Putting a price on blood tests can save money: Letting doctors know how much money they spend ordering blood tests may help rein in unnecessary healthcare spending, researchers report. They found weekly announcements of the previous week's costs to surgery staff at a Rhode Island hospital produced savings of about $55,000 over less than three months. Archives of Surgery, May 16, 2011
Can Selenium Lower Cholesterol: Taking high doses of selenium may help slightly lower cholesterol levels -- but it's still not recommended in the United States, where most people get plenty of the mineral, according to the authors of a new study. Still, the finding is "reassuring" because previous research had linked high selenium with higher cholesterol levels, said study author Dr. Eliseo Guallar, from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. Annals of Internal Medicine, online May 16, 2011
Genetic Link to Depression: Scientists say they have discovered the first solid evidence that variations in some peoples' genes may cause depression -- one of the world's most common and costly mental illnesses. And in a rare occurrence in genetic research, a British-led international team's finding of a DNA region linked to depression has been replicated by another team from the United States who were studying an entirely separate group of people. American Journal of Psychiatry May, 2011
Medicare to Exhaust Funds Sooner: Two of the government's most popular programs for the elderly, Medicare and Social Security, will run out of money sooner than thought earlier as a slow-growing economy saps revenues, a report on Friday said. Trustees for the two funds said the Medicare trust fund is projected to exhaust its funds in 2024, not 2029 as estimated last year, and that the Social Security retirement program will run out of money in 2036, not 2037 as previously thought. Reuters
Hospice Care More Common in Wealthier Areas: The availability of hospice care for dying patients in the United States is strongly associated with a local area's average household income, a new study says. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management
Tai Chi Prevents Falls, Boosts Mental Health in Seniors: Tai chi helps reduce the risk of falls in older people and also improves their mental health, a new study has found. However, the ancient Chinese martial art/exercise does not help ease the symptoms of cancer or rheumatoid arthritis, according to researchers who analyzed 35 reviews assessing the health effects of tai chi. British Journal of Sports Medicine May 16
Pills, surgery both effective for chronic reflux: Both surgery and popular medications such as Nexium, Prevacid or Prilosec can successfully treat the discomfort of chronic reflux, according to new research funding by Astrazeneca, the makers of Nexium. JAMA May 18
The Mystery of Chronic Pain: We think of pain as a symptom, but there are cases where the nervous system develops feedback loops and pain becomes a terrifying disease in itself. Starting with the story of a girl whose sprained wrist turned into a nightmare, Elliot Krane talks about the complex mystery of chronic pain, and reviews the facts we're just learning about how it works and how to treat it. TED Conference
Few Docs, Hospitals Exchanging Patient Information: Health information exchange -- a process that aims to simplify and improve patient care by connecting doctors and hospitals -- hasn't been catching on as fast as policymakers hoped, a new survey finds. The results also show that organizations responsible for coordinating the digital exchange of patient records are rarely financially viable, and only a few support the type of information exchange that the government deems necessary. , Annals of Internal Medicine, online May 16, 2011
Smoking linked to age-related blindness: The research, by scientists in Japan and the United States, shows that Japanese smokers face four times the risk of age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, than non-smokers.Ophthalmology, April 22, 2011
Hospital ratings miss many high performers: Looking for hospital ratings on the internet or in magazines may not serve patients' best interests, suggests a study of HealthGrades and U.S. News & World Report. It shows that for three types of cancer surgery, "America's 50 Best Hospitals" as ranked by internet-based HealthGrades are no better than the other hospitals once the number of patients they treat is taken into account. Archives of Surgery, May 17, 2011
Screening Patients for Cancer: Two big studies suggest possible new ways to screen healthy people for cervical or prostate cancers, but a third disappointed those hoping for a way to detect early signs of deadly ovarian tumors.
Researchers found:
_For women 30 and over, a test for the virus, HPV, is better than a Pap smear for predicting cervical cancer risk, and those who test negative on both can safely wait three years to be screened again.
_A single PSA blood test at ages 44 to 50 might help predict a man's risk of developing advanced prostate cancer or dying of it up to 30 years later. The PSA test is notoriously unreliable, but using it this way separates men who need a close watch from those who are so low-risk that they can skip testing for five years or more.
_Screening women with no symptoms for ovarian cancer with a blood test and an ultrasound exam is harmful. It didn't prevent deaths and led to thousands of false alarms, unneeded surgeries and serious complications. American Society of Clinical Oncology
Crossing your arms may help relieve pain: Crossing your arms across the middle of your body confuses the brain and helps reduce the intensity of pain. Scientists from University College London (UCL) who reported the finding in the journal Pain said they think the reason for the phenomenon is conflicting information between two of the brain's maps -- one for the body and one for external space. Pain, June 2011
Treating Back Pain May Reverse Its Impact on Brain: Treating chronic lower back pain can reverse pain-related changes in brain activity and function, according to a new study of patients who had lower back pain for more than six months and underwent either spinal injections or spinal surgery to treat the pain. Journal of Neuroscience May 17, 2011
No comments:
Post a Comment