Culture | Page 2531 | Science Codex

Sexual health of men with chronic heart failure significantly improves with CRT

A new study published in the journal Clinical Cardiology reveals that in men with chronic heart failure, cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) improves patients' libido, erectile dysfunction, and sexual performance.

Chronic heart failure (HF) is a common, complex clinical syndrome characterized by fatigue and exercise intolerance. HF patients experience decreased libido and erectile dysfunction (ED). CRT, which is a type of pacemaker that paces the right and left ventricle, is used to treat patients with HF.

Fear of dying during a heart attack is linked to increased inflammation

Intense distress and fear of dying, which many people experience when suffering the symptoms of a heart attack, are not only fairly common emotional responses but are also linked to biological changes that occur during the event, according to new research published online today in the European Heart Journal [1]. These changes, in turn, are associated with other biological processes during the following weeks that can predict a worse outcome for patients.

Long emergency waiting times linked to increased risk of adverse events

Long emergency department waiting times are associated with an increased risk of hospital admission or death within seven days among non-admitted patients, finds a study published on bmj.com today.

The findings support policies to reduce the time patients wait and call into question government plans to abandon the 4-hour A&E target in England for lack of "clinical justification."

Physicians call for new approach to address national 'epidemic of mass incarceration'

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – With 2.3 million people behind bars and an estimated 10 million Americans cycling in and out of correctional facilities each year, the United States is in the midst of an "epidemic of mass incarceration," say researchers from the Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights, a collaboration of The Miriam Hospital and Brown University.

Researchers develop strategy to improve patient adherence

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Physicians can help their patients follow prescribed treatments and achieve healthier results – particularly in chronic disease management – by using a three-pronged strategy developed by a team of researchers from the University of California, Riverside, Texas State University-San Marcos, and La Sierra University in Riverside, Calif.

Penn study identifies genes that may help predict response to BRAF inhibitors for advanced melanoma

(CHICAGO) -- Genetic analysis of the tumors from patients with advanced melanoma can clue researchers in to how well patients will respond to a therapy that targets the growth-promoting protein called BRAF, a researcher from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania will report on Monday, June 6 at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Thomas Edison also invented the concrete house?

Afficionados of modern poured-concrete design were in for a rude awakening last month when they heard NJIT Assistant Professor Matt Burgermaster's presentation at the 64th annual meeting of the Society of Architectural Historians. "Edison's 'Single-Pour System: Inventing Seamless Architecture" which illustrated how, in 1917, Thomas Edison invented and patented an innovative construction system to mass produce prefabricated and seamless concrete houses.

Less toxic combination of erlotinib and bevacizumab is effective non-small cell lung cancer patients

CHICAGO, IL (June 4, 2011)––The standard treatment for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a combination of two old-fashioned cytotoxic chemotherapy drugs. The combination, however, comes with substantial toxicity. Now, Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers report that a combination of two molecularly-targeted agents may provide similar therapeutic benefit with less toxicity.

Medicare should employ new data sources, methods to ensure accuracy of geographic adjustments to payments

WASHINGTON — Geographic adjustments to Medicare payments are intended to accurately and equitably cover regional variations in wages, rents, and other costs incurred by hospitals and individual health care practitioners, but almost 40 percent of hospitals have been granted exceptions to how their adjustments are calculated, finds a new report from the Institute of Medicine. The rate of exceptions strongly suggests that the mechanisms underlying the adjustments are inadequate, noted the committee that wrote the report.

Ancient hominid males were stay-at-home dads while females roamed

The males of two bipedal hominid species that roamed the South African savannah more than a million years ago were stay-at-home kind of guys when compared to the gadabout gals, says a new high-tech study led by the University of Colorado Boulder.

Landscaping occurred 2.8 million years ago?

So far, ranging and residence patterns amongst early hominins have been indirectly inferred from morphology, stone tool sourcing, comparison to living primates and phylogenetic models.

Re-admission rates via emergency rooms climbing among patients who have recently been hospitalized

(BOSTON) — Emergency department patients who have recently been hospitalized are more than twice as likely to be admitted as those who have not recently been in the hospital, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania which will be presented this week at the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine's annual meeting.

Childhood abuse and migraine

WASHINGTON, DC, (June 1, 2011) – A notable prevalence of childhood abuse – physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional – in migraine patients has been observed and documented over the last few years. In fact, it has emerged as a significant enough issue for the American Headache Society to devote an entire plenary session to it at its annual scientific conference in Washington this week.

Shame and honor increase cooperation

Honour and shame work equally well in encouraging social cooperation, according to a new study by researchers at the University of British Columbia and the Germany's Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology.

Published today in Biology Letters, the study reported on the results of a series of experiments with 180 first-year UBC students (see below for experiment details.)

Mayo Clinic finds discussion of end-of-life care helps heart to patients and families

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- For patients with severe heart failure, an implanted mechanical pump known as a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) can be a life-sustaining treatment. Even though the technology involves risks, few patients and their families tend to talk explicitly about the "what ifs" before surgery takes place. In the June issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a team of Mayo Clinic researchers found that careful discussions at the bedside about patients' end-of-life preferences brought relief to families and eased subsequent medical care.