The Mini-Cog, A Memory Assessment Tool By blog Have you heard of the ΓÇ£Mini-CogΓÇ¥? I had read about it several years ago but a recent front page feature in the Star Tribune, our major daily newspaper in the Twin Cities, piqued my interest. The story focused on Dr. Michael Rosenbloom, clinical director of the HealthPartners Center for Memory and Aging, in St. Paul, Minnesota. Rosenbloom and his colleagues believe that primary-care physicians are frequently missing signs of cognitive issues in their age 55 and over patients. Instead of relying solely on observation and a short conversation during patient appointments, Dr.
_ Heart Health A Non-Invasive Procedure That Helps Heart Patients By Jane Farrell article A minimally invasive procedure can significantly reduce the likelihood of heart disease-related deaths among adults with atrial fibrillation. A long-term study from the University of MichiganΓÇÖs Frankel Cardiovascular Center found that the procedure, catheter ablation, helps atrial-fibrillation patients lower their risk of dying from a heart attack or heart failure.
Digestive Health Diverticulitis Patients Suffer Symptoms Long After Attack By Sondra Forsyth article Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles interviewed people with diverticulitis and confirmed that many suffer psychological and physical symptoms long after their acute illness has passed.
Medical Care Migraine Relief from Cosmetic Surgery Technique By Sondra Forsyth article Dr. Oren Tessler, Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine, is part of a team of plastic and reconstructive surgeons who report a high success rate using a method to screen and select patients for a specific surgical migraine treatment technique. More than 90% of the patients who underwent this surgery to decompress the nerves that trigger migraines experienced relief and also got a bonus cosmetic eyelid surgery.
_ Hope for Accurate Diagnosis of Memory Problems By Sondra Forsyth article More accurate tests could be created to diagnose diseases such as Alzheimer's or memory problems stemming from head injuries. These tests could lead to earlier intervention, according to findings from the University of East Anglia in the UK published July 30th 2014 in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience.
_ Vision Health A Computer That Can "See" You By Jane Farrell article Someday, your computer may have ΓÇ£glassesΓÇ¥ to help you see the screen ΓÇô not the other way around, according to researchers developing the technology. Scientists from the University of California, Berkeley, are developing computer models to compensate for a personΓÇÖs visual impairment. When fully developed, these vision-correcting displays enable users to see words and pictures on a screen clearly without eyeglasses or contact lenses.
_ Breast Cancer Acupuncture Helps Breast Ca Patients By Sondra Forsyth article Use of electroacupuncture (EA) ΓÇô a form of acupuncture where a small electric current is passed between pairs of acupuncture needles ΓÇô produces significant improvements in fatigue, anxiety and depression in as little as eight weeks for early stage breast cancer patients experiencing joint pain related to the use of aromatase inhibitors (AIs). That is the finding of a randomized, placebo-controlled trial examining the intervention led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and published online in July 2014 in the journal Cancer.
_ Cosmetic Surgery Beware of Claims About Cosmetic Stem Cells Procedures By Sondra Forsyth article Advertising claims for cosmetic procedures using stem cells are running far ahead of the scientific evidence for safety and effectiveness, according to a review in the August 2014 issue ofPlastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Dr. Michael T. Longaker of Stanford University Medical Center and colleagues wrote: "Stem cells offer tremendous potential, but the marketplace is saturated with unsubstantiated and sometimes fraudulent claims that may place patients at risk."
_ Kidney Disease Drug Halves Risk of Kidney Transplant Rejection By Sondra Forsyth article Oxford University scientists in the UK have shown that a powerful drug given at the time of a kidney transplant operation not only halves the early risk of rejection, but that it also allows a less toxic regimen of anti-rejection drugs to be used after the operation.
_ Mobile Health Apps Need More Oversight By Jane Farrell article Although people often assume that mobile health apps have been ΓÇ£approved,ΓÇ¥ in fact there is very little oversight of the multibillion-dollar industry, according to health-law researchers.
_ Brain Health Surprising Mechanism Behind Neurodegeneration By Sondra Forsyth article A research team led by Professor Susan Ackerman, Ph.D. at the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Mane has pinpointed a surprising mechanism behind neurodegeneration in mice, one that involves a defect in a key component of the cellular machinery that makes proteins, known as transfer RNA or tRNA.
_ Psoriasis Psoriatic Arthritis Patients Need Better Screening By Sondra Forsyth article Leading experts have joined together for the first time to call for better screening of psoriatic arthritis to help millions of people worldwide suffering from the condition. A release from the Universoty of Leeds in the UK explains that psoriatic arthritis (PsA) causes painful joint inflammation and can cause irreversible joint damage if left untreated. PsA tends to affect people with psoriasis. This skin condition causes a red, scaly rash. Around one in five go on to develop PsA ΓÇô usually within ten years of the initial skin problem being diagnosed.
_ Breast Cancer Exposure To Nighttime Light Could Be Dangerous for Breast-Cancer Patients By Jane Farrell article The breast-cancer drug tamoxifen is useless if a patient is exposed to even dim overnight light, according to a new study. But it can become effective during the same period in combination with the hormone melatonin. Researchers from Tulane University School of Medicine published the study in the journal Cancer Research. It is the first study to show that melatonin, which regulates sleep and wake cycles, is essential to tamoxifenΓÇÖs success in treating breast cancer. But melatonin doesnΓÇÖt work if itΓÇÖs shut off by exposure to light at night.
_ Medical Care Debunking Myths About Robotic Surgery By Sondra Forsyth article By Keith Chisholm, MD Robotics-assisted surgery has become enormously popular, with physicians around the world performing 1.5 million procedures from hysterectomies to heart valve repairs in 2011.
_ Parkinson's Disease Anti-Inflammatory Drug for Parkinson's By Sondra Forsyth article An experimental anti-inflammatory drug can protect vulnerable neurons and reduce motor deficits in a rat model of Parkinson's disease, according to researchers at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. The results were published in July 2014 the Journal of Parkinson's Disease.
_ Obesity Toward New TX for Obesity & Diabetes By Sondra Forsyth article Research done at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center could lead to new therapies to treat obesity and diabetes. The team found that a protein that controls when genes are switched on or off plays a key role in specific areas of the brain to regulate metabolism. The transcription factor involved ΓÇô spliced X-box binding protein 1 (Xbp1s) ΓÇô appears to influence the body's sensitivity to insulin and leptin signaling.
_ Mental & Emotional Health ΓÇ£Experiential ProductsΓÇ¥ Boost Happiness By Sondra Forsyth article Material items designed to create or enhance an experience, also known as "experiential products," can make shoppers just as happy as life experiences. That is the finding of research done at San Francisco State University and published online July 24th 2014 in the Journal of Consumer Psychology.
_ Marriage ΓÇ£SoulmatesΓÇ¥ Have the Worst Relationships By Sondra Forsyth article If youΓÇÖre looking for love as a Thirdager, youΓÇÖre probably best off ditching the notion that finding your ΓÇ£soulmateΓÇ¥ will guarantee a good relationship this time around. ThatΓÇÖs the finding of research done at the University of Toronto and the University of Southern California. The study was published in 2014 in published the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.