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Lowering door-to-balloon times helps benefit STEMI patients, study finds

While all heart attacks have the potential to be deadly, one type is referred to as the "widow maker" because of its high risk of death. A ST segment elevation myocardial infarction is a severe type of heart attack that occurs when a blockage in a coronary artery causes heart muscle to die; without prompt treatment risk of fatality increases dramatically. Coronary angioplasty, or percutaneous coronary intervention, is the most common emergency treatment for STEMI.

30 Apr 2013

Health services for Syrian refugees overstretched, U.N. report warns

"The refugee crisis sparked by the conflict in Syria is increasingly straining health services in surrounding countries, while refugees are finding it harder to access the quality treatment they need, the United Nations refugee agency warns in report released [Friday]," the U.N. News Centre reports (4/26).

30 Apr 2013

Experts call for medical leaders to establish guidelines, embed honesty in academic cultures

Unethical behavior among physicians-in-training threatens to erode public trust and confidence in the medical profession, say two academic physicians in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

30 Apr 2013

H7N9 bird flu virus continues to spread throughout China

"China on Saturday reported its first case of H7N9 bird flu in the southern province of Hunan, the latest sign the virus that has killed 23 people in the country is continuing to spread," Reuters reports (Ruwitch, 4/29).

30 Apr 2013

Healthcare providers prefer robotic helpers rather than human assistants

Roboticists are currently developing machines that have the potential to help patients with caregiving tasks, such as housework, feeding and walking. But before they reach the care recipients, assistive robots will first have to be accepted by healthcare providers such as nurses and nursing assistants.

30 Apr 2013

Glide Pharma awarded contract from Pfenex Inc. to develop a solid formulation of recombinant anthrax vaccine

Glide Pharma® today announced the award of a sub-contract from Pfenex Inc. to develop a solid formulation containing the recombinant Protective Antigen (rPA) from Bacillus anthracis expressed in Pfēnex Expression Technology™ suitable for delivery with the Glide SDI® (solid dose injector). This approach will address two important logistical constraints of the currently available vaccine, namely, long term stability during storage and ease of administration.

30 Apr 2013

Continued work needed in vaccine development

Reflecting on World Immunization Week, April 21-28, Angeline Nanni, director of market access at Aeras, discusses the "remarkable results" of expanded immunization programs in a guest post on the Global Health Technologies Coalition's "Breakthroughs" blog.

30 Apr 2013

Molecular pathway that helps form new arteries after heart attacks uncovered

Scientific collaborators from Yale School of Medicine and University College London have uncovered the molecular pathway by which new arteries may form after heart attacks, strokes and other acute illnesses bypassing arteries that are blocked.

30 Apr 2013

Scientists discover novel drug molecule that reduces swelling, inflammation in arthritic joints

A gas associated with the smell of rotten eggs has proven to effectively reduce joint swelling, in research which could lead to advances in the treatment of arthritis.

30 Apr 2013

Concerns rise over food insecurity in Africa's Sahel region

"Despite early indications the Sahel would not suffer pangs of hunger this year, experts now worry that food insecurity could be worse than in 2012 -- the year of the West Africa food crisis," Thomson Reuters Foundation reports.

30 Apr 2013

UCLA study shows individuals with BDD have global bad wiring in their brains

Body dysmorphic disorder is a disabling but often misunderstood psychiatric condition in which people perceive themselves to be disfigured and ugly, even though they look normal to others. New research at UCLA shows that these individuals have abnormalities in the underlying connections in their brains.

30 Apr 2013

Analysis examines national expenditures on emergency care

Alternately praised in the aftermath of horrible tragedies as a heroic service and lamented in policy debates as an expensive safety net for people without primary care, emergency medicine is often a hot topic.

30 Apr 2013

Editorial, opinion pieces address proposed food aid reform

The following is a summary of an editorial, opinion pieces, and a blog post addressing proposed reform to the U.S. food aid program contained in President Obama's FY 2014 budget request.

30 Apr 2013

ACOEM honors American Express with prestigious health and safety award

American Express, the global financial services company headquartered in New York City, has been awarded the 2013 Corporate Health Achievement Award by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

30 Apr 2013

Pancreatitis and diabetes drugs: an interview with Dr Sonal Singh, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Acute pancreatitis is an inflammation of the pancreas which leads to leakage of pancreatic enzymes. Apart from certain drugs such as GLP-1 based therapies, the most common causes of pancreatitis are Gallstones and Alcohol use.

30 Apr 2013

Academy asks public to wear orange in support of skin cancer awareness on Melanoma Monday

The American Academy of Dermatology aims to paint the nation orange this May by asking the public to wear orange in support of skin cancer awareness on Melanoma Monday, May 6.

30 Apr 2013

At library dedication, U.S. presidents praise Bush for work on HIV/AIDS, malaria while in office

Last week, "[t]he George W. Bush Presidential Library dedication brought together five living presidents who have been at odds about much of the 43rd president's foreign policy legacy, particularly the Iraq war ... [b]ut they all agreed on, and offered effusive praise for, Bush's work on Africa," ABC News' "The Note" blog reports.

30 Apr 2013

Collaborative research network to understand spread of infectious diseases

The Models of Infectious Disease Agent Study is a collaborative research network funded by the National Institutes of Health that uses computational, statistical and mathematical models to understand the spread of infectious diseases such as influenza, pertussis, West Nile disease, dengue fever and cholera.

30 Apr 2013

Penn Medicine's Brian L. Strom named 2013 Career Distinguished Investigator

Brian L. Strom, MD, MPH, the executive vice dean for Institutional Affairs in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and professor of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, was recently presented with a National Award for Career Achievement and Contribution to Clinical and Translational Science at the Translational Science 2013 meeting in Washington, D.C.

30 Apr 2013

Chart presents timeline of HIV prevention options

The Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog examines a chart, titled "HIV Prevention Options Timeline," which "was part of AVAC Director Mitchell Warren's presentation at a Jhpiego-sponsored" event on Thursday, titled "The Present and the Future of HIV Prevention."

30 Apr 2013