Sleep News and Research

Latest Sleep News and Research

Computerized alerts induce clinicians to prescribe comparable generic equivalents

Simple computerized alerts can help curb the impulse to prescribe unnecessarily expensive, heavily marketed drugs. A study in the August issue of Journal of General Internal Medicine found that when clinicians received computerized alerts, which compared medication brands, they changed 23.3 percent of prescriptions for four heavily marketed sleep medications to comparable generic equivalents.

10 Nov 2009

Geisinger launches RRVI for rural veterans and their families

Veteran's Day has a new meaning for a Geisinger team of clinicians and researchers who recently launched the Reaching Rural Veterans Initiative (RRVI). Utilizing financial grants from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Health Resources and Services Administration, the team is focused on developing a model to improve the way healthcare providers identify and care for combat stress-related injuries in returning veterans and their families.

9 Nov 2009

Public health experts urge Congress not to overlook the needs of Americans with "morbid obesity"

As the House of Representatives and the Senate debate companion bills to make health care more affordable and accessible, a coalition of obesity and public health experts today urged Congress not to overlook the needs of the more than 15 million Americans who suffer from severe obesity and are at the greatest risk for chronic disease and death.

9 Nov 2009

Women with asthma find it harder to sleep and feel more tired during the day than men

Women with asthma are more anxious, find it harder to sleep and are more tired during the day than their male counterparts, but nevertheless tend to be better at following their treatment, reveals a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg in close collaboration with Sahlgrenska University Hospital.

9 Nov 2009

NHLBI stops enrollment in study comparing resuscitation strategies

Enrollment has ended early in a large, multicenter clinical trial comparing two distinct resuscitation strategies delivered by emergency medical service (EMS) providers to increase blood flow during cardiac arrest. The study's independent monitoring board and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the lead sponsor of the study, stopped enrollment based on preliminary data suggesting that neither strategy significantly improved survival.

7 Nov 2009

'Hormone of darkness' melatonin regulates sleep effectively

Melatonin, a natural hormone segregated by the own human body, is an excellent sleep regulator expected to replace somniferous, which are much more aggressive, to correct the sleep/wakefulness pace when human biological clock becomes altered.

6 Nov 2009

New breast reconstruction surgery for women

Since her teens, Jennifer Jablon had watched family members deal with breast cancer during their 40s, 50s, and 60s. She wondered whether it would be her fate too.

6 Nov 2009

USPTO issues Notice of Allowance to NovaDel Pharma

NovaDel Pharma Inc., today announced that it received a Notice of Allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for claims under U.S. Patent Application No. 10/671,715, entitled “Buccal, Polar and Non-polar Spray Containing Zolpidem,” which covers a method of treating insomnia by administering zolpidem to humans utilizing NovaMist™ Oral Spray spray technology.

6 Nov 2009

Prescription drug abuse among teens: NCPIE, SAMHSA launches campaign

The National Council on Patient Information and Education (NCPIE), along with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and representatives from 15 nationally recognized prevention, health professional and child advocacy organizations, are launching Maximizing Your Role as a Teen Influencer: What You Can Do to Help Prevent Teen Prescription Drug Abuse.

6 Nov 2009

First-quarter fiscal 2010 results announced by Continucare

Continucare Corporation today reported financial results for its first quarter of fiscal 2010.

5 Nov 2009

Asthma in 9/11 responders is two times greater than general US population

Responders to the 2001 World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attacks, who were exposed to caustic dust and toxic pollutants following the 9/11 disaster, suffer from asthma at a rate more than twice that of the general US population, according to new research presented at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP).

5 Nov 2009

CHANTIX/CHAMPIX raises hope for quitting smoking

New study results showed that 42.3 percent of smokers with mild-to-moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who took CHANTIX/CHAMPIX® (varenicline) were able to quit smoking and remain abstinent during the last four weeks of treatment (weeks 9-12) compared with 8.8 percent of those given placebo (p<0.0001). These findings were presented by investigators at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP).

5 Nov 2009

Surgery may not be the best option for children with obstructive sleep apnea

For children with obstructive sleep apnea, standard care often includes a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. But researchers at Saint Louis University say further research is needed to determine if surgery is the best option for these patients.

5 Nov 2009

Statins may have negative effects on some cardiac patients, says study

Although statins are widely used to prevent heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular disorders, new research shows that the class of drugs may actually have negative effects on some cardiac patients. A new study presented at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), found that statins have beneficial effects on patients with systolic heart failure (SHF), but those with diastolic heart failure (DHF) experienced the opposite effect, including increased dyspnea, fatigue, and decreased exercise tolerance.

4 Nov 2009

USPTO issues Notice of Allowance for Transcept Pharmaceuticals' Intermezzo

Transcept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for claims under U.S. patent application no. 11/833,323, which covers the use of Intermezzo® (zolpidem tartrate sublingual tablet), the lead Transcept product candidate. Once issued, this patent will expire in February 2025.

4 Nov 2009

iPhone application for analyzing sleep apnea developed

Remote Analysis Ltd, a telemedicine services provider, has in cooperation with Elias Pietilä’s Qvik Ltd (Wooden Labyrinth, for example) developed an iPhone application for recording and analyzing snoring and sleep apnea. The Sleep Aid –application is now available on the iPhone App Store for € 2,39.

4 Nov 2009

Tinnitus patients need more support and advice on healthcare options

As many as one in seven people will experience tinnitus, or ringing in their ears, at some time of their life, but not enough is being done to support patients who experience this distressing condition, according to an extensive research review in the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Nursing.

4 Nov 2009

Hispanics are more likely to report increase in stress levels than whites or blacks: APA survey

Stress has a greater impact on young people than parents believe and Hispanics are more likely than whites or blacks to report an increase in stress levels over the last year, according to a new national survey released today by the American Psychological Association (APA).

4 Nov 2009

ASTI's 'Tell-a-Friend program' for solving sleep-related problems

Adaptive Sound Technologies, Inc. (ASTI) announced today that it will pay cash rewards to ASTI customers who refer friends that in turn buy an Ecotones or Ecotones Duet directly from ASTI. The new "Tell-a-Friend" program rewards customers for doing what they have been doing since the first Ecotones was introduced late last year: letting friends in on the secret to better sleep.

4 Nov 2009

Stress related to school pressure and family finances has greater impact on young people

Stress related to school pressure and family finances has a greater impact on young people than parents believe, according to a new national survey released today by the American Psychological Association (APA).

4 Nov 2009