Culture | Science Codex

MRI scan 'better' for heart patients

A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan for coronary heart disease is better than the most commonly-used alternative, a major UK trial of heart disease patients has shown.

The findings by University of Leeds researchers could change the way that people with suspected heart disease are assessed, potentially avoiding the need for tests that are invasive or use ionising radiation.

Full results of the study, which was funded by a £1.3 million grant from the British Heart Foundation (BHF), are published online today by the Lancet medical journal.

Fixing common blood disorder would make kidney transplants more successful

Washington, DC (December 22, 2011) — Correcting anemia, a red blood cell deficiency, can preserve kidney function in many kidney transplant recipients, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The results indicate that aggressively treating anemia may help save the kidneys—and possibly the lives—of many transplant recipients.

Science magazine's pick for breakthrough of 2011: HIV treatment as prevention

The journal Science has lauded an eye-opening HIV study, known as HPTN 052, as the most important scientific breakthrough of 2011. This clinical trial demonstrated that people infected with HIV are 96 percent less likely to transmit the virus to their partners if they take antiretroviral drugs (ARVs).

Crowded emergency departments deliver less effective pain relief

AURORA, Colo. -- Crowding in hospital emergency departments has led to a decrease in the timely and effective use of pain medication in children suffering acute long bone fractures, according to a new study by the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

"Pain associated with long bone fractures can be pretty severe," said Marion Sills, MD, MPH, the lead author of the study. "But crowded emergency departments are impacting the delivery of care on many levels, including the delivery of pain medication."

Benefits of new air quality rules greatly outweigh costs

A report by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health provides an expanded review of six new air quality regulations proposed or recently adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA). These include the first national standards for reducing dangerous emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from power plants.

Belize protected area boosting predatory fish populations

A 14-year study by the Wildlife Conservation Society in an atoll reef lagoon in Glover's Reef, Belize has found that fishing closures there produce encouraging increases in populations of predatory fish species. However, such closures have resulted in only minimal increases in herbivorous fish, which feed on the algae that smother corals and inhibit reef recovery.

The findings will help WCS researchers in their search for new solutions to the problem of restoring Caribbean reefs damaged by fishing and climate change.

Taking a predictive approach to identifying adverse drug reactions

Boston, Mass. – In a move aimed at bolstering current systems for assessing and monitoring drug safety, researchers at Children's Hospital Boston have created a new method that combines multiple forms of widely available data to predict adverse drug reactions. Unlike current approaches, which rely on detecting evidence of drug safety issues as they accumulate over time in clinical databases, this new method may be able to identify issues years in advance.

JAMA commentary contends vitamin therapy can still reduce stroke

A commentary by Dr. David Spence of The University of Western Ontario and Dr. Meir Stampfer of the Harvard School of Public Health in today's Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) argues that vitamin therapy still has a role to play in reducing stroke.

Research states that prejudice comes from a basic human need and way of thinking

Where does prejudice come from? Not from ideology, say the authors of a new paper. Instead, prejudice stems from a deeper psychological need, associated with a particular way of thinking. People who aren't comfortable with ambiguity and want to make quick and firm decisions are also prone to making generalizations about others.

Research finds Medicare and private insurance spending similar throughout Texas

Variations in health care spending by Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) are similar throughout the state despite previous research, which found significant spending differences between the private and commercial sector in McAllen, Texas. The latest research results from the University of Texas Health e Center at Houston (UTHealth), the Commonwealth Fund, and the Brookings Institution are published in the December issue of the American Journal of Managed Care.

Hate Twitter? Blame traditional social networks for its spread

We've all heard it: The Internet has flattened the world, allowing social networks to spring up overnight, independent of geography or socioeconomic status, blah, blah. Twitter, the social networking and microblogging site, is said to have more than 300 million users worldwide who follow, forward and respond to each other's 140-character tweets about anything and everything, 24/7.

Pre-surgery exam rates vary widely among hospitals

TORONTO, Ont. -- Hospitals vary greatly in the number of patients who see an internal medicine specialist before major non-cardiac surgery, with rates ranging from five per cent of patients to 90 per cent, new research has found.

The findings are important because they suggest there are no commonly agreed upon standards for which patients should have such consultations, said Dr. Duminda Wijeysundera, a scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES).

MIT Research: Traditional social networks fueled Twitter's spread

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - We've all heard it: The Internet has flattened the world, allowing social networks to spring up overnight, independent of geography or socioeconomic status. Who needs face time with the people around you when you can email, text or tweet to and from almost anywhere in the world? Twitter, the social networking and microblogging site, is said to have more than 300 million users worldwide who follow, forward and respond to each other's 140-character tweets about anything and everything, 24/7.

Even limited telemedicine could improve developing health

A lack of infrastructure in developing countries, and particularly in rural areas, often ensures that healthcare provision is absent. Research published in the International Journal of Services, Economics and Management by a team at Howard University in Washington DC suggests a solution to this insidious problem involving the development of telemedicine.

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's super hero sexism

New York -- As parents do their final holiday shopping, comic books, and their related superhero-themed toys and children's gear, continue to be popular. From Batman rain boots and Legos, to paperback books about Wonder Woman, many stores are filled with superhero-inspired toys. New research shows that a reboot this year of DC Comics super heroes, however, put a little something extra into the characters – a mega dose of sexual objectification.