Blacks less likely to get expensive, newer heart treatments
...ording to these recommendations, these disparities may be eliminated," Sonel said. Co-authors on the study are Chester B. Good, M.D., M.P.H.; Jyotsna Mulgund, M.S.; Matthew T. Roe, M.D., M.H.S.; W. Brian Gibler, M.D.; Sidney C. Smith, Jr., M.D.; Mauricio G. Cohen, M.D.; Charles V. Pollack, Jr., M.D., M.A...Minorities, poor, uneducated bear the burden
...ge of differences. They said the disparities data may help develop new public policies and programs to close the gaps. "In general, the population subgroups most significantly and adversely affected were African Americans, Hispanics/Mexican Americans, people with low socioeconomic status, and residents ...Cardiovascular health disparities must be eradicated
...said. "We are concerned that minority communities may be at the highest risk for heart disease and strok...very system. The report concluded that the system may lack cultural sensitivity, may include communication barriers for non-English-speaking patients, or ...Health care report cards may increase racial/ethnic disparities in bypass operations
...ds" intended to improve the quality of health care may sometimes reduce it for racial and ethnic minoriti...e report cards, as they are currently implemented, may have the opposite effect of how they were intended to work," said Rachel M. Werner, M.D., the study'...Vitamin E may not prevent cancer or cardiovascular events, but may increase risk for heart failure
...data have suggested that vitamin E supplementation may prevent cancer and cardiovascular events, according to background information in the article. Clinical trials have generally failed to confirm benefits, possibly due to their relatively short duration. Eva Lonn, M.D., of the Population Health Researc...Drug therapy may be comparable to invasive cardiac procedures for elderly patients with heart attack
...y patients who receive intensive medical treatment may have comparable survival as those who undergo invasive cardiac procedures (such as angioplasty and bypass surgery), according to a study in the March 16 issue of JAMA. According to background information, more than 280,000 Medicare enrollees are admi...Most hospital executives have substantial concerns about mandatory error reporting systems
...mandatory reporting systems with public disclosure may actually discourage internal reporting, lead to la...t hospitals that become accustomed to transparency may eventually grow to be more accepting of it. However, if hospital leaders continue to harbor negative...Risk of cardiac death after radiotherapy for breast cancer has declined, study finds
...e to reduce the radiation dose to the heart, which may affect the risk of cardiac death. To determine whether the risk of death from ischemic heart disease resulting from radiation therapy to the breast has decreased over time, Sharon H. Giordano, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Texas M. D. Anderson C...Antiretroviral therapy may prevent excess risk of some cancers in people with HIV
...HIV), highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) may prevent most excess cases of Kaposi sarcoma and no... among nonsmokers. "In conclusion, HAART treatment may prevent excess risk of [Kaposi sarcoma] and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, but not that of Hodgkin lymphoma o...Study shows risk of cardiac death after radiation for breast cancer has dramatically decreased
...no cautions that death from ischemic heart disease may not present until 15 years post-treatment, therefore longer follow-up will need to be continued to confirm that the risk to patients has been completely eliminated. According to the study, in 2002 approximately 42 percent of breast cancer patients re...Other highlights in the March 16 JNCI
... colorectal adenoma. More rapid aspirin metabolism may decrease the therapeutic effect of aspirin. Conseq...s in the enzyme UGT1A6, which metabolizes aspirin, may modulate the protective benefit of aspirin. To determine whether polymorphisms in UGT1A6 are associa...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
...rebrain 1 - 2 months after conception. These cells may serve a role in guiding axons or transverse neuronal migration akin to the "pioneer" neurons in invertebrates or the transient early neurons in several mammalian species. 2. Goals and Habits in the Overtrained Rat Alexis Faure, Ulrike Haberland,Fra...Mayo Clinic discovers 'new pathway' against pancreatic cancer
...cure, but there are no effective treatments. That may change if a new finding by Mayo Clinic researchers...t promote pancreatic cancer growth. The finding may be applied to make pancreatic cells more sensitive to gemcitabine, the sole drug available for treat...Balance and better interactions between primary-care and specialist physicians improve US health
...arly delineated. In the U.S., however, specialists may treat patients for ailments outside their area of expertise, thus putting patients at a higher risk of death. In addition, more specialists decrease the number of procedures performed per physician, which further increases risks of complications or m...New ways to design safer & more effective topical (transdermal) drug delivery announced in the PNAS
... the identification of fundamental mechanisms that may facilitate the design of safer and more efficacious topical drug delivery systems. Certain molecules, called chemical penetration enhancers (CPEs) help drugs absorb through the skin. After analyzing more than 100 different CPEs to better understand ...Prostate cancer screening practices examined
... have unpleasant side effects, treating the cancer may be less desirable than leaving it alone, especiall...ision on the probability that one of those factors may cause death before prostate cancer." Of the men screened by PLCO, about 14 percent had positive scre...GlaxoSmithKline receives unanimous favorable recommendation by FDA Advisory Committee for Boostrix
... signs and symptoms of pertussis are often absent, may go undiagnosed and be the source of infection for ...in adolescents without additional injections and may help reduce the risk of transmission to infants in whom pertussis can be deadly." Background on Per...New hand-held information system for emergency responders
... help the user narrow the range of substances that may be involved in a specific incident. As the emergency responder selects observed properties and symptoms, WISER looks in its database for chemical substances that have these characteristics. The list of candidate chemicals decreases as additional info...SAM on the favorable recommendation by FDA Advisory Committee for Boostrix
...reaks occurring nationwide. Pertussis among teens may cause severe coughing fits, which may last up to 100 days and significantly impact the teen's life at home and school." "Currently, the......physician-family conflict scenario, family members may have concerns that hospitals do not respect their ...ceed with patient care so that potential conflicts may be solved in advance of the situation. The authors also discuss how showing empathy is important bec...