Culture

CHICAGO – In recent years, spending for glaucoma medications has increased, especially for women, persons who have only public health insurance and those with less than a high school education, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

A computer modeling study suggests that administering the drug ranibizumab is associated with reducing the magnitude of legal blindness and visual impairment caused by age-related macular degeneration in non-Hispanic white individuals, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

CHICAGO – A shift toward more conservative medication-prescribing practices would serve patients better, according to a review article published Online First today by Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The article is part of the journal's Less Is More series.

CHICAGO – Using the Screening Tool of Older Persons' potentially inappropriate Prescriptions (STOPP) criteria was associated with identification of adverse drug events in older patients, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The article is part of the journal's Less Is More series.

Many economists and sociologists have warned of the social dangers of a wide gap between the richest and everyone else. Now, a new study, which will be published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, adds a psychological reason to narrow the disparity – it makes people unhappy.

OAK BROOK, Ill. – June 13, 2011 – A new study reports that colonoscopies done with suboptimal bowel preparation are associated with relatively high adenoma (precancerous polyp) miss rates, suggesting that suboptimal bowel preparation substantially decreases colonoscopy effectiveness and may mandate an early follow-up examination. In this study, in the context of suboptimal bowel preparation, of all adenomas identified, 42 percent were discovered only during a repeat colonoscopy, which was necessitated by an inadequate preparation during the first colonoscopy.

Heart attack patients die at a higher rate when their nearest emergency room is so overtaxed that the ambulance transporting them is dispatched to another hospital, according to a new study led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco.

The findings will be published online June 12, 2011 by JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association. The research also will be presented on June 13, 2011 at the AcademyHealth's annual research meeting in Seattle, WA.

Alexandria, VA – In almost every way, the "Garden of the Gods at Colorado Springs" excursion at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America (GSA) last year was a normal — even enjoyable — field trip. Standard geologic terminology was used in the accompanying field trip guide and the guides relied on orthodox geologic thinking to explain geologic features. But in reality, the trip was anything but a normal geology field trip.

A paper published online on June 13 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (www.jem.org) identifies new gene mutations in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)—a disease often associated with lack of response to chemotherapy and poor overall survival.

e 13, 2011 – Today, GE Healthcare Medical Diagnostics announced results of a study that evaluated the cardiopulmonary safety of Optison™ (Perflutren Protein-Type A Microspheres Injectable Suspension, USP), a diagnostic ultrasound contrast agent for use in improving suboptimal echocardiograms.

Migraine is a neurovascular disease that affects about 15% of the western population. Compounds in foods and beverages (chocolate, wine, citrus, etc) considered as migraine triggers include tyramine, phenylethylamine and possibly histamine and phenolic compounds. Avoiding those triggers may significantly reduce the frequency of migraines in some patients.

13th June, 2011 – A collaborative team of researchers has shown that adding moisture to a cat's diet slows down the rate of weight gain. This finding, at least in part, appeared to be driven by increased activity. This research was conducted at the WALTHAM® Centre for Pet Nutrition, the fundamental science centre supporting Mars Petcare brands such as WHISKAS® and ROYAL CANIN.

NEW YORK, NY – June 13, 2011 – Data from the landmark HORIZONS-AMI clinical trial demonstrated that the administration of the anticoagulant medication bivalirudin enhanced survival compared to the use of heparin plus a glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitor in heart attack patients undergoing angioplasty after 3 years. Use of a drug-eluting stent (paclitaxel) was also shown to be more effective than a bare-metal stent, with equivalent safety. Final 3-year results of the trial were published in the June 13, 2011, issue of The Lancet.

Robert Storey, Professor of Cardiology at the University of Sheffield's Department of Cardiovascular Science, presented findings today that confirm one in five deaths in the year following a heart attack could be prevented if a new drug, ticagrelor, was used instead of the standard treatment, clopidogrel.

Professor Storey's latest findings were presented at the British Cardiovascular Society annual scientific conference in Manchester today (Monday 13 June 2011).

DARIEN, Ill. – According to new research that will be presented Saturday, June 11, at the 20th Anniversary Meeting of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM), children with enlarged tonsils and adenoids who wore an oral appliance for six months experienced more favorable craniofacial growth, enlargement of pharyngeal dimensions, and improved breathing and snoring during sleep.