Selected by hardinlibrary

• 
  New England Journal of Medicine

• Health Care Reform -- A Republican View

  Grassley, C.

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:14 pm

  (No abstract is available for this citation)

• Industry Influence on Comparative-Effectiveness Research Funded through Health Care Reform

  Selker, H. P., Wood, A. J.J.

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:13 pm

  (No abstract is available for this citation)

• The Consequences of "No"

  Kellermann, A. L., Lewin, L. S.

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:13 pm

  (No abstract is available for this citation)

• Lobbying, Campaign Contributions, and Health Care Reform

  Steinbrook, R.

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:12 pm

  (No abstract is available for this citation)

• The Supreme Court, Process Patents, and Medical Innovation

  Kesselheim, A. S.

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:11 pm

  (No abstract is available for this citation)

• 
  JAMA current issue

• Clinical Manual of Fever in Children [Book and Media Reviews]

  Rosen, D.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Neurofibromatosis [JAMA Patient Page]

  Torpy, J. M., Burke, A. E., Glass, R. M.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Practicing Medicine in Difficult Times: Protecting Physicians From Malpractice Litigation [Book and Media Reviews]

  Williams, A. G.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Caring for the World: A Guidebook to Global Health Opportunities [Book and Media Reviews]

  Sessions, S. Y.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Globalization and Health: Pathways, Evidence and Policy [Book and Media Reviews]

  Gloyd, S.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• 
  Archives of Internal Medicine current issue

• Late-Life Social Activity [Editor's Correspondence]

  Verkleij, S., Scheele, J., van der Wouden, J. C.

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• The Case for Dual Renin-Angiotensin System Inhibition--Reply [Editor's Correspondence]

  Ku, E., Park, J., Vidhun, J., Campese, V.

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Late-Life Social Activity--Reply [Editor's Correspondence]

  Buchman, A. S., Boyle, P. A., Wilson, R. S., Fleischman, D. A., Leurgans, S. E., Bennett, D. A.

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Low-Carbohydrate Diet and Blood Lipid Levels: How Good and How Fast?--Reply [Editor's Correspondence]

  Jenkins, D. J. A., Wong, J. M. W., Kendall, C. W. C.

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• Low-Carbohydrate Diet and Blood Lipid Levels: How Good and How Fast? [Editor's Correspondence]

  Giugliano, D., Maiorino, M. I., Esposito, K.

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

• 
  Annals of Internal Medicine recent issues

• Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in men 65 to 74 years of age was cost-effective for AAA mortality at 10 years

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:33 pm

• Improving Use of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure for Obstructive Sleep Apnea

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:33 pm

• Screening for Breast Cancer: An Update for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

  Nelson, H. D., Tyne, K., Naik, A., Bougatsos, C., Chan, B. K., Humphrey, L.

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:33 pm

  Background: This systematic review is an update of evidence since the 2002 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation on breast cancer screening. Purpose: To determine the effectiveness of mammography screening in decreasing breast cancer mortality among average-risk women aged 40 to 49 years and 70 years or older, the effectiveness of clinical breast examination and breast self-examination, and the harms of screening. Data Sources: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (through the fourth quarter of 2008), MEDLINE (January 2001 to…

• Screening for Breast Cancer: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendations

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:33 pm

• Two Self-management Interventions to Improve Hypertension Control: A Randomized Trial

  Bosworth, H. B., Olsen, M. K., Grubber, J. M., Neary, A. M., Orr, M. M., Powers, B. J., Adams, M. B., Svetkey, L. P., Reed, S. D., Li, Y., Dolor, R. J., Oddone, E. Z.

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:33 pm

  Background: Fewer than 40% of persons with hypertension in the United States have adequate blood pressure (BP) control. Objective: To compare 2 self-management interventions for improving BP control among hypertensive patients. Design: A 2 x 2 randomized trial, stratified by enrollment site and patient health literacy status, with 2-year follow-up. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration number: NCT00123058) Setting: 2 university-affiliated primary care clinics. Patients: 636 hypertensive patients. Intervention: A centralized, blinded, and stratified randomization algorithm was used to…

• 
  European Journal of Internal Medicine

• Contents

  30 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

• Editorial Board

  30 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

• Clinical outcomes in medical outliers admitted to hospital with heart failure

  César Alameda, Carmen Suárez

  22 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Abstract: Background: Due to the lack of beds in medical wards, many patients are placed in other departments' wards (usually in surgical wards). These patients are called “medical outliers”. This is a common problem in countries with public national health services. We determined whether location influences progress and prognosis of patients.Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study in a public university hospital in Madrid, Spain. 243 patients discharged from the Department of Internal Medicine during 2006 with the same diagnosis-related group (DRG) (congestive heart failure and…

• Do PubMed and Google searches help medical students and young doctors reach the correct diagnosis? A pilot study

  Matthew E. Falagas, Fotinie Ntziora, Gregory C. Makris, George A. Malietzis, Petros I. Rafailidis

  18 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Abstract: Background: In the era of the World Wide Web we sought to examine whether the use of PubMed and Google can help physicians to improve their diagnostic skills.Methods: Twenty-six diagnostic cases presented in the case records of the New England Journal of Medicine during 2005 were used for our analysis. Three investigators (one trainee doctor and two final year medical students), tried determining the diagnosis, initially without and afterwards with the use of PubMed and Google.Results: A slight increase in the proportion of correct diagnoses obtained was seen following the…

• Cryoglobulins not HCV-related and solid tumors: Retrospective analysis from a series of 493 patients

  P. Rullier, A. Le Quellec, C. Cognot

  14 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Solid cancers observed in the course of cryoglobulinemia are generally considered as a consequence of hepatitis C virus (HCV)-associated infection. The question remains as to any real paraneoplastic association between cryoglobulins and solid tumors, a relationship that is hinted at by certain isolated publications .

• 
  MayoClinic.com

• C. difficile infection: Serious threat in hospitals and beyond

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  C. difficile — Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, treatment and causes of Clostridium difficile bacterial infection. Sponsored by:Chemotherapy.com - http://www.chemotherapy.com

• Hydrocele: See your doctor to rule out serious causes

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Hydrocele — Comprehensive overview covers causes and treatment of this generally harmless scrotal swelling. Sponsored by:Chemotherapy.com - http://www.chemotherapy.com

• Breast cancer: Early detection is key

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Breast cancer — Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, causes, diagnosis, treatment of breast cancer in women. Sponsored by:Chemotherapy.com - http://www.chemotherapy.com

• Epididymitis: Symptoms, treatments for an inflamed testicle

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Epididymitis — Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, treatment of this inflamed testicle condition. Sponsored by:Chemotherapy.com - http://www.chemotherapy.com

• Narcissistic personality disorder: Overcoming your extreme esteem

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Narcissistic personality disorder — Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, risk factors and treatments. Sponsored by:Chemotherapy.com - http://www.chemotherapy.com

• 
  The American Journal of Medicine

• Back to the Future: Medical Students Can Matter Again

  Joseph S. Alpert, Brian F. Mandell

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Over the last 5 years, we have spent considerable time directly teaching students and housestaff and have been involved in numerous meetings of academic physicians concerned about the apparent erosion in quantity and quality of medical student and resident teaching at our medical schools and teaching hospitals.

• Should We Maintain an Open Mind about Homeopathy?

  Michael Baum, Edzard Ernst

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Once upon a time, doctors had little patience with the claims made for alternative medicines. In recent years the climate has changed dramatically. It is now politically correct to have an open mind about such matters; “the patient knows best” and “it worked for me” seem to be the new mantras. Although this may be a reasonable approach to some of the more plausible aspects of alternative medicine, such as herbal medicine or physical therapies that require manipulation, we believe it cannot apply across the board. Some of these alternatives are based on obsolete or metaphysical…

• Bayesian Meta-analysis of Hormone Therapy and Mortality in Younger Postmenopausal Women

  Shelley R. Salpeter, Ji Cheng, Lehana Thabane, Nicholas S. Buckley, Edwin E. Salpeter

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Abstract: Background: There is uncertainty over the risks and benefits of hormone therapy. We performed a Bayesian meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of hormone therapy on total mortality in younger postmenopausal women. This analysis synthesizes evidence from different sources, taking into account varying views on the issue.Methods: A comprehensive search from 1966 through January 2008 identified randomized controlled trials of at least 6 month's duration that evaluated hormone therapy in women with mean age <60 years and reported at least one death, and prospective observational cohort…

• Medicare's New Regulations for Deep Vein Thrombosis as a “Never Event”: Wise or Worrisome?

  Juwono L. Sutedjo, Roger K. Ng, Gregory Piazza, Samuel Z. Goldhaber

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism estimates that more than 100,000 deaths occur annually from pulmonary embolism in the US alone. Many of these deaths are preventable by prescribing proved prophylactic measures during hospitalization. In addition, venous thromboembolism and its complications place a substantial burden on the US health care system. The sequelae of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism—post-thrombotic syndrome and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension—respectively, are sources of morbidity, diminished…

• Clues to a Life-threatening Disease

  Pasquale Santangeli, Giuseppe Ferrante, Maurizio Pieroni, Filippo Crea

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Syncope, with its multiple underlying causes, represents a challenging clinical problem. Identification of the etiology, which can range from benign to potentially life-threatening disease, might require a complex diagnostic pathway.

• 
  WebMD Health

• Artificial Sweetener May Lower Blood Pressure

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:49 pm

  An artificial sweetener that's been shown to help people shed unwanted pounds may also lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels in people with mild or borderline high blood pressure, Chinese researchers report.

• Mammography Guidelines Jolt Medical Field

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  The new guidelines on breast cancer screening have instantly ignited an emotionally charged firestorm among physicians across the country.

• Doctor's Group: Delay Pap Tests Until 21

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  A doctor's group is recommending big changes in cervical cancer screening, affecting who gets tested and how often.

• H1N1 Swine Flu Wave Peaking in U.S.?

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:38 pm

  This wave of the H1N1 swine flu may have peaked. New cases are declining in most of the U.S., although deaths and hospitalizations are still rising.

• Photo of a Loved One Reduces Pain

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:12 am

  A new study shows that just looking at a picture of a loved one can help reduce pain.

• 
  Smartbrief: The American College of Gastroenterology

• FDA warns against mixing Plavix with Nexium, Prilosec

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Heartburn drugs Prilosec and Nexium should not be taken with Plavix because they reduce the effectiveness of the blood thinne -More- 

• Digestive health tips from the ACG

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  If you're one of millions who suffer from common gastrointestinal problems, the American College of Gastroenterology has comp -More- 

• Study: 43% of U.S. adults could be obese by 2018

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  A study estimated if current trends continue, 43% of U.S.  -More- 

• Scientists link 5 genes to childhood-onset IBD

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  An international group of researchers discovered five genes that appear to play a role in childhood-onset inflammatory bowel  -More- 

• ACG note:

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  If your goal is to shed excess pounds, you're not alone.  -More- 

• 
  New York Times: Health

• Signs That Swine Flu Wave Has Peaked in U.S.

  By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:28 pm

  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said flu activity was declining in all regions of the country.

• Patient Money: How to Find Mental Health Care When Money Is Tight

  By LESLEY ALDERMAN

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:15 pm

  Hot lines, online groups and organizations that charge fees on a sliding scale are options for finding help.

• Vital Signs: Childhood: U.S. Draws Low Marks on Premature Births

  By RONI CARYN RABIN

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:30 pm

  The nation, where one out of eight babies are born prematurely each year, earned a D from the March of Dimes.

• Vital Signs: Smoking in U.S. Declines but Not by Much

  By Roni Caryn Rabin

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:52 am

  Some 20.6 percent of Americans were current smokers in 2008, a drop from 20.9 percent in 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

• Mammogram Debate Took Group by Surprise

  By GINA KOLATA

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:35 am

  The Preventive Services Task Force, which urged women to get less-frequent screening for breast cancer, was created to be apolitical.

• 
  CNN: Health

• Vicks nasal spray recalled over bacteria

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:56 pm

  Procter & Gamble is recalling Vicks Sinex nasal spray in the United States, Britain and Germany after finding it contained bacteria, the company said.

• What to expect in Senate's health care vote

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:22 pm

  To debate or not to debate the Senate's health care reform bill; that is the question.

• Can your doctor spot H1N1?

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:26 am

  You know what the flu looks like, don't you? Fever, aches and pain, sometimes an upset stomach. But an estimated 10 to 50 percent of H1N1 flu cases are showing up without fever -- long thought of as the flu's defining feature.

• After suicide takes their loved ones, survivors find purpose

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:12 am

  Dozens of people shared stories of losing loved ones to suicide on CNN.com's iReport. They're part of a growing movement that openly speaks out about the experience, despite the stigma.

• New cervical cancer screening guidelines released

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:59 am

  The new mammogram recommendations out earlier this week caused quite an uproar. Now comes another change in screening tests for women -- this one for cervical cancer.

• 
  Washington Post

• Norwegian scientists detect mutated form of swine flu

  Rob Stein

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:53 pm

  Scientists in Norway announced Friday they had detected a mutated form of the swine flu virus in two patients who died of the flu and a third who was severely ill, the most recent report of mutations in the virus that are being watched closely for any change that could make it more dangerous.

• For bubbly Va. 6-year-old, swine flu's attack came quick and strong

  Brigid Schulte

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:25 am

  JETERSVILLE, VA. -- On Wednesday, Oct. 7, 6-year-old Heaven Skyler Wilson dragged herself off the school bus that dropped her in front of her home on a rural road in Jetersville, just south of Richmond. The little girl, who had never had so much as an ear infection in her life, was pale and fever...

• Women can wait until age 21 for cervical cancer test, group says

  Rob Stein

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Women can delay having their first Pap test for cervical cancer until they turn 21 and many can wait longer to go back for follow-up screenings, according to new guidelines released Friday by a major medical group.

• How to help your overweight child

  Post

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Marc Jacobson, who practices pediatric and adolescent medicine in Great Neck, N.Y., and is a spokesman for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), acknowledges the challenges parents face in helping their kids maintain a healthful weight.

• Making up a sport can push the limits of your body and your creativity

  Vicky Hallett

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Rich Williamson and his girlfriend were talking about kids. Not necessarily whether they'd have them, but what sport their hypothetical offspring might play. "I don't want my children to play football. It's too violent," the 38-year-old Alexandria resident decided. Baseball was deemed boring. And as...

• 
  Fox News

• H1N1 Vaccine Program Plagued With Problems

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:13 am

  When the nation's swine flu vaccination program began in early October, health officials predicted it was going to be "messy." They were right.

• N.Y. Man Sues City After Medics Throw Ear in Trash

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:48 am

  A man from the Bronx is suing New York City after emergency workers tossed his ear, which was ripped off by his son's bull terrier, in the trash, the New York Daily News reported.

• Formerly Conjoined Twins Will Need Years of Care

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:59 am

  Formerly conjoined Bangladeshi twins separated this week in a marathon surgery will remain in the care of a humanitarian group for at least two years, the organization's CEO said Friday.

• Low-Carb, High-Carb Diets Both Help Keep Weight Off

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:22 am

  Low-carb and high-carb diets work equally well for maintaining weight loss, Australian researchers report.

• Military Experiment Seeks to Predict PTSD

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:02 am

  Two days before shipping off to war, Marine Pfc. Jesse Sheets sat inside a trailer in the Mojave Desert, his gaze fixed on a computer that flashed a rhythmic pulse of contrasting images

• 
  medLine Plus

• Teen Health

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:28 am

  Source: HealthDay Related MedlinePlus Topics: Coping with Chronic Illness, Teen Health

• Highest Rates of Obesity, Diabetes in the South, Appalachia, and Some Tribal Lands

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:03 pm

  Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Related MedlinePlus Topics: Diabetes, Obesity

• Asthma Combo Seems Less Influenced By Genes

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Findings may not apply to blacks, researchers note Source: HealthDay Related MedlinePlus Topics: Asthma, Genes and Gene Therapy

• New 'Skin' from Stem Cells

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Technique used in mice may offer hope to burn patients awaiting grafts Source: HealthDay Related MedlinePlus Topics: Burns, Stem Cells

• Kidney Transplant, Sleep Disorder May Add Up to Trouble

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  Heart disease, stroke more likely for organ recipients with sleep apnea, study finds Source: HealthDay Related MedlinePlus Topics: Kidney Transplantation, Sleep Apnea

• 
  WHO news

• WHO welcomes announcement of major contribution to global road safety

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:30 am

  18 November 2009 -- Bloomberg Philanthropies announced a five-year contribution to WHO and other agencies to support road safety work. The focus will be on reducing drink-driving, increasing the use of seatbelts, child restraints and motorcycle helmets, limiting speed, and strengthening trauma care.

