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Pediatric central line infections reduced by ‘best practice’ guidelines

The number of central line-associated bloodstream infections sustained by hospitalized children with cancer can be substantially reduced by encouraging staff to follow simple “best practice” regulations, say researchers.

4 Sep 2012

Exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid appears to increase risk of CVD and peripheral arterial disease

Exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a manmade chemical used in the manufacture of some common household products, appears to be associated with cardiovascular disease and peripheral arterial disease in a study of 1,216 individuals, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.

4 Sep 2012

Study finds little significant difference in health benefits between organic and conventional foods

You're in the supermarket eyeing a basket of sweet, juicy plums. You reach for the conventionally grown stone fruit, then decide to spring the extra $1/pound for its organic cousin. You figure you've just made the healthier decision by choosing the organic product - but new findings from Stanford University cast some doubt on your thinking.

4 Sep 2012

Plain cigarette packaging likely to reduce appeal of smoking for young people

While Australia has recently passed legislation to ban logos from cigarette packages and to make plain packaging mandatory, other countries are still considering whether or not to take similar measures. New research published in Biomed Central's open access journal BMC Public Health provides a report on the appeal of plain cigarette packs, compared to branded packs, among women in Brazil, and finds that plain packs reduce the appeal of their contents.

4 Sep 2012

Parkinson disease may share common pathogenic mechanisms with some cancers

A study that used a Utah genealogic database and a statewide cancer registry to examine the relationship between Parkinson disease (PD) and cancer suggests an increased risk of prostate cancer and melanoma in patients with PD and their relatives, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Neurology, a JAMA Network publication.

4 Sep 2012

Exercise paves way to healthy old age

Middle-aged people who have a high level of physical fitness have a significantly lower and later incidence of chronic conditions in old age than those who are less fit, report researchers.

3 Sep 2012

Eat your greens for healthy sperm genes

Men who consume a high amount of certain nutrients may produce healthier sperm than men who do not, an effect that appears to be more pronounced in older men, report US researchers.

3 Sep 2012

Herpes virus eventually impairs glucose regulation

The common herpes virus cytomegalovirus may be a risk factor for the development of Type 2 diabetes among elderly individuals, show study findings.

3 Sep 2012

MRI lesions match site of recent-onset inflammatory back pain

Patients with recent inflammatory back pain who undergo examination with magnetic resonance imaging typically show inflammation at the site of their pain, a study confirms.

3 Sep 2012

Low blood pressure increases diabetes mortality risk

Tight blood pressure control fails to confer a survival benefit in patients newly diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, and may even increase mortality risk when low blood pressure levels are achieved, UK investigators have discovered.

3 Sep 2012

$Noninvasive fractional flow reserve still out of reach$

Noninvasive fractional flow reserve still out of reach

A novel, noninvasive approach to determining fractional flow reserve failed to show sufficient diagnostic accuracy to meet the primary endpoint of the DeFACTO trial, but was more accurate for diagnosing coronary artery ischemia than computed tomography, reported the trial’s lead investigator.

3 Sep 2012

Novel scoring system shows sclerotherapy improves pain of venous malformation

Ethanol sclerotherapy reduces the signs and symptoms of venous malformation in the majority of patients after approximately two sessions, report Japanese researchers who used a novel scoring system to evaluate treatment outcomes.

3 Sep 2012

Obesity no barrier to knee replacement surgery

Health policy should not withhold total knee arthroplasty from patients on the basis of obesity, say UK researchers.

3 Sep 2012

Potassium-channel autoimmunity linked to chronic pain

A substantial proportion of patients with voltage-gated potassium channel-complex autoimmunity experience chronic idiopathic pain, although the specific antigenic complex associated with pain remains to be determined, conclude US scientists.

3 Sep 2012

Hospitalist-led ED reduces diversion, improves patient flow

Implementing a hospital medicine-led emergency department team could reduce the number of times such departments are forced to divert new patients because of a lack of beds, as well as improve patient flow, show study findings.

3 Sep 2012

Home-based care reduces mortality, institutionalization risk in elderly

Elderly individuals cared for at home under an intermediate care plan that focuses on high levels of support and rehabilitation are less likely to be relocated to an institution or to die than their peers who are treated with usual care, show study results from New Zealand.

3 Sep 2012