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New methods show signs of promise for successful IVF treatments

The success rate of in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures still remains relatively low, at only around 30%. The high emotional, health and financial costs associated with having to undergo the procedure multiple times has driven the need to develop more efficient methods of assessing the development potential of embryos to ensure that only those with the highest potential are selected for IVF treatment.

13 Jun 2012

Gender disparity in compensation continue to exist in academic medicine

A survey of mid-career academic physician researchers finds that gender differences in salary exist, even after adjustment for differences in specialty, institutional characteristics, academic productivity, academic rank, work hours, and other factors, according to a study in the June 13 issue of JAMA.

13 Jun 2012

If health continues to wane on G8 agenda, a serious void will be left

In this post in the Global Health Governance blog, Jenilee Guebert, director of research for the global health diplomacy program and G8 research group at the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs, writes that, "for the second year in a row, the amount of attention devoted to global health" at the annual G8 summit, which took place at Camp David in Maryland in May, has declined.

13 Jun 2012

Study shows increase in medical imaging in health maintenance organization systems

Concern about overexposure to radiation due to excessive use of medical imaging has come to the fore in recent years. Now, a study led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Group Health Research Institute, shows that medical imaging is increasing even in health maintenance organization systems (HMOs), which don't have a financial incentive to conduct them.

13 Jun 2012

The RUC and the cost of health care

An investigation into the hidden relationship between the American Medical Association and Medicare and how it determines the cost of health care.

13 Jun 2012

Scientists decipher and block a molecular message that prompts unbridled cellular growth

What's good news in one setting might spell disaster in another. In cancer for instance, when a certain cell is commanded to grow and divide without restraint, it's a welcome message for the cell itself but a tragedy for the person who harbors this cell in his or her body. Weizmann Institute scientists have managed to decipher and block one type of molecular message that prompts unbridled cellular growth.

13 Jun 2012

Ruling to strike health care law could hurt Romney campaign

Mitt Romney is saying that overturning the health law is the "right thing" to do, but Politico explores whether he might lose a key rallying point for conservative voters if that were to happen.

13 Jun 2012

USPTO issues patent to Ivera Medical’s Curos disinfecting port protector technology

Ivera Medical Corporation announced today that the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) will issue a new continuation patent for its innovative Curos disinfecting port protector technology on June 26, 2012. U.S. Patent No. 8,206,514 will cover key aspects of disinfecting caps designed to be used with luer-activated IV valves to disinfect and clean the IV port.

13 Jun 2012

Medicaid still taking toll on state budgets

Even as state revenues are showing signs of recovering, health costs remain a budget drain, according to a new report.

13 Jun 2012

Liposuction effective in treating submental lymphedema in patients with head and neck cancer

Liposuction is a novel and minimally invasive procedure for treating persistent submental lymphedema in patients with previous head and neck cancer, according to an article published in the June 2012 issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

13 Jun 2012

Millions suffer chronic food shortages in North Korea, U.N. report says

"Millions of North Koreans suffer chronic food shortages and dire health care ..., and there are no immediate signs of reforms to spur economic growth, the United Nations says" in a report released Thursday, Agence France-Presse reports.

13 Jun 2012

New combination therapy can help improve cure rates for neuroblastoma

An experimental treatment that combines intense chemotherapy with a radioactive isotope linked to synthesized neurotransmitter is being tested in newly diagnosed cases of high-risk neuroblastoma - a deadly, hard-to-cure childhood cancer.

13 Jun 2012

Relief groups appeal for aid to tackle worsening food crisis in West Africa

"Relief groups are stepping up their appeals for aid to tackle the worsening food crisis in West Africa, where more than 18 million people face hunger," the Guardian reports. "Relief agencies have been sounding the alarm for months about the effects of drought on the Sahel -- a region stretching from the Atlantic to the Red Sea," the newspaper writes.

13 Jun 2012

Researchers identify prognostic marker in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Researchers have identified a prognostic marker in the most common form of chronic leukemia that can help to distinguish which patients should start treatment quickly from those who can safely delay treatment, perhaps for years.

13 Jun 2012

Lawmakers push to protect health care programs in Calif. budget plan

Lawmakers set to move a budget through the California legislature are pushing back against a plan by Gov. Jerry Brown to cut health care benefits -- notably for in-home care, kids, the elderly and the disabled.

13 Jun 2012

Investigators identify alcohol prep pads contaminated with Bacillus cereus bacteria

A small cluster of unusual illnesses at a Colorado children's hospital prompted an investigation that swiftly identified alcohol prep pads contaminated with Bacillus cereus bacteria, according to a report in the July issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

13 Jun 2012

Long-lasting weekly fertility injections work as well as daily

New long-lasting weekly injections of fertility hormones are as safe and effective as standard daily injections, according to Cochrane researchers. The researchers compared weekly and daily hormone injections in a Cochrane systematic review and found no difference in pregnancies or serious side effects between the two regimens.

13 Jun 2012

Controlled blood sugar in diabetes can prevent painful nerves: but at what cost?

Aggressive control of blood sugar levels in diabetes can help to prevent a painful condition affecting patients’ nerves, according to a new systematic review in The Cochrane Library. However, the review suggests that optimal target levels need to be established to prevent serious complications.

13 Jun 2012

Obama administration warns about what's at stake in health law decision

Federal officials and health policy experts forecast what the future might hold if the Supreme Court overturns, or upholds the health law. Also, surveys highlight how employers plan to react to the decision, and how the law might help stabilize certain aspects of the insurance market.

13 Jun 2012

Save the Children releases pioneering report on newborn survival

Save the Children has released a pioneering report on newborn survival over the last decade that shows the world has greatly overlooked a key area for reducing child deaths-newborn care.

13 Jun 2012