• Yellow fever vaccination campaign to start

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  17 November 2009 -- The largest-ever yellow fever mass vaccination campaign will kick off next week across three African countries. The week-long event will target 11.9 million people across Benin, Liberia and Sierra Leone, all three of which are at high risk of yellow fever outbreaks.

• Agreement for donation of pandemic H1N1 vaccine signed

  10 Nov 2009 | 1:30 am

  10 November 2009 -- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is to donate 50 million doses of pandemic H1N1 vaccine to WHO under an agreement signed at WHO headquarters in Geneva by the WHO Director-General, Dr Margaret Chan, and the Chief Executive Officer of GlaxoSmithKline, Mr Andrew Witty.

• WHO calls for action beyond the health sector to improve the health of girls and women

  8 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  9 November 2009 -- Despite some progress in the past decades, societies continue to fail to meet the health care needs of women at key moments of their lives, particularly in their adolescent years and in old age, a WHO report has found.

• Reducing child deaths from pneumonia

  1 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  2 November 2009 -- Up to 5.3 million children can be saved from dying of pneumonia by implementing recommendations set out in the joint WHO/UNICEF Global action plan for the prevention and control of pneumonia. "This action plan provides the strategy to prevent and control pneumonia, which today kills more children than any other illness," said Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General of WHO.

• 
  Medpagetoday

• CDC Watching H1N1 Mutation, but No Cause for Alarm

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:01 am

  The CDC is keeping a careful eye on a mutation in some strains of the pandemic H1N1 flu that Norwegian researchers isolated from three patients with severe disease.

• FDA Panel Finds Tiotropium Safe for COPD Patients

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:42 am

  An FDA committee said new data allay concerns about the risk of stroke and cardiovascular events previously associated with tiotropium (Spiriva), drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim said.

• ACOG Calls for Later and Fewer Pap Tests (CME/CE)

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  Women can wait longer to have a first Pap smear and repeat the test less frequently, according to recommendations from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

• Beta-2 Receptor Variants Don't Affect LABA Response in Asthma (CME/CE)

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:17 am

  Against expectations, asthma patients with different genotypes for the beta-2 adrenergic receptor all responded well to long-acting beta agonist (LABA) asthma drugs, researchers said.

• FDA Issues Warning for Defective AEDs

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:57 am

  WASHINGTON (MedPage Today) -- The FDA is warning of potential malfunctions in some 300,000 defibrillators manufactured by Cardiac Science Corporation which may prevent the devices from delivering lifesaving shocks but don't show up on device self-tests.

• 
  Reuters Health eLine

• Exercise important in teens' blood pressure control

  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Regular exercise may help keep teenagers'

• Obesity in adolescence may increase girls' MS risk

  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A woman's risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) during her lifetime is doubled if she was obese at age 18, new research shows.

• New guidelines: Pap smears should start at age 21

  * Women under 30 should get screened every 2 years

• Eat and drink your way to a healthy colon?

  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Eating fruits and vegetables, and drinking tea and red wine may offer overweight men and normal weight women some protection from colon and rectal cancers, hint study findings from the Netherlands.

• Did U.S. make a swine flu mistake?

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As U.S. health officials struggle to vaccinate tens of millions of Americans against the pandemic of swine flu, some are looking regretfully at one easy way to instantly double or triple the number of doses available -- by using an immune booster called an adjuvant.

• 
  Yahoo! News: Health News

• Fired therapist: Stressed Marines get shoddy care (AP)

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:59 pm

  AP - Marines treated at Camp Lejeune for post-traumatic stress had to undergo therapy for months in temporary trailers where they could hear bomb blasts, machine-gun fire and war cries through the thin walls, according to servicemen and their former psychiatrist.

• Tamiflu-resistant swine flu cluster reported in NC (AP)

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:18 pm

  AP - Four North Carolina patients at a single hospital tested positive for a type of swine flu that is resistant to Tamiflu, health officials said Friday.

• Los Angeles gets tough on medical marijuana shops (Reuters)

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:48 pm

  Reuters - Past the security man and his pit bull and through a haze of eye-watering smoke, two youths load up a pipe next to a row of shiny glass jars with two dozen varieties of marijuana bud displayed like candy.

• Child abuse may shorten cell lifeline: study (AFP)

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:31 am

  AFP - Beaten or sexually abused children are more likely to show accelerated ageing of cells later in life, a condition linked to higher rates of cancer and heart disease, according to a study released Friday.

• Obesity in adolescence may increase girls' MS risk (Reuters)

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:15 am

  Reuters - A woman's risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) during her lifetime is doubled if she was obese at age 18, new research shows.

• 
  Clinical Cases and Images - Blog

• Google study: How physicians use the internet and search in their clinical practices

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:10 am

  Embedded PDF: Google study: How physicians use the internet and search in their clinical practices.Link via IgniteBLOG.@amcunningham points out that the report is "unfortunately research carried out as market research for Google and doesn't help #meded very much." Posted at Clinical Cases and Images. Stay updated and subscribe, or follow me on Twitter.

• Transbook: The Book That Contains All Books

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:54 am

  Amazon Kindle is the early prototype of the mythical "transbook".From WSJ:So far the new technology has been called the "e-reader," a term obviously picked by engineers, not poets. In literary terms it's a transbook, by which I mean that it is the book which can contain all books. A book is a singular object that can contain many voices, but the transbook has the potential to be a singular object containing all voices. It is not just another kind of media; it is the dream of ultimate text.We are still in early days, but it is obvious where the transbook is headed: It will eventually provide…

• Health News of the Day

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:26 am

  Health News of the Day is a daily summary made from the selected links I post on Twitter. It is in a bullet points format with links to the original sources which include 350 RSS feeds that produce about 2,500 items per day:Exercise remodels the brain, making it more stress-resistant (in rats, at least) http://bit.ly/QHkMUAnother study: Regular consumption of alcohol reduces the risk of heart disease by 30-50% http://bit.ly/FZQl3Young athletes should be screened for heart disease with 2 tests rather than 1: ECG and echocardiogram http://bit.ly/176Nuu55% of adult Americans don't want to get…

• Google "wonder wheels" are rudimentary mind maps

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:35 pm

  Google "wonder wheel" for asthma looks like a rudimentary mind map: http://bit.ly/4tOOF (see below):WikiMindMap provides better visual results http://bit.ly/2y4pnk (see below):WikiMindMap is a website that organizes wiki content in a mind map format http://bit.ly/1ZV5rC and http://www.wikimindmap.orgSee the "Web 2.0 and medicine" Google Wonder wheel http://bit.ly/3iHR1 - @giustini, @berci, @laikas and @DrVes make the top results:Related:ICU Mind Maps http://bit.ly/1VIVOi and http://bit.ly/2EnZLi Posted at Clinical Cases and Images. Stay updated and subscribe, or follow me on Twitter.

• Health News of the Day, part 2

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:33 am

  Health News of the Day is a daily summary made from the selected links I post on Twitter. It is in a bullet points format with links to the original sources which include 350 RSS feeds that produce about 2,500 items per day:Wii sports video games may burn as many calories as moderate-intensity exercises such as brisk walking http://bit.ly/4nc2WYFolic Acid (B9) and Vitamin B12 May Increase Cancer Risk http://bit.ly/3m4UiL -- Folic acid supplements may raise cancer risk http://bit.ly/3Rn3pr and Selenium Supplements May Raise Heart Risk http://bit.ly/15Hw4MPharaoh to Friend: ‘Who’s Gonna…

• 
  KevinMD.com - Medical Weblog

• Discharged from the hospital without answers; the death of Jane Q. Patient

  Kevin

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  by Dan Walter We found out that her real name was Cindy Chapman, and that she died alone and afraid. Cindy was a paralegal, an activist and a fighter of lost causes who lived in Worcester, Massachusetts. She was part of an online community called RATEMDs, where she had many soul mates. Her posts on health care were funny and cynical and wise. Her screen name was Jane Q. Patient. My wife, Pam, was especially fond of trading comments and barbs with her. Like others on the forum, Jane Q. was prone to drop off the screen for days or weeks at at time. But she always resurfaced with stories of her…

• Are older nurses being forced out of the profession?

  Kevin

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  Originally published in HCPLive.com by Colleen O’Leary, RN, MSN, AOCNS Last time I talked about how I had never really experienced the concept of nurses eating their young in action. However, I have seen the opposite begin to evolve. I see this as a bigger issue in nursing these days. The “putting out to pasture” of seasoned, experienced nurses is happening more often and for a variety of reasons. First, and foremost, is simply the fact that the pool of nurses inevitably follows the general aging of the nation. As baby boomers who once filled the halls of healthcare institutions…

• How should the FDA regulate the social media advertising of drugs?

  Kevin

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  Originally published in MedPage Today by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent Drug and device makers are urging the FDA to establish clear guidelines that will allow the industry to discuss and promote products in the unsettled world of online social media. The FDA is hearing testimony from drug and device companies, online marketing experts, and consumer groups about what steps the agency should take to move medical advertising and promotion into online communities. “The Internet is an important tool for consumers looking for answers about medications,” Michele…

• Primary care disrespect starts early in medical school

  Kevin

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  In medical schools, primary care continues to be among the least respected fields a student can choose. No where is that more starkly illustrated than in Pauline Chen’s recent New York Times piece, where she tells a story of a bright medical student who had the audacity to choose primary care as a career: Kerry wanted to become a primary care physician. Some of my classmates were incredulous. In their minds, primary care was a backup, something to do if one failed to get into subspecialty training. “Kerry is too smart for primary care,” a friend said to me one evening. “She’ll…

• Can less aggressive cancer screening recommendations be better for patients?

  Kevin

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  by Amy Tuteur, MD Doctors have understood for some time that it was inevitable. The American Cancer Society has acknowledged that cancer screening has been oversold. It seems like every day you read in the newspaper that what was standard medical care yesterday is now no longer recommended. Don’t doctors know anything? Well, actually they do. And what seems like paradoxical behavior, no longer recommending aggressive screening for certain cancers, actually represents a more sophisticated understanding of the way in which cancer behaves. The classic understanding of cancer is that once a…

• 
  NHS Blog Doctor

• Anal grammarians and eating placentas : Robert van Persie

  Dr John Crippen

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:18 am

  A short piece in the Guardian again today, this time about the alleged mystical healing powers of placentas and Robert van Persie's alleged trip to Serbia for some implausble alternative medicine. Let's just hope that the Quacktitioner Royal does not take this one up.I've already had a couple of gleeful emails from some like-minded anal grammarians asking me why I want timorous souls to be thrown away. Just for the record, I wrote:But, if we timorous souls are not prepared to eat placentas, can they be put to any other use before they are buried in the garden or thrown away?This was changed…

• ADHD - should nurses take over diagnosis and management?

  Dr John Crippen

  17 Nov 2009 | 7:31 am

  In the United States, approximately 9% of the school-age population is diagnosed with ADHD. It's the most commonly diagnosed behavioral condition in children today. Twice as many boys are diagnosed with ADHD as girls.ConcertaThe race continues in the USA to get 5 million children on psychoactive medication for behaviour problems. Drug companies in the UK are not allowed to advertise directly to the general public but the internet means that is only a theoretical restriction. In the USA, the makes of Concerta have a highly sophisticated pitch aimed directly at parents. Listen to the soothing…

• Sick certificates

  Dr John Crippen

  3 Nov 2009 | 2:15 pm

  King Andy's guide to faking a sickieIt has always suited governments to encourage the long-term unemployed to "discover" an illness and move on to incapacity benefit. The move is easily made, as GPs are a "soft touch" for a sick certificate. But while this move to incapacity benefit may please the government by providing a short-term "fix" for high unemployment figures, it creates an insidious long-term problem...The Guardian, Tuesday 3 November 2009

• Myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) : science, quackery & mental illness

  Dr John Crippen

  21 Oct 2009 | 10:13 am

  The militant wing of the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) brigade broke out the champagne when a recent article in Science reported that a retrovirus had been found in 67% of ME patients compared to under 4% of the general population. Sadly, the study only involved just over 100 patients and is thus inconclusive...The Guardian, Tuesday 20 October 2009

• Public Stools

  Dr John Crippen

  5 Oct 2009 | 11:17 pm

  GarderobeA smartly dressed, middle-aged lady came in and sat down. Let's call her Angela. Angela was a child of the 60s, the decade of female emancipation. But, while other girls of her age were letting their hair down at Woodstock, Angela was still at school....6 October 2009 The Guardian

• 
  Running a hospital

• Evidence in Medicine

  Paul Levy

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:03 pm

  A new blog by David Rind. Very timely.

• We are eating ourselves to death

  Paul Levy

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:42 pm

  I'm taking a risk of offending here, but I don't mean it that way at all. It could be written about much of this country.This particular post is prompted by an AP story by Mike Strobbe, pointing out that rates of obesity in the United States are highest in the Southeast and Appalachia.On my recent incoming flight to Kentucky, an MD from the area who was sitting next to me pointed out that I would notice a large number of people with high body-mass indices. I expressed surprise, and said, "You mean noticeably different?" He said, "Yes."I mentioned this story upon arrival to a number of my…

• There is no billing code for compassion

  Paul Levy

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:30 am

  Our Dr. Amy Ship won the Campassionate Caregiver Award from the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center last night. The center conducts programs to educate, train and support caregivers in the art of compassionate health care. It received over 100 nominations for this award, which is designed to recognize people who have exemplified the practice of compassionate care to patients. Here is a background story from NECN television.Amy's acceptance speech kept the audience in rapt attention. Here are some excerpts. I am hoping to be able to lead you to a video soon. One peak moment was when she emphasized the…

• Optimism? Other options?

  Paul Levy

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:10 am

  This New York Times story by Michael Grynbaum tells of a new transit pass in New York City that has the word "optimism" printed on the reverse. Why?“God knows people want to feel good, they want to feel up, they want to feel positive,” said Christopher P. Boylan, who oversaw the project at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “If I can make a couple of customers smile a day, that’s nice.”Shouldn't we be more flexible here in Boston? New York is so old. In this high tech town, where social media reigns and where everyone has a status bar on Facebook, shouldn't we have Charlie…

• Donate Life New England

  Paul Levy

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:30 am

  BIDMC was just presented with this award for its role in promoting organ donations. The sponsor, Donate Life New England, coordinates organ donation programs throughout the region. It has a new website, as well as presence on social media like Facebook and Twitter, to get the word out about how important it is -- and easy it is -- to be an organ donor.Many people think they have to wait for renewal of their driver's license to become an organ donor, but you can do it at any time. (I actually thought so, and then forgot to do it during my recent renewal!) You can do it on the website. It only…

• 
  USA TODAY: Health

• Drug resistant H1N1 found in U.S. and U.K.

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:51 pm

  Epidemic experts have launched an investigation of four Tamiflu-resistant swine flu cases at Duke University Medical Center to ...

• Ex-smoker to speak out about $300M verdict

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:01 am

  A former smoker in Fort Lauderdale is speaking out about her $300 million verdict against Philip Morris.

• New guidelines: Women can get Pap smears every two years

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:05 am

  Most women in their 20s can have a Pap smear every two years instead of annually, say new guidelines that conclude that is enough ...

• Last year's flu shot may help ward off swine flu, study shows

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:24 pm

  People who received last year's seasonal flu vaccine may have gained some protection against the swine flu virus, according to ...

• P&G recalls Vicks nasal spray after bacteria found

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:04 am

  The Procter & Gamble Co. is recalling some 120,000 bottles of Vicks Sinex nasal spray after the company found bacteria in some ...

• 
  Wall St Journal: Health Blog

• Moody’s on Pharma: Outlook Is Negative, But it Could Be Worse

  James A. White

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  Moody’s still thinks the credit ratings of the world’s big drug companies are likely to get worse in the coming months. But Moody’s does find a few good things to say about the industry. A sampling of findings from the company’s latest industry outlook: Mega-mergers by Pfizer, Merck and others is providing “increased scale and a somewhat better balance” between the companies’ expiring patents and their product pipelines, Moody’s says. The “unprecdented” M&A binge is expected to slow but activity is likely to continue with smaller, bolt-on deals.

