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HFA announces launch of new Hospice Information Center

Hospice Foundation of America is pleased to announce the launch of its newest educational offering, the Hospice Information Center for families, friends and professionals. This centralized resource is part of "HFA CARES: Hospice Foundation of America's Conversations, Advice, Resources and Education Series," funded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and can be found at www.hospicefoundation.org/infocenter.

13 Jul 2010

Sperian Respiratory Protection awarded VHA contract for 65,000 special configuration half-mask respirators

The U.S. Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has awarded Sperian Respiratory Protection USA a contract to purchase 65,000 special configuration modified Sperian Blue1 half-mask respirators with speaking diaphragm for use in VHA hospitals nationwide. VHA is the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States with over 150 hospitals and 130,000 healthcare workers. This award is a result of Sperian's emphasis on developing respiratory products that enhance speech intelligibility when worn by healthcare workers.

13 Jul 2010

New research shows head size helps measure brain reserve, brain growth

New research shows that people with Alzheimer's disease who have large heads have better memory and thinking skills than those with the disease who have smaller heads, even when they have the same amount of brain cell death due to the disease. The research is published in the July 13, 2010, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

13 Jul 2010

Free Test B4U Drive program for teens with diabetes

Medtronic, Inc. announced today that Test B4U Drive, the first-ever, free program for teens with diabetes combining advanced driver skills training with diabetes management education, will be held July 19-21 at The Forum in Los Angeles. In partnership with the Juvenile Diabetes No Limits Foundation, Medtronic will continue the program throughout the summer across the country to teach teens with diabetes that good diabetes management is a key to staying safe behind the wheel.

13 Jul 2010

Asuragen, Life Technologies announce European launch of BCR/ABL1 Quant Test

Asuragen, Inc. and Life Technologies Corporation announced today that they have achieved CE-marking and commercial launch in Europe of the BCR/ABL1 Quant™ Test, Asuragen's clinically validated and cGMP manufactured test intended to aid clinicians in the monitoring and treatment of individuals afflicted with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Asuragen manufacturers the monitoring test, which is exclusively distributed by Life Technologies and runs on the company's Applied Biosystems CE-marked 7500 Fast Dx Real-Time PCR Instrument™.

13 Jul 2010

HighRes Biosolutions to provide high-throughput screening automation to Rigel

HighRes Biosolutions, the leader in laboratory automation solutions for life science, announced today that it will be providing high-throughput screening automation to Rigel Pharmaceuticals, a South San Francisco, California-based clinical-stage drug development company.

13 Jul 2010

Rotech Healthcare accepts 17 CMS contracts in Round 1 Rebid of Medicare Competitive Bidding Program

Rotech Healthcare Inc. today announced that it has accepted 17 contracts awarded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in the Round 1 Rebid of the national Medicare Competitive Bidding Program. The Round 1 Rebid included nine metropolitan statistical areas. Only contracted suppliers can service Medicare patients for the competitively-bid product categories in these locations, with a few exceptions. The new contracts awarded in Round 1 have a three-year term and are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2011.

13 Jul 2010

Food portion control is a matter of perception, suggests study

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, suggests that the key to losing weight could lie in manipulating our beliefs about how filling we think food will be before we eat it, suggesting that portion control is all a matter of perception.

13 Jul 2010

Sewage that overflows into urban creeks, streams can promote spread of West Nile virus: Study

Sewage that overflows into urban creeks and streams during periods of heavy rain can promote the spread of West Nile virus, a study led by Emory University finds. The analysis of six years of data showed that people living near creeks with sewage overflows in lower-income neighborhoods of Southeast Atlanta had a seven times higher risk for West Nile virus than the rest of the city.

13 Jul 2010

Differences in response to taste of fat between obese and lean men

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, finds marked differences between obese and lean men in how they respond to the taste of fat. Fat also is less effective in obese men in stimulating certain gut hormones that are released into the bloodstream and normally suppress appetite.

13 Jul 2010

Researchers identify genetic variant associated with increased risk of AAA

Geisinger researchers are part of an international team that has identified a genetic variant more common in individuals with abdominal aortic aneurysms. This is one of the largest studies ever into the genetics of AAA. The results of the work will appear in this week's online edition of Nature Genetics.

13 Jul 2010

Three Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers to offer CPHIT, CPEHR, CPHIE training programs

Health IT Certification, LLC announced today that three federally designated Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers will offer Health Information Technology, Electronic Health Record and Health Information Exchange training and certification programs to their staff, physician practices and implementation partners. More than 2,400 individuals have taken advantage of these programs since 2005.

13 Jul 2010

FRC refutes RCOG claims on fetal pain

The Family Research Council today released a new report that refutes claims made recently by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' (RCOG) that a fetus is not able to feel pain before 24 weeks of development. RCOG's study is being used to uphold Britain's current legalization of abortions up to 24 weeks.

13 Jul 2010

Sleep apnea may increase risk of heart disease and death by 68%: Study

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) that leads to snoring and is actually caused by frequent collapse of the airway during sleep makes it difficult for sufferers to breathe for periods lasting as long as 10 seconds. Severe sufferers may have 30 such apnoeic or breathless episodes per hour that can severely disrupt sleep.

13 Jul 2010

UC Irvine public health professor to lead malaria field research in Southeast Asia

UC Irvine public health professor Guiyun Yan will lead groundbreaking malaria field research in impoverished reaches of China, Myanmar and Thailand, thanks to new federal funding. UCI will receive $4.7 million of a seven-year, $14.5 million award to Pennsylvania State University by the National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases. Yan will collaborate with Penn State principal investigator Liwang Cui.

13 Jul 2010

MD+DI survey names Crux Biomedical as one of "50 Companies to Watch"

Crux Biomedical® was named one of "50 Companies to Watch" in an annual survey of medical device and diagnostic companies. The survey, conducted by Medical Device and Diagnostics Industry (MD+DI), was published in its June 2010 issue. The purpose of the survey was to identify firms that have either achieved success or have the potential to revolutionize medical practice with their respective products.

13 Jul 2010

Weight loss related to fewer hot flashes in menopausal women: study

Hot flashes are an uncomfortable and distressing part of menopause that many women go through. Hot flashes also known as hot flushes are usually sudden sweatiness and redness in the face that can remain for four or five years into menopause. Now researchers have shown that losing weight may help reduce these symptoms.

13 Jul 2010