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UC San Diego recognized best among U.S. News & World Report's Top Doctors

UC San Diego Health System has been recognized as having 83 Top Doctors in more than 30 specialties by U.S. News & World Report. Based on a peer nomination process, UC San Diego Health System's results represent the majority of San Diego physicians recognized by their colleagues locally and nationally as being a top doctor and worthy referral.

11 Aug 2011

BMJ News examines WHO financing and reform

BMJ News examines financing for and efforts to reform the WHO, which "are raising concerns over conflict of interest." The article looks at a reform package announced in May by WHO Director-General Margaret Chan at the World Health Assembly, as well as the first World Health Forum, set for November 2012.

11 Aug 2011

Research: p38α MAPK protein plays a role in addiction, depression-like behavior

Researchers studying mice are getting closer to understanding how stress affects mood and motivation for drugs.

11 Aug 2011

WHO launches online nutrition information system

The WHO "has launched a web-based information system it hopes will help prevent millions of people from suffering various forms of malnutrition, ranging from undernutrition to obesity, every year," IRIN reports.

11 Aug 2011

Study finds sharp increase in CT scan use in ED between 1996-2007

A review of national data from 1996 through 2007 reveals a sharp uptick in the use of computed tomography, or CT, scans to diagnose illnesses in emergency departments, a University of Michigan Health System study finds.

11 Aug 2011

Polls and expectations for debt panel

Two new polls indicate that Americans want the 'super committee' to reach an accord that includes new taxes on the wealthy and major cuts in domestic spending. Public opinion appears cool, though, to proposals to make significant changes in Medicare.

11 Aug 2011

Anticoagulation service improves quality of care for patients treated with warfarin

A pharmacist-directed anticoagulation service improves the coordination of care from the hospital to an outpatient clinic for patients treated with the anticoagulant drug warfarin, according to a Henry Ford Hospital study.

11 Aug 2011

Linking U.S. foreign aid to U.N. General Assembly voting

A backgrounder by Jay Schaefer, a Jay Kingham fellow in International Regulatory Affairs at the Heritage Foundation's Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, and Anthony Kim, a policy analyst in Heritage's Center for International Trade and Economics, examines the relationship between U.S. foreign aid and U.N. General Assembly voting.

11 Aug 2011

Higher protein intake helps postmenopausal obese women lose more weight

Dieting postmenopausal women who want to avoid losing muscle as they lose fat should pay attention to a new University of Illinois study. Adding protein throughout the day not only holds hunger pangs at bay so that dieters lose more weight, it keeps body composition-the amount of fat relative to muscle-in better proportion.

11 Aug 2011

More than 9M Afghans facing food insecurity, WFP says

The World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that 1.5 to 2 million more people in Afghanistan likely will be pushed into food insecurity later this year because of ongoing drought in the northern, northeastern and western parts of the country, IRIN reports.

11 Aug 2011

Spices may reduce oxidative stress and risk of chronic disease

Eating a diet rich in spices, like turmeric and cinnamon, reduces the body's negative responses to eating high-fat meals, according to Penn State researchers.

11 Aug 2011

Twitter, Facebook emerging as disease-fighting tools

From Iowa to Brazil, researchers are discovering there is a distinct association between complaints, worries and random rants on the social media site and the spread of medical issues as wide-ranging as the flu, dengue fever and pollen-induced allergies.

11 Aug 2011

Older people may be at risk for unhealthy over-exposure to iron

People lose the ability to detect the taste of iron in drinking water with advancing age, raising concern that older people may be at risk for an unhealthy over-exposure to iron, Virginia Tech engineers are reporting in results they term "unique."

11 Aug 2011

Analysis: Health insurance premium costs vary widely

Premiums were generally highest in the Northeast and lower in the South and Mountain states, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

11 Aug 2011

PUFA intake linked to reduced risk of heart failure, kidney disease and preterm delivery

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) found in seafood may reduce arterial stiffness and improve heart function in chronic heart failure, according to new research. These fats, better known as EPA and DHA, may also help in the immediate aftermath of a stroke.

11 Aug 2011

New report finds lackluster growth for nonprofit hospitals

Moody's finds that the hospitals reporting the slowest rate of revenue growth in 20 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. Also in hospital news, a new urgent care center in New Orleans is off to a good start and California officials weigh one chain's efforts to take over more facilities.

11 Aug 2011

Boston Scientific introduces NLI online resource center for healthcare providers

Boston Scientific Corporation has launched its Neuromodulation Learning Institute (NLI), a clinical education program and online resource center for healthcare providers to enhance their knowledge and awareness of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) technology, procedures and techniques.

11 Aug 2011

Fertile Guatemala faces starvation as subsistence crops fail

Despite its status as "the world's fifth largest exporter of sugar, coffee and bananas," Guatemala "has the highest rate of child malnutrition in Latin America," with "half of all children under five" reportedly malnourished, Agence France-Presse reports.

11 Aug 2011

BCG vaccine can help immune system recognise cancer cells as 'foreign'

Scientists have found a potential new mechanism to stimulate the body's own ability to fight cancer using Baculillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) - the germ commonly used to inoculate against tuberculosis.

11 Aug 2011

Members of U.S. delegation to Horn of Africa discuss response efforts

The August 8 visit of a U.S. delegation to the drought-stricken Horn of Africa "was important in terms of shedding light on the important efforts that are under way and the importance of continued support from the international community," Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration Eric Schwartz said on Tuesday during a briefing on the trip, IIP Digital reports.

11 Aug 2011