• Swine-Flu Update: Resistance, Mutations, Declines and China

  Jacob Goldstein

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  Here are a few threads from around the world on what’s happening with the H1N1 swine-flu pandemic. Four patients in the past six weeks had Tamiflu-resistant flu at Duke University Hospital. In at least two of the cases, patients contracted the resistant bug before they had been treated with Tamiflu, a Duke infection-control doctor told the Health Blog. All of the patients were on a cancer ward, and had suppressed immune systems. Norway reported finding a mutated strain of H1N1 in three patients, two of whom had died from the disease. The mutation might make the more likely to move deep…

• Pfizer’s Generics Business Takes Shape

  Jacob Goldstein

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:49 am

  Sounds like Pfizer’s pushing further into the generic drugs business. New agreements between Pfizer and Aurobindo of India could be coming in the next month or two, Dow Jones Newswires reports this morning, citing execs from both companies who say something’s in the works. The companies already have a deal that allows Pfizer to sell dozens of generic drugs in both developed and emerging markets. Pfizer plans to set up a division to sell generic drugs in Japan, according to news reports this week. The unit will initially sell Pfizer’s own off-patent drugs, but will also apply…

• Former Smoker Sues Philip Morris, Wins $300 Million

  Jacob Goldstein

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:08 am

  Florida’s never-ending tobacco litigation continued not to end this week. A woman in South Florida who smoked Benson & Hedges for 25 years sued Philip Morris and was awarded $300 million. Most of the award — $244 million — was punitive damages. The balance was compensatory damages for the woman, who has emphysema, the Associated Press reports. She’s 61; she started smoking in 1968 and stopped in 1993. Her lawyers argued that the company knew cigarette smoking was addictive and harmful, but concealed that information. The cigarette lawsuits in Florida have been…

• Balancing Risks and Benefits of Pap Smears

  Jacob Goldstein

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:55 am

  A big national gynecologists’ group has new guidelines out on when women should get a pap smear, the screening test that helps reduce the risk of cervical cancer. Guidelines like these come out all the time and go largely unnoticed by the public, but given the debate this week over the new mammogram guidelines, the pap test guidelines are getting some attention. The guidelines note that pap smears can lead to procedures that may increase the risk of premature delivery if a woman gets pregnant later in life. And, they note, cervical cancer is extremely rare in adolescents. So they advise…

• 
  CBS News: Health

• Tamiflu-Resistant H1N1 Cluster Reported

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:30 pm

  Cases of 4 N.C. Patients Show Swine Flu Virus May be Mutating

• Video: Marijuana Treats Help Autistic Boy?

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:14 pm

  A California mom claims medical marijuana helps her severely autistic son live a better life. CBS 2's Michele Gile reports.

• Video: Preview: The Cost of Dying

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:47 am

  Many Americans spend their last days in an ICU, subjected to uncomfortable machines or surgeries to prolong their lives at enormous cost. Steve Kroft reports. Sunday, Nov. 22, 7 p.m. ET/PT.

• Change Ahead for Cervical Cancer Detection

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:30 am

  Women in their 20s Should Get Pap Smear Every Two Years, Not Annually, OB/GYN Organization Says

• CDC: "Nothing Typical" about 2009 Flu

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  43 States Still Seeing Widespread H1N1 Activity, 15 More Confirmed H1N1 Deaths, CDC Reports

• 
  ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

• Frog legs trade may facilitate spread of pathogens

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Most countries throughout the world participate in the $40-million-per-year culinary trade of frog legs in some way, with 75 percent of frog legs consumed in France, Belgium and the United States. Scientists have found that this trade is a potential carrier of pathogens deadly to amphibians.

• On your last nerve: Researchers advance understanding of stem cells

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Researchers have identified a gene that tells embryonic stem cells in the brain when to stop producing nerve cells called neurons. The research is a significant advance in understanding the development of the nervous system, which is essential to addressing conditions such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other neurological disorders.

• New cause of osteoporosis: Mutation in a miroRNA

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Many biological processes are controlled by small molecules known as microRNAs. Researchers have now identified a previously unknown microRNA (miR-2861) as crucial to bone maintenance in mice and humans; significantly, expression of functional miR-2861 was absent in two related adolescents with primary osteoporosis.

• Spotting evidence of directed percolation

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  Convincing experimental evidence has finally been found for directed percolation, a phenomenon that turns up in computer models of the ways diseases spread through a population or how water soaks through loose soil.

• Braking news: Particles from car brakes harm lung cells

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  Real-life particles released by car brake pads can harm lung cells in vitro. Researchers found that heavy braking, as in an emergency stop, caused the most damage, but normal breaking and even close proximity to a disengaged brake resulted in potentially dangerous cellular stress.

• 
  BBC News: Health

• Drug-resistant swine flu hits UK

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:14 am

  Health officials in Cardiff say a Tamiflu-resistant strain of swine flu has spread between hospital patients.

• Scientists make mad cow discovery

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:40 am

  Researchers at the University of Leeds discover a type of protein which may play a part in causing "mad cow disease".

• New skin 'may help burns victims'

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:06 pm

  Researchers say they have found how to use human embryonic stem cells to create skin which could help serious burns victims.

• 'Enzyme clue' to breast tumours

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:54 pm

  Scientists identify an enzyme crucial for turning breast tissue into tumours, according to a study.

• Hope over Down's learning problem

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:13 am

  US researchers find key to reverse the memory problems of Down's children.

• 
  Forbes: Health

• States With The Most And Least H1N1 Vaccine Per 1,000 Residents

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:30 pm

  Your chances of getting inoculated against America's worst pandemic since the 1918 flu improve greatly depending on where you live.

• Many Women Miscalculate Time to Full-Term Birth

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  1 in 4 thinks it's as short as 34 weeks, potentially adding to preemie delivery rate, experts say

• Text Messages Might Increase Sunscreen Usage

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  With daily reminders, people may be more apt to protect their skin

• Swine Flu Declining in Some Parts of U.S.

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  But, flu activity remains high and is expected to continue, CDC says

• Swine Flu May Hit Kids With Asthma Harder

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  Canadian study finds more severe cases than with seasonal flu

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  Medical News Today: Public Health

• No Time For Complacency On Swine Flu - Australian Medical Association

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  AMA Vice President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that the AMA is encouraging people to visit their GP to be immunised against swine flu. It has been reported that there are still far too many Australians who have not been vaccinated to protect themselves from the virus. Dr Hambleton said that people should not be complacent because of the warmer weather or because swine flu is no longer dominating the TV and radio news or the newspaper headlines.

• AMA Urges Safety And Common Sense In Schoolies Week, Australia

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:00 am

  AMA Vice President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that Schoolies Week is a traditional celebration for students after a tough year, but it is also a time of high health risk for young people. Dr Hambleton, a Brisbane GP, said the focus has been on preventing the risks of alcohol and binge drinking but students should be equally careful and cautious about their sexual health.

• Daschle Still Making Voice Heard On Health Care

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  The Hill reports that former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle helped Obama Administration officials strategize to win health care reform votes from Senators on Capitol Hill Wednesday.

• Reid Advances Dems' Health Reform Effort With Release Of Senate Bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid set the stage for a climactic debate in the Senate over health care by unveiling a 10-year, $848 billion bill that would extend insurance to 31 million Americans without coverage," The Wall Street Journal reports. The proposed measure, which totals 2,074 pages in length, "is the Senate's answer to a bill that narrowly passed the House Nov. 7.

• For World Toilet Day, News Outlets Examine Poor Sanitation Conditions Around World

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  In light of World Toilet Day Thursday, several news outlets examine the impact of poor sanitation on health. Reuters examines the challenges of poor sanitation in Mumbai, India, "where more than half its 18 million residents live in slums and where the average ratio of people to toilets is 81:1.

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  MSNBC: More Health

• Deadly job? Funeral workers risk cancer

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:52 pm

  Morticians who use formaldehyde to embalm bodies have a higher risk of leukemia, researchers reported on Friday.

• UC regents vote to reopen troubled LA hospital

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:18 pm

  California's public university system on Thursday agreed to fully reopen a troubled South Los Angeles hospital that was partially closed in 2007 after deadly lapses in care.

• HPV vaccine no longer required for green cards

  16 Nov 2009 | 5:11 pm

  Immigrant girls and women will no longer have to be vaccinated against a sexually transmitted virus to get their green cards.

• Bits of steel, rubber found in Genzyme drugs

  13 Nov 2009 | 10:41 am

  Federal health regulators say they have found tiny particles of trash in drugs made by biotechnology firm Genzyme.

• FDA tackles drug marketing on social media

  12 Nov 2009 | 12:31 pm

  Drugmakers, Internet companies and nonprofits packed a hearing Thursday into what is a gray area for U.S. health regulators: how far social media can go in promoting drugs.

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  Reuters: Health News

• Moderate Democrat boosts Senate health bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:54 pm

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - One of three wavering U.S. Senate Democrats said on Friday he would vote to start the chamber's healthcare debate, bolstering the chances for a broad reform bill one day before its first crucial test.

• Swine flu may have hit one peak; more to come

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:45 pm

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The pandemic of swine flu may be hitting a peak in the Northern Hemisphere, global health officials said on Friday, but they cautioned it was far from over.

• Funeral workers risk cancer from formaldehyde

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:58 pm

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Morticians who use formaldehyde to embalm bodies have a higher risk of leukemia, researchers reported on Friday.

• Los Angeles gets tough on medical marijuana shops

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:48 pm

  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Past the security man and his pit bull and through a haze of eye-watering smoke, two youths load up a pipe next to a row of shiny glass jars with two dozen varieties of marijuana bud displayed like candy.

• Swine flu may be peaking in U.S.

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:27 pm

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The pandemic of swine flu may be hitting a peak in the United States, health experts said on Friday.

• 
  Iowa Avenue

• Berries and Your Heart Health

  Lisa Nelson

  In the battle against chronic disease, specifically heart disease, the antioxidant content of berries is a fantastic weapon. Researchers in 2008 studied 72 volunteers over an eight week period. The volunteers were divided into a berry group and control group. The berry group was fed 100 grams of whole bilberries, 50 grams of lingonberry-rich nectar, and 100 grams of blackcurrants, strawberries, or raspberry-chokeberry juice every other day. The control group received non-berry “fruit placebos”, such as sugar water and marmalade. After 8 weeks, the berry group had an increase in HDL…

• Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs and Wear Cows

  Susana

  The publisher created a terrific promotional video with a reenactment of this scene: New book by Melanie Joy, Ph.D. The vast majority of Americans view eating meat as natural, normal and necessary while recognizing that vegetarianism is an ideology, or belief system. Thanks to Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs and Wear Cows by Melanie Joy, Ph.D. (published November, 2009 by Conari Press), the way we eat animals now has a name and is exposed to be every bit as much an ideology as vegetarianism. "Carnism" is the belief system that says it's okay to eat certain animals and not others. Like feminism,…

• Life without cow and pig

  Sharon Porter

  It has been a little over a year not eating red meat or pork. My entire life, I grew up on eating and loving to eat these meat products. Some of my favorite foods included Italian combos, steak drizzled with gorgonzola and rueben sandwiches. Anytime I ate red meat, I always felt tired and as if some brick was just sitting in my stomach. Red meat never settled well for me. After conducting some research on how industrial cows were treated, and the impact of raising and then eating it has on the environment, I decided to give up red meat permanently. As for pork products, I didn’t physically…

• How Does Protein Affect Weight Loss?

  Lisa Nelson

  Fat, protein, and carbohydrates are all essential to your overall health. When you are working to lose weight it’s important that you do not cut any one nutrient too low. Let’s focus on your protein intake. Types of Protein Protein is made up of 20 building blocks called amino acids. Eleven of these amino acids are nonessential and nine are essential. This means the body is unable to create nine of these amino acids on its own and must receive them from food sources. Dietary protein is divided into two categories – complete and incomplete. A complete protein contains all nine of the…

• 100 Things Restaurant Staffers Should Never Do (Part 2)

  David

  From the New York Times: Or what you should expect when eating out, but do not want. This is the second half of the 100 do’s and don’ts from last week’s post. Again, this list is for one particular restaurant, mine, which is under construction in Bridgehampton, N.Y., and will, with any luck, open this spring. I realize that every deli needs a wisecracking waiter, most pizza joints can handle heavy metal, and burgers always taste better when delivered by a server with tattoos and tongue piercing(s). Not even a hundred suggestions can cover all the bases, so one is grateful for the many…

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  AP Top Health News At 11:42 a.m. EDT

• Panel Reverses Pap Smear Guidelines

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:11 pm

  First mammograms. Now — in an apparent coincidence — Pap smears. New guidelines by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say most women in their 20s can have a Pap smear every two years instead of annually to catch slow-growing cervical cancer. The change comes amid a separate debate over when regular mammograms to detect breast cancer should begin, in the 40s or the 50s.

• Tamiflu-resistant swine flu cluster reported in NC

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:18 pm

  Four North Carolina patients at a single hospital tested positive for a type of swine flu that is resistant to Tamiflu, health officials said Friday. The cases reported at Duke University Medical Center over six weeks make up the biggest cluster seen so far in the U.S.

• Pa. university students upset about fitness class

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm

  A Pennsylvania university's requirement that overweight undergraduates take a fitness course to receive their degrees has raised the hackles of students and the eyebrows of health and legal experts.

• Guidelines for cancer screening differ by group

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  Several doctors groups and advocacy groups set guidelines for cancer screening, and they update that advice periodically as new information emerges. Sometimes they agree, sometimes they don't. Last year, a number of groups got together and issued consensus guidelines for colon cancer.

• Military experiment seeks to predict PTSD

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:15 pm

  Two days before shipping off to war, Marine Pfc. Jesse Sheets sat inside a trailer in the Mojave Desert, his gaze fixed on a computer that flashed a rhythmic pulse of contrasting images.

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  Hospital Impact

• Tips for managing physician preferences

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:55 am

  by John Cunningham With the ongoing debate on the cost of healthcare and the myriad of proposals to "fix" it, it's easy to become distracted from the daily operational issues that acute-care hospitals face in managing one of the fastest growing expense lines; physician preference items. Physician preference items can end up accounting for a sizable portion of a hospital's total supply expenses. In 2008, the FDA reported that 3,370 new items were submitted for FDA approval and that number continues to climb. In fact, by 2011, the Healthcare Advisory Board predicts that 35 to 45 percent of all…

• Candid reflections on bad behavior

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:01 pm

  by Dr. Kenneth H. Cohn I have been thinking a lot about the 2009 ACPE Doctor-Nurse Behavior Study, which surveyed 2,124 physicians and 696 nurses. It found that nearly 85 percent of respondents experienced degrading comments at work, including yelling (73 percent), cursing (49 percent) and refusing to work together (38 percent). As I wrote in my first book, Better Communication for Better Care, confronting a physician creates fear, but in retrospect, we all benefit from early intervention to avoid lapses in patient care suffers and even burnout. The reason why I use the term "in retrospect"…

• Will reform lower health costs even without public option?

  11 Nov 2009 | 12:02 pm

  Cornell University economist Robert H. Frank, in a New York Times editorial, argues that even without a public option, any of the current healthcare reform bills will eliminate the underlying conflict of interest that has caused costs in the U.S. to skyrocket. Actually, "argue" may be too strong a word, as he devotes the entire article to a very lucid explanation of the problem. Does he contribute to the debate? You be the judge. Article

• Innovation in Healthcare - A Look at Online Doctor's 'Visits'

  11 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  by Christopher Cornue I recently learned about an online medical practice that uses the Internet to connect with and take care of patients. I was intrigued by what I heard, so I researched the site further and found it to be a very interesting concept. Through the site, patients use the Internet as a primary means of communication with their healthcare provider. They create an account where their healthcare information will be stored and then have access to multiple physicians at a click of the mouse. [More:] It's an interesting concept in that each patient's interaction with his or her…

• Exactly how useful is patient satisfaction data, anyway?

  9 Nov 2009 | 7:42 am

  by Anthony Cirillo FierceHealthcare recently reported on the latest report that identifies the best-performing hospitals that offer the highest quality of care. The research firm that came up with the list says it's the "first comprehensive index to compare the value of care that hospitals provide." They measure quality, including CMS's Core Measures, patient safety, mortality and readmission rates; efficiency, including the relative measure of the cost to the hospital for providing services; affordability, a relative comparison of prices charged for inpatient and outpatient services; and…

• 
  Cancer Research UK - Cancer news

• NICE rules against liver cancer drug sorafenib

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:28 am

  The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has ruled that sorafenib should not be made routinely available for patients with the most common form of primary liver cancer, advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

• People looking for information on cancer say variety is key

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:09 am

  PEOPLE looking for detailed information about cancer outside of hospitals need a range of different information sources, reveals a Cancer Research UK survey published in the November issue of Cancer Nursing Practice*.

• Healthy lifestyles could prevent an estimated 80,000 cases of cancer each year

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  A report from the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) estimates that nearly 80,000 cases of cancer could be prevented each year in the UK alone if people ate healthy diets, exercised regularly and maintained a suitable weight.

• Early trials begin for new breast-growing technique

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  Researchers in Australia plan to test a new technique designed to stimulate natural breast tissue to regrow following surgery.

• Scientists find 'sibling' cancer genes work together to fight skin cancer

  15 Nov 2009 | 4:01 pm

  CANCER RESEARCH UK scientists have shown, for the first time, how two genes from the same ‘family’ can interact with each other to stop cancer in its tracks - according to new findings published in Molecular Cell*.

