Culture

Contrary to current belief, a new study finds that patients with a history of diabetes are not one of the most at risk for contrast induced nephrotoxicity. Instead, the study found that patients with a history of renal disease, hypertension and/or heart disease are more likely to suffer from renal insufficiency, putting them at greater risk for contrast induced nephrotoxicity.

Steep rises in taxes on alcohol do not necessarily reduce consumption, according to research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) into the history of intoxicants in 16th and 17th England.

Dr Philip Withington at the University of Cambridge has found that affluence rather than poverty has tended to drive consumption levels, especially among the middle classes and higher,even though legislation and enforcement is often focused on the poorer parts of the population.

Ann Arbor, Mich. — About one baby is born every hour addicted to opiate drugs in the United States, according to new research from University of Michigan physicians.

In the research published April 30 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, U-M physicians found that diagnosis of neonatal abstinence syndrome, a drug withdrawal syndrome among newborns, almost tripled between 2000 and 2009.

TEMPE (April 30, 2012) - The popular perception of archaeology is a team of dusty individuals in wide-brimmed hats unearthing treasures from a pharaoh's tomb or an ancient collection of Native American artifacts.

A synthetic mixture of intestinal bacteria could one day replace stool transplants as a treatment for Clostridium difficile (C. difficile). C. difficile is a toxin-producing bacteria that can overpopulate the colon when antibiotics eradicate other, naturally protective bacteria living there.

Monday, April 30, 2012, Cleveland: In a landmark drug-comparison study, Cleveland Clinic researchers found that bevacizumab (Avastin) is equivalent to ranibizumab (Lucentis) in the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) through two years.

PHILADELPHIA – Two drugs commonly used to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD) yield similar improvements in vision for patients receiving treatments on a monthly or as-needed basis, according to a study from researchers at the Center for Preventive Ophthalmology and Biostatistics (CPOB) at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

"Love thy neighbor" is preached from many a pulpit. But new research from the University of California, Berkeley, suggests that the highly religious are less motivated by compassion when helping a stranger than are atheists, agnostics and less religious people.

COLUMBIA, Mo. – As the United States grapples with health care reform, much attention has focused on the importance of preventative health care. Now, a researcher at the University of Missouri has developed a system that could help public health care organizations determine the best method of allocating resources by prioritizing health risk factors and conditions – in some cases before these conditions become major health problems.

Patients find "cloud" technology a faster, more efficient way to store and distribute their medical images than current options, according to the preliminary findings of an image sharing project led by The Mount Sinai Medical Center in conjunction with four other academic medical institutions. The Phase I results of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Image Share project are being presented today at the American Roentgen Ray Society Annual Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.

At two years, Avastin (bevacizumab) and Lucentis (ranibizumab injection), two widely used drugs to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD), improve vision when administered monthly or on an as needed basis, although greater improvements in vision were seen with monthly administration for this common, debilitating eye disease, according to researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Montreal, April 30, 2012 – What if there was a way to vastly improve the safety, durability and sustainability of bridges across North America without increasing spending? This was the question Saleh Abu Dabous set out to answer when he began his PhD at Concordia. "I was looking for an applied way to do research — something that would have an impact on society and improve the current situation," he remembers.

Ann Arbor, Michigan… Regional differences in rates of cardiac procedures have increased in Michigan over the past decade—not fully explained by differences in health risk factors, heart attack or cardiac mortality rates—according to a report released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT). The report compares the state's hospital referral regions (HRRs) using claims data from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan's (BCBSM's) under-65 commercial subscribers and Medicare data from The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care in Michigan.

Are you connected to college friends on Facebook? Research from North Carolina State University shows that these social networks tend to form around graduation year or university housing – rather than other interests.

Researchers examined the first 100 colleges and universities to have students, faculty or staff join Facebook when the site exclusively contained .edu email addresses. As students, faculty and staff joined Facebook, social networks were formed. Each university, in essence, formed its own network – ranging in size from 762 to 50,000.

Radiologists classify themselves as less competent than other physicians regarding knowledge of patient imaging costs and patient safety, a new study shows.