Body | Page 4993 | Science Codex

JAMA editorial: To reduce costs of medical care, pay for procedures that are known to work

WHAT:

If research finds that a simpler, cheaper treatment is just as effective as a more costly procedure, which one should doctors and hospitals choose? And which one should insurers and Medicare pay for?

Patients suffering from chest pain related to coronary artery disease often undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), or balloon angioplasty. A major, multicenter study (the COURAGE trial) reported last year that in most cases, intensive medical management can be just as effective, but physicians still have a tendency to reach for the higher-cost option first.

Stress tests to confirm need for cardiac stent not occurring in most patients, new study finds

UCSF researchers investigating the appropriate use of procedures to open narrowed coronary arteries -- such as angioplasty and stenting -- found that less than half of Medicare patients had documented noninvasive stress testing prior to elective percutaneous coronary intervention, or PCI, the clinical name for such procedures.

Model predicts a system's remaining life and links info to inventory decisions

New research at the Georgia Institute of Technology could soon make predicting the degradation and remaining useful life of mechanical and electronic equipment easier and more accurate, while significantly improving maintenance operations and spare parts logistics.

As sticky as a gecko... but 10 times stronger!

The gecko's amazing ability to stick to surfaces and walk up walls has inspired many researchers to manufacture materials that mimic the special surface of a gecko's foot. The secret behind the gecko's ability to stick so well is a forest of pillars at the micro-/nano-scale on the underside of the gecko's foot. Because there are so many pillars so close together, they are held tightly to the surface the gecko is walking on by a molecular force called the Van der Waals force. This relatively weak force causes uncharged molecules to attract each other.

New tools that model 3-D structure of amorphous materials to transform technology driven RD

Livermore, CA - Researchers have accurately identified tools that model the atomic and void structures of a network-forming elemental material. These tools may revolutionize the process of creating new solar panels, flat-panel displays, optical storage media and myriad other technological devices.

Steroids aid recovery from pneumonia, UT Southwestern researchers say

DALLAS – Oct. 14, 2008 – Adding corticosteroids to traditional antimicrobial therapy might help people with pneumonia recover more quickly than with antibiotics alone, UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists have found.

Unlike the anabolic steroids used to bulk up muscle, corticosteroids are often used to treat inflammation related to infectious diseases, such as bacterial meningitis. Used against other infectious diseases, however, steroid therapy has been shown to be ineffective or even harmful.

Late-breaking results of clinical trial on therapeutic endovascular cooling reported at TCT 2008

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 14, 2008 – Late-breaking results from the COOL RCN (COOLing to Prevent Radio Contrast Nephropathy in Patients Undergoing Diagnostic or Interventional Catheterization) Trial were presented during the 20th annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) scientific symposium, sponsored by the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF).

Brown scientist finds coastal dead zones may benefit some species

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Coastal dead zones, an increasing concern to ecologists, the fishing industry and the public, may not be as devoid of life after all. A Brown scientist has found that dead zones do indeed support marine life, and that at least one commercially valuable clam actually benefits from oxygen-depleted waters.

Resveratrol, red wine compound linked to health, also found in dark chocolate and cocoa

Hershey's Center for Health and Nutrition announced the publication of a study that shows resveratrol, the compound often associated with the health benefits of red wine, is also found in cocoa and dark chocolate products. In the September 24 edition of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, scientists report that cocoa powder, baking chocolate and dark chocolate all have significant levels of resveratrol, a naturally occurring antioxidant.

New approach to genetic testing could halve deaths from inherited bowel cancer

Changing the approach to genetic screening for cancers in Australia could effectively halve deaths caused by an inherited form of bowel cancer, says a University of Melbourne expert.

Professor John Hopper – an Australia Fellow of the National Health and Medical Research Council in the Melbourne School of Population Health –says current cancer genetic screening programs are highly focused on breast cancer and typically based on family history alone.

Biomarkers for identifying infant infections

Infection is the leading cause of infant deaths worldwide, and particularly a common killer of weaker, pre-term infants. Current diagnostic tests can be slow and non-specific, but researchers have now identified potential biomarkers in the blood that can rapidly identify both the onset of infection and type of microbe.

The circulatory system is a major hotbed of immune system activity, so Stephen Kingsmore and colleagues analyzed plasma samples from 107 infected and non-infected premature infants to try and identify proteins that could reliably identify an infected state.

Iowa State University researcher developed forerunner of Nobel research in 1986

AMES, Iowa -- This year's Nobel Prize for chemistry was given to researchers for their work on illuminating living cells that enables scientists and researchers to study how genes, proteins, and entire cells operate.

An Iowa State University professor developed another technology producing similar results more than 20 years ago.

New properties of skin stem cells

[PRESS RELEASE , 13 October 2008] Recent research from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet reveals completely new properties of the skin's stem cells – discoveries that contradict previous findings. The studies, which are published in Nature Genetics, show amongst other things, that hair follicle stem cells can divide actively and transport themselves through the skin tissue.

Biotech experts urge industry to work with researchers or risk federal action

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Black patients with chronic pain less likely to have obesity assessed

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — At the intersection of two U.S. health epidemics – obesity and chronic pain – researchers from the University of Michigan Health System found black patients with chronic pain were less likely to have their weight or body mass index (BMI) recorded, even though they are at higher risk for having obesity when compared with their white counterparts.

This new study also revealed that obesity is related to greater disability and poorer functioning, over and above the impact of a person's pain level.