• 
  James Hubbard's My Family Doctor Blog

• Healthy, Fun Pumpkin Recipes for Halloween

  lhubbard

  26 Oct 2009 | 11:09 am

  by Leigh Ann Otte, managing editor Impending kiddie sugar high scaring the heck out of you? How ’bout enticing them away with a steaming bowl of boiled jack o’ lantern guts (i.e. pumpkin...

• Weekly Health Tip: Fiber to help you lose weight (from our current issue)

  lhubbard

  30 Aug 2009 | 11:00 pm

  “Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that your body cannot digest; therefore it adds volume to fill you up without adding extra calories.  Weight loss genius!  A common complaint often expressed by...

• Weekly Health Tip: How to stick to your decisions (from our current issue)

  lhubbard

  23 Aug 2009 | 11:00 pm

  “Once you announce that you plan to do something, the prospect of doing it becomes more real. At that point someone other than you is expecting something.  Even if that person doesn’t have a...

• Weekly Health Tip: Simple lower-calorie dessert (from our current issue)

  lhubbard

  16 Aug 2009 | 11:00 pm

  IF YOU LIKE … dessert … TRY … angel food cake topped with unsweetened frozen berries and fat-free whipped topping. (Let the berries defrost and get nice and juicy; add some fresh...

• Is there a “death panel” in Obama’s health-care bill?

  jhubbard

  11 Aug 2009 | 1:53 pm

  by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. Of course not, you say.  Ridiculous.  But could a report by ABCNews.com about 64-year-old Oregon woman Barbara Wagner suggests otherwise?  When she was dying of lung...

• 
  AAFP News Now

• AAFP Applauds House Passage of Bill to Fix Broken Payment Formula

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:15 pm

  The AAFP has hailed House passage of a bill that would provide a permanent fix for the sustainable growth rate, or SGR formula, as a victory for both Medicare patients and their physicians.

• CMS Announces Extension of 2010 Medicare Provider Enrollment Period

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:30 pm

  CMS has extended Medicare's 2010 provider participation enrollment end date to Jan. 31, 2010. This gives physicians currently participating in Medicare or considering participation in 2010 one month beyond the normal Dec. 31 cutoff to make a participation decision.

• Recent Decline in U.S. Smoking Prevalence Stalls

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:10 pm

  The United States likely will fall well short of the Healthy People 2010 objective of reducing the prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults to less than 12 percent. According to a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, or MMWR, article released Nov. 13, the proportion of U.S. adults who were cigarette smokers declined from 24.1 percent in 1998 to 19.8 percent in 2007. However, the figure increased to 20.6 percent in 2008.

• News Briefs: Week of Nov. 16-20

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:10 pm

  This roundup includes the following news briefs: SGR Bill Would Cost $35 Billion Less Than Previous Fix; Medical Home Pilot Launches With 13 Practices in Kansas City Area; and CMS Releases Results for 2008 PQRI Participation.

• AMA Backs GME Funding for Nonhospital Residency Sites, Other Medical Education Initiatives

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:05 pm

  Delegates at the 2009 interim meeting of the AMA House of Delegates in Houston recently adopted several recommendations that put the AMA squarely in line with key components of the AAFP's new physician workforce reform policy and with other medical education issues championed by the Academy. Some of the most important measures adopted concern expanding funding for graduate medical education, or GME; limiting future restrictions on resident and fellow duty hours; and enhancing the availability of clinical training sites for medical students.

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  DoctorWorld.NET: Upcoming stories

• Cost of child vaccines fall, more kids saved (AP)

  doctorworld

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm

  AP - Babies squirmed and wailed as needles plunged into their chubby thighs at a public health clinic on the outskirts of Hanoi on Friday. Like little ones everywhere, the reaction to the sting was never pretty. Read more... | Original Medical News | Votes so far: 1 / 0

• Nutrition, Anabolism, and the Wound Healing Process: An Overview

  doctorworld

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm

  Anabolic agents can directly improve the wound healing process by increasing protein synthesis. ePlasty, Open Access Journal of Plastic Surgery Read more... | Original Medical News | Votes so far: 1 / 0

• Risk Stratification of the Potentially Septic Patient in the Emergency Department: The Mortality in

  doctorworld

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm

  Can a risk-stratification tool predict 1-month mortality in Emergency Department patients with suspected infection? Here is the case of a 67-year-old-woman. The Journal of Emergency Medicine Read more... | Original Medical News | Votes so far: 1 / 0

• Did US make a swine flu mistake? - Reuters

  doctorworld

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm

  BBC NewsDid US make a swine flu mistake?ReutersWASHINGTON (Reuters) - As US health officials struggle to vaccinate tens of millions of Americans against the pandemic of swine flu, some are looking regretfully at one easy way to instantly double or triple the ...Swine flu deaths in Scotland rise to 40 BBC NewsHealth Department plans third H1N1 clinic... Read more... | Original Medical News | Votes so far: 1 / 0

• Computerized Alerts Can Influence Drug Prescribing

  doctorworld

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm

  Computerized decision-support systems can reduce potentially inappropriate drug prescribing. Journal Watch Read more... | Original Medical News | Votes so far: 1 / 0

• 
  Everyone's Blog Posts - DoctorsHangout.com

• DEPRESSION --BIPOLAR --AND ANXIETY

  maria angelica sassone

• DEPRESSION --BIPOLAR --AND ANXIETY

  maria angelica sassone

• Tribes resistance could help CJD

  Doctors Hangout Team

  Darwinian natural selection could help halt human "mad cow disease", experts say after finding a tribe impervious to a related fatal brain disorder. The Papua New Guinea tribe developed strong genetic resistance after a major epidemic of the CJD-like disease, kuru, spread mostly by cannibalism. Medical Research Council experts assessed more than 3,000 survivors of the mid-20th Century epidemic. Their findings appear in the New England Journal of Medicine. More at BBC

• Researchers Try to Solve the Mystery of HIV Carriers Who Don't Contract AIDS

  Doctors Hangout Team

  More than half a million people in the U.S. have died from HIV infection, and more than a million currently live with the virus, but a relative handful of people infected with HIV never get treatment for it and never get sick from it. The immune systems of this small population—perhaps 50,000 Americans—somehow control the virus for long periods of time. Of course, there is typically a bell curve of response to any disease, but figuring out how these people control the virus is one of the most vexing mysteries of the AIDS pandemic. Solving it might unlock new ways to prevent and treat HIV…

• Current Cigarette Smokers at Increased Risk of Seizures

  Doctors Hangout Team

  A recent study determined there is a significant risk of seizure for individuals who currently smoke cigarettes. Boston-based researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School also found that long-term, moderate intake of caffeine or alcohol does not increase the chance of having a seizure or developing epilepsy. This is the first prospective study to examine the potential risks associated with cigarette smoking, caffeine intake, and alcohol consumption as they independently relate to epilepsy. Full findings of this study are currently available online and will appear…

• 
  HarvardScience

• Harvard Medical School grad heads for International Space Station

  404132862

  16 Nov 2009 | 7:01 am

  In an era when elementary schoolchildren can create exciting new worlds and explore them with the click of a computer mouse, will we again see bold explorers like Lewis and Clark or the Mercury Seven astronauts? Will we follow modern Jasons and their Argonauts through space in an age in which the nation’s deficit is soaring and equally alluring worlds in our body’s cells offer the potential to cure disease and extend life? Robert Satcher says we will.read more

• Researchers ‘NOTCH’ a victory in war on cancer

  404132862

  10 Nov 2009 | 1:09 pm

• Speeding new medicines and technologies to the developing world

  404132862

  9 Nov 2009 | 9:16 am

  A consortium of Harvard and five other leading research universities and the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) have endorsed a far-reaching “Statement of Principles and Strategies for the Equitable Dissemination of Medical Technologies” in the developing world.read more

• Quantum gas microscope offers glimpse of quirky ultracold atoms

  404132862

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:39 am

  Harvard physicists have created a quantum gas microscope that can be used to observe single atoms at temperatures so low the particles follow the rules of quantum mechanics, behaving in bizarre ways. The work, published this week in the journal Nature, represents the first time scientists have detected single atoms in a crystalline structure made solely of light, called a Bose Hubbard optical lattice. It's part of scientists' efforts to use ultracold quantum gases to understand and develop novel quantum materials.read more

• Materials scientists find better model for glass creation

  404132862

  4 Nov 2009 | 9:09 am

  Harvard materials scientists have come up with what they believe is a new way to model the formation of glasses, a type of amorphous solid that includes common window glass.Glasses form through the process of vitrification, in which a glass-forming liquid cools and slowly becomes a solid whose molecules, though they’ve stopped moving, are not permanently locked into a crystal structure. Instead, they’re more like a liquid that has merely stopped flowing, though they can continue to move over long stretches of time.read more

• 
  Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review

• How Can Harry Reid Keep a Straight Face Telling Us His Health Bill Will Reduce the Deficit?

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:57 am

  The accounting gimmickry in Harry Reid’s Senate health bill is astounding even by Capitol Hill standards.Reid says his bill will cost $850 billion and reduce the deficit by $130 billion—all over ten years.Based upon the outline Reid gave the CBO that could well be right. But let’s look at it further:Reid delays most of the spending in the bill to 2014—a year longer than in the House. More

• Why Isn't the Press Talking About Affordability--For "Ordinary Folks"?

  17 Nov 2009 | 4:44 am

  I thought Trudy Lieberman hit the nail on the head in a post she did yesterday at the Columbia Journalism Review entitled, "Missing Persons--How Will Reform Affect Ordinary Folks." Here is a small part of it:The media have talked about affordability mostly in the context of whether the country can afford reform, not whether individuals can afford it. It’s easier for a reporter to write about

• The Outlook for a Health Care Bill in 2009

  16 Nov 2009 | 11:45 am

  Readers of this blog know of my yearlong pessimism over our getting a trillion dollar health care bill in 2009.With the historic passage of the House bill, are we now on our way to a big health care bill in 2009—or even by early 2010?Clearly, Democrats desperately want to pass a bill. Given their compromise over abortion and the neutering of the public option in the House legislation—things most

• The End of the "Robust" Public Option and the Potential for "Robust" Cost Containment?

  13 Nov 2009 | 6:54 am

  Two things happened this week that in tandem have the potential to lead to a compromise over a health care bill.First, there are unconfirmed reports that Senate Majority Leader Reid is leaning toward offering the neutered version of the public option like that in the House--not tied to Medicare rates, providers not required to participate, and provider reimbursement rates negotiated.The second

• The Best Health Care Idea All Year

  11 Nov 2009 | 4:56 am

  Out of almost nowhere has come momentum for a proposal to create a bipartisan entitlement and tax commission to draft proposals to control the long-term costs of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. The idea would require the Congress to quickly vote the recommendations up or down via a super majority vote.The idea isn't new--proposals for a such a commission have been around for a

• 
  Scientific American

• Circulation of LHC Beams Could Resume in Earnest over the Weekend

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:50 pm

  The Large Hadron Collider , the world's most powerful particle accelerator, is drawing near to its long-awaited reboot. More than a year after the European collider's initial start-up was quashed by a helium leak caused by a faulty electrical connection , particle beams have been injected into the collider, known as the LHC, and may be guided fully through its rings in the coming hours. [More]

• How Long Can a Nuclear Reactor Last?

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  Could nuclear power plants last as long as the Hoover Dam?Increasingly dependable and emitting few greenhouse gases, the U.S. fleet of nuclear power plants will likely run for another 50 or even 70 years before it is retired -- long past the 40-year life span planned decades ago -- according to industry executives, regulators and scientists. [More]

• Novel Nova: Stellar Blast Powered by Helium May Leave a Tantalizing Remnant

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:05 am

  A stellar explosion known as a nova that was detected in 2000 formed a two-lobed shell of material ejected from the star. Shaped like a bow tie, it continues to swell at great velocity. But, curiously, the coat of ejecta flowing outward from the star lacks hydrogen, the most common gas in the universe. [More]

• Cracked Corn: Scientists Solve Maize's Genetic Maze

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:48 pm

  The complex corn genome--coming in at a hearty two billion base pairs (compared with the human genome's 2.9 billion base pairs)--has been mapped by more than 150 researchers, who worked for years to decipher the grain's genetic code . It's the most complicated plant genome to be deciphered to date and promises to increase the efficiency of the crop itself. [More]

• Can Flywheels Help Balance Electricity Supply and Demand?

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:48 pm

  Beacon Power Corp. broke ground today on a 20-megawatt, energy-storage facility in southeastern New York. [More]

• 
  HealthBlawg :: David Harlow's Health Care Law Blog

• Health Care Social Media Legal Issues and Strategy Webinar

  David Harlow

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:18 am

  Today's HIPAA and Your Social Media Strategy webinar, which I presented together with Jamie Verkamp of (e)Merge, was a success.  We had a good turnout, interesting questions and engaging discussion.  Here is a version of the slide deck I used today, complete with links to other useful resources here at HealthBlawg and elsewhere on the web. Social Media In Health Care Legal IssuesView more presentations from DavidHarlow. Jamie and I will be repeating this webinar in two weeks, on December 2 , at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, 12:00 Central.  If you missed it the first time around, or would like to…

• An ounce of prevention

  David Harlow

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:55 am

  Today's Boston Globe reports on a feature of the Massachusetts universal health care law that may be replicated at the national level: MassHealth -- the Massachusetts Medicaid program -- has been covering the costs for smoking cessation counseling and medications for eligible enrollees. Using the data available, researchers were able to associate the roll-out of these services with a significant drop in smoking rates -- a drop not seen among the small percentage of Bay Staters who remain uninsured. Not only that, but there are cost savings involved.  Fewer health care services are required…

• Son of HIPAA Breach Notification Rules and Business Associate Requirements: Who's Ready?

  David Harlow

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:23 pm

  HIMMS Analytics surveyed about 250 hospital and business associate representatives, and came up with some figures to back up what we all knew in our hearts:  Most hospitals are gearing up for compliance with the HITECH Act / Son of HIPAA data security and breach notification requirements, but many experience data breaches -- about half of hospitals surveyed in the past year -- and business associates lag behind hospital in awareness and preparedness for compliance with new business associate requirements.Check out the full report on the HITECH Act's impact on privacy and security, and check…

• Social Media Session at Oklahoma Hospital Association Annual Meeting

  David Harlow

  12 Nov 2009 | 9:08 pm

  Yesterday I had the pleasure of sharing the podium -- at least virtually -- at the Oklahoma Hospital Association's annual meeting with two leaders in the health care social media sphere, Ed Bennett of the University of Maryland Medical System and Lee Aase of the Mayo Clinic, for a program on health care social media presented by the Public Relations and Marketing Society of the OHA.  Our host, Brenda Finkle, and others, livetweeted the session.  Here for your perusal are our presentations.Presentation at the Oklahoma Hospital AssociationView more presentations from Ed Bennett. Oklahoma…

• Son of HIPAA Breach Notification Rules

  David Harlow

  11 Nov 2009 | 10:52 am

  Health care providers: If your patient records aren't already stored digitally, they are likely to be digitized soon. There is a tremendous push by the federal government -- as well as by some private payors and self-insured employers -- to get all health care providers wired in the near future, in order to better coordinate patient care, improve outcomes, and "bend the cost curve" all at the same time. There are some financial incentives in play to achieving "meaningful use" of "certified" EHR systems; those terms are to be defined in federal regulations later this year, but the outlines of…

• 
  Disease Management Care Blog

• Time for Public Health Video Announcements for Cell Phones

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:02 pm

  What a great idea.It may already be out there, but a colleague of the Disease Management Care Blog pointed out that it's only a matter of time until video (for example) functionality becomes a routine feature of all cell phones. What's more, based on usage, the phone companies will be able to identify individual preferences and interests. Companies are undoubtedly gearing up for this and are preparing to 'push' their brands on an unsuspecting public by channeling specific individualized content to the end-user. It will be hated by consumers. It will also be very successful.Why not, she asks,…

• Another Media Failure Over A Questionable Study: Medicare Associated With Increased Trauma Deaths? No Better Than NOT Having Insurance?

