Culture

Referring a patient to an acute care facility following major cardiac, joint and spine surgery rather than the patient's own home may not always be necessary--according to findings of a new self-examining study from NYU Langone Medical Center.

According to researchers, an approach to post-surgery care that the institution implemented two years ago--which included sharply reducing post-hospital referrals to acute care facilities--showed no corresponding increase in readmission rates. The study is publishing in the November 23 edition of JAMA Internal Medicine.

Nov. 23, 2015 - Vitamin D supplements do not reduce the number or severity of colds in asthma patients, according to a new study published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - A new study from the University of Maryland School of Public Health examined why African American and Hispanic women have higher rates of unintended pregnancy than White women. Researchers found that there were unique factors explaining the differences in unintended pregnancy between African Americans and Whites (respondent's mother's age at first birth, income, and health insurance status) and the differences between Hispanics and Whites (U.S. born status and educational level).

The German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined in a dossier assessment whether the drug combination netupitant/palonosetron (trade name: Akynzeo) offers an added benefit over the appropriate comparator therapy (ACT). The drug combination has been approved since May 2015 for the prevention of acute and delayed nausea and vomiting in adult patients receiving moderately or highly emetogenic (vomit-inducing) cancer chemotherapy.

Which is more likely to raise blood sugar levels: sushi or ice cream? According to a Weizmann Institute study reported in the November 19 issue of the journal Cell, the answer varies from one person to another. The study, which continuously monitored blood sugar levels in 800 people for a week, revealed that the bodily response to all foods was highly individual.

Pembrolizumab (trade name: Keytruda) has been approved since July 2015 for adults with advanced melanoma that can no longer be surgically removed or has already formed metastases. The German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined in a dossier assessment whether this drug offers an added benefit over the appropriate comparator therapy.

Health authorities recommend HIV-infected patients starting treatment as soon as posible after diagnosis, regardless of the level of immunosuppression (which are measured by the number of CD4, cells responsible for the immune response and which are infected by the virus) and viral load.

More than half of patients arrive late to treatment

Rochester, Minn. -- Kidney disease is a major health concern worldwide. It's estimated that 1 in 3 American adults are at risk of developing kidney disease, and 26 million adults already have kidney disease. Many are undiagnosed. Because kidney disease can go undetected until it's too late, effective and consistent diagnosis is essential. Physicians on Mayo Clinic's Rochester, Minn., campus - one of the world's leading kidney disease centers - are at the forefront of an effort to standardize the diagnosis of kidney disease.

Recent years have seen a change in drug use patterns, especially for older adults, with an increase in their admission to substance abuse treatment and increased injection drug use among those over the age of 50. Yet, there has been little research regarding the epidemiology, health status, and functional impairments in the aging population of adults accessing opioid treatment.

After months of expectation, US senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has at last given what might be remembered as one of the landmark speeches of the 2016 election: an explanation and defense of his position as a “democratic socialist”.

A new study reveals that many European hospitals fail to routinely test people who may be at risk of an HIV-infection. If tests were more widely offered in the healthcare system, fewer HIV-patients would go unnoticed, especially in Northern Europe.

When a patient is admitted to hospital with a disease that could indicate an HIV-infection, they are not always offered an HIV-test. However, if offered a test, almost all patients accept, as revealed in the currently largest study on the subject, which has just now been published in the renowned scientific journal, PlosOne.

New York City - In a study examining compliance with New York City's new law that raised the legal age for purchasing cigarettes to 21 years of age, researchers with New York University (NYU) and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) found that compliance with identification (ID) checks has significantly decreased since the law was made effective. Prior to the change in the law, 29% of retailers sampled were non-compliant. Following the change, a full 38% of retailers sampled did not ask for ID when selling cigarettes to young people.

WASHINGTON - Women and children who participate in the WIC program have low or inadequate intakes of several key nutrients that could be addressed with changes to the program's food packages, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report is the first in a two-phase study that reviews the current food packages in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program.

The fixed-dose combination of tiotropium and olodaterol (trade name: Spiolto Respimat) has been approved since July 2015 for maintenance treatment in adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined in a dossier assessment whether this drug combination offers an added benefit over the appropriate comparator therapy.

WASHINGTON -- Countywide reductions in psychiatric services -- both inpatient and outpatient -- led to more than triple the number of emergency psychiatric consults and 55 percent increases in lengths of stay for psychiatric patients in the emergency department. The before and after study of the impact of decreasing county mental health services was published online Friday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ('Impact of Decreasing County Mental Health Services on the Emergency Medicine').