Tag: Today’s Healthcare

Many individuals cite prescription opioids as their gateway to illicit opioid use. However, while prescription opioids are involved in more than one-third of all opioid overdose deaths in the U.S., examining any correlation between prescription opioid overdose deaths and pharmaceutical industry marketing has been limited — until now. New research from NYU School of Medicine

Medication administration errors leading to death are common with anticoagulants and antibiotics in particular, according to a new study that analysed incidents reported in England and Wales. The most common error category was omitted medicine, followed by a wrong dose or a wrong strength. In half of the reported incidents, the patient was aged over

In the hours and days following a spinal cord injury, the gears that control the body’s internal clocks fall profoundly out of sync, impacting body temperature, hormone fluctuation, immunity and the timing of a host of other bodily processes, according to new University of Colorado Boulder research. The study, funded by the U.S. Department of

Today, they are visible in nearly every kitchen, so we have grown to be familiar with warming our breakfast without needing whether stove or perhaps a fry pan. This really is convenient, what is dangerous microwave? You most likely needed to learn about the risks of microwaves: about harmful radiation, about how exactly helpful products

Treatment with capivasertib, a drug designed to work against a particular gene mutation found in some tumours, shows signs of being effective in a trial of 35 patients presented today (Tuesday) at the 30th EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Dublin, Ireland. The phase 2 trial (EAY131-Y) is part of a larger

The most common tests for glaucoma can underestimate the severity of the condition by not detecting the presence of central vision loss, according to a new Columbia University study. The study, published Nov. 8 in JAMA Ophthalmology, found that administering a variation of the visual field test that better assesses macular damage can improve diagnosis

Artificial intelligence systems simulate human intelligence by learning, reasoning, and self correction. This technology has the potential to be more accurate than doctors at making diagnoses and performing surgical interventions, says Jörg Goldhahn, MD, MAS, deputy head of the Institute for Translational Medicine at ETH Zurich, Switzerland. It has a “near unlimited capacity” for data

By incorporating a gene-suppressing drug into an over-the-counter gel, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and their colleagues cut healing time by half and significantly improved healing outcomes compared to control treatments. Results from the combination therapy, which was tested in mice, were published online today in Advances in Wound Care. “Not only did

People with high blood pressure taking medication for their condition are more likely to benefit from the therapy if they have good oral health, according to new research in the American Heart Association’s journal Hypertension. Findings of the analysis, based on a review of medical and dental exam records of more than 3,600 people with

Since 2013, gifts and payments to doctors by pharmaceutical and medical device companies have been publicly reported. In addition, some medical centers, physician employers, such as Kaiser Permanente, and states have banned or restricted detailing visits, physician payments or gifts. Some manufacturers have also changed their practices for certain gifts. In order to better understand

Our level of alertness rises and falls over the course of a workday, sometimes causing our energy to drop and our minds to wander just as we need to perform important tasks. To help understand these patterns and improve productivity, Cornell University researchers have developed a tool that tracks alertness by measuring pupil size, captured

A phase I clinical trial investigating the use of bacterial Clostridium novyi-NT spores as an injectable monotherapy had manageable toxicities and showed early clinical efficacy in patients with treatment-refractory solid tumor malignancies, according to data presented at the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival, held Sept. 30-Oct. 3. “Even after a

By slightly changing the body’s own molecules using a small inhaler, certain migraine patients can either cut down on medication or do without it completely. This is shown by a pilot study which has been published in the scientific journal Cephalalgia. Patients who suffer from migraine with aura, which is where they experience either sensory

Obese mothers who lose weight through bariatric surgery can have safer deliveries. The positive effects are many, including fewer caesarean sections, infections, tears and haemorrhages, and fewer cases of post-term delivery or uterine inertia. This according to an observational study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in PLOS Medicine. Today, more than one

Exercise and physical activity are of vast global importance to prevent and control the increasing problem of heart disease and stroke, according to a review paper published today in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. This paper is part of an eight-part health promotion series where each paper will focus on a different

Spinal cord stimulation and physical therapy have helped a man paralyzed since 2013 regain his ability to stand and walk with assistance. The results, achieved in a research collaboration between Mayo Clinic and UCLA, are reported in Nature Medicine. With an implanted stimulator turned on, the man was able to step with a front-wheeled walker

In what Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers call an unusually comprehensive analysis of nationwide data, they conclude that the rate of lawnmower injuries persists at close to 6,400 a year, most of them requiring surgery and hospitalization, and costing an average of $37,000 per patient. A report of the study, tracking eight years of data between

Someday doctors may prescribe sugar pills for certain chronic pain patients based on their brain anatomy and psychology. And the pills will reduce their pain as effectively as any powerful drug on the market, according to new research. Northwestern Medicine scientists have shown they can reliably predict which chronic pain patients will respond to a

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have discovered using mice and human clinical specimens, that caspase-2, a protein-cleaving enzyme, is a critical driver of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a chronic and aggressive liver condition. By identifying caspase-2’s critical role, they believe an inhibitor of this enzyme could provide an effective way to

Consumers can go to Google, Yelp and Facebook for crowdsourced insight about the experiences they’ll have at a hospital, but they shouldn’t expect foolproof guidance on the quality of care they will receive, according to new Indiana University research. Researchers Victoria Perez and Seth Freedman of IU’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs compared social