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:42 pm

  Did you know that Americans with Medicare health insurance have a higher adjusted mortality rate from trauma compared to persons with commercial insurance?The Disease Management Care Blog explains.According to numerous news outlets such as ABC News, MSNBC, the Huffington Post and Reuters, a study's been published that shows that not being insured at the time of hospitalization for trauma leads to a higher death rate. Adding to the drumbeat of liberal dismay over lives lost for lack of a public option, this research by Rosen and colleagues, published in the prestigious Archives of Surgery,…

• Obesity: Are We Dealing With A Growing Addiction? Implications for Population Health Management Strategies

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:51 pm

  The Disease Management Care Blog welcomes Rose Maljanian, who is President & CEO of Strategic Health Equations, LLC. She has 25 years of health care experience and has served in senior leadership roles in managed care, specialty care management and health delivery systemsBy Rose MaljanianToday, yet another important and credible set of data from America’s Health Rankings have been released. It is telling us that obesity is on the rise and that the costs and health implications associated with it will devastate the financial viability of the US health system as we know it. The Urban…

• Atlasians vs. Cooperites: Poverty and the Dartmouth Atlas

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:16 pm

  Dr. Richard Cooper continues to generate controversy on the Kaiser Health News site and in the latest issue of Managed Care Magazine. Of course, regular readers of the Disease Management Care Blog are unsurprised, because they were given a heads up about this tempest in a theoretical teacup, this duel of dons, this locking of learned horns, this wrestling of wonks months ago.The DMCB efficiently explains.The Dartmouth Atlas folks are holding firm to their assertion that regional variations in Medicare spending cannot be explained by demographic factors or the regional burden of illness. Since…

• Informed Refusal: The Doctor Told Me To Come Back When I Had Health Insurance

  15 Nov 2009 | 4:32 pm

  You're probably familiar with this unlikely and oft-quoted scenario. Patient with disease sees doctor, who peforms a wallet biopsy. After determining the hapless sap is unlikely to pay for the needed medical diagnostic procedure or treatment, the doctor says 'come back when you have health insurance.'At least that's what the media says.The Disease Management Care Blog thinks the reality is far more complex:Doctor: 'How can I help you?'Patient: 'I saw blood in my [insert name of body fluid] .'Doctor: 'You're going to need additional testing.'Patient: I don't have health insurance, so how much…

• 
  InsureBlog

• Indian Insurance

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:21 am

  The more time the House and Senate bills spend in the light of day, the more insidious they become. Pages 264 - 265 tell us that Indians whose income is below 300% of the FPL will receive free health care.My wife has some Cherokee in her ancestry if you go back far enough. Suppose she can qualify?Page 443 of the bill substitutes "legal residents" with the language "those lawfully residing in the United States."What is that all about?Page 369 of the bill protects workers from retribution if they complain that their employer is not providing health insurance benefits.If you are an Indian does…

• Paging Dr. Facebook

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:27 am

  Nathalie Blanchard is on medical leave after being diagnosed with major depression. She is collecting monthly sick leave benefits from Manulife. This was not a problem until she decided to take a trip and post some pics on Facebook.When Blanchard called Manulife, the company said that "I'm available to work, because of Facebook," she told CBC News this week.She said her insurance agent described several pictures Blanchard posted on the popular social networking site, including ones showing her having a good time at a Chippendales bar show, at her birthday party and on a sun holiday —…

• Stupid Government Tricks - Senate Edition

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:57 am

  The folks at The Heritage Foundation have nailed it in today's Morning Bell. This should be required reading of anyone, ESPECIALLY those who will be called to vote on the legislation.Excerpt . . .Last Saturday night Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) forced through a vote on her 2,032 page health care bill only a few days after releasing it to the public. Now Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is poised for another Saturday night cram down, forcing a Senate cloture vote mere days before his 2,074 page bill was given to Senators. Yet again, Congress will be forced to vote on a bill that none of…

• Stupid Carrier Tricks: Anthem Renewal Edition

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  One of my groups recently received their annual Anthem renewal. They've been with that carrier for several years, absorbing a number of rate increases because, based on demographics and health, it still beat the new business offers from the other carriers. This time, though, Anthem threw in a little twist, one which I inadvertently missed for a bit.Generally, a renewal quote will include a recap of the current plan design and premium, and the new rates for that plan design. This is standard, and well-accepted. Where a particular plan design is no longer offered, the closest "new" design is…

• Getting to 60

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:20 pm

  When it is your money Congress is spending, there is no limit. Care to guess how much Sen. Mary Landrieu want's for a yes vote for health insurance reform?Try $100 million.On page 432 of the Reid bill, there is a section increasing federal Medicaid subsidies for “certain states recovering from a major disaster.”The section spends two pages defining which “states” would qualify, saying, among other things, that it would be states that “during the preceding 7 fiscal years” have been declared a “major disaster area.”I am told the section applies to exactly one state: Louisiana,…

• 
  Reuters: Science News

• CERN restarts Big Bang collider for biggest test yet

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm

  GENEVA (Reuters) - Scientists are restarting a giant sub-atomic particle collider built to reproduce "Big Bang" conditions, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) said on Friday.

• Art collector finds Galileo's lost tooth, fingers

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:44 pm

  ROME (Reuters) - An art collector has found a tooth, thumb and finger of the renowned Italian scientist Galileo Galilei who died in the 17th century, Florence's History of Science museum said on Friday.

• Italy collector finds Galileo's lost tooth, fingers

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:17 am

  ROME (Reuters) - An art collector has found a tooth, thumb and finger of the renowned Italian scientist Galileo Galilei who died in the 17th century, Florence's History of Science museum announced on Friday.

• Astronaut in space while wife giving birth

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:17 am

  CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - Shuttle Atlantis astronaut Randy Bresnik can be forgiven if he's having a tough time focusing on work -- his wife is due to give birth on Friday to a baby girl.

• New fossils reveal a world full of crocodiles

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:21 pm

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New fossils unearthed in what is now the Sahara desert reveal a once-swampy world

• 
  ABC News: Technology & Science

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• 
  Healthcare Economist

• Links: California Edition

  Jason Shafrin

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:35 pm

  California’s PPO report card. A tax increase by any other name: California taxpayer’s compulsory interest-free loan to the state. Confusion: Los Angeles marijuana dispensaries face a federal ban, California medical marijuana laws, and now possible city ordinances. 32% fee increase for the University of California system. California hospital prices increased 10.6% per year for private pay patients.

• Quotation of the Day: The curious task of economics

  Jason Shafrin

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:20 am

  “The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they know about what they imagine they can design.” F. A. Hayek, The Fatal Conceit.

• Universal Laws of Health Care Systems

  Jason Shafrin

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:39 pm

  Economist Tsung-Mei Cheng has developed three Universal Laws of Health Care Systems.  These are: No matter how good the health care in a particular country, people will complain about it. No matter how much money is spent on health care, the doctors and hospitals will argue it is not enough. The last reform always failed. Source: The Healing of America, p. 26-27.

• Cavalcade of Risk #92: Q&A Edition

  Jason Shafrin

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:24 am

  Life is full of questions: What is the meaning of life? Which company will become the next Google? Is getting rid of medical underwriting the right thing to do? Should you risk choosing a business name that can be confused with a cuss word? This blog carnival answers some of these questions [3, 4] and more, on the Q&A edition of the always informative Cavalcade of Risk. HEALTH Is getting rid of medical underwriting is the right thing to do? Louise of Colorado Health Insurance Insider says yes, but not if people can come and go as they please in the insurance system. What do double decker…

• The Least Healthy States

  Jason Shafrin

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:24 pm

  America’s Health Ratings 2009 report ranks states according to overall healthiness.  Mississippi is the least healthy state and Vermont is the healthiest state.  The ranking methodology is available here. The following states are the least healthy (starting with the least healthy): Mississippi Oklahoma Alabama Louisiana South Carolina Nevada Tennessee Georgia West Virginia Kentucky The following states are the most healthy: Vermont Utah Massachusetts Hawaii New Hampshire Minnesota Connecticut Colorado Maine Rhode Island

• 
  Medical Humanities Blog

• Call for Papers: Disability History (UK)

  Daniel Goldberg

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:34 am

  Disability History Conference 2010 Disability History: looking forward to a better past?June 25th - 27th, 2010 University of Central LancashirePreston, UK Plenary Speakers: Professor Catherine J Kudlick, University of California, Davis Professor Tom Shakespeare, University of Newcastle Disability history has emerged in recent years as an increasingly popular sub-discipline of historical research, covering social, cultural, medical, practical, gendered, technological and linguistic aspects of the lives of those seen by society as having ‘disabled’ bodies and minds. The Disability History…

• On Eugenics, Castration of Dwarfs, and Consent

  Daniel Goldberg

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:42 am

  Paul Lombardo (Georgia State - Law) has uploaded a new paper to SSRN entitled Tracking Chromosomes, Castrating Dwarves: Uninformed Consent and Eugenic Research (full-text download available).  Here is the Abstract: In 1929 Charles B. Davenport, a prominent biologist and leader in the American eugenics movement, carried out an experimental castration of a "Mongoloid dwarf" at a New York State mental institution. His goal was to retrieve tissue for chromosomal analysis in an attempt to understand the basis of syndromal mental retardation. Davenport was assisted in the…

• On Models of Causation in Epidemiology

  Daniel Goldberg

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:35 am

  Alex Broadbent (History and Philosophy of Science, Univ. Cambridge) has a fascinating new article out in Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences.  The title is Causation and Models of Disease in Epidemiology.  Here is the Abstract: Nineteenth-century medical advances were entwined with a conceptual innovation: the idea that many cases of disease which were previously thought to have diverse causes could be explained by the action of a single kind of cause, for example a certain bacterial or…

• Call for Proposals: Health, Embodiment, and Visual Culture: Engaging Publics and Pedagogies

  Daniel Goldberg

  15 Nov 2009 | 8:40 pm

  CALL FOR PROPOSALSConference: “Health, Embodiment, and Visual Culture: Engaging Publics and Pedagogies” November 19-20, 2010McMaster UniversityHamilton, Ontario, Canada Conference Co-Chairs:Sarah Brophy, Associate Professor, Department of English and Cultural Studies, McMaster UniversityJanice Hladki, Associate Professor, School of the Arts, McMaster University DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: January 15, 2010 CONFERENCE DESCRIPTION:This interdisciplinary conference seeks to explore how visual cultural practices image and imagine unruly bodies and, in so doing, respond to Patricia…

• Conference: Drugs, Standards, & Chronic Illness

  Daniel Goldberg

  9 Nov 2009 | 10:45 am

  The Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine at the University of Manchester is holding a two-day conference on 27-28 November, 2009, on Drugs, Standards, & Chronic Illness.  The lineup of speakers and topics is truly awe-inspiring for anyone even remotely interested in the topic (which should be virtually everyone who reads this blog!). The program is available in HTML here, and as a PDF here (h/t H-SCI-MED-TECH)

• 
  Better Hospitals

• Helping Your Board Ensure Patient Safety

  Ruth Elzer

  5 Nov 2009 | 10:31 am

  Your quality team has studied the new standard changes, updated policies, and conducted tracers to monitor compliance. What else can you do as an executive to help your hospital prepare for more rigorous regulatory surveys? Communicate with your board!Currently, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) require hospitals to have a governing body (the board) that is legally responsible for the conduct of the hospital as an institution. The board of a hospital must hire the CEO, establish a competent medical staff, and oversee key aspects of the organization, such as the strategic…

• Regulatory Surveys: How Small Problems Can Quickly Become Big Problems

  Ruth Elzer

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:47 pm

  Across the country, hospitals are finding themselves on the receiving end of unannounced regulatory surveys. Failure to be prepared for such surveys can, in the worst cases, lead to Preliminary Denial of Accreditation by The Joint Commission (TJC) or findings of Immediate Jeopardy by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). But, hospital leaders can avoid adverse survey findings and ensure patient safety by paying attention to seemingly small issues before they become big problems. So, how do small problems grow? We have found that small problems become big problems for two…

• What Is a Hospital Near-Death Experience?

  Calissa Kummer

  2 Nov 2009 | 7:26 am

  Can a hospital have a near-death experience? If so, what would that look like? For Haywood Regional Medical Center, “near-death” took the form of involuntary termination from Medicare. This traumatic event caused the hospital to lose physicians, morale, and its previously good reputation, not to mention significant amounts of money. But, with quick corrective action and strong leadership, the medical center regained its Medicare certification and received a second chance to thrive. “Hospital Near-Death Experience: How Medicare Termination Can Push Your Hospital to the Brink of…

• Health Care Reform and The Elephant in the Room

  Cary Gutbezahl

  25 Oct 2009 | 2:07 pm

  By Cary Gutbezahl, MD When an organization has a performance problem, managers seek information to identify and assess the causes of the performance failure. Similarly, an analysis of a social problem should require policy analysts to identify and assess all significant contributors to the social problem. Our public discussion on health care reform has failed to meet this expectation. The debate about health care reform has focused on several significant issues, such as getting financial coverage for the uninsured’s medical needs, building incentives for hospitals and physicians to provide…

• Sitting Ducks Get Shot … Especially While Waiting for the Inevitability of Healthcare Reform

  Kate Fenner

  15 Oct 2009 | 12:20 pm

  By Kate Fenner, RN, PhD, Chief Executive Officer, Compass Clinical Consulting Everyone is waiting for the shoe to drop – the impact of Healthcare Reform on hospitals. The details change daily depending upon which government plan is getting attention by various Congressional committees. No one yet knows what shape reform may take but the predictable is being prognosticated by the pundits; we will most probably be asked to do more with fewer resources. One CEO of a for-profit system acknowledged to us recently that reform is one of the issues that is robbing him of sleep. Another CEO of a…

• 
  msnbc.com: Fitness

• Heavy college students must pass fitness class

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:24 pm

  A Pennsylvania university's requirement that overweight students take a fitness course to graduate has raised the hackles of students and the eyebrows of health and legal experts. Pennsylvania - Student - Health - Education - Colleges and Universities

• Nintendo Wii may provide actual exercise

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:10 am

  The new active Wii video games from Nintendo Co Ltd may be creating a healthier generation of couch potato, according to a new study presented on Monday. Nintendo - Video game - Wii - Nintendo Wii - Games

• Lack of exercise not to blame for teen obesity?

  11 Nov 2009 | 8:49 am

  Most American teenagers are not as active as they should be but a lack of exercise does not seem to be to blame for the rising rates of teen obesity, according to a U.S. study. Obesity - United States - Health - Diseases & Conditions - Adolescence

• Can working out wear you out?

  11 Nov 2009 | 5:33 am

  Is it true that exercising will eventually wear out your joints, heart or any other body parts? Should you wait after working out before showering? Smart Fitness answers your queries. Fitness - Health - Shopping - Sports - Gyms

• Get fit, faster, with short-burst training

  3 Nov 2009 | 5:38 am

  Short-burst interval training has long been a part of the regimen for elite athletes. And now, fitness professionals say, it’s gaining popularity with recreational exercisers.

• 
  NYT > Fitness & Nutrition

• Patient Money: Path to Alternative Therapies Is Littered With Obstacles

  By WALECIA KONRAD

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:43 pm

  Trying unconventional remedies is a bold move, let alone trying to get an insurer to cover the expense and knowing what pills to buy.

• Personal Health: A Dental Shift: Implants Instead of Bridges

  By JANE E. BRODY

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:04 pm

  Implants are the best solution to replace lost teeth in most cases, and they are more economical than bridges over time.

• Really?: The Claim: A Person Can Contract Two Colds at One Time

  By ANAHAD O’CONNOR

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:08 pm

  Can a person be sick with two colds at once?

• Personal Best: Train the Mind to Run Right Through Winter

  By GINA KOLATA

  12 Nov 2009 | 10:19 am

  Those who exercise in all sorts of weather will attest that there is a certain thrill that can come from terrible conditions.

• Advertising: A Brand Favored by Muscle Men Wants to Appeal to More Women

  By ANDREW ADAM NEWMAN

  9 Nov 2009 | 10:53 pm

  Only around 6 percent of GNC’s revenue comes from the sale of basic vitamins like A and C. The chain’s strongest sellers are proprietary blends.

• 
  FITNESS NEWS - Google News

• Pa. university students upset about fitness class - The Associated Press

  Google Inc.

  Pa. university students upset about fitness classThe Associated PressPHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania university's requirement that overweight undergraduates take a fitness course to receive their degrees has raised the hackles University Requiring Course For Obese StudentsCity Town Info Education ChannelPennsylvania College Makes BMI A Required TestNPRA Different Kind of TestInside Higher EdU.S. News & World Reportall 207 news articles »

• Lincoln U students upset about fitness requirement - Philadelphia Inquirer

  Google Inc.

  MyFox PhiladelphiaLincoln U students upset about fitness requirementPhiladelphia InquirerAP PHILADELPHIA - Some Pennsylvania college students are upset that their school is requiring those who are overweight to take a fitness class in order to Global effort intensifies to tackle diabetes epidemicSan Diego Daily Transcript (subscription)all 13 news articles »

• Broncos Challenge 11: NFL fitness test - Examiner.com

  Google Inc.

  Examiner.comBroncos Challenge 11: NFL fitness testExaminer.comCould you pass the NFL Draft fitness assessment? The 10-0 BSU Broncos face off against the Utah State Aggies (3-7) tonight at 7:30 pm in Logan, Utah. and more »

• Big Ben On Cover Of Men's Fitness - ThePittsburghChannel.com

  Google Inc.

