Culture

As if President Barack Obama doesn't already have enough to worry about, a statistical analysis of presidential ranking surveys suggests that he is likely to be viewed as an "average" president by expert evaluators if he serves only one term, according to a Baylor University researcher.

TORONTO, Ont., Aug 23, 2011— Hearing dietary advice twice is enough for patients to get the significant benefits of lower cholesterol, according to a new study led by doctors at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto.

"We're seeing more and more people want to take their health into their own hands," said Dr. David Jenkins, the lead author of the study and director of the hospital's Risk Factor Modification Centre. Dr. Jenkins is also Canada's Research Chair in Nutrition and Metabolism at U of T's Department of Nutritional Sciences.

TORONTO, Ont., Aug. 23, 2011—Patients often do not renew prescriptions for their chronic diseases after they are released from hospital.

The number is even lower if the patient spent time in an intensive care unit, according to a new study by researchers at St. Michael's Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Studies.

"If you don't continue your medication after hospital, that can have consequences, such as hospital readmissions, visits to the emergency department and, in rare cases, death," said Dr. Chaim Bell, the lead researcher.

New York, NY, August 24, 2011— Nearly three-quarters (72%) of people who lost their health insurance when they lost their jobs over the last two years said that they skipped needed health care or did not fill prescriptions because of cost, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report. The same proportion is also struggling with medical bills or medical debt, compared to about half (49%) who lost jobs but not their health insurance.

BEER-SHEVA, ISRAEL, August 24, 2011 – Stocks of companies that are committed to corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies perform statistically similarly to those corporations that do not have these programs, according to a new study by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev researchers.

New York, NY, August 24, 2011— Nearly three-quarters (72%) of people who lost their health insurance when they lost their jobs over the last two years said that they skipped needed health care or did not fill prescriptions because of cost, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report. The same proportion is also struggling with medical bills or medical debt, compared to about half (49%) who lost jobs but not their health insurance.

Two essays in PLoS Medicine delve into the cultural fundamentalist cesspool; the idea that films with smoking scenes should have "adult" ratings applied to them.

Indeed, as should any film with a woman's skirt above the knees.

Christopher Millett from Imperial College, London, UK and colleagues worry that, despite the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control recommendation that films with smoking scenes have adult content rating, very few governments have complied with this advice.

No one listens to the U.N. anyway.

New technology appears to provide faster, more accurate heart scans for both viewing blood vessels in the heart and measuring blood supply to the heart muscle, while exposing patients to less radiation, researchers report in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging, a journal of the American Heart Association.

CHICAGO – Use of natural language processing, such as in the form of free-text searches of electronic medical records (EMRs) of clinical and progress notes of patients performed better at identifying postoperative surgical complications than the commonly used administrative data codes in EMRs, according to a study in the August 24/31 issue of JAMA.

A follow-up of participants in a heart function study finds that the prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (left ventricular filling [with blood] is abnormal and is accompanied by elevated filling pressures) had increased; that diastolic function had worsened in a nearly a quarter of patients; and that participants who had diastolic dysfunction were more likely to develop heart failure, according to a study in the August 24/31 issue of JAMA.

Although some preliminary reports have indicated an increased risk of major adverse cardiovascular events with the use of certain biologic therapies to treat chronic plaque psoriasis, an analysis of previous studies finds no significant difference in the rate of these events among patients who received these medications compared to patients who received placebo, according to an article in the August 24/31 issue of JAMA.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which affects more than 1 million patients in North America, results from an uncontrolled immune response triggered by environmental factors, such as bacteria, in people genetically predisposed to the disorder. Ulcerative colitis, or inflammation of the lining of the colon, is one such condition.

The aberrant immune response found in IBD is prompted by different cytokines – small signaling proteins secreted by various cells, including immune cells – that activate the immune system, causing chronic inflammation.

Corporations may use corporate social responsibility programs not only to improve their public image, but also to gain access to politicians, influence agendas and shape public health policy to best suit their own interests. In aPLoS Medicine article, these programs are called "an innovative form of corporate political activity".

Throughout the ages, because fine art has been accorded a special significance and a cultural tool, it has been used to sell everything from products to politics to religion.

But when used carelessly by advertisers it can backfire, according to a new study inPersonality and Social Psychology Bulletin.

If the artwork is viewed as a product-relevant illustration, then consumers no longer view it as art. Suddenly, they can take a critical view of its message, according to the new work.

Studies from the University of Toronto's psychology department show that people who use more invasive anti-aging methods such as Botox injections or surgery are viewed more negatively than those who use milder techniques such as sun-avoidance and facial creams and younger adults are more negative about using anti-aging methods than older adults.