Hospital
Radiologists diagnose and treat self embedding disorder in teensMinimally invasive, image-guided treatment is a safe and precise method for removal of self-inflicted foreign objects from the body, according to the first report on "self-embedding disorder," or self-injury and self-inflicted foreign body insertion in adolescents.
International Society for Stem Cell Research releases new guidelinesThe International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), the world's leading professional organization of stem cell researchers, released new guidelines for the responsible development of safe and effective stem cell therapies for patients.
Whooping cough booster for parents of newbornsA booster vaccination for parents of new babies and other household members may be the most effective way of preventing the fatal form of whooping cough in young infants, say a group of paediatric intensive care doctors on bmj.com today.
Diabetes drug rosiglitazone linked to higher heart failure riskOlder adults who take the diabetes medication rosiglitazone appear to have a higher risk of death and heart failure than those taking the related medication pioglitazone, according to a report in the November 24 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Routine HIV testing fails in USWhile the U.S. AIDS epidemic simmers largely unnoticed by most Americans, a failure to widely implement routine HIV testing continues to fuel its spread, HIV researchers and experts said.
COPD hospitalizations on the rise in USA joint report released by the American Lung Association of Minnesota and the Minnesota COPD Coalition shows that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is sending more Minnesotans to the hospital, and may be contributing to rising health care costs across in the state.
Genetic screening for diabetes not helpfulScreening for a panel of gene variants associated with the risk for type 2 diabetes can identify adults at risk for the disorder but is not significantly better than assessment based on traditional risk factors such as weight, blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
Transplant of trachea made from stem cells successfulThe first operation for transplantation of a tissue-engineered airway has been successful. This procedure has massively improved the quality of life of the 30-year-old Colombian female recipient who needed the transplant after contracting tuberculosis.
A man defeated HIV virus through bone marrow transplantAn HIV-positive person, who underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat leukemia, has had undetectable HIV viral loads for almost two years. HIV-positive man was ill from leukemia and had underwent treatment by the team led by Prof. Eckhard Thiel, director of the Medical Clinic with a focus on hematology and oncology.
Australian public hospitals need $3 billion - AMAAustralian Medical Association (AMA) President, Dr Rosanna Capolingua, said the public hospital system was ‘flat lining' and the COAG meeting next week may be its last hope for resuscitation.
Hannah Jones refused heart transplant surgeryA British girl 13 years old, suffering from leukemia, Hannah Jones decided to refuse to have a heart transplant for her heart condition - a hole in her heart.
US adults skip needed care due to costsCompared to patients in seven other countries, chronically ill adults in the United States are far more likely to forgo care because of costs; they also experience the highest rates of medical errors, coordination problems, and high out-of-pocket costs, according to a new study from The Commonwealth Fund.
Ischemic stroke increases with higher nonfasting triglyceride levelElevated nonfasting triglyceride levels, previously associated with an increased risk for heart attack, also appear to be associated with an increased risk for ischemic stroke.
Factors identified causing barriers to asthma careBarriers to managing asthma include access to appropriate care, patient adherence, distrust of the medical profession, delayed asthma diagnosis, culture, lifestyle choices and genetic discrepancies according to experts at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Seattle.
Heart may help power pacemakers, defibrillators in heart patientsSurplus energy generated by the heart may one day help power pacemakers and defibrillators implanted in cardiac patients, according to research presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2008.
Bone marrow transplant can cure sickle cell diseaseA unique approach to bone marrow transplantation pioneered in part by a Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC physician has proven to be the only safe and effective cure for sickle cell disease, according to a new study.
Vitamin B and Folic acid do not appear to affect cancer riskA daily supplementation combination that included folic acid and vitamin B6 and B12 had no significant effect on the overall risk of cancer, including breast cancer, among women at high risk of cardiovascular disease, according to a study in the November 5 issue of JAMA.
New genes identified linked to lung cancerWorking as part of a multi-institutional collaboration, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have assembled the most complete catalog to date of the genetic changes underlying the most common form of lung cancer.
3 million US children have food or digestive allergiesThe number of young people who had a food or digestive allergy increased 18 percent between 1997 and 2007, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Live cell therapy clinical trial in New Zealand for diabeticsLiving Cell Technologies Limited (ASX: LCT; OTCQX: LVCLY) announced that New Zealand Health Minister, the Honorable David Cunliffe, has approved an application from the company to conduct in New Zealand a Phase I/IIa clinical trial of DiabeCell®, LCT's lead product candidate for the treatment of insulin dependent (Type 1) diabetes.
Updated labeling for psoriasis drug Raptiva approvedThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced labeling changes, including a Boxed Warning, to highlight the risks of life-threatening infections, including progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), with the use of Raptiva (efalizumab).
2 doses of flu vaccine needed against bird flu pandemicAn international study led by University of Leicester researchers has determined that vaccination will be the best way to protect people in the event of the next influenza pandemic – but that each person would need two doses.
Effects of a first miscarriage on future pregnanciesMiscarriage (or spontaneous pregnancy loss) is defined as pregnancy loss before 24 completed weeks of gestation. There is a 20% (one in five) risk of pregnancies ending in a miscarriage in the first three months and one in 100 women have recurrent miscarriages (three or more successive miscarriages).
New prenatal test for Down syndrome less risky than amniocentesisPregnant women worried about their babies' genetic health face a tough decision: get prenatal gene testing and risk miscarriage, or skip the tests and miss the chance to learn of genetic defects before birth.
Air pollution may increase risk of appendicitisCould there be a link between high levels of air pollution and the risk of appendicitis? New research presented at the 73rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Orlando, suggests a novel connection.