  MLive.comBig Ben On Cover Of Men's FitnessThePittsburghChannel.comPITTSBURGH -- Another honor for the Pittsburgh Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger -- the quarterback graces the latest issue of Men's Fitness. Men's FitnessWPXI.comall 4 news articles »

• David Beckham in Race for Cup Final Fitness for LA Galaxy - Gambling Online Magazine

  Google Inc.

  Gambling Online MagazineDavid Beckham in Race for Cup Final Fitness for LA GalaxyGambling Online MagazineMajor League Soccer star David Beckham has admitted that he faces a race to be fit in time for the LA Galaxy's Cup final against Real Salt Lake at the Qwest and more »

• 
  Dentistry News From Medical News Today

• British Dental Association Calls For NICE Evaluation Of Decontamination Evidence Base, UK

  18 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am

  The British Dental Association (BDA) has called once again for a full review of the evidence base for the HTM 01-05 guidance document on decontamination in dental surgeries. The BDA has written to the Department of Health (DH) renewing its 2007 call for a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) review of the evidence, after it emerged that three areas of the guidance have already been amended before the document is even printed.

• Dental Access Contract Still Unsuitable As Changes Do Not Go Far Enough Says GDPC, UK

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The unnecessarily complex contracts for dental access funding make them risky and inappropriate for dental practice, despite some changes made by the Department of Health (DH), the BDA's General Dental Practice Committee (GDPC) has said today. The final version of the 'PDS+' agreement developed for the current round of dental access procurement has been published today by DH. It runs to nearly 50 pages and 17 schedules.

• Find Dental CAD/CAM Treasure At Dental Showcase 2009, UK

  13 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  Renishaw, the world's largest supplier of in-lab CAD/CAM scanning machines (hall 6 stand Q18), will highlight its new inciseTM dental milling system which enables dental laboratories of all sizes to manufacture truly low cost zirconia frameworks in-house.

• Mouth Is Indicator Of Overall Health, Says Dental School Professor

  13 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  One day in medical clinics, the big picture of a patient's state of health may be found in little pictures from the mouth, says Li Mao, MD, a new professor at the University of Maryland Dental School. The mouth or oral cavity area is an excellent indicator of the whole body's health, says Mao, who is the chair of the new Department of Oncology and Diagnostic Sciences at the School.

• New Study Shows That Dentists Can Predict Heart Disease - Before It Happens!

  11 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  In a remarkable study in Sweden, dentists have led the way in a study designed to spot the early-warning signs of cardiovascular disease - which can lead to heart attacks.

• 
  DentistLinx News

• Removable Implant-Supported Maxillary Prostheses Anchored on Milled Bars: A Retrospective Evaluation of Two Concepts

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The International Journal of Prosthodontics

• Zirconia Posterior Fixed Partial Dentures: A Prospective Clinical 3-year Follow-up

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The International Journal of Prosthodontics

• Management of temporomandibular disorder associated with bruxism

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Journal of Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry

• Clinical manifestations of Ellis-van Creveld syndrome

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Journal of Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry

• Analysis of Translucency of Skin by Volume Reflection for Color Formulation of Facial Prostheses

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The International Journal of Prosthodontics

• 
  ADA News Today

• Dentist's 'passion' helps raise funds for cancer research and treatment

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:41 pm

  Perris, Calif.--A Michigan dentist formed one of the links when 181 women set a new Women's World Skydiving Record here Sept. 26.

• Association presses Medicaid, access issues in Senate health reform debate

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:41 pm

  Washington--The Association offered dental Medicaid and other "suggestions, support and concerns" as Senate leaders prepared for historic health care reform debate.

• ADA House acts on dental benefit policies, guidelines, standards

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:41 pm

  Honolulu--Here follows a summary of actions related to the Council on Dental Benefit Program and ADA Standards Committee on Dental Informatics passed by the 2009 ADA House of Delegates last month.

• Delegates vote to study retired member needs

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:41 pm

  Honolulu--Through passage of Resolution 76H-2009, the ADA House of Delegates directed the ADA to seek ways to increase membership value for retiring and retired dentists.

• 
  ScienceDaily: Dentistry News

• Tooth-binding micelles containing antimicrobials may provide long-term cavity protection

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  A new study suggests that tooth-binding micelles (or particles) may provide long-term cavity protection by adhering to tooth surfaces and gradually releasing encapsulated antimicrobials. Formulation of a mouthwash-based delivery system is anticipated, ultimately simplifying application and increasing at-home patient compliance.

• Mouth is indicator of overall health, says dental school professor

  14 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  One day in medical clinics, the big picture of a patient's state of health may be found in little pictures from the mouth, says an expert.

• Dentists Can Identify Patients At Risk For Fatal Cardiovascular Event, Study Suggests

  11 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  A new study indicates dentists can play a potentially life-saving role in health care by identifying patients at risk of fatal heart attacks and referring them to physicians for further evaluation.

• Look Ma, No Mercury In Fillings!

  8 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Tooth enamel is hardest material in the human body because it's made almost entirely of minerals. As tough as it may be, however, enamel can be broken down by bacteria, forming cavities and eventually destroying the tooth. That's why dentists repair cavities by filling them with a material to replace the lost enamel. The most common such restorative is a material invented in the 19th-century known as amalgam -- the classic silver-black fillings many people have.

• Hybrid Composite For Root Canal Treatment

  7 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  A dentist carrying out root canal treatment will need to use a variety of compounds. These do not always bond together properly and sometimes expensive follow-up treatment has to be performed. But a new class of material meets the requirements, and solves the problem.

• 
  Latest Dental News

• After Acids, Now Even Alkaline Substances Eat Away At Your Teeth

  While acids are known to erode tooth enamel, alkalis too can have a damaging effect on our pearly whites, researchers from Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg have shown.

• Best Method to Clean Dentures is to Brush Them

  A new review has revealed that brushing removable dentures with a paste product might be the best way to keep them clean, better than soaking in effervescent or enzyme cleaning solutions.

• Gender and Race Influence Immune Response to Dental Plaque

  Recent research has indicated that brushing and keeping teeth free of plaque may do more than just beautify smiles. However consumers still have some

• Lack of Access Triggering DIY Dentistry in Oz

  Many people in Australia are resorting to do-it-yourself dentistry because of lack of access to public health services. This is a sad state of affairs

• Periodontitis Must be Prevented to Cut Head and Neck Cancer Risk

  There is an urgent need for increased efforts to prevent and treat chronic periodontitis, a form of gum disease, to reduce the risk for head and neck

• 
  The Endo Blog

• Retreatment & MTA Save a Perforated Tooth

  12 Nov 2009 | 7:30 am

  The following case was submitted by Dr. Rico D. Short of Smyrna, GA.Original endodontic treatment was done 15 years ago. The crowns on 8 & 9 were replaced 2 years earlier at which time the dentist placed post for retention. During post preparation, the root was perforated. A large lesion has developed.DX: Prior RCT w/ Chronic Apical Abscess w/ root perforation. Pt was informed the prognosis was questionable due to the perforation. Pt understood and consented for treatment including perforation repair.Retreatment on #8 completed with MTA root repair.8 month recall22 month recall finds…

• Endodontic Retreatment & MTA Preserve the Tooth

  30 Oct 2009 | 12:11 am

  Here's a tooth that had endodontic treatment over 10 years ago. While the clinician had difficulty finding all the canals, the tooth has been functional for quite some time. A large furcal defect raises suspicion of a root fracture or perforation.DX: Prior RCT w/ Symptomatic Apical Periodontitis.There are many who would consider this hopeless and recommend extraction.Let us consider the cause of this treatment failure:1. Missed Canals2. Furcal Perforation or Root Fracture?Can these issues be addressed to preserve the natural tooth?In my consultation with the patient, I explain these issues…

• Dens in Dente

  13 Oct 2009 | 5:48 pm

  Dens in Dente literally means "a tooth within a tooth". It is a developmental anomaly caused by an epithelial invagination during the development of the tooth. Enamel is laid down on the internal surface of the tooth. This is most frequently seen in maxillary lateral incisors.A thin layer of enamel can be seen internally. An amalgam restoration was previously placed at some point to try and seal off the development groove into the dens in dente.Access for endodontic treatment reveals the internal layer of enamel.Endodontic treatment is completed.This peg lateral incisor also shows the…

• Apexification with Calcium Hydroxide & MTA Fill

  8 Sep 2009 | 10:11 am

  This 15 year old patient has a history of trauma to #8. Trauma occurred at an age before apical closure occurred. Tooth was diagnosed with necrotic pulp and symptomatic apical periodontitis. Note the large periapical lesion.Traditional apexification using Ca(OH)2 was used.Tooth debrided to the apex, NaOCl irrigation.Ca(OH)2 placed.3 month check shows resorption of Ca(OH)2, but apex still open. Apical lesion almost completely healed.Ca(OH)2 placed again.10 month re-evaluation. Apical barrier present, so it was time to obturate. This is a great view of the apical barrier that has formed.Tooth…

• Removing a Broken Endodontic File

  31 Jul 2009 | 11:59 pm

  Anyone performing endodontics occasionally has a separated instrument. This case was referred for removal of a separated instrument. The file is in the MB#2 canal. Since it is in the upper third of the canal, good visualization with a microscope and proper ultrasonic technique will make this file removal possible.After finding the file, careful ultrasonic instrumention is used to remove dentin around the file - opening up the MB groove. This is done carefully without touching the file itself. We want to expose 2-3 mm of the file before we begin vibrating the file itself.Too much contact with…

• 
  The Blogodontist

• Free Dental For Kids

  Dr. Russell

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:32 pm

  After searching the new legislation I found the following items that apply to the new governement health program. The healthcare reform bill introduced before the U.S. Senate would extend dental care to millions of uninsured children, originate new oral health monitoring, and train new midlevel providers in pilot programs. The largest Change is a provision that requires all health insurance plans provide dental insurance for children. The Senate bill includes would prohibit plans in the exchanges from requiring copayments or any other type of "cost sharing" for preventive services.

• Making Good Healthcare Decisions

  Dr. Russell

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:52 pm

  Government has decided thatScreening for breast cancerwill cost the  too much money, even if it saves lives. Information for making good healthcare decisions. Keeping informed is your best protection.                             WSJ NOVEMBER 19, 2009 A Breast Cancer Preview The mammogram decision is a sign of cost control to come. A government panel's decision to toss out long-time guidelines for breast cancer screening is causing an uproar, and well it should. This episode is an all-too-instructive preview…

• Yellow Springs One of Best Hometowns

  Dr. Russell

  17 Nov 2009 | 4:56 pm

  Yellow Springs has been named one of Ohio’s best hometowns by Ohio Magazine, officials announced this week.Mayor Praises Quality of life and Dental HealthCare in Yellow Springs Yellow Springs will be featured in the magazine’s November issue, along with Granville, Sylvania, Willoughby and Cambridge. To determine the honorees, Ohio Magazine solicited nominations and conducted site visits across the state. The editors evaluated the nominees in six categories, including community spirit, education, entertainment, health and safety, business environment and culture and heritage.

• Healing Teeth Instead of Filling Them

  Dr. Russell

  14 Nov 2009 | 2:46 pm

  Remineralization Patients with developing cavities and/or insufficient saliva.can use MI Paste to reverse the cavity process. This is called Re-mineralization.MI Paste can rebuild the lost minerals in your teeth.   Prospec MI Paste is smushed onto your teeth with your finger and just allowed to remain for three to five minutes. It has the consistency of thin toothpaste. WE can dispense this to you for home use  The paste may be brushed on with a toothbrush or applied in full arch trays. There is no need to rinse afterward, and it is safe to swallow. Specific site application to…

• Wright State Clinic Disappears

  Dr. Russell

  13 Nov 2009 | 8:23 am

  It wasn't an implosion, but last week Yellow Springs witnessed the disappearance of a healthcare facility: The Wright State Medical School Clinic that had served so many for so long. Wright State University Yellow Springs Ohio Health Care Clinic was Razed last week. Yellow Springs Dental Care and The Friends Care Center mourn the loss of our neighbor in providing quality care for Yellow Springs and environs. Healthcare Reform, Healthcare access. As our national debate on healthcare continues, there can be no doubt that healthcare will be less available in Yellow Springs because of this…

• 
  Smartbrief: American Nurses Association

• MNLI helps minority nurses achieve leadership roles

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  The Minority Nurse Leadership Institute in New Jersey offers nurses of all ethnic backgrounds a chance to advance to leadersh -More- 

• FDA: No adverse events, safety signals with H1N1 vaccine

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  FDA experts told an agency advisory committee there have not been any adverse events reported so far from the H1N1 influenza  -More- 

• ACOG urges women to start getting Pap smears at age 21

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has issued new guidelines advising women to get Pap smears at age 21  -More- 

• Herpes virus may not go dormant in body, study finds

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Researchers said genital herpes may never really go dormant in the nerves around the spinal cord as commonly believed.  -More- 

• Whirlpool offers appliance discounts through ANA for Members Only

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Save time and money shopping for home appliances with ANA and the VIPLINK program from Whirlpool Corporation.  -More- 

• 
  Smartbrief: American Academy of Nurse Practitioners

• ACOG urges women to start getting Pap smears at age 21

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has issued new guidelines advising women to get Pap smears at age 21  -More- 

• FDA accuses Web sites of selling fake, unapproved drugs

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  The FDA warned 136 Web sites as well as their Internet service providers and domain-name registrars for allegedly selling fak -More- 

• FDA: No adverse events, safety signals with H1N1 vaccine

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  FDA experts told an agency advisory committee there have not been any adverse events reported so far from the H1N1 influenza  -More- 

• Vicks Sinex nasal spray recalled after bacteria found

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Procter & Gamble is voluntarily recalling about 120,000 bottles of Vicks Sinex nasal spray after finding bacteria in a small  -More- 

• Herpes virus may not go dormant in body, study finds

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Researchers said genital herpes may never really go dormant in the nerves around the spinal cord as commonly believed.  -More- 

• 
  Nursing News

• New Publication Offers Relief to Those Suffering from Pain and Other Distressing Symptoms of Illness

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:03 pm

  New Publication Offers Relief to Those Suffering from Pain and Other Distressing Symptoms of Illness The National Institute of Nursing Research Brochure Highlights the Benefits of Palliative Care Dealing with the symptoms of a serious illness is difficult.

• The Hospital of the Future

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:43 am

  Technology is transforming the way the medical systems work. Michelle Andrews Premium Health News Service November 20, 2009 Katherine Thomas doesn't remember much about the 19 days she spent in the intensive care unit at Methodist Hospital in Houston.

• Nominations solicited for 2010 Nightingale Awards

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:27 am

  The nursing profession has repeatedly been rated as the most trusted of the helping professions.

• Quality of dementia care in hospitals

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:58 am

  To read this article in full you must have registered and have a Premium Content Subscription with the NHS Choices site.

• Nurse raises thousands of pounds for hospice in Iceland trek

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:44 pm

  By Richard Gladstone A nurse undertook a gruelling challenge in Iceland in August to raise money for St Michael's Hospice.

• 
  nurses - Google News

• Medical workers who abuse drugs face more testing - San Jose Mercury News

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Medical workers who abuse drugs face more testingSan Jose Mercury NewsDepartment of Consumer Affairs Director Brian Stigler says the state will protect patients by increasing scrutiny on nurses, dentists and medical and more »

• Nurse Offers Dose of Hope, Help to Those in Need - WVNS

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:28 am

  Nurse Offers Dose of Hope, Help to Those in NeedWVNSLincoln County Schools nurse Pamela Gayle Dice has worked tirelessly to help families living in poverty. HAMLIN -- Lincoln County Schools nurse Pamela Gayle and more »

• The Old Man: How to Be a Patient - New York Times

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:33 am

  New York TimesThe Old Man: How to Be a PatientNew York TimesNurses and their assistants usually have more to do than they can get to immediately. The best staff will keep you informed, ask you for your cooperation

• Bay State flu 'crisis' - Boston Herald

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:07 am

  Bay State flu 'crisis'Boston HeraldOne 16-bed Intensive Care Unit at umass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester saw three of nine nurses out sick with flu symptoms Wednesday night, said nurse St. Louis County Public Health Confirms Duluth Area H1N1 Flu ClinicsNorthland's NewsCenterNewest flu report better newsWoodbury BulletinSchools get first batch of flu shotsFoxboro ReporterCullman Times Online -Niagara Falls Review -Manhattan Mercuryall 3,851 news articles »

• Nursing program needs aid - TheReporter.com

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:52 am

  Nursing program needs aidTheReporter.comSCC has spread its cuts across all departments, but one dubious decision stands out: The elimination of spring enrollment for the nursing program. and more »

• 
  Nursing / Midwifery News From Medical News Today

• Respirators And H1N1 Information Distributed To Registered Nurses At Sacred Heart Medical Center Out Of Concern For Nurse And Patient Safety

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA), representing more than 1,600 registered nurses at Sacred Heart Medical Center, is holding a press conference to highlight serious concerns about the safety of nurses and patients at Sacred Heart Medical Center during this H1N1 pandemic.

