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New Medicaid 'doughnut hole' creating some pressure on states, federal officials

Health law advocates are concerned about low-income residents who are left out of health overhaul in states that are not expanding Medicaid. Meanwhile, in other states, the new enrollment in the joint federal-state program is strong.

22 Nov 2013

Patients to have online access to their prescription data for improved safety

As part of its mission to accelerate the adoption of health information exchange throughout California, the UC Davis Institute for Population Health Improvement's California Health eQuality program awarded $400,000 to L.A. Care, the nation's largest publicly operated health plan, to develop Blue Button functionality.

22 Nov 2013

Study finds that anticipation of pain worse than pain itself

Faced with inevitable pain, most people would choose to get it out of the way as soon as possible, according to a new study.

22 Nov 2013

Electronic health records may be used to measure patient-centeredness of primary care practices

Although electronic health records (EHR) are primarily used to store patient clinical data, the non-clinical data they collect may be used to measure patient-centeredness of primary care practices, finds a new study in Health Services Research. In addition, two of the process of care measures collected via EHRs, volume of between clinician e-messages and frequency of in-person patient visits, were associated with better patient health outcomes.

22 Nov 2013

Board of Visitors approves resolution to create Faculty of Health Sciences

At its quarterly meeting this week, Virginia Tech's Board of Visitors approved a resolution to create a Faculty of Health Sciences.

22 Nov 2013

Longer looks: Parents' crusade on rare diseases; fighting obesity; experts' view of alternative medicine

In the beginning, Chris Hempel noticed the clumsiness. Her girls tripped over toys on the floor. Their grandfather said he couldn't teach them to pedal their tricycles. … The Hempels learned of people who called themselves citizen-scientists. Many shared research papers and their day-to-day experience. Some talked of their willingness to try any promising drug. Others sought a role as equal partners with researchers. Scientists, while sympathetic, generally believe their work should be left to experts. Families are encouraged to raise money if they want to help, but the traditional view is that amateurs can't shape research or find cures. The Hempels found a maddening gap between the search for scientific knowledge and the search for treatments (Amy Docker Marcus, 11/2013).

22 Nov 2013

New NIH grant to help Chicago Stroke Trials Consortium accelerate treatment for stroke

A new network dedicated to advancing research and therapies for stroke is forming in Chicago thanks to $2 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health. The Chicago Stroke Trials Consortium is a partnership among Northwestern Medicine, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Rush University Medical Center, and University of Chicago Medicine that will build an infrastructure to support clinical trials for stroke prevention, treatment and recovery. Northwestern University will be the regional coordinating center for the consortium and administer the project over the next five years.

22 Nov 2013

Targeting single enzyme in the obese could help prevent and treat diabetes

A single overactive enzyme worsens the two core defects of diabetes—impaired insulin sensitivity and overproduction of glucose—suggesting that a drug targeting the enzyme could help correct both at once, according to mouse studies done by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center. The findings were published today in the online edition of Cell Metabolism.

22 Nov 2013

Narrow choices for doctors and hospitals could keep costs down but add to consumer concerns

The Associated Press offers examples of limited networks that exclude some of the most prestigious hospitals in the Chicago and New York City areas.

22 Nov 2013

Studies link hundreds of gene mutations in the brain to increased autism risk

Pity the poor autism researcher. Recent studies have linked hundreds of gene mutations scattered throughout the brain to increased autism risk. Where do you start?

22 Nov 2013

Reason for decline in stroke deaths still remains unclear

A national group of leading scientists, including one University of Alabama at Birmingham expert, says that for more than 100 years fewer people have been dying of stroke, yet it is still unclear why this decline remains constant.

22 Nov 2013

Sugar is not direct cause of tooth decay

The effects of sugar on teeth are widely talked about. How many times have you been told that if you eat sugar, you will damage your teeth and develop cavities?

22 Nov 2013

Investigation into Medicare payment decision spotlights issues of insider trader and 'political intelligence'

Investigators are hitting a wall in an insider-trading probe of how a government funding decision made its way to investors before it was officially released, according to people familiar with the probe.

22 Nov 2013

Neurosurgeons use novel technique to visualize the brain's delicate anatomy prior to surgery

Neurosurgeons at UC San Diego Health System are using a new approach to visualize the brain's delicate anatomy prior to surgery. The novel technique allows neurosurgeons to see the brain's nerve connections thus preserving and protecting critical functions such as vision, speech and memory. No needles, dyes or chemicals are needed to create the radiology scan. The main imaging ingredient? Water.

22 Nov 2013

Frequent consumption of peanuts lowers risk of death

A major study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that men and women who ate an ounce of peanuts daily reduced their risk of death from all causes by up to 20%. Results also showed that peanut eaters were leaner. This gives people another great reason to get their daily handful of peanuts.

22 Nov 2013

GOP formulates new attack strategy to swell opposition to health law

Republicans are planning new health law attacks with an arsenal of tactics including issuing talking points to members and hammering Obama administration officials at hearings all in an attempt to further unravel the law.

22 Nov 2013

Research paves way towards personalized chronotherapy treatments

Cancer chronotherapy consists in administering treatment at an optimal time. Because the body is governed by precise biological rhythms, the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs can be doubled and their toxicity reduced five-fold depending on the exact timing of their administration.

22 Nov 2013

Researchers to discuss effects of alcohol on immune system at AIRIG meeting

On Nov. 22, leading alcohol researchers from the United States and Europe will present the latest findings on how alcohol impairs the immune system.

22 Nov 2013

Air quality forecast play an increasing role in mitigating health risk

As the link between air pollution and several illnesses has been established, air quality forecast will play an increasing role in mitigating health risk.

22 Nov 2013

CKD children with lower socio-economic status less likely to grow to normal height ranges

Even with more prescriptions for growth hormone, children and adolescents with chronic kidney disease were less likely to grow to normal height ranges if they came from lower-income families, according to research funded by the National Institutes of Health. Results from the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children Study are published in the December issue of the American Journal of Kidney Diseases and online today at http://www.ajkd.org.

22 Nov 2013

Medical News

New Medicaid 'doughnut hole' creating some pressure on states, federal officials

Patients to have online access to their prescription data for improved safety

Study finds that anticipation of pain worse than pain itself

Electronic health records may be used to measure patient-centeredness of primary care practices

Board of Visitors approves resolution to create Faculty of Health Sciences

Longer looks: Parents' crusade on rare diseases; fighting obesity; experts' view of alternative medicine

New NIH grant to help Chicago Stroke Trials Consortium accelerate treatment for stroke

Targeting single enzyme in the obese could help prevent and treat diabetes

Narrow choices for doctors and hospitals could keep costs down but add to consumer concerns

Studies link hundreds of gene mutations in the brain to increased autism risk

Reason for decline in stroke deaths still remains unclear

Sugar is not direct cause of tooth decay

Investigation into Medicare payment decision spotlights issues of insider trader and 'political intelligence'

Neurosurgeons use novel technique to visualize the brain's delicate anatomy prior to surgery

Frequent consumption of peanuts lowers risk of death

GOP formulates new attack strategy to swell opposition to health law

Research paves way towards personalized chronotherapy treatments

Researchers to discuss effects of alcohol on immune system at AIRIG meeting

Air quality forecast play an increasing role in mitigating health risk

CKD children with lower socio-economic status less likely to grow to normal height ranges

Advancing Motor Neuron Disease Diagnosis with Non-Invasive Ultrasound and AI

How agentic AI is reshaping laboratory workflows

Fourier 80: bringing benchtop NMR systems to the laboratory

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