at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease.

28 Aug 2007

Alcoholism has a negative effect on where someone lives

Living in neighborhoods characterized by unemployment, poverty, poor family integration and high residential mobility is known to contribute to a greater risk for alcohol problems.

28 Aug 2007

Brain function is even more impaired in cirrhotic than non-cirrhotic alcoholics

Sustained exposure to alcohol can cause scarring and dysfunction of the liver, referred to as cirrhosis.

28 Aug 2007

MSU team designs innovative medical diagnosis system

A Michigan State University engineering design team has developed a medical diagnosis system that would allow people to be inexpensively screened for a variety of medical problems.

24 Aug 2007

Scientist uses novel mass spectrometer to weigh virus particle

With unprecedented sensitivity, Carnegie Mellon University's Mark Bier has characterized large viral particles and bulky von Willebrand factors using a novel mass spectrometer.

24 Aug 2007

South African experts say food no substitute for medical drugs in AIDS and TB

A report by the Academy of Science of South Africa has stated that there is no evidence to support the theory that a healthy diet is a substitute for medical drugs when it comes to treating HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB).

22 Aug 2007

Insulin pens may offer diabetics substantial savings

Diabetics who need to switch from oral medications to insulin could reduce their annual healthcare costs up to $17,000 by using an insulin pen instead of a syringe to deliver their daily dose of medication.

22 Aug 2007

Gastric banding clinical trial for adolescents

Millions of adults have turned to surgery when diet and exercise don't work. Now, with childhood obesity sharply on the rise, researchers are exploring whether surgery may be a viable option for teens.

22 Aug 2007

High-density diffuse optical tomography helps scan infant brains

Researchers hoping to better understand the development of the infant brain have long been stymied by a formidable obstacle: babies just don't want to sit still for brain scans.

22 Aug 2007

IBA agrees to pay $1.25 million to settle lawsuit alleging it infringed Optivus' patents

Optivus Proton Therapy has announced that Belgium-based IBA has agreed to pay $1.25 million to settle a lawsuit alleging IBA infringed on three Optivus proton therapy patents.

21 Aug 2007

Once a year treatment for osteoporosis now available in the U.S.

A once-a-year treatment for the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis has been given approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States.

20 Aug 2007

Most flu shot plans do not address how to vaccinate hard-to-reach populations

Most flu immunization plans in the United States do not address how to vaccinate hard-to-reach populations (HTR)--undocumented immigrants, substance users, the homeless, homebound elderly, and minorities--and this potentially dangerous omission can lead masses of people to become ill during an outbreak of pandemic flu or other contagious disease, according to a new study by the New York Academy of Medicine in the current issue of the Journal of Urban Health.

17 Aug 2007

FDA approves updated labeling for Warfarin (Coumadin)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced the approval of updated labeling for the widely used blood-thinning drug, Coumadin, to explain that people's genetic makeup may influence how they respond to the drug.

17 Aug 2007

Ambulatory oxygen rarely a benefit in COPD patients without resting hypoxemia

Prescribing ambulatory oxygen in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) improves exercise performance, but not the quality of their daily life unless they have resting hypoxemia, according to researchers in Toronto.

17 Aug 2007

Testosterone patch for women

Novel research published in the current issue of The Journal of Sexual Medicine supports the claim that women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder or HSDD (persistent or recurrent deficiency and/or absence of sexual fanatasies/thoughts, and/or desire for, or receptivity to, sexual activity, which causes personal distress) show noted improvement in sexual desire and sexual function following low dose testosterone treatment.

16 Aug 2007

New techniques for measuring blood volume

The July issue of The American Journal of Medical Sciences presents a special symposium on the measurement and clinical implications of blood volume and its measurement.

16 Aug 2007

Rotarix accepted for review by FDA

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review its Biologics License Application (BLA) for Rotarix, an oral candidate vaccine for infants to prevent rotavirus gastroenteritis.

16 Aug 2007

Why is heart disease so prevalent among diabetics?

Heart disease hits people with diabetes twice as often as people without diabetes.

13 Aug 2007

Improving the quality of primary care could prevent 4 million hospitalizations each year

More than 4 million hospitalizations potentially could be prevented each year by improving the quality of primary care, enhancing patients' access to effective treatments, and getting more Americans to adopt healthy behaviors, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

13 Aug 2007