Culture

In fusion reactor designs, superconductors (which suffer no resistive power loss) are used to generate the magnetic fields that confine the 100 million degree C plasma. While increasing magnetic field strength offers potential ways to improve reactor performance, conventional low-temperature superconductors suffer dramatic drops in current carrying ability at high magnetic fields. Now, the emergence of high-temperature superconductors that can also operate at high magnetic fields opens a new, lower-cost path to fusion energy.

A new clinical prediction model can help identify high risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) among patients with a leg cast, according to a study published this week in PLOS Medicine. The study was conducted by Banne Nemeth of Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands, and colleagues and utilized data from three large cohorts to develop and validate two prediction models and a risk score, the L-TRiP(cast) score, to help doctors deciding whether to prescribe anticoagulants for thromboprophylaxis.

An NIHR-funded study from the University of Cambridge has raised questions about the widely-held assumption that most patients at the end of their lives prefer to die at home rather than a hospice or hospital.

End-of-life care policy in the UK has a focus on enabling patients to die in their preferred place, believed for most people to be home, although whether home is always the best and preferred place of death is of increasing debate.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- Brazil once had the world's highest rate of deforestation. And while land is still being cleared at an alarming rate, the country has been successful in reducing its deforestation in recent decades. Continuing that trend will require continued government enforcement of regulations and the cooperation of landowners who control the fate of much of the the country's remaining forests.

Montreal, November 10, 2015 -- In 2013, 42 million infants and young children worldwide were overweight or obese. If current trends continue, that number will increase to 70 million by 2025, according to the World Heath Organization.

It's not just genes that are the cause: socio-demographic and environmental elements are also contributing factors. Lower socio-economic status, living in neighbourhoods that aren't walkable and poor access to fresh fruits and vegetables can all increase the risk of being overweight.

Myeong-Ki Hong, M.D., Ph.D., of the Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea and colleagues randomly assigned 1,400 patients with long coronary lesions to receive intravascular ultrasound-guided (n = 700) or angiography-guided (n = 700) everolimus-eluting stent implantation. This JAMA study is being released to coincide with its presentation at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2015.

Amsterdam, NL, November 10, 2015 - Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients have a five-fold greater risk of carrying genetic mutations in the β-glucocerebrosidase gene (GBA), which are commonly associated with Gaucher disease (GD). Patients with both PD and GD tend to experience earlier onset of PD and more serious cognitive changes than PD patients without the mutations. A new study published in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease suggests that GD or the presence of GBA mutations may actually shield patients from deficiency in visual color discrimination, which is a hallmark of PD.

PHILADELPHIA - Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), which afflicts more than 26 million Americans, is a condition in which individuals experience a slow loss of kidney function over time. At the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2015, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania today presented findings from their analysis of the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) study to evaluate risk markers for adverse cardiac events in patients with CKD.

ORLANDO, Florida, Nov. 10, 2015 -- Short bursts of high-intensity exercise improved cholesterol, blood sugar and weight among Type 2 diabetes patients more than 30 minutes of sustained, lower-intensity exercise, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2015.

Chicago, 10 November 2105 - Allowing select patients to self-manage blood thinners following heart valve surgery may lead to a lower risk of major complications, according to an article posted online by the Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

Key Points:

The anticipated melting of the massive West Antarctic Ice Sheet could be slowed by two big factors that are largely overlooked in current computer models, according to a new study.

The findings, published online in Nature Communications, suggest that the impact on global sea levels from the retreating ice sheet could be less drastic - or at least more gradual -- than recent computer simulations have indicated.

MARSHFIELD - A drug already used safely to treat Parkinson's disease, restless leg syndrome and other movement disorders also could delay or prevent the most common cause of blindness affecting more than 9 million older Americans - age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) -- where the heart becomes stiff and cannot relax or fill properly -- did not have increased exercise tolerance after taking isosorbide mononitrate, compared to a placebo, according to a study presented today at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2015. The findings come from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Heart Failure Clinical Research Network and are also published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Continuous chest compressions during out-of-hospital CPR by emergency medical responders did not offer survival advantages, when compared to interrupting manual chest pumping to perform rescue breathing. Nor were continuous chest compressions better in protecting brain function among those who survived the cardiac arrest and were later discharged from a hospital.

These unexpected findings come from the largest study so far of emergency medical services responses at the scene of adult cardiac arrests not caused by trauma.

A decline in the number of heart patients undergoing unnecessary PCI (angioplasty) procedures reflects improvements in clinical decision-making and documentation to determine which patients benefit most from the procedure, according to new findings by Yale School of Medicine researchers.

The study, which examines how clinical practice has changed since the release of appropriate use criteria, is published in the Nov. 9 issue of Journal of the American Medical Association.