Reading can help obese kids lose weightIt's no secret that reading is beneficial. But can it help kids lose weight? In the first study to look at the impact of literature on obese adolescents, researchers at Duke Children's Hospital discovered that reading the right type of novel may make a difference.
Free drug samples not safe for childrenFree prescription drug samples distributed to children may be unsafe, according to a study by physicians from Cambridge Health Alliance and Hasbro Children's Hospital.
Medicare will not pay for extra careNew US federal regulations to restrict Medicare payments to hospitals for the extra care required to treat patients harmed by certain preventable infections and medical errors go into effect on Wednesday, October 1.
Palliative care access varies widely in USThere has been rapid growth of new, innovative palliative care consultation services in the US's hospitals. More than half of the 50-bed or larger hospitals in the U.S. offer palliative care services to ease pain and suffering for seriously ill patients and their families.
Indian doctors can't deny HIV+, AIDS patientsIndia's Supreme Court has approved the Indian Govt.'s direction to all States that doctors in government and private hospitals should not refuse treatment to People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA).
Childhood wheezing with rhinovirus can increase asthma riskInfants who experience viral respiratory illnesses with wheezing are known to be at increased risk for developing asthma later during childhood. It is not known, however, whether every type of respiratory virus that produces wheezing presents similar risk.
Increased risk of pregnancy problems in Asian-whitePregnant women who are part of an Asian-white couple face an increased risk of gestational diabetes as compared with couples in which both partners are white, according to a new study from Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and the Stanford University School of Medicine.
Heart patients should be screened, treated for depressionHeart patients should be screened for depression -- a common condition that can profoundly affect both prognosis and quality of life -- according to the American Heart Association's first scientific statement on depression and coronary heart disease.
No increased risk of heart attacks in users of HRTIt's not what you take but the way that you take it that can produce different results in women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT), according to new research on the association between HRT and heart attacks, published online in Europe's leading cardiology journal, the European Heart Journal.
Second hand smoke may trigger nicotine dependence symptoms in kidsParents who smoke cigarettes around their kids in cars and homes beware – second-hand smoke may trigger symptoms of nicotine dependence in children. The findings are published in the September edition of the journal Addictive Behaviors in a joint study from nine Canadian institutions.
Physicians rarely show empathy with lung cancer patientsIn consultations with patients with lung cancer, physicians rarely responded empathically to the concerns of the patients about mortality, symptoms or treatment options, according to a study led by a University of Rochester Medical Center researcher.
1 week radiation effective breast cancer treatmentAccelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) using a type of radiation seed implants called balloon brachytherapy is as effective in keeping breast cancer from coming back as the standard external beam radiation treatment.
Acupuncture reduces side effects of breast cancer treatmentAcupuncture is as effective and longer-lasting in managing the common debilitating side effects of hot flashes, night sweats, and excessive sweating (vasomotor symptoms) associated with breast cancer treatment and has no treatment side effects compared to conventional drug therapy, according to a first-of-its-kind study presented September 24, 2008, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 50th Annual Meeting in Boston.
Miscarriage risk high in obese pregnant womenOverweight women with a tendency towards obesity run a greater risk of repeat miscarriages and should be advised to lose weight before they try and become pregnant again, revealed by researchers at London's St Mary's Hospital.
Aortic valve disorder adults do not have lower survival rateYoung adults with a bicuspid aortic valve, a congenital heart abnormality, experience subsequent cardiac events but do not appear to have lower survival rates compared to the general population, according to a study in the September 17 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Arthroscopy may not help osteoarthritis patientsArthroscopic surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee provides no additional benefit to optimized physical and medical therapy, revealed by researchers in a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) issue of Sept. 11, 2008.
Need to govern organ donation and transplantationAll countries should take steps to govern organ donation and transplantation, thereby ensuring patient safety and prohibiting unethical practices, according to an article appearing in the September 2008 issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN).
Boys grow out of childhood asthmaBoys may be more apt than girls to have childhood asthma, but, when compared to girls, they are also more likely to grow out of it in adolescence and have a decreased incidence of asthma in the post-pubertal years. This indicates that there may be a buried mechanism in asthma development, according to a prospective study that analyzed airway responsiveness (AR) in more than 1,000 children with mild to moderate asthma over a period of about nine years.
Lung health action plan needed to control air pollutionThe National Illness Cost of Air Pollution (ICAP) study, released by the Canadian Medical Association, is clear evidence that action is required on air pollution and that a national strategy for lung health is needed now more than ever.
A genetic trait identified for colorectal cancer riskScientists at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and colleagues have discovered a genetic trait that is present in 10 to 20 percent of patients with colorectal cancer. The findings strongly suggest that the trait is a major contributor to colorectal cancer risk and likely the most common cause of colorectal cancer to date.
PET scans useful to assess Alzheimer's diseaseA type of positron emission tomography (PET) scanning may be useful in a non-invasive assessment of the formation of Alzheimer's disease–related plaques in the brain, according to small study posted online today that will appear in the October 2008 print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Dr. Ramadoss to Mexico to attend AIDS ConferenceIndian Health Minister Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India has left for Mexico city and New York on official tour today.
Diving related injuries common among childrenThe thrill of flipping and jumping into water has become common practice among children and adolescents as they dive into more than eight million swimming pools across the United States.
40% higher HIV infection estimate in USThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected soon to increase the estimate of new HIV infections in the United States by 40 percent. This highlights the need to make HIV testing a routine part of medical care and provide better funding to care for those who test positive, according to the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA).
Epilepsy drug topiramate during pregnancy raises birth defects riskTaking the epilepsy drug topiramate alone or along with other epilepsy drugs during pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects, according to a study published in the July 22, 2008, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.