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Lawmakers explore savings potential of Medicare extenders

During a Wednesday House Ways and Means Committee hearing, health industry witnesses defended the Medicare "extenders," which, in many cases, are payment policies enacted to address specific problems faced by specific types of health care providers. Ending some of them would save less than $100 million a year. One economist said, however, that when added up, they can tally an estimated $2.5 billion in savings.

23 Sep 2011

Project REACH to reduce risk of postpartum depression in adolescent mothers

More than 400,000 adolescent girls will give birth in the United States each year, and about one in four of them will experience postpartum depression.

23 Sep 2011

Mercer: Health insurance costs expected to rise next year — again

Health care expenses for U.S. employers are expected to increase next year at the lowest rate in more than a decade, but the cost of benefits for workers is likely to outpace the growth of their earnings, a national survey has found. Companies expect their bills for health benefits to rise 5.4 percent on average next year, the smallest increase since 1997, according to preliminary results from a survey of nearly 1,600 employers by benefits consulting firm Mercer.

23 Sep 2011

New insights into nephrotic syndrome and high blood pressure

Scientists have now begun to understand kidney damage on a cellular level and how the activity of certain molecules in damaged kidneys contributes to salt and water retention in nephrotic syndrome.

23 Sep 2011

Arizona's mental health budget cuts concern experts

Short-term savings could have long-term consequences for patients and the community, mental health experts tell The Arizona Republic. Meanwhile, a county in Iowa gets state aid to help people on a waiting list for mental health and disability care.

23 Sep 2011

Soy protein reduces progression of atherosclerosis in women within 5 years of menopause

A new study published in the November 2011 issue of Stroke reveals some promising data on the positive effects of soy protein reducing the progression of clogged arteries in women who were within five years of menopause. This study was the largest and longest randomized controlled human study conducted to-date that directly investigated the efficacy of isolated soy protein consumption on the progression of atherosclerosis.

23 Sep 2011

Human brain development does not stop at adolescence: Research

The human brain doesn't stop developing at adolescence, but continues well into our 20s, demonstrates recent research from the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Alberta.

23 Sep 2011

Longer looks: Breast cancer fundraising; treating autism

Though breast cancer researchers and advocates perpetually plead for more money, the disease is, in fact, awash in it. Last year, the National Institutes of Health, the nation's top agency for health-related research, allocated $763 million to the study of breast cancer, more than double what it committed to any other cancer.

23 Sep 2011

New assay simultaneously visualize gene number, protein expression in individual cells

Researchers have discovered a method for simultaneously visualizing gene number and protein expression in individual cells. The fluorescence microscopy technique could permit a detailed analysis of the relationship between gene status and expression of the corresponding protein in cells and tissues, and bring a clearer understanding of cancer and other complex diseases, according to researchers who led the study

23 Sep 2011

Researchers to expand malaria vaccine study after initial trial yields encouraging results

Encouraged by early results of a study of an experimental malaria vaccine involving 45 children in Burkina Faso, researchers led by Pierre Druilhe at the Pasteur Institute in Paris are set to expand the clinical trial, resulting in a larger study involving 800 children in Mali, BBC News reports.

23 Sep 2011

AHA certifies walnuts as heart-healthy food

California Walnuts is proud to announce that the American Heart Association is now certifying walnuts as a heart-healthy food. The Heart-Check mark easily identifies foods that meet the nutritional standards set by the American Heart Association and provides consumers a quick and reliable way to identify heart-healthy foods.

23 Sep 2011

BlueCross report examines national health care reform's impact on Tennessee

A research based report from the newly-established BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Health Institute takes an in-depth look at national health care reform's possible positive and negative effects on Tennessee.

23 Sep 2011

Public health approach to reduce health harms from cannabis use

A new research study conducted by an international team of experts recommends a public health approach to cannabis - including evidence-based guidelines for lower-risk use - to reduce the health harms that result from the use of cannabis.

23 Sep 2011

SANUWAVE announces dermaPACE Phase III trial results on diabetic foot ulcers

SANUWAVE Health, Inc., an emerging medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of noninvasive, biological response activating devices in regenerative medicine, today announced that the Company's dermaPACE device will be the subject of a presentation at Plastic Surgery 2011, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons' National Meeting being held September 23-27 in Denver.

23 Sep 2011

State roundup: N.Y. to pay $5 million to end suit over autistic teen's death

The State of New York has agreed to pay $5 million to settle two civil suits brought by the family of a boy with autism who died in state care, among the larger wrongful-death settlements ever paid by the state.

23 Sep 2011

Researchers compare safety and effectiveness of cryotherapy, salicylic acid for verrucae

Research has shown no evidence of a difference in clearance rates between patient self-treatment and treatment given by healthcare professional for verrucae.

23 Sep 2011

STAAR's new Visian ICL with CentraFLOW technology showcased at ESCRS congress

STAAR Surgical Company, a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of minimally invasive ophthalmic products, today announced the Visian Implantable Collamer Lens (ICL), and new Visian ICL with CentraFLOW technology utilizing the KS-AquaPORT, were featured prominently in twice as many presentations at the 2011 Congress of European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) as those on the ICL during last year's Congress.

23 Sep 2011

Tips for parents to keep their kids safe while traveling in the car

In honor of National Child Passenger Safety Week Loyola University Health System safety expert offers tips on keeping children safe in the car. Car accidents remain the leading cause of death and disability in children in the United States. Stricter laws and car seat education programs have dramatically decreased the mortality and morbidity rates in motor vehicle accidents in the last several years. Yet, thousands of children die or are injured in car accidents each year.

23 Sep 2011

Scientists discover mechanism behind MRI-induced vertigo

A team of researchers says it has discovered why so many people undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), especially in newer high-strength machines, get vertigo, or the dizzy sensation of free-falling, while inside or when coming out of the tunnel-like machine.

23 Sep 2011

Multi-donor program improves availability of essential medicines in Zimbabwe's public health sector

IRIN reports on "the improved availability of essential medicines in Zimbabwe's public health sector" as a result of "a multi-donor program started in 2008 through collaboration between the government, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) Zimbabwe, the European Union (E.U.), the U.K., Australia, Canada and Ireland."

23 Sep 2011