MedPage Today

Articles, page 15

February 25, 2010Feb 25, 20109

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Occurrence of some so-called "never events" in hospitals may depend partly on unmodifiable risk factors such as patient characteristics, undermining the rationale for denying Medicare payment for their…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Occurrence of some so-called “never events” in hospitals may depend partly on unmodifiable risk factors such as patient characteristics, undermining the rationale for denying Medicare payment for their treatment, researchers said.

Analysis of some 890,000 surgeries performed in 1,368 hospitals showed that patient age and pre-existing conditions such as weight …

Patient voices

Why being President of the United States is a health hazard

MedPage Today

February 24, 2010Feb 24, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by Liz O'Brien Exactly whom are we honoring on Presidents (or is it President's) Day? A. George Washington B. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln C. All presidents The answer is more complicated than you'd ever…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Liz O’Brien

Exactly whom are we honoring on Presidents (or is it President’s) Day?

A. George Washington
B. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln
C. All presidents

The answer is more complicated than you’d ever expect. Probably A is most correct, but if it were up to me, I’d pick C.

Certainly every one of these 43 men has earned the …

Physician voices

Some hospitals tube feed patients with advanced dementia

MedPage Today

February 23, 2010Feb 23, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Tube-feeding patients with advanced dementia -- a practice whose effectiveness has been questioned by two widely cited literature reviews -- is most common in larger hospitals and those…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Tube-feeding patients with advanced dementia — a practice whose effectiveness has been questioned by two widely cited literature reviews — is most common in larger hospitals and those run for profit, researchers said.

The odds of a feeding-tube insertion in a hospitalized patient with advanced dementia were about 50% greater …

Patient voices

End-of-life decisions and making advance directive choices

MedPage Today

February 22, 2010Feb 22, 20102

Originally published in MedPage Today by Crystal Phend "I do not want my life to be prolonged if, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, my situation is hopeless." "I want my life to be prolonged as long as possible…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Crystal Phend

“I do not want my life to be prolonged if, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, my situation is hopeless.”

“I want my life to be prolonged as long as possible within the limits of generally accepted medical standards, even if this means that I might be kept alive on machines for years.”

Check …

Medical education

Forcing residents to nap may not improve patient care

MedPage Today

February 21, 2010Feb 21, 20106

Originally published in MedPage Today by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent More that a year after the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report calling for mandatory naps for medical residents, the organization responsible for implementing -- or…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Emily P. Walker, MedPage Today Washington Correspondent

More that a year after the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report calling for mandatory naps for medical residents, the organization responsible for implementing — or rejecting — the IOM’s controversial recommendation has yet to make a decision.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), which has …

Physician voices

Laparoscopic procedures injure the surgeons that perform them

MedPage Today

February 19, 2010Feb 19, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Four out of five surgeons agree: Laparoscopic procedures cause substantial discomfort and pain for the surgeons who perform them. More than 80% of surgeons completing an online questionnaire…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Four out of five surgeons agree: Laparoscopic procedures cause substantial discomfort and pain for the surgeons who perform them.

More than 80% of surgeons completing an online questionnaire reported pain or stiffness in the hands, neck, back, or legs after performing minimally invasive surgeries, according to Adrian Park, MD, of the …

Conditions and diseases

Treating ADHD may not improve kids’ school grades

MedPage Today

February 18, 2010Feb 18, 20103

Originally published in MedPage Today by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer Adhering to guidelines when treating children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) relieved symptoms but had no effect on kids' performance in school or in their relationships with…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Adhering to guidelines when treating children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) relieved symptoms but had no effect on kids’ performance in school or in their relationships with others, researchers found.

Although parents and teachers noted significant improvements in symptoms among ADHD kids (P<0.001) in a special treatment program, there …

Conditions and diseases

Magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) for persistent vegetative state

MedPage Today

February 17, 2010Feb 17, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent Researchers in England are reporting they have been able to establish limited communication with a man in a persistent vegetative state by using functional magnetic resonance imaging…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Michael Smith, MedPage Today North American Correspondent

Researchers in England are reporting they have been able to establish limited communication with a man in a persistent vegetative state by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

The 34-year-old man was able to answer simple Yes or No questions by imagining different types of activity, which caused changes …

Conditions and diseases

Why The Biggest Loser uses CT scans to help contestants lose weight

MedPage Today

February 15, 2010Feb 15, 20103

Originally published in MedPage Today by Cole Petrochko The train wreck has become an integral part of reality TV programming, and that's terrible. As much as I've learned on the internet about the "Snooki Punch" fiasco from MTV's Jersey Shore,…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Cole Petrochko

The train wreck has become an integral part of reality TV programming, and that’s terrible. As much as I’ve learned on the internet about the “Snooki Punch” fiasco from MTV’s Jersey Shore, there’s little to watching a household of adults thrown together under a wacky premise turn into overgrown, throat-seeking children under lights and a camera, except on the one-season CBS show Kid …

Health policy

What should free health care to members of Congress be called?

