Culture

Cobimetinib (trade name: Cotellic) has been approved since November 2015 in combination with vemurafenib for the treatment of adults with advanced, i.e. metastatic or unresectable, melanoma with a BRAF V600 mutation. The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) therefore commissioned the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) to examine whether cobimetinib in combination with vemurafenib has an added benefit over the appropriate comparator therapy vemurafenib alone.

Dabrafenib (trade name: Tafinlar) has been approved since 2013 for the treatment of adults with advanced, i.e. metastatic or unresectable, melanoma with a BRAF V600 mutation. Since September 2015, dabrafenib has been approved for this therapeutic indication also in combination with trametinib (trade name: Mekinist). In the end of 2015, the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) determined in two dossier assessments: There is an indication of a major added benefit for women and of a non-quantifiable added benefit for men for this combination therapy.

Los Angeles, Calif., USA - Today at the 45th Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the American Association for Dental Research, researcher Naoki Kakudate, Kyushu Dental University, Kyushu Dental University, Japan, will present a study titled "Evidence-Practice Gap for Sealant Application: Results from a Dental PBRN." The AADR Annual Meeting is being held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research.

A rescue inhaler can be a lifesaver during an asthma or COPD flareup, but using a rescue inhaler is complicated and misuse is common, putting patients' lives at risk. An education strategy, called teach-to-goal, may help patients use their inhalers properly during these critical times, according to research published online ahead of print in the American Thoracic Society journal Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

Los Angeles, Calif., USA - Today at the 45th Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the American Association for Dental Research, researcher Natalia Chalmers, National Institutes of Health National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIH/NIDCR), DentaQuest Institute, Bethesda, Md., USA, will present a study titled "Longevity of Restorative Treatments in Pediatric Patients: EBD in the Era of EHR." The AADR Annual Meeting is being held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research.

Los Angeles, Calif., USA - A symposium titled "AADR/ADA: Bridging Research Evidence and Clinical Decision-making" will take place today at the 45th Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the American Association for Dental Research. The AADR Annual Meeting is being held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research.

Cognitive impairment could affect the conversational ability of people with Parkinson's more than physical speech problems - according to research from the University of East Anglia (UEA) and the University of Aberdeen.

A new study published today is the first to assess the extent to which a patient's ability to think quickly forms a barrier to communication - rather than experiencing physical speech problems.

The research team found that physical speech problems are often less of a problem for patients than having the cognitive ability to keep up with conversations.

PHILADELPHIA -- The number one killer of HIV patients in resource-limited areas, including parts of Africa and India, is tuberculosis (TB), underscoring the need for optimal treatments and effective strategies to address this deadly co-infection. But TB is harder to detect in HIV-infected patients and diagnostic test results take time, so many healthcare providers prescribe multi-drug TB treatments as a precaution.

In a large-scale analysis of pain-relief medication for osteoarthritis, researchers found that paracetamol does not meet the minimum standard of clinical effectiveness [1] in reducing pain or improving physical function in patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis. Although paracetamol was slightly better than placebo, researchers conclude that, taken on its own, paracetamol has no role in the treatment of patients with osteoarthritis, irrespective of dose.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) patients who are also racial and ethnic minorities suffer significant health disparities, while facing more complicated challenges than white LGBTQ or racial and ethnic minority patients alone. Now, in a series of three articles published Thursday in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, researchers from the University of Chicago Medicine provide a roadmap to help health providers better understand the unique needs of patients with multiple minority identities who face these overlapping health challenges.

KNOXVILLE--It is often true in life that adversity makes humans more likely to lean on one another.

That theme of interdependence in hard times apparently holds true in the animal kingdom, according to a new study co-authored by a researcher from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Patients with a rare, genetic form of diabetes often are misdiagnosed as having type 2 diabetes because the two share symptoms.

Divided political parties rarely win presidential elections, according to a study by political science researchers at the University of Georgia and their co-authors. If the same holds true this year, the Republican Party could be in trouble this presidential general election.

The study, which examined national party division in past presidential elections, found that both national party division and divisive state primaries have significant influence on general election outcomes.

Minneapolis - Randomized trial reveals that Parent Mentors insure more children faster than traditional Medicaid/CHIP outreach, and children's access to healthcare and parental satisfaction improve, quality of well-child care is enhanced, thousands of dollars are saved per child, jobs are created, disparities are eliminated, and the intervention potentially could save our nation billions of dollars.

Any amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity can effectively reduce the risk of dying after hospitalisation for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a new study.

The research, published today in ERJ Open Research, significantly adds to the mounting evidence that physical activity should be used to monitor and treat patients with COPD.