Culture | Page 1804 | Science Codex

Experts question automatic osteoporosis drug holidays

Nyon, Switzerland - January 4, 2016 A new editorial published by an International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) Working Group urges physicians to individualize treatment decisions based on their patients' fracture risk, rather than automatically interrupting or stopping bisphosphonate therapy after five or three years.

The concept of a bisphosphonate 'holiday' arose following concerns about osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) and atypical femoral fracture (AFF), rare events which have recently been linked to long-term use of bisphosphonates.

Medical research influenced by training 'genealogy'

By analyzing peer-reviewed scientific papers that examined the effectiveness of a surgical procedure, researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine provide evidence suggesting that the conclusions of these studies appear to be influenced by the authors' mentors and medical training. The study is published January 4 by the Annals of Neurology.

Pioneering artificial pancreas to undergo final tests

A device developed by University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers to automatically monitor and regulate blood-sugar levels in people with type 1 diabetes will undergo final testing in two clinical trials beginning in early 2016.

Racial bias may be conveyed by doctors' body language

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 4, 2015 - Physicians give less compassionate nonverbal cues when treating seriously ill black patients compared with their white counterparts, a small University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine trial revealed. It is the first to look at such interactions in a time-pressured, end-of-life situation.

The finding, published in the January issue of The Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, could be one reason blacks are far more likely to request extraordinary life-sustaining measures and report worse communication with their physicians.

How to improve cardiac arrest survival in three easy steps

WASHINGTON --Although survival rates for people who suffer cardiac arrest outside a hospital are extremely low in most places, emergency physicians propose three interventions to improve survival rates and functional outcomes in any community and urge additional federal funding for cardiac resuscitation research in an editorial published online last Wednesday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ("IOM Says Times to Act to Improve Cardiac Arrest Survival ... Here's How").

Swedish teachers tell students religion is outdated and strange - and that is bad for pluralism

In northern Europe, they have no interest in taking in Syrian refugees, despite worldwide concern about the plight of people caught in a civil war and ISIL terrorists butchering everyone in sight.

A lack of morality may be something they are taught in schools.

Survey finds majority who believe it is sometimes necessary for government to sacrifice freedoms

Chicago, IL, December 28, 2015--A majority of Americans say it can be necessary for the government to sacrifice freedoms to fight terrorism, according to a new national survey conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Fifty-four percent of Americans say it can be necessary, 45 percent disagree.

Survey: majority believe it is necessary for government to cut freedom to stop terrorism

A majority of Americans say it can be necessary for the government to sacrifice freedoms to fight terrorism, according to a new national survey conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Fifty-four percent of Americans say it can be necessary, 45 percent disagree. And about half of Americans think it is acceptable to allow warrantless government analysis of internet activities and communications--even of American citizens--in order to keep an eye out for suspicious activity, but about 3 in 10 are against this type of government investigation.

Significantly fewer severely injured patients than in 2000

About 18,000 people are severely injured every year in Germany, as determined by Florian Debus and coauthors in a new study published in Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2015; 112: 823-9). Earlier investigations, in 2000 and 2006, estimated that more than 32,000 people sustain multiple trauma each year. The newly calculated lower number likely reflects a reduction of severe injuries caused by road traffic and occupational accidents.

Factors predicting low patient accrual in cancer clinical trials

Nearly one in four publicly sponsored cancer clinical trials fail to enroll enough participants to draw valid conclusions about treatments or techniques. Such trials represent a waste of scarce human and economic resources and contribute little to medical knowledge. Although many studies have investigated the perceived barriers to accrual from the patient or provider perspective, very few have taken a trial-level view and asked why certain trials are able to accrue patients faster than expected while others fail to attract even a fraction of the intended number of participants.

Increased long-term death risk for adolescents hospitalized for adversity-related injury

Adolescents discharged from hospitals in England after an admission for violent, drug- or alcohol-related, or self-inflicted injuries have increased risks of subsequent death and emergency re-admission up to a decade later, according to a study published this week in PLOS Medicine. The study, conducted by Annie Herbert at University College London, UK, and colleagues, showed that in England, risks of death after all types of adversity-related injury were higher than after accident-related injury (61% (95% CI 43%-82%) higher in girls and 113% (95% CI 98%-129%) higher in boys).

Expanded regimens associated with improved treatment response in MDR-TB

Treating multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) with regimens that include a greater number of drugs may improve outcomes, and baseline drug susceptibility testing (DST) could identify drugs with the greatest likelihood of success, according to a paper published this week in PLOS Medicine. The prospective cohort study, conducted by Peter Cegielski of the Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, and colleagues, used information on regimen composition, baseline DST, and time to sputum conversion from 1,137 adults with MDR TB, from nine countries.

No easy answers in UW study of legal marijuana's impact on alcohol use

Does legal marijuana tempt pot users to consume more alcohol -- or are they likely to opt for cannabis instead of chardonnay?

A University of Washington team of researchers sought to address those questions in the context of evolving marijuana policies in the United States. Their findings, published online Dec. 21 in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, highlight the difficulties of gauging the impact of a formerly illicit drug as it moves into the mainstream.

Study ties insurgency phase of Iraq War to higher PTSD rates

Guerilla tactics such as suicide attacks and roadside bombs may trigger more posttraumatic stress than conventional warfare, suggests a Veterans Affairs study of 738 men and women who served in Iraq.

The findings appeared online Dec. 14, 2015, in the journal Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy.

The study authors are with the Behavioral Science Division of the National Center for PTSD, based at the VA Boston Healthcare System, and with Boston University School of Medicine.

Most patients still prescribed opioids after nonfatal overdose, study finds

Boston - A study led by Boston Medical Center (BMC) indicates that most patients with chronic pain who are hospitalized after a nonfatal opioid overdose continue to receive prescription opioids after the overdose and are at high risk for experiencing a repeated overdose.