MedPage Today

February 14, 2010Feb 14, 20107

Originally published in MedPage Today by Charles Bankhead Recently, I learned that members of Congress have their very own medical clinic. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. Being a member of Congress is a tough job, filled with stress…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Charles Bankhead

Recently, I learned that members of Congress have their very own medical clinic. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. Being a member of Congress is a tough job, filled with stress and posturing and righteous indignation. I know that if I had to decide whether to spend tax money on a Bridge to Nowhere or a pet airport that has flights to …

Drugs and prescribing

How alternative and herbal medications can have dangerous side effects

MedPage Today

February 13, 2010Feb 13, 201011

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Herbal medicines are not always the harmless nostrums that many patients and even some physicians think, but may actually contribute to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, researchers warned in…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Herbal medicines are not always the harmless nostrums that many patients and even some physicians think, but may actually contribute to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, researchers warned in a review covering 44 years of research into the subject.

Many such products, including aloe vera, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, and green tea, can …

Conditions and diseases

Neuroscience explains why changing addictive behavior is so difficult

MedPage Today

February 12, 2010Feb 12, 20102

Originally published in MedPage Today by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer By the end of January, many New Year's resolutions have been tossed out with the leftover holiday cookies. That's because change is hard -- and neuroscientists are learning…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer

By the end of January, many New Year’s resolutions have been tossed out with the leftover holiday cookies. That’s because change is hard — and neuroscientists are learning why.

Advances in neuroimaging have enabled researchers to peer inside the brains of addicts and patients with addictive behaviors. They can see in …

Conditions and diseases

Doctors have an ethical obligation to treat complications from a transplant operation performed abroad

MedPage Today

February 11, 2010Feb 11, 20104

Originally published in MedPage Today by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer Patients who travel to foreign countries for organ transplants may return with more problems than they left with -- and physicians here have a moral responsibility to treat…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Kristina Fiore, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Patients who travel to foreign countries for organ transplants may return with more problems than they left with — and physicians here have a moral responsibility to treat them, researchers asserted in a transplant journal.

“Medical tourism” has been on the rise as demand for organs outpaces supply and U.S. …

Conditions and diseases

Similarities between H1N1 flu pandemic conspiracies and the Y2K bug

MedPage Today

February 10, 2010Feb 10, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by Mike Himowitz When I read Michael Smith’s account of European politicians taking WHO to the woodshed for allegedly conspiring with vaccine makers to overinflate the danger from H1N1 pandemic flu, I was reminded of…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Mike Himowitz

When I read Michael Smith’s account of European politicians taking WHO to the woodshed for allegedly conspiring with vaccine makers to overinflate the danger from H1N1 pandemic flu, I was reminded of a similar — and equally silly — argument that occurred exactly a decade ago.

In the early days of 2000, you …

Health policy

Increasing copays will increase costs for health insurance companies in the long run

MedPage Today

February 9, 2010Feb 9, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer Raising seniors' copayments for ambulatory care to offset increasing healthcare costs may backfire on insurers, researchers asserted. Seniors enrolled in Medicare plans that increased copayments had significantly fewer…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Todd Neale, MedPage Today Staff Writer

Raising seniors’ copayments for ambulatory care to offset increasing healthcare costs may backfire on insurers, researchers asserted.

Seniors enrolled in Medicare plans that increased copayments had significantly fewer outpatient visits but spent more time in the hospital than patients in plans that left copayments untouched, according to Amal Trivedi, MD, …

Drugs and prescribing

An anesthesiologist accused of making up trial data pleads guilty to federal charges

MedPage Today

February 8, 2010Feb 8, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor A Massachusetts anesthesiologist accused of fabricating data in studies of pain drugs will plead guilty to federal criminal charges under an agreement with prosecutors. Scott Reuben, MD, a…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

A Massachusetts anesthesiologist accused of fabricating data in studies of pain drugs will plead guilty to federal criminal charges under an agreement with prosecutors.

Scott Reuben, MD, a well-known pain researcher at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass., was charged with one count of healthcare fraud.

Early last year, the hospital …

Conditions and diseases

How hypertension increases the risk of dementia

MedPage Today

February 7, 2010Feb 7, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor Another study has found that hypertension may contribute to increased risk of dementia, this time with evidence of actual brain abnormalities. Data from an offshoot of the Women's…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

Another study has found that hypertension may contribute to increased risk of dementia, this time with evidence of actual brain abnormalities.

Data from an offshoot of the Women’s Health Initiative found that participants’ baseline blood pressure was strongly correlated with volume of lesions in their brains’ white matter, according to Lewis …

Conditions and diseases

What is the biggest risk for soldiers fighting overseas?

MedPage Today

February 6, 2010Feb 6, 20102

Originally published in MedPage Today by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor More than 85% of American military medical evacuations from the Middle East were not the direct result of enemy action, but the result of non-battle injuries and disease,…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by John Gever, MedPage Today Senior Editor

More than 85% of American military medical evacuations from the Middle East were not the direct result of enemy action, but the result of non-battle injuries and disease, researchers said.

Of some 34,000 military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan who shipped out for medical reasons from 2004 to 2007, only …

Conditions and diseases

The specialty of underwater medicine, and an interview with a dive physician

MedPage Today

February 5, 2010Feb 5, 2010

Originally published in MedPage Today by Kristina Fiore Physicians tend to prefer intellectual hobbies -- chess, reading, writing. Dr. Alfred Bove is no exception. His hobby often requires application of his expertise in physiology. You know him as the president…

Originally published in MedPage Today

by Kristina Fiore

Physicians tend to prefer intellectual hobbies — chess, reading, writing. Dr. Alfred Bove is no exception. His hobby often requires application of his expertise in physiology. You know him as the president of the American College of Cardiology. But you may not know that his heart belongs to the sea.

Bove’s interest in scuba diving …