Medical News

RSS

Researchers investigate new avenue of treatment to help boost poor pancreatic cancer survival rates

Researchers at Georgia Regents University Cancer Center are investigating a new avenue of treatment to help boost poor pancreatic cancer survival rates.

13 Feb 2013

Supporting innovation through public-private partnerships

"Given the increasingly aligned incentives" between the private sector and global health and development practitioners, "the time is right for more effective and consistent collaboration between these two groups," Dheeraj Batra, head of business design at IDEO Mumbai, and David Milestone, senior adviser at USAID's Center for Accelerating Innovation and Impact, write in a USAID "IMPACTblog" post originally published in the "Stanford Social Innovation Review."

13 Feb 2013

Periconceptional folic acid intake may reduce risk of autistic disorder in children

In a study that included approximately 85,000 Norwegian children, maternal use of supplemental folic acid from 4 weeks before to 8 weeks after the start of pregnancy was associated with a lower risk of autistic disorder in children, according to a study appearing in the February 13 issue of JAMA.

13 Feb 2013

Final word on essential health benefits expected soon

CQ Healthbeat reports the Office of Management and Budget is reviewing several health law implementation rules including this one, which will determine the types of coverage available to consumers. Meanwhile, a study examines how the health law's caps on out-of-pocket costs will affect consumers next year.

13 Feb 2013

Children's pre-operative anxiety could be reduced by flexible approaches

A survey of nurses anaesthetists in Sweden identified difficulties in preparing children for surgery but also found that when the hospital and the staff were flexible in their approaches, the children's anxiety could be reduced. These approaches included varying the operation schedule, provided it do not create risk to the child, and pre-surgical visits with operating staff.

13 Feb 2013

Government recovers billions in health fraud crackdown

The Obama administration announced Monday that it recovered a record $4.2 billion last year from medical providers who cheated Medicare and other government health programs.

13 Feb 2013

African-American and Caucasian women absorb, metabolize vitamin D at same rate

African-American women battling vitamin D deficiencies need the same dose as Caucasian women to treat the condition, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

13 Feb 2013

Global gender equality critical for successful development programs

"Many steps have been taken during the Obama administration to elevate the issues of global gender equality," but "perhaps the most critical thus far occurred on January 30, 2013, when President Obama signed a presidential memorandum focusing on these issues," contributor Juliana Thong writes in the "Global Washington" blog.

13 Feb 2013

Ability to tune gene activity will permit refined research for drug resistance, cancer

Scientists who built a synthetic gene circuit that allowed for the precise tuning of a gene's expression in yeast have now refined this new research tool to work in human cells, according to research published online in Nature Communications.

13 Feb 2013

VA adding mental health staff - including doctors, nurses and counselors

The Veterans Affairs Department said Monday it has added more than 1,000 mental health professionals and 200 support staff over the past eight months to meet the needs of returning veterans, but still has more to do to meet the requirements of an executive order issued by President Barack Obama.

13 Feb 2013

Scientists identify aromatic rice with very low arsenic content

Millions of people worldwide are regularly exposed to arsenic through drinking water and eating rice grown in soil and water containing high amounts of arsenic. Long-term exposure can lead to the development of different types of cancer as well as serious cardiovascular, neurological, and other health problems. Scientists have now identified aromatic rice from Bangladesh that has far lower arsenic concentrations than found in non-aromatic rice.

13 Feb 2013

Obama opposes raising Medicare's eligibility age to reduce spending

According to White House spokesman Jay Carney, the president does not believe this is the right policy to take, although he is open to discussing other entitlement program changes.

13 Feb 2013

Tivozanib overall survival results announced by AVEO and Astellas

AVEO Oncology (NASDAQ: AVEO) and Astellas Pharma Inc. (TSE: 4503) announced overall survival (OS) for tivozanib, an investigational agent, from the Phase 3 TIVO-1 (TIvozanib Versus sOrafenib in 1st line advanced RCC) study in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The final OS analysis, as specified by the protocol, shows a median OS of 28.8 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 22.5–NA) for tivozanib versus a median OS of 29.3 months (95% CI: 29.3–NA) for the comparator arm, sorafenib.

13 Feb 2013

Antibody therapeutics targeting GPCRs to be developed by alliance between MorphoSys and Heptares

MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) and UK-based Heptares Therapeutics, the leading GPCR drug discovery and development company, have signed an agreement to discover novel antibody therapeutics targeting G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), which are membrane proteins involved in a broad range of biological processes and diseases.

13 Feb 2013

Military deployment increases risk of maternal depression in female service members

About 16,000 women on active duty in the U.S. military give birth each year. Most return to service after 6 weeks and can be deployed after 4 months. The potential for an increased risk of depression among new mothers who deploy and are exposed to combat experience is presented in a study published in Journal of Women's Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

13 Feb 2013

Setting the scene: Economy, sequestration at heart of Obama's address

His State Of The Union comments will likely highlight the different partisan views on how these automatic spending cuts, set to kick in March 1, could be minimized. Republicans continue to press for changes in entitlement programs, such as Medicare.

13 Feb 2013

Less than 1 in 4 young people with ASD receive transition services

Health care transition (HCT) services help young people with special health care needs such as asthma or diabetes move from pediatric to adult health care. However, youths with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have less access to these services, which are designed to prevent gaps in care and insurance coverage.

13 Feb 2013

State roundup: Ga. officials end Medicaid electronic eligibility system talks

A federal judge has overturned an Arizona law that sought to block funding through the state for Planned Parenthood's health care clinics because the group also performs abortions.

13 Feb 2013

CA-MRSA on the rise in nursing homes

While most infection control measures are focused on hospitals, a new study points to the need for more targeted interventions to prevent the spread of drug-resistant bugs in nursing homes as community-associated strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) are on the rise in these facilities. The study is published in the March issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

13 Feb 2013

LSR grades for medical device manufacturers and fabricators debuted by Dow Corning at MD&M West

Dow Corning, a global leader in silicones, silicon-based technology and innovation for the healthcare industry, is showcasing at MD&M West (Hall D, Booth# 1751) Dow Corning® QP1 liquid silicone rubber (LSR) grades that give medical device manufacturers and fabricators broader material choices for intricate devices and components.

13 Feb 2013