Tag: Medical Care

Tools to Select Patients for Aneurysm Treatment Need Further Evaluation

A study released July 30th 2015 at the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery 12th Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California, indicates that strict adherence to two commonly-used tools to weigh the risk of treating unruptured aneurysms may not prevent the majority of morbidity-mortality outcomes associated with ruptured intracranial aneurysms. A release from the society notes that… Continue reading Tools to Select Patients for Aneurysm Treatment Need Further Evaluation

Hospitals Overestimate Ability to Deliver Fast Stroke Care

Hospitals often overestimate their performance in providing fast delivery of anti-clotting medication to stroke patients, according to new findings published in July 2015 in the Journal of the American Heart Association. According to a release from the association, researchers surveyed staff in 141 hospitals who treated 48,201 stroke patients in 2009 and 2010. They found… Continue reading Hospitals Overestimate Ability to Deliver Fast Stroke Care

Challenges of Delirium Detection in Older Adults in the Emergency Department

An estimated one to two million older adults with delirium visit hospital emergency departments in the United States annually. Yet about two-thirds of the cases of this sudden and potentially lethal change in mental status are unrecognized by emergency department clinicians who are under time pressure and almost always managing multiple patients at once. Half… Continue reading Challenges of Delirium Detection in Older Adults in the Emergency Department

Chemotherapy and