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Study: Cheaper private health care prices mean more medicare spending

When private prices for health care services decrease, Medicare spending increases, according to a new study. The finding raises the possibility that physicians and hospitals may be shifting some services to Medicare when they stand to make more money by doing so -- though further research will be needed to clearly identify the cause, according to the study's authors.

The study, conducted by the Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, is the first in a series of attempts to mine reams of health care spending data gathered by the Institute of Medicine in 2013.

Prompt, appropriate medical care for dislocated shoulder injuries

ROSEMONT, Ill.--Prompt and appropriate treatment of a dislocated shoulder--when the head of the upper arm bone (humerus) is completely knocked out of the shoulder socket (glenoid)--can minimize risk for future dislocations as well as the effects of related bone, muscle and nerve injuries, according to a literature review appearing in the December issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS).

Many people with missing teeth don't need dentures

The latest research from the University of Adelaide challenges current thinking on whether many people with tooth loss really need dentures.

The findings have major implications for public dental health resources and costs for patients.

New substance overcomes treatment-restistance in leukemia

This news release is available in German.

Mindfulness treatment as effective as CBT for depression and anxiety

Group mindfulness treatment is as effective as individual cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) in patients with depression and anxiety, according to a new study from Lund University in Sweden and Region Skåne. This is the first randomised study to compare group mindfulness treatment and individual cognitive behavioural therapy in patients with depression and anxiety in primary health care.

Widening wage gap linked to more deaths among black Americans

BERKELEY -- Greater income inequality is linked to more deaths among African Americans, but the effect is reversed among white Americans, who experienced fewer deaths, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

Most American presidents destined to fade from nation's memory, study suggests

American presidents spend their time in office trying to carve out a prominent place in the nation's collective memory, but most are destined to be forgotten within 50-to-100 years of their serving as president, suggests a study on presidential name recall released today by the journal Science.

Why do so many seniors with memory loss and dementia never get tested?

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Despite clear signs that their memory and thinking abilities have gone downhill, more than half of seniors with these symptoms haven't seen a doctor about them, a new study finds.

University of Michigan researchers and their colleagues say their findings suggest that as many as 1.8 million Americans over the age of 70 with dementia are not evaluated for cognitive symptoms by a medical provider, which in some patients can lead to a failure to uncover modifiable causes of thinking or memory impairment.

iPS cells used to correct genetic mutations that cause muscular dystrophy

Researchers at the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, show that induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be used to correct genetic mutations that cause Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The research, published in Stem Cell Reports, demonstrates how engineered nucleases, such as TALEN and CRISPR, can be used to edit the genome of iPS cells generated from the skin cells of a DMD patient. The cells were then differentiated into skeletal muscles, in which the mutation responsible for DMD had disappeared.

'Utter neglect' of rheumatic heart disease revealed by results from global study

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) - the most common acquired heart disease in children in many countries of the world - is being neglected and poorly treated, according to new findings from the Global Rheumatic Heart Disease Registry (the REMEDY study), published online today (Wednesday) in the European Heart Journal [1].

Obstructive sleep apnea treatments may reduce depressive symptoms

Treatment for obstructive sleep apnea with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or mandibular advancement devices (MADs) can lead to modest improvements in depressive symptoms, according to a study published by Marcus Povitz, Carmelle Bolo, and colleagues from University of Calgary, Canada, in this week's PLOS Medicine.

Study maps how city neighborhoods affect diabetes risk

PHILADELPHIA (Nov. 25, 2014) - As the linked epidemics of obesity and diabetes continue to escalate, a staggering one in five U.S. adults is projected to have diabetes by 2050.

Ground zero for identifying ways to slow and stop that rise is Philadelphia, which has the highest diabetes rate among the nation's largest cities. For public health researchers at Drexel University, it is also a prime location to learn how neighborhood and community-level factors -- not just individual factors like diet, exercise and education-- influence people's risk.

Policing Canada in the 21st century: New policing for new challenges

A new expert panel report, Policing Canada in the 21st Century: New Policing for New Challenges, released today by the Council of Canadian Academies, details the complexity and global nature of policing in the modern age. Overall, a 12-member Expert Panel determined that safety and security cannot just rest with Canada's policing services. Specialists, public and private security services, and other first responders all have a vital role to play in an interconnected safety and security web. This transition has already begun in Canada and around the world.

Lancet article: Afferent's P2X3 inhibitor shows 75 percent reduction in chronic cough frequency

San Mateo, California, November 25, 2014 - Afferent Pharmaceuticals today announced publication of results from a Phase 2 clinical trial demonstrating that the company's novel drug candidate, AF-219, reduced daytime cough frequency by 75% compared to placebo in patients with treatment-refractory chronic cough.

Ambulance risk

Boston, MA (November 24, 2014)--Lights flash, a siren wails and an ambulance races to help a person whose heart has stopped beating.

In most cases, a 911 dispatcher will have sent an advanced life support, or ALS, ambulance to the scene, equipped with sophisticated gear and staffed with a crew of highly trained paramedics who can deliver specialized care in the field, including intubations and IV interventions.

Unfortunately, according to a new study by health policy researchers at Harvard, those advanced techniques actually increase the patient's risk of death.