• Royal College Of Nursing Responds To The Queen's Speech, UK

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) responded to proposals for the forthcoming Parliamentary session, welcoming in particular the Government's commitment to provide free personal care to those with the greatest need.

• More Beds Without Enough Nurses Doesn't Make Sense - Australian Nursing Federation

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  The future care of vulnerable elderly residents in nursing homes rests on an increase in qualified staff - more people in beds without more nurses will equal chaos and misery. Australian Nursing Federation Federal Secretary Ged Kearney said recent threats by aged care providers who are demanding $500 million in Government funding to provide more places for residents needs to be balanced against the needs for more nurses and personal carers.

• New Nursing Education Standards Address The Care Of People With Dementia

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am

  The NMC has been addressing many of the issues raised in the Alzheimer's society report Counting the Cost: caring for people with dementia on hospital wards as part of our review of pre-registration nursing education. Our review, which recently highlighted the need for future nurses to be educated to degree level, will help to prepare them for the challenges of caring for people with dementia.

• "Guided Care" Receives Award For Innovation In Practice Improvement

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Guided Care, a new model of comprehensive health care for people with multiple chronic conditions, has received the 2009 Medical Economics Award for Innovation in Practice Improvement from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) and Medical Economics magazine. Chad Boult, MD, MPH, MBA, principal investigator of the Guided Care study and director of the Roger C.

• 
  Nursing Informatics Online

• Multiple Clinical Systems Analysts - Jacksonville, FL

  Forum: Recruiter Posted Informatics Jobs Posted By: cgambino Post Time: 11-16-2009 at 03:44 PM

• Informatics and technology.

  Forum: Nursing Informatics Journal Articles Posted By: Nursing Informatics News Post Time: 11-13-2009 at 05:36 AM

• Measuring spiritual care with informatics.

  Forum: Nursing Informatics Journal Articles Posted By: Nursing Informatics News Post Time: 11-13-2009 at 05:36 AM

• Dilemmas, tetralemmas, reimagining the electronic health record.

  Forum: Nursing Informatics Journal Articles Posted By: Nursing Informatics News Post Time: 11-13-2009 at 05:36 AM

• [Role of Self-Leadership in the Relationship between Organizational Culture and Informatics Competen

  Forum: Nursing Informatics Journal Articles Posted By: Nursing Informatics News Post Time: 11-11-2009 at 05:18 AM

• 
  Nurse.com News

• DNP Option Keeps Nurses Focused on Bedside Care

  To provide expert evidence-based nursing care across diverse settings and systems, the Doctor of Nursing Practice, or DNP, has become more popular among nurses in New York and New Jersey.

• Daily News: IHA Poster Submission Deadline Set

  The Institute for Healthcare Advancement is inviting nurses and other healthcare professionals to submit poster presentations about health literacy by Feb. 26 for its 2010 conference, which is scheduled for May 6-7 in Irvine, Calif. The conference?s theme is ?Health Literacy in the Real World: Programs and Solutions That Work.? Applications can be submitted online by logging on to www.iha4health.org.

• SPECIAL COVERAGE: H1N1 Influenza News

  Visit us here periodically for summaries of H1N1 flu news.

• Opinion: RNs Teach While Providing Care

  All nurses grow into teachers, whether formally or informally, because teaching is woven into every aspect of what we do.

• Army Nurses Brave Afghanistan?s Combat Zones

  ?I am counting down the last 10 days or so until I go home. I can?t wait. It?s been a blessing to serve, but this six months has been hard. Just lask week a medic I trained was my patient, and another medic I knew was shot in the head and died. I need some time to reflect and be with my family.? ? Michelle Racicot, Aug. 16, 2009

• 
  New Scientist

• 'Frankenstein' fix lets asteroid mission cheat death

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:37 am

  The beleaguered Hayabusa asteroid probe is back on track to return to Earth after ground controllers cobbled together a working engine from two dead ones

• Today on New Scientist: 20 November 2009

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  Today's stories on newscientist.com, at a glance, including: the rise of the tiny medibots, the colliders that will follow the LHC, and an interview with Belle de Jour

• Belle de Jour: On science and prostitution

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:50 am

  The professional scientist and former prostitute Brooke Magnanti told her agent, "If New Scientist asks for an interview, I'll do it." We did ask

• Pickled evidence for evolution

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:09 am

  Animal specimens preserved in jars look Victorian, but the images in Evidence of Evolution show there's still nothing better for studying new species

• Pickled evidence for evolution

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  Animal specimens preserved in jars look Victorian, but the images in Evidence of Evolution show there's still nothing better for studying new species

• 
  NPR Topics: Health & Science

• Museum: Galileo's Fingers, Tooth Found

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm

  Two fingers and a tooth removed from Galileo Galilei's corpse in a Florentine basilica in the 18th century and given up for lost have been found again, a Florence museum said Friday.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

• Scientist: 'Don't Give Up' On Stopping Asian Carp

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  Two Asian carp species that could devastate the Great Lakes ecosystem may be a few miles from Lake Michigan. To halt their migration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built an underwater electric fence on a canal 20 miles south of the lake. But tests conducted by David Lodge at Notre Dame indicate that they have gotten close to the lake despite the barrier.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

• Rethinking The Human Future In Space

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  With NASA reporting a "significant amount" of water on the lunar surface, is it time to re-examine our priorities regarding living and working in space? Mark Sykes, director of the Planetary Science Institute, talks about why and how people should venture beyond Earth.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

• Real-Life Physics Problems Star On TV

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  The stars of The Big Bang Theory are two fictional Caltech physicists, but the physics problems they study are real. Bill Prady, the program's co-creator and executive producer, talks about including real-world science in the script, from dark matter to magnetic monopoles.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

• Personalizing Solar Power

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  Researchers are hoping to improve solar energy installations by coupling a solar panel to an efficient hydrolysis unit that splits water into oxygen and hydrogen. Daniel Nocera of MIT says the approach could lead to personal solar power units that could get many houses off the grid.» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

• 
  PLoS Biology

• The Multicopy Gene Sly Represses the Sex Chromosomes in the Male Mouse Germline after Meiosis

  Julie Cocquet et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Small-interfering RNAs have been used to disrupt the function of the more than 100 copies of the Sly gene on the mouse Y chromosome, leading to defective sex chromosome repression during spermatid differentiation and, as a consequence, sperm malformations and near-sterility.

• Article-Level Metrics and the Evolution of Scientific Impact

  Cameron Neylon et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The authors discuss the value of article-level metrics in determining an article's scientific impact.

• Explaining the Linguistic Diversity of Sahul Using Population Models

  Ger Reesink et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Areal and genealogical links between the diverse ancient languages of Australia and New Guinea are investigated using a phylogenetic clustering method adopted from population genetics.

• Sly Represses Gene Expression in Sex Chromosomes

  Caitlin Sedwick

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

• Role of CBP and SATB-1 in Aging, Dietary Restriction, and Insulin-Like Signaling

  Minhua Zhang et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Increased transcriptional complex activity, or pharmacological mimics of increased complex activity, predict lifespan in mice and mediate the protective effects of dietary restriction during aging.

• 
  NYT > Science

• Hacked E-Mails Fuel Climate Change Skeptics

  By ANDREW C. REVKIN

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:55 pm

  The e-mails and documents hacked from a computer server at a British university will undoubtedly raise questions about the actions of some scientists.

• Signs That Swine Flu Has Peaked in U.S.

  By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:36 pm

  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said flu activity was declining in all regions of the country.

• Panel Sees No Need for A-Bomb Upgrade

  By WILLIAM J. BROAD

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:34 pm

  Amid concerns over an aging stockpile, federal advisers have concluded that programs to extend the life of the nation’s nuclear arms ensure their destructiveness for decades to come.

• Vital Signs: Childhood: U.S. Draws Low Marks on Premature Births

  By RONI CARYN RABIN

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:30 pm

  The nation, where one out of eight babies are born prematurely each year, earned a D from the March of Dimes.

• Vital Signs: Smoking in U.S. Declines but Not by Much

  By Roni Caryn Rabin

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:52 am

  Some 20.6 percent of Americans were current smokers in 2008, a drop from 20.9 percent in 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

• 
  PLoS Genetics

• Detailed Analysis of a Contiguous 22-Mb Region of the Maize Genome

  Fusheng Wei et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Maize is a major cereal crop and key experimental system for eukaryotic biology. Previous investigations of the maize genome at the sequence level have primarily focused on analyses of genome survey sequences and BAC contigs. Here we used a comprehensive set of resources to construct an ordered and oriented 22-Mb sequence from chromosome 4 that represents 1% of the maize genome. Genome annotation revealed the presence of 544 genes that are interspersed with transposable elements (TEs), which occupy 83.8% of the sequence. Fifty-one genes were involved in 14 tandem gene clusters…

• A Single Molecule Scaffold for the Maize Genome

  Shiguo Zhou et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary The maize genome contains abundant repeats interspersed by low-copy, gene-coding sequences that make it a challenge to sequence; consequently, current BAC sequence assemblies average 11 contigs per clone. The iMap deals with such complexity by the judicious integration of IBM genetic and B73 physical maps, but the B73 genome structure could differ from the IBM population because of genetic recombination and subsequent rearrangements. Accordingly, we report a genome-wide, high-resolution optical map of maize B73 genome that was constructed from the direct analysis of genomic DNA…

• Exceptional Diversity, Non-Random Distribution, and Rapid Evolution of Retroelements in the B73 Maize Genome

  Regina S. Baucom et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Although TEs are a major component of all studied plant genomes, and are the most significant contributors to genome structure and evolution in almost all eukaryotes that have been investigated, their properties and reasons for existence are not well understood in any eukaryotic genome. In order to begin a comprehensive study of TE contributions to the structure, function, and evolution of both genes and genomes, we first identified all of the TEs in maize and then investigated whether there were non-random patterns in their dispersal. We used homology and TE structure criteria…

• The Physical and Genetic Framework of the Maize B73 Genome

  Fusheng Wei et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Maize has been a cultural icon and staple food crop of Americans since the discovery of the new world in 1492. Contemporary society is now faced with growing demands for food and fuel in the face of global climate change and the potential for increased disease pressure. To provide a comprehensive foundation to systematically understand maize biology with the goal of breeding higher yielding, disease-resistant, and drought-tolerant cultivars, our consortium sequenced the B73 genome of maize. In this study, we used a comprehensive physical and genetic framework map to develop a…

• Forty-Three Loci Associated with Plasma Lipoprotein Size, Concentration, and Cholesterol Content in Genome-Wide Analysis

  Daniel I. Chasman et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of plasma lipoprotein fractions hold great promise for understanding lipid metabolism and its central role in cardiovascular disease and related disorders. Conventional assays for lipoprotein status determine total cholesterol content of low- or high-density lipoprotein particles (LDL-C or HDL-C, respectively) or total plasma triglyceride content (as an estimate of very-low density lipoprotein particle concentration [VLDL]). All three measures have been targets for recent GWAS. However, a more precise target for GWAS of lipoprotein…

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  PLoS Pathogens

• Inclusion Biogenesis and Reactivation of Persistent Chlamydia trachomatis Requires Host Cell Sphingolipid Biosynthesis

  D. Kesley Robertson et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary The genus Chlamydia is composed of a group of obligate intracellular bacterial pathogens that cause several human diseases of medical significance. C. trachomatis is the most commonly encountered sexually transmitted pathogen, as well as the leading cause of preventable blindness worldwide. The prevalence of chlamydial infections, and the extraordinary morbidity and health care costs associated with chronic persisting disease, justifies the research efforts in this area of microbial pathogenesis. Despite their clinical importance, the mechanisms by which these intracellular…

• Glypican-1 Mediates Both Prion Protein Lipid Raft Association and Disease Isoform Formation

  David R. Taylor et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary The prion diseases are unique in that their infectious nature is not dependent on nucleic acid but is instead attributed to a misfolded protein, the prion protein. This misfolded prion protein is capable of inducing the misfolding of the normal form of the prion protein that is present on the surface of neurons and other cells in the body. However, the site in the cell at which this misfolding occurs and whether other proteins are involved remains controversial. We have addressed these questions by investigating how the normal form of the prion protein is targeted to…

• Targeting the Replication Initiator of the Second Vibrio Chromosome: Towards Generation of Vibrionaceae-Specific Antimicrobial Agents

  Yoshiharu Yamaichi et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Multi-drug resistant bacteria continue to emerge and there is a pressing need for the development of new antibiotics. Here, we carried out a cell-based high throughput screen to identify inhibitors of RctB, the initiator of replication of the second chromosome found in all the species of the Vibrionaceae. This family of bacteria includes several human pathogens, including Vibrio cholerae, the cause of cholera, as well as several species that damage economically important marine organisms. We identified a compound—designated vibrepin—that has potent cidal activity against V.

• Identification of Host Cytosolic Sensors and Bacterial Factors Regulating the Type I Interferon Response to Legionella pneumophila

  Kathryn M. Monroe et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Initial detection of invading microorganisms is one of the primary tasks of the innate immune system. However, the molecular mechanisms by which pathogens are recognized remain incompletely understood. Here, we provide evidence that an immunosurveillance pathway (called the RIG-I/MDA5 pathway), thought primarily to detect viruses, is also involved in the innate immune response to an intracellular bacterial pathogen, Legionella pneumophila. In the response to viruses, the RIG-I/MDA5 immunosurveillance pathway has been shown to respond to viral RNA or DNA. We found that the RIG-I…

• Major Depletion of Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells in HIV-2 Infection, an Attenuated Form of HIV Disease

  Rita Cavaleiro et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Infection by HIV-2, the second AIDS-associated virus, is considered a unique natural model of attenuated HIV disease. HIV-2 infected individuals exhibit much lower levels of circulating virus (viremia) and progress to AIDS at slower rates than HIV-1 infected patients. In this study, we characterized for the first time blood plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC), important mediators between innate and acquired immunity, in HIV-2 infection. We observed a profound reduction in circulating pDC levels in HIV-2 infected patients, even in those with undetectable viremia, to levels…

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  PLoS ONE Alerts

• Divergent Mechanisms Controlling Hypoxic Sensitivity and Lifespan by the DAF-2/Insulin/IGF-Receptor Pathway

  Meghann E. Mabon et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Organisms and their cells vary greatly in their tolerance of low oxygen environments (hypoxia). A delineation of the determinants of hypoxia tolerance is incomplete, despite intense interest for its implications in diseases such as stroke and myocardial infarction. The insulin/IGF-1 receptor (IGFR) signaling pathway controls survival of Caenorhabditis elegans from a variety of stressors including aging, hyperthermia, and hypoxia. daf-2 encodes a C. elegans IGFR homolog whose primary signaling pathway modulates the activity of the FOXO transcription factor DAF-16. DAF-16 regulates the…

• Key Role of the GITR/GITRLigand Pathway in the Development of Murine Autoimmune Diabetes: A Potential Therapeutic Target

  Sylvaine You et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Background The cross-talk between pathogenic T lymphocytes and regulatory T cells (Tregs) plays a major role in the progression of autoimmune diseases. Our objective is to identify molecules and/or pathways involved in this interaction and representing potential targets for innovative therapies. Glucocorticoid-induced tumor necrosis factor receptor (GITR) and its ligand are key players in the T effector/Treg interaction. GITR is expressed at low levels on resting T cells and is significantly up-regulated upon activation. Constitutive high expression of GITR is detected only on Tregs. GITR…

• Early-Onset and Robust Amyloid Pathology in a New Homozygous Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease

  Antje Willuweit et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Background Transgenic mice expressing mutated amyloid precursor protein (APP) and presenilin (PS)-1 or -2 have been successfully used to model cerebral β-amyloidosis, one of the characteristic hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. However, the use of many transgenic lines is limited by premature death, low breeding efficiencies and late onset and high inter-animal variability of the pathology, creating a need for improved animal models. Here we describe the detailed characterization of a new homozygous double-transgenic mouse line that addresses most of these issues.

