Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Heart and stroke death rates steadily decline; risks still too high

In an appropriate prelude to American Heart Month, which is just ahead in February, new mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that, since 1999, coronary heart disease and stroke age-adjusted death rates are down by 25.8 percent and 24.4 percent, respectively.

23 Jan 2008

Risk of death cut in half with 30 minutes of exercise in men

Increased exercise capacity reduces the risk of death in African-American and Caucasian men, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Jan 2008

Global aging will peak during the decade 2020 to 2030 and then decelerate

The world will experience a significant acceleration in the speed of population aging over the coming years but slow down by mid-century, according to a study by Warren Sanderson, Professor and Co-Chairman of the Department of Economics, Stony Brook University; and colleagues from the World Population Program at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria.

22 Jan 2008

New understanding of the link between heart disease and belly fat

By now, everyone knows that overweight people have a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes and other problems that arise from clogged, hardened arteries. And people who carry their extra weight around their waist - giving them a "beer belly" or an "apple" shape - have the highest risk of all.

22 Jan 2008

AIDS Healthcare Foundation criticizes Etravirine's pricing

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has urged Tibotec Pharmaceuticals Ltd., a division of Johnson & Johnson, to reconsider and reduce its steep price for its newest AIDS drug, etravirine (TMC 125), a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, (NNRTI), which received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval on Friday after a fast track or 'priority review' and approval process granted to companies for medications and therapies intended to treat life-threatening illnesses such as AIDS.

22 Jan 2008

Circumcision across the U.S.

Rates of circumcision vary widely across the nation, a phenomenon likely linked to regional variations in racial, ethnic and immigrant populations, as well as insurance coverage, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

21 Jan 2008

U.S. health authorities warn about OTC cough and cold remedies for the under 2's

Health authorities in the United States are again warning about the dangers of giving children over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold medicines.

20 Jan 2008

British health service blamed for 17,000 unnecessary deaths each year

Campaigners in Britain say the National Health Service (NHS) is responsible for 17,000 unnecessary deaths each year because of poor performance.

20 Jan 2008

$Annual bone fracture rate almost 4 percent and double previous estimates$

Annual bone fracture rate almost 4 percent and double previous estimates

The annual bone fracture rate in England is just short of 4% of the population, which is more than double previous estimates, suggests a study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

18 Jan 2008

U.S. shingles statistics

Nearly 1 million Americans receive medical care for shingles or its complications each year, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

16 Jan 2008

Lack of training in prescribing medicines for children

Current training and assessment for curbing common pitfalls in medicines prescribing for children is inadequate, suggests research published ahead of print in Archives of Disease in Childhood.

16 Jan 2008

Reducing barriers for implementation of bystander-initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation

A unified effort by the public, educators and policymakers is needed to reduce deaths from sudden cardiac arrest by increasing the use and effectiveness of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), according to a new statement from the American Heart Association.

16 Jan 2008

Biotechnology Industry Organization supports FDA's safety conclusions on animal cloning

Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Greenwood today issued the following statement in response to a risk assessment published today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding the safety of milk and meat products from cloned animals and their offspring:

15 Jan 2008

Selective restraints and reduced medication could reduce nursing home falls

Selectively restraining elderly residents and giving them fewer sleeping pills could significantly reduce falls, according to a survey of 21 nursing home units published in the January issue of Journal of Clinical Nursing.

15 Jan 2008

Psychotherapies are under-regulated in the UK, experts say

Psychotherapies such as cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) are under-regulated in the UK and should be subject to the same standards of evidence as drugs, assert two experts in psychological medicine writing in the Journal of Psychopharmacology (January issue published by SAGE).

15 Jan 2008

MRSA spike among gay men: More effective prevention needed for MRSA, HIV and other STDs

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), today expressed concern over a recent study first reported publicly today in an 'Annals of Internal Medicine' article which found that sexually active gay men in San Francisco were 13 times as likely to contract methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a drug-resistant strain of bacteria, than their heterosexual counterparts.

15 Jan 2008

Cleaning up the NHS

UNISON is urging health ministers to bring back hospital cleaners, whose number has almost halved in the past 20 years.

14 Jan 2008

The relationship between periodontal disease and systemic health

Physicians and dentists will have a unique opportunity to discuss the link between oral health and overall health at a program on January 18 at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS).

11 Jan 2008

AHF to Schwarzenegger: Re-consider proposed budget cuts in AIDS services

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has urged California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to reconsider and reverse $11 million of proposed budget cuts in AIDS services that will reduce and threaten vital lifesaving care and services for Californians living with HIV/AIDS as he seeks to close a $14 billion deficit in the state budget.

11 Jan 2008

Brits get to grips with superbugs

The British government, as part of it's fight against 'superbugs' such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureu (MRSA) and Clostridium difficile, has promised every hospital the funds to recruit four specialist nurses to help curb the infections.

10 Jan 2008