_ Smart Tag Flags Spoiled Food & Meds By article A color-coded smart tag could tell consumers whether a carton of milk has turned sour or a can of green beans has spoiled without opening the containers, according to researchers at Peking University in Beijing, China. The tag, which would appear on the packaging, also could be used to determine if medications and other perishable products were still active or fresh. The report on the color-changing food deterioration tags was presented on March 17th 2014 as part of the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society in Dallas.
_ Heart Health "Bendopnea" = Heart Failure Symptom By article University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center cardiologists have defined a novel heart failure symptom in advanced heart failure patients: shortness of breath while bending over, such as when putting on shoes. The cardiologists dubbed he condition “bendopnea”, which is pronounced “bend-op-nee-ah”/ The easily detectable symptom can help doctors diagnose excessive fluid retention in patients with heart failure, according to the findings published in a March 2014 edition of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Heart Failure.
Heart Health New "Heart Attack Gene" Discovered By Jane Farrell article Researchers have found a previously undiscovered gene variation that reduces heart attack risk, and the discovery could lead to better treatment of high cholesterol and related disorders. The finding, by a team from the University of Michigan and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, took six years of analysis.
Tracking a SuperbugΓÇÖs Evolution By Jane Farrell article Using genome sequencing, National Institutes of Health scientists and their colleagues have tracked the evolution of the antibiotic-resistant bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae sequence type 258 (ST258), an important agent of hospital-acquired infections. While researchers had previously thought that ST258 K. pneumoniae strains spread from a single ancestor, the NIH team showed that the strains arose from at least two different lineages.
_ Slowing Down Alzheimer's Plaques By article University of Michigan researchers have learned how to fix a cellular structure called the Golgi that mysteriously becomes fragmented in all Alzheimer's patients and appears to be a major cause of the disease. The scientists say that understanding this mechanism helps decode amyloid plaque formation in the brains of Alzheimer's patients—plaques that kills cells and contributes to memory loss and other Alzheimer's symptoms.
_ Deer HuntersΓÇÖ Trick Can Help Diabetics By Jane Farrell article The scent of a human alerts deer to a hunter’s presence so scientists developed sprays for suppressing the telltale odor. Now, in an unexpected twist, researchers at Mississippi State University have discovered that the work of those scientists could help develop an electronic device to do the work of “diabetes alert dogs”. The team presented the findings at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in March 2014 in Dallas.
_ Honey as an Antibiotic By article Honey could be a solution to the problem of bacterial resistance to, to research done at Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I and presented in March 2014 at the 247th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Dallas. A release from the society noted that medical professionals sometimes use honey successfully as a topical dressing but that the researchers predicted it could play a larger role in fighting infections..
_ Facebook: An Epidemic of Wellbeing? By article Researchers at the University of California, San Diego say that feelings are “contagious” on Facebook and that this fact could be exploited to created an “epidemic of wellbeing”. The study, published in March 2014 in the hournal PLOS ONE, analyzed over a billion status updates among more than 100 million users of Facebook in the United States. The report found that “positive posts beget positive posts”, according to a release from the university.
_ Marriage For Older Couples, HusbandΓÇÖs Health & Happiness Is Crucial By article A husband’s agreeable personality and good health appear crucial to preventing conflict among older couples who have been together a long time, according to a release written by Jann Ingmire about a study done at the University of Chicago and published in March 2014 in the Journal of Marriage and Family. The researchers found that the health and happiness of wives play less of a role in limiting marital conflict, perhaps because of different expectations among women and men in durable relationships.
_ A Better Understanding of Memory Loss By Jane Farrell article Scientists have discovered how a lack of oxygen can interact with inflammation to cause memory loss in conditions like stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. The research, from the University of British Columbia, focused on microglia, part of a newly discovered brain mechanism that contributes to Alzheimer’s. Chronic inflammation and oxygen deficiency are hallmarks of several brain diseases. But until now, there hasn’t been much known about how they contribute to symptoms such as memory loss.
_ When Medicine Does More Harm Than Good By Jane Farrell article About 20 percent of older Americans with chronic conditions are taking medicines that work against each other, according to a new study. In other words, the medication being used to treat one condition can make another condition worse. The problem affects millions of Americans, since three out of four older adults have multiple chronic conditions.
_ PSA Screening Down Since 2012 By article Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Case Medical Center have assessed the impact of the 2012 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations against routine prostate specific antigen (PSA) cancer screenings. The 2012 report cited evidence that the risks of screening outweigh the benefits. Results of the current study indicate that the USPSTF recommendations have resulted in a decrease in the number of PSA screenings ordered by doctors, with the greatest decline seen among urologists.
_ Tx Guidelines for MRSA Skin Infections By article Cases of skin infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have increased greatly since the early 2000s. Skin abscesses such pus-filled boils or pimples with discharge characterize these infections, according to a March 12th 2014 release from the University of California, Los Angeles written by Rachel Champeau. She reports the more virulent form of the infection can result in potentially lethal conditions including necrotizing pneumonia, fasciitis, and sepsis.
_ Reducing Falls Among the Elderly By article A low-cost program reduced falls in the elderly by 17 percent statewide in Pennsylvania, according to a study done at University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health available online in March 2014 and slated to be published in the May 2014 issue of the American Journal of Public Health The researchers demonstrated the value and effectiveness of using existing aging services such as senior centers in preventing falls.
_ Self-Esteem Helps Avoid Health Problems By Jane Farrell article Having a high level of self-esteem in older adulthood can have a positive effect on physical as well as mental health, new research shows. A study by researchers from Concordia University in Montreal analyzed responses from 147 adults aged 60 and older to measure their self-esteem, stress and symptoms of depression every 24 months over four years. The investigators also measured the levels of cortisol, a hormone that’s released when stress levels are high.
_ Magnet Hospitals = Higher Quality of Care By article The Magnet Recognition Program operated by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, which recognizes healthcare organizations that provide excellence in nursing.
_ Heart Health Key Heart Failure Culprit Discovered By article A team of cardiovascular researchers from at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in NewYork and the University of California, San Diego have identified a small but powerful new player in the onset and progression of heart failure. Their findings, published in the journal Nature on March 12th 2014, also show how they successfully blocked the newly discovered culprit to halt the debilitating and chronic life-threatening condition in its tracks.
Lessons From Managing Geriatric Patients By article A large team of experts led by a Johns Hopkins geriatrician reports that efforts to improve the care of older adults and others with complex medical needs will fall short unless public policymakers focus not only on preventing hospital readmission rates, but also on better coordination of community-based "care transitions." Lessons learned from managing such transitions for older patients, they say, may offer a framework for overall improvement.