• Heterosubtype Neutralizing Responses to Influenza A (H5N1) Viruses Are Mediated by Antibodies to Virus Haemagglutinin

  Jean-Michel Garcia et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Background It is increasingly clear that influenza A infection induces cross-subtype neutralizing antibodies that may potentially confer protection against zoonotic infections. It is unclear whether this is mediated by antibodies to the neuraminidase (NA) or haemagglutinin (HA). We use pseudoviral particles (H5pp) coated with H5 haemagglutinin but not N1 neuraminidase to address this question. In this study, we investigate whether cross-neutralizing antibodies in persons unexposed to H5N1 is reactive to the H5 haemagglutinin. Methodology/Principal Findings We measured H5-neutralization…

• On Theoretical Models of Gene Expression Evolution with Random Genetic Drift and Natural Selection

  Osamu Ogasawara et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Background The relative contributions of natural selection and random genetic drift are a major source of debate in the study of gene expression evolution, which is hypothesized to serve as a bridge from molecular to phenotypic evolution. It has been suggested that the conflict between views is caused by the lack of a definite model of the neutral hypothesis, which can describe the long-run behavior of evolutionary change in mRNA abundance. Therefore previous studies have used inadequate analogies with the neutral prediction of other phenomena, such as amino acid or nucleotide sequence…

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  PLoS Computational Biology

• Exon Array Analysis of Head and Neck Cancers Identifies a Hypoxia Related Splice Variant of LAMA3 Associated with a Poor Prognosis

  Carla S. Moller-Levet et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Alternative splicing is the process by which cells express a set of different, but related, transcripts from a single gene. When translated, each transcript results in a different protein, resulting in additional cellular complexity. Affymetrix Exon microarrays, which feature multiple probesets targeting different locations throughout each gene, allow the changes in transcription that result from alternative splicing to be investigated in a single genome-wide assay. In addition, the increased number of probesets targeting each gene offers the potential to combine signals in…

• Spatial Analysis of Expression Patterns Predicts Genetic Interactions at the Mid-Hindbrain Boundary

  Dominik M. Wittmann et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Understanding brain formation during development is a tantalizing challenge. It is also essential for the fight against neurodegenerative diseases. In vertebrates, the central nervous system arises from a structure called the neural plate. This tissue is divided into four regions, which continue to develop into forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain and spinal cord. Interactions between locally expressed genes and signaling molecules are responsible for this patterning. Two key signaling molecules in this process are Fgf8 and Wnt1 proteins. They are secreted from a signaling center…

• Evaluation of the Oscillatory Interference Model of Grid Cell Firing through Analysis and Measured Period Variance of Some Biological Oscillators

  Eric A. Zilli et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary For many animals, including rats, accurate spatial memory over relatively large areas is important in order to find food and shelter. Just as unique points in time can be efficiently represented by combinations of repeating elements like hours, days, and months, points in space can be represented as combinations of elements that repeat at different spatial scales. Just such a code has been identified in the brains of rats and it shows an intriguing triangular spacing of encoded locations. Two different explanations have been developed as to what general mechanism in the brain…

• A Novel Extended Granger Causal Model Approach Demonstrates Brain Hemispheric Differences during Face Recognition Learning

  Tian Ge et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary The right temporal cortex has previously been shown to play a greater role in the discrimination of faces in both sheep and humans. In the frequency domain, analysis of the relative causal contributions of low (theta 4–8Hz) and high (gamma 30–70Hz) frequency oscillations reveals that prior to learning, theta activity is more predominant in right than in left hemisphere processing, and that learning reduces this so that high frequency oscillations gain more control. We have been able to demonstrate that the frequency of connections increases in the right hemisphere and…

• Stochastic Drift in Mitochondrial DNA Point Mutations: A Novel Perspective Ex Silico

  Suresh Kumar Poovathingal et al.

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Author Summary Aging is characterized by a systemic decline of an organism's capacity in responding to internal and external stresses, leading to increased mortality. The mitochondrial Free Radical Theory of Aging (mFRTA) attributes this decline to the accumulation of damages, in the form of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations, caused by free radical byproducts of metabolism. However, there is still a great deal of uncertainty with this theory due to the difficulties in quantifying mtDNA mutation burden. In this modeling study, we have shown that a random drift in mtDNA point mutation during…

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  PLoS Medicine

• How Can We Support the Use of Systematic Reviews in Policymaking?

  John N. Lavis

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  John Lavis discusses how health policymakers and their stakeholders need research evidence, and the best ways evidence can be synthesized and packaged to optimize its use.

• Multiyear Climate Variability and Dengue—El Niño Southern Oscillation, Weather, and Dengue Incidence in Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Thailand: A Longitudinal Data Analysis

  Michael A. Johansson et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Michael Johansson and colleagues use wavelet analysis to show that there is limited evidence for a multiyear relationship between climate and dengue incidence in Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Thailand.

• The Link between Dengue Incidence and El Niño Southern Oscillation

  Pejman Rohani

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Pejman Rohani discusses a new study that examined the dynamic relationship between climate variables and dengue incidence in Thailand, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

• The Unintended Consequences of Clinical Trials Regulations

  Alex D. McMahon et al.

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Alex McMahon and colleagues critique the International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidance on good clinical practice (GCP), arguing that it is having a disastrous effect on noncommerical randomized clinical trials in Europe.

• Hip Fracture Incidence in Relation to Age, Menopausal Status, and Age at Menopause: Prospective Analysis

  Emily Banks et al.

  10 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Using data from the UK Million Women Study, Emily Banks and colleagues investigate the relationships between the incidence of hip fracture and a woman's age, menopausal status, and age at menopause.

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  Drugs.com - New Drug Approvals

• FDA Approves Intravenous Formulation Of Pfizer's Revatio (Sildenafil) For The Treatment Of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:03 am

  Revatio is the Only Treatment in Its Class with Both Oral and Intravenous Formulations NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 20, 2009 - Pfizer announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Revatio (sildenafil) Injection,...

• NeurogesX Receives FDA Approval of Qutenza (capsaicin) 8% Patch for Treatment of Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN)

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  SAN MATEO, Calif., Nov. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NeurogesX, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qutenza (capsaicin) 8% patch, the first and only product containing prescription strength...

• Xanodyne Announces FDA Approval of Lysteda (Tranexamic Acid) for Treatment of Women with Heavy Menstrual Bleeding

  16 Nov 2009 | 5:43 am

  NEWPORT, Ky., Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, Inc., an integrated specialty pharmaceutical company with both development and commercial capabilities focused on women's healthcare and pain management, announced today that...

• FDA Expands Approved Use of H1N1 Vaccines to Include Infants and Children

  13 Nov 2009 | 4:01 am

  ROCKVILLE, Md., Nov. 12, 2009--The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of the CSL Limited’s 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine to include children ages 6 months and older. This vaccine was previously approved only for use in adults,...

• FDA Approves Labeling Update for Reyataz (atazanavir sulfate) Capsules to Include 96-Week Data for Previously Untreated HIV-1 Infected Adult Patients

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:46 am

  PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 5, 2009 - Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a labeling update for Reyataz to include long-term data from the CASTLE Study. The CASTLE...

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  Drugs.com: FDA Med Watch Alerts

• Vicks Sinex Nasal Spray - Recall

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Audience: Consumers Procter & Gamble and FDA notified consumers of a voluntary recall of three lots of Vicks Sinex Nasal Spray in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. The bacteria B. cepacia was found in a small amount of...

• RockHard Weekend - product contains undeclared drug ingredient

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Audience: Consumers, pharmacists RockHard Laboratories and FDA notified consumers that RockHard Weekend, a product sold as a dietary supplement, contains sulfoaildenafil, an analogue of sildenafil, an FDA-approved drug used as...

• Clopidogrel (marketed as Plavix) and Omeprazole (marketed as Prilosec) - Drug Interaction

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Audience: Cardiovascular healthcare professionals, pharmacists FDA notified healthcare professionals of new safety information concerning an interaction between clopidogrel (Plavix), an anti-clotting medication, and omeprazole (Prilosec/Prilosec...

• IDS Sports Dietary Supplements - Recall

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Audience: Consumers IDS Sports and FDA notified consumers that five of the IDS's dietary supplement products (Bromodrol, Dual Action Grow Tabs, Grow Tabs, Mass Tabs, and Ripped Tabs TR) contain the following undeclared substances, which FDA...

• Pai You Guo, Marketed as Dietary Supplement - Recall

  12 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Audience: Consumers GMP Herbal Products and FDA notified consumers and healthcare professionals of a recall of Pai You Guo, a weight loss dietary supplement, due to the presence of undeclared drug ingredients. FDA lab analyses of dietary...

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  Drugs.com - Clinical Trials

• Genasense Given as High-Dose IV Infusion with Chemotherapy Shows Promising Activity in Advanced Melanoma

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:55 pm

  Data Presented at International Melanoma Conference in Berlin   Results Follow Decision by Company to Continue Phase 3 AGENDA Trial for Overall Survival   BERKELEY HEIGHTS, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 20, 2009 - Genta Incorporated (OTCBB:...

• Ligand Presents New Preclinical Data on its Lead SARM Molecule LGD-4033 at the Gerontological Society of America Annual Meeting

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:11 am

  SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 20, 2009 - Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) today announced that data from a preclinical study on its selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) LGD-4033 was featured in a poster presentation at...

• Inovio Biomedical Universal Flu Vaccines Demonstrate Broadly Protective Immune Responses Against Multiple Seasonal & Pandemic Influenza Viruses in Pre-Clinical Studies

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:53 am

  Inovio's SynConTM Universal Flu Vaccines Provide 100% Protection in Ferrets against Death and Sickness in a Challenge Study with the Pandemic H1N1 Virus SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 20, 2009 - Inovio Biomedical Corporation (NYSE Amex:INO), a...

• Military Study Shows Prevention of Novel A/H1N1 Virus Infection is Vaccine-Type and Age-Dependent

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:58 am

  Both Live, Attenuated Influenza Vaccine (LAIV) and Trivalent Inactivated Vaccine (TIV) provide Protection against novel A/H1N1, especially against severe disease WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Immunization with either live attenuated influenza...

• Positive Results from Chronic Study with Bayer ?s Rivaroxaban Will be Presented As a Late Breaker at ASH 2009

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:10 am

  Positive Results from Chronic Study with Bayer’s Rivaroxaban Will be Presented As a Late Breaker at ASH 2009 Endpoints met in EINSTEIN-Extension Trial in the Secondary Prevention of Recurrent Symptomatic VTE Berlin, November 19, 2009 -...

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  ScienceDaily: Biotechnology News

• Unknowingly consuming endangered tuna

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  New DNA barcoding shows that nearly a third of the tuna plated in sushi restaurants was bluefin -- even if it was not labeled bluefin on the menu.

• On the origin of nematodes: Phylogenetic tree of world's most numerous group of animals

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  Scientists have published the largest nematode phylogenetic tree up until now. It contains over 1,200 species and is entirely based on the analysis of DNA sequence data.

• How crops survive drought

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  Breakthrough research done earlier this year by a plant cell biologist has greatly accelerated scientists' knowledge on how plants and crops can survive difficult environmental conditions like drought. In drought conditions certain receptor proteins in plants perceive ABA, causing them to inhibit an enzyme called a phosphatase. The receptor protein is at the top of a signaling pathway in plants, functioning like a boss relaying orders to the team below that then executes particular decisions in the cell. Now recent published studies show how those orders are relayed at the molecular level.

• New maize map to aid plant breeding efforts

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  A massive survey of genetic diversity in maize has produced a gene map that should pave the way to significant improvements in a plant that is a major source of food, fuel, animal feed and fiber around the world.

• Origin of life: Generating RNA molecules in water

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  A key question in the origin of biological molecules like RNA and DNA is how they first came together billions of years ago from simple precursors. Now, researchers have reconstructed one of the earliest evolutionary steps yet: generating long chains of RNA from individual subunits using nothing but warm water.

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  Biology News Net - Biotechnology

• Small nanoparticles bring big improvement to medical imaging

  18 Nov 2009 | 1:30 pm

  If you're watching the complex processes in a living cell, it is easy to miss something important—especially if you are watching changes that take a long time to unfold and require high-spatial-resolution imaging. But new research* makes it possible to scrutinize activities that occur over hours or even days inside cells, potentially solving many of the mysteries associated with molecular-scale events occurring in these tiny living things.

• Scientists guide immune cells with light and microparticles

  16 Nov 2009 | 2:19 pm

  A team led by Yale University scientists has developed a new approach to studying how immune cells chase down bacteria in our bodies. Their findings are described in the November 15 issue of Nature Methods Advanced Online Publication.

• First use of antibody and stem cell transplantation to successfully treat advanced leukemia

  5 Nov 2009 | 10:25 pm

  For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have reported the use of a radiolabeled antibody to deliver targeted doses of radiation, followed by a stem cell transplant, to successfully treat a group of leukemia and pre-leukemia patients for whom there previously had been no other curative treatment options.

• Next-generation microcapsules deliver 'chemicals on demand'

  28 Oct 2009 | 6:09 pm

  Scientists in California are reporting development of a new generation of the microcapsules used in carbon-free copy paper, in which capsules burst and release ink with pressure from a pen. The new microcapsules burst when exposed to light, releasing their contents in ways that could have wide-ranging commercial uses from home and personal care to medicine. Their study appears in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, a weekly publication.

• Modified crops reveal hidden cost of resistance

  26 Oct 2009 | 8:13 pm

  Genetically modified squash plants that are resistant to a debilitating viral disease become more vulnerable to a fatal bacterial infection, according to biologists.

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  BMC Biotechnology - Latest articles

• High-level HIV-1 Nef transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana using the P19 gene silencing suppressor protein of Artichoke Mottled Crinckle Virus

  Raffaele Lombardi

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Background: In recent years, different HIV antigens have been successfully expressed in plants by either stable transformation or transient expression systems. Among HIV proteins, Nef is considered a promising target for the formulation of a multi-component vaccine due to its implication in the first steps of viral infection. Attempts to express Nef as a single protein product (not fused to a stabilizing protein) in transgenic plants resulted in disappointingly low yields (about 0.5% of total soluble protein). In this work we describe a transient expression system based on co-agroinfiltration…

• Quantifying and resolving multiple vector transformants in S. cerevisiae plasmid libraries

  Thomas Scanlon

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Background: In addition to providing the molecular machinery for transcription and translation, recombinant microbial expression hosts maintain the critical genotype-phenotype link that is essential for high throughput screening and recovery of proteins encoded by plasmid libraries. It is known that Escherichia coli cells can be simultaneously transformed with multiple unique plasmids and thusly complicate recombinant library screening experiments. As a result of their potential to yield misleading results, bacterial multiple vector transformants have been thoroughly characterized in previous…

• Non-antibiotic selection systems for soybean somatic embryos: the lysine analog aminoethyl-cysteine as a selection agent

  Suryadevara Rao

  17 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Background: In soybean somatic embryo transformation, the standard selection agent currently used is hygromycin. However, hygromycin being an antibiotic is not ideal in the final product if intended for commercial purposes. The objective of these experiments was to develop a selection system for producing transgenic soybean somatic embryos without the use of antibiotics such as hygromycin. Results: When tested against different alternate selection agents our studies show that 0.16 ug/ mL glufosinate, 40 mg/L isopropylamine-glyphosate, 0.5 mg/mL (S-(2 aminoethyl)-L-cysteine) (AEC) and the…

• Genetic load and transgenic mitigating genes in transgenic Brassica rapa (field mustard) x Brassica napus (oilseed rape) hybrid populations

  Christy Rose

  30 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Background: One theoretical explanation for the relatively poor performance of Brassica rapa (weed) × Brassica napus (crop) transgenic hybrids suggests that hybridization imparts a negative genetic load. Consequently, in hybrids genetic load could overshadow any benefits of fitness enhancing transgenes and become the limiting factor in transgenic hybrid persistence. Two types of genetic load were analyzed in this study: random/linkage-derived genetic load, and directly incorporated genetic load using a transgenic mitigation (TM) strategy. In order to measure the effects of random genetic…

• Affinity maturation generates greatly improved xyloglucan-specific carbohydrate binding modules

  Laura von Schantz

  30 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Background: Molecular evolution of carbohydrate binding modules (CBM) is a new approach for the generation of glycan-specific molecular probes. To date, the possibility of performing affinity maturation on CBM has not been investigated. In this study we show that binding characteristics such as affinity can be improved for CBM generated from the CBM4-2 scaffold by using random mutagenesis in combination with phage display technology. Results: Two modified proteins with greatly improved affinity for xyloglucan, a key polysaccharide abundant in the plant kingdom crucial for providing plant…

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  Nature.com: Biotechnology News

• Gene silencing predicted to improve drug manufacturing

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:20 pm

  Biotech firm hopes to use RNA interference to boost drug yields.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/news/rss/news_s1/~4/JmwG6iyffHw" height="1" width="1"/>

• Maize genome mapped

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:02 pm

  Sequence should help corn breeders meet global demands for food and fuel.

• Gene-makers form security coalition

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:22 pm

  Latest salvo in the gene-synthesis 'standards war' sees firms set up a competing code.

• Plant genetics database at risk as funds run dry

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm

  National Science Foundation to cut support for resource.

• Japanese science faces deep cuts

  17 Nov 2009 | 1:34 pm

  The government's election promises vowed more support for science, but so far budgets look set to shrink.