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First Edition: December 14, 2011

In today's headlines, reports about progress -- or lack thereof -- as the House and Senate work to come to terms on the year's must-pass legislation.

14 Dec 2011

Acetylcholine can weaken synaptic connections between neurons in brain

Researchers from the University of Bristol have discovered that a chemical compound in the brain can weaken the synaptic connections between neurons in a region of the brain important for the formation of long-term memories.

14 Dec 2011

ICFH to implement EHRs for behavioral health services

Institute for Child and Family Health (ICFH) has received a $100,000 grant from Health Foundation of South Florida to implement electronic health records for the organization's behavioral health services.

14 Dec 2011

Researchers discover how statins promote breakdown of plaque in arteries

In a new study, NYU Langone Medical Center researchers have discovered how cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins promote the breakdown of plaque in the arteries. The study was published online by the journal PLoS One on December 6, 2011.

14 Dec 2011

People with Parkinson's exhibit increased arm swing during early stages

People with Parkinson's disease swing their arms asymmetrically -- one arm swings less than the other -- when walking. This unusual movement is easily detected early when drugs and other interventions may help slow the disease, according to Penn State researchers who used inexpensive accelerometers on the arms of Parkinson's disease patients to measure arm swing.

14 Dec 2011

Mothers of very low birth-weight infants suffer worse health

Babies born at very low birth weights struggle in their early years and a new study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers suggests that their mothers do, too.

14 Dec 2011

Link between high tau levels and worse outcome after head trauma

High levels of tau protein in fluid bathing the brain are linked to poor recovery after head trauma, according to a study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Fondazione IRCCS Ca Granda-Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico in Milan, Italy.

14 Dec 2011

Study: High cancer screening rates seen among elderly adults

Adults older than 75 years continue to have regular screenings for colorectal, breast, cervical, and prostate cancer despite guidelines that recommend against such routine screenings in this population, according to a study by Keith M. Bellizzi, MD, MPH, from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, and colleagues.

14 Dec 2011

Researchers uncover important source of inflammation for CKD

UC Irvine researchers have uncovered an important source of inflammation seen in people with chronic kidney disease, which is increasingly common due to the epidemic of obesity-related diabetes and hypertension.

14 Dec 2011

Celgene announces data from REVLIMID Phase III study on high-risk asymptomatic smoldering MM

Celgene International Sàrl, a subsidiary of Celgene Corporation, announced that updated data evaluating continuous treatment with REVLIMID (lenalidomide) in patients with high-risk asymptomatic smoldering multiple myeloma were presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

14 Dec 2011

TJU receives SAMHSA grant for suicide prevention project

Through a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) that was given to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Thomas Jefferson University was awarded a subcontract, averaging about $70,000 per year for three years, to serve as the training center for a suicide prevention project. Pennsylvania is one of 42 states to receive a portion of grant awards funded under the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act.

14 Dec 2011

Capsules: Hospitals clash with House Republicans on Medicare cuts

Now on Kaiser Health News' blog, Mary Agnes Carey reports: "Hospitals have come out swinging against payment cuts to their industry included in the House Republican plan to stop a scheduled Medicare physician payment cut next January. And the House GOP is swinging right back."

14 Dec 2011

Maraviroc reduces incidence of GvHD in blood cancer patients after ASCT

An HIV drug that redirects immune cell traffic appears to significantly reduce the dangerous complication graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) in blood cancer patients following allogeneic stem cell transplantation (ASCT), according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania that will be presented today at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting.

14 Dec 2011

Calif. revamping mental health services

California has begun transitioning its mental health services program to concentrate care on the most serious patients residing in state mental hospitals and prisons, but the cost-cutting move is raising concerns about patient care from state workers. The state announced last week it will hand off more responsibility for public mental health programs to counties as part of Gov. Jerry Brown's ongoing push to move services to California's local governments.

14 Dec 2011

Nearly half of children with epilepsy experience adverse events due to invasive EEG

Some type of adverse event occurs in nearly half of children with severe epilepsy undergoing invasive electroencephalography (EEG) recordings, reports a study in the December issue of Operative Neurosurgery, a quarterly supplement to Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

14 Dec 2011

USAID infographic on how to save 5M children by 2015

USAID provides an infographic describing how, "under President Obama's Global Health Initiative, USAID will work with other global leaders in child health to help save five million children between 2010 and 2015" through targeted interventions for the leading causes of preventable death among children.

14 Dec 2011

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell's 525 E. 68th Street building earns EPA ENERGY STAR award

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded its ENERGY STAR certification to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center's flagship building at 525 East 68th Street -- the only hospital facility certified in New York City in 2011.

14 Dec 2011

TV cameras and the Supreme Court: Health law adds pressure to the mix

Now that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a dispute over the federal health care law, the justices are facing the strongest challenge to their ban on televised hearings. Members of Congress and news industry leaders have asked the court to allow the televising of oral arguments, to be held over five and a half hours during two days in March.

14 Dec 2011

Macrophages play a role in brown fat metabolism

Throughout the interior spaces of humans and other warm-blooded creatures is a special type of tissue known as brown fat, which may hold the secret to diets and weight-loss programs of the future.

14 Dec 2011