Health News

Research could have important implications for shared-decision making policies in cancer treatment

Date: Aug-09-2013
A new study of cancer patients indicates that certain patient groups have unmet needs for greater involvement in decisions about their treatment. Cancer patients under 55 and those with some rarer types of cancer want more of a say in the decisions made about their treatment, according to new research being published in the British Journal of Cancer. Recently, several US states have introduced legislation or other policies supporting share-decision making...

Managing occupational exposures to HIV: New federal guidelines

Date: Aug-09-2013
New guidelines from the United States Public Health Service update the recommendations for the management of healthcare personnel (HCP) with occupational exposure to HIV and use of postexposure prophylaxis (PEP). The guidelines, published online in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), emphasize the immediate use of a PEP regimen containing three or more antiretroviral drugs after any occupational exposure to HIV...

Probiotics do not treat diarrhea, study says

Date: Aug-09-2013
Probiotic supplements do not prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea in elderly patients, according to a study published in The Lancet. Previous research has suggested that probiotic supplements may curb antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD), and many institutions prescribe these as part of normal practice. But researchers at the University of Swansea in the UK have conducted the largest study so far that reveals probiotics may not have any such effect on elderly patients experiencing AAD...

Immune function restored in spinal injured mice

Date: Aug-09-2013
In a new study, researchers at The Center for Brain and Spinal Cord Repair at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center show that it is possible to restore immune function in spinal injured mice. People with spinal cord injury often are immune compromised, which makes them more susceptible to infections. Why these people become immune-suppressed is not known, but the Ohio State study found that a disorder called autonomic dysreflexia can cause immune suppression...

"Group-level narcissism" linked to negative attitudes toward immigrants

Date: Aug-09-2013
Feelings of entitlement and superiority that go beyond patriotism and love of country may be a key predictor for Americans who will feel or behave negatively toward undocumented Latino immigrants, according to a study from The University of Texas at Arlington. Researchers looked at those enhanced feelings of superiority - referred to as group-level narcissism - along with a factor called national in-group identification in a new work to be published in the August issue of the Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Science...

2nd Annual Medical Device Market Access Leaders Forum, 10-12 December 2013, Berlin, Germany

Date: Aug-08-2013
NextLevel Pharma's three day Medical Device Market Access Leaders Forum is the "must-attend" event for all senior directors at medical device companies who are looking to enhance market access for their products. 4 EVENTS IN ONE Medical Device Payer & HTA Forum; Medical Device Market Access in Advanced & Emerging Markets; Market Access for Surgical & Implantable Devices; Market Access for Diagnostics & Capital Equipment...

Lifescience Big Data Leaders Forum, 3th - 5th December, 2013�, Basel, Switzerland

Date: Aug-08-2013
This 3 day forum is the "must attend" event for those senior decision-makers looking to make the shift towards big data and for those looking to improve their implementation of data-driven approaches for their specific departments. The first day will feature several keynote presentations from C-Level thought leaders on big data in the R&D space and heads of major research institutions who are at the front-end of the big data challenge. They will be discussing the strategic drivers for big data and key implementation guidance on how to make best use of this approach...

The global atlas of trachoma: an important tool in the fight against infectious blindness

Date: Aug-08-2013
An estimated 129.4 million people live in areas of Africa where blinding trachoma is confirmed to occur, according to a paper publishing August 8 in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. The distribution of the disease varies greatly across the continent, with clinical signs most common in the Sahel area of West Africa and the savannah areas of East and Central Africa.  Trachoma is the leading infectious cause of blindness worldwide. In 1998, the World Health Organization (WHO) established the Alliance for Global Elimination of Trachoma by the year 2020 (GET2020)...

New international organization to tackle the burden of human scabies

Date: Aug-08-2013
A Viewpoint article, to be published by PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases on August 8, discusses the huge burden of disease caused by scabies and outlines the agenda for achieving global control.  Scabies is a contagious skin infection caused by a microscopic mite, and causes intense itch. "Some people consider scabies to be nothing more than a nuisance, but it actually causes a whole raft of serious health consequences," stated Dr. Andrew Steer, a pediatric infectious disease specialist from Australia...

Chromosome component in children impacted by prenatal smoke exposure

Date: Aug-08-2013
A new study from the American Journal of Public Health finds that prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke can impact parts of chromosomes in children. Researchers investigated telomere length, a repetitive DNA sequence located at the ends of chromosomes that stabilizes the chromosome. Telomeres are a part of chromosomes that have been identified as a biomarker of cellular aging. After reviewing results from more than 100 New Orleans children aged 4 to 14, researchers found that telomere length was shorter among children who were exposed to smoke during pregnancy...