Culture | Science Codex

Large Mismatch Between Patients' Expectations and the Actual Duration of a Cough

There is a large mismatch between patients' expectations regarding the duration of an acute cough and the actual duration based on the best available evidence, and this disparity has important implications for unnecessary antibiotic prescribing.

A systematic review of the medical literature showed the mean duration of a cough is 17.8 days. When surveyed, nearly 500 adults in Georgia reported a median duration of only five to seven days and a mean duration of seven to nine days, depending on the specific scenario.

Selective D-Dimer Testing for Suspected Deep Vein Thrombosis Safe and More Efficient than Testing Everyone

D-dimer testing based on clinical pretest probability for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is safe and reduces diagnostic testing compared with testing all patients. Researchers randomly assigned 1,723 outpatients presenting for the first time with symptoms of DVT to either selective testing (D-dimer testing for patients with low or moderate clinical pretest probability of DVT or venous ultrasonograpy without D-dimer testing in patients with high clinical pretest probability) or uniform testing (testing for all patients presenting with symptoms).

Generic HIV treatment strategy could save nearly $1 billion annually but may be less effective

Replacing the combination of brand-name, antiretroviral drugs currently recommended for control of HIV infection with soon-to-be-available generic medications could save the U.S. health care system almost $1 billion a year but may diminish the effectiveness of HIV treatment. A study led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators, appearing in the January 15 Annals of Internal Medicine, examines the potential impact of such a change.

Generic HIV treatment strategy could save nearly $1 billion annually but may be less effective

NEW YORK (Jan. 14, 2013) -- Replacing the combination of brand-name, antiretroviral drugs currently recommended for control of HIV infection with soon-to-be-available generic medications could save the U.S. health care system almost $1 billion a year but may diminish the effectiveness of HIV treatment. A study led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Weill Cornell Medical College investigators, appearing in the January 15 Annals of Internal Medicine, examines the potential impact of such a change.

Patient expectations of acute bronchitis not consistent with the best evidence

Athens, Ga. – New research from the University of Georgia exposes a large discrepancy in the length of time patients expect an acute cough illness, also called acute bronchitis, to last and the reality of the illness. This mismatch may be a factor in the over-prescription of antibiotics.

Supplements and cow's milk play biggest roles in determining vitamin D levels in children

TORONTO, Jan 14, 2013—Taking a vitamin D supplement and drinking cow's milk are the two most important factors that determine how much vitamin D is in a child's body, new research has found.

Those factors play a bigger role than even skin colour and exposure to the sun, according to Dr. Jonathon Maguire, a researcher and pediatrician at St. Michael's Hospital.

Potential harvest of most fish stocks largely unrelated to abundance

Fisheries managers should sharpen their ability to spot environmental conditions that hamper or help fish stocks, rather than assuming that having a certain abundance of fish assures how much can be sustainably harvested.

Gene flow from India to Australia about 4,000 years ago

Australia is thought to have remained largely isolated between its initial colonization around 40,000 years ago and the arrival of Europeans in the late 1800s. A study led by researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, now finds evidence of substantial gene flow between Indian populations and Australia about 4,000 years ago. In addition, the researchers found a common origin for Australian, New Guinean and the Philippine Mamanwa populations.

If we go over the fiscal cliff, will people spend or save? Childhood environments may hold the key

In the face of hard times, which strategy gives us the best shot at survival: saving for the future or spending resources on immediate gains? The answer may depend on the economic conditions we faced in childhood, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

Tissue engineers report knee cartilage repair success with new biomaterial

In a small study, researchers reported increased healthy tissue growth after surgical repair of damaged cartilage if they put a "hydrogel" scaffolding into the wound to support and nourish the healing process. The squishy hydrogel material was implanted in 15 patients during standard microfracture surgery, in which tiny holes are punched in a bone near the injured cartilage. The holes stimulate patients' own specialized stem cells to emerge from bone marrow and grow new cartilage atop the bone.

Social networks inflate self-esteem, reduce self-control - surveys

Want to get a bunch of attention on social media? Be a female and post a picture of yourself. But users of Facebook and other social networks should beware of allowing their self-esteem—boosted by "likes" or positive comments from close friends—to influence their behavior: It could reduce their self-control, even in the real world, according to a paper by academics at the University of Pittsburgh and Columbia Business School published online in the Journal of Consumer Research.

Are some patients too heavy for a new kidney?

ST. LOUIS – In a research review article published in the American Journal of Nephrology, Saint Louis University investigators examined data from multiple studies to better understand how obesity, an epidemic in the U.S., impacts kidney transplant patients.

ASH international clinical collaboration replicates high cure rate of APL in developing countries

(WASHINGTON) – Data published online today in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) describe the work of an ASH international clinical network collaborative focused on modernizing treat

Better care from doctors who are culturally aware

HIV patients from ethnic minorities receive better quality of care from doctors and other primary healthcare professionals who are the most competent at caring for patients from diverse backgrounds – those who are "culturally competent." These patients also tend to manage both their treatment and condition better, according to a new study¹ by Somnath Saha from Portland VA Medical Center, and the Oregon Health & Science University in the US, and colleagues. Their findings appear in the Journal of General Internal Medicine², published by Springer.

Depression after heart attack: Threat perception has to be addressed

"Survivors of heart attacks are three times more likely to develop depression during the first six months after their heart attack, than people with no heart disease. If left untreated this contributes to a worse prognosis, for instance further cardiac events and possibly death. The causes for this high prevalence of depression after heart attacks are still unclear," said Prof. Claus Vögele, Professor of Clinical and Health Psychology at the University of Luxembourg and lead author of the publication entitled "Cardiac Threat Appraisal and Depression after First Myocardial Infarction".