Culture

Globally the sale of health care information systems is a multibillion dollar industry. The vast costs, frequent failed systems, and inability of systems to talk to each other regularly attract media comment. However policy makers still shy away from a class of software, Open Source, that could address many of these problems, because of worries about the safety and security of Open Source systems.

A new survey has shown the incidence of eating disorders was found to be 2.3-fold higher among Muslim adolescents than among their Christian classmates. Similarly, body dissatisfaction was 1.8-fold higher in the former group. Finally, as a general conclusion, an average of one in four adolescents suffers some type of eating disorder, and 15% suffers body dissatisfaction, according to conclusions drawn from the research conducted at the University of Granada.

Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy – University of Gothenburg, Sweden - and Karolinska Institutet have carried out the first ever national study of the prevalence of overweight and obesity in schoolchildren. It reveals that one in five children in Sweden is overweight, and that there is a link between low levels of education and overweight children.

Published in the online version of the journal Obesity Reviews, the study was part of a European project, the WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative, that involved 14 European countries.

A recent trial of rituximab in combination with a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor and methotrexate (MTX) in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) found the safety profile to be consistent with other RA trials with TNF inhibitors. While the trial reported no new safety risks, clear evidence of an efficacy advantage in RA patients receiving the combination therapy was not observed in this study sample. Results of the trial are published in the March issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Rheumatology.

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- In the March issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers report that residential treatment for tobacco dependence among heavy smokers greatly improves the odds of abstinence at six months compared with standard outpatient treatment. The study reports that 52 percent of the patients were still not smoking six months after residential treatment, compared with 26 percent in the outpatient treatment setting.

RENO, Nev. – While unemployment has been a frequent topic of discussion during the recession, underemployment and its effects have not, even though the number of underemployed workers has also increased. A study published online last week in the Journal of Management, "'I Have a Job, But…' A Review of Underemployment," by University of Nevada, Reno Assistant Professor Frances M. McKee-Ryan and University of Alabama Assistant Professor Jaron Harvey brings attention to the topic and its potentially detrimental effects to individuals, organizations and society.

Combining targeted therapies might be required for maximum anti-tumor activity when treating HER2-positive breast cancers, according to two new studies by Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) investigators.

The findings, reported in two papers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), suggest that upregulation of the HER3 receptor limits the effectiveness of two classes of targeted therapies (HER2- and PI3 kinase-targeted therapies). Therefore targeting HER3 together with these agents should improve their clinical utility.

San Diego, CA, March 8, 2011 – In the 1960s, a group of U.S. states with high age-adjusted stroke mortality defined a "stroke belt." Until recently, geographic patterns of diabetes had not been specifically characterized in the same manner. In an article published in the April 2011 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers were able to identify clustered high prevalence areas, or a "diabetes belt" of 644 counties in 15 mostly southeastern states using data compiled for the first time of estimates of the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes for every U.S.

People are more comfortable committing sins of omission than commission—letting bad things happen rather than actively causing something bad. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, suggests that this is because they know other people will think worse of them if they do something bad than if they let something bad happen.

PHILADELPHIA (March 7, 2011) – A new research study dramatically increases knowledge of how taste cells detect sugars, a key step in developing strategies to limit overconsumption. Scientists from the Monell Center and collaborators have discovered that taste cells have several additional sugar detectors other than the previously known sweet receptor.

INDIANAPOLIS – A review of 35 years of scientific medical studies confirms that the social and emotional context of the doctor–patient relationship have yet to be incorporated into the equation when it comes to health care.

In spite of its strong endorsement over a decade ago by the influential Institute of Medicine report, "Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century," which highlighted the benefits of care that is respectful of and responsive to patients' needs, values and concerns, patient-centered medicine has not become part of the mainstream.

A hurricane-like superstorm expected to hit California once every 200 years would cause devastation to the state's businesses unheard of even in the Great Recession, a USC economist warns. He estimates the total property damage and business interruption costs of a massive rainstorm would be nearly $1 trillion.

Why worry about preparing for a superstorm that hasn't happened in 200 years when the state has over $100 billion in unfunded public sector pension liabilties and 13% unemployment? That's economics.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- In a new study published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, University at Buffalo researcher Michael A. Stefanone, PhD, and colleagues found that females who base their self worth on their appearance tend to share more photos online and maintain larger networks on online social networking sites.

He says the results suggest that females identify more strongly with their image and appearance, and use Facebook as a platform to compete for attention.

New research from North Carolina State University shows how attempts to define the South by Republicans and Democrats may have set the stage for President Obama's victories in Southern states – and shaped the way Americans view themselves.

BEER-SHEVA, ISRAEL, March 7, 2011 – Elderly drivers are half as likely to see pedestrians on the sidewalk due to a limited field of view, and compensate in part by driving more slowly, according to a study by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers.

In the online edition of Accident Analysis and Prevention, the study compared reaction times and perception of pedestrians as hazards between experienced elderly and non-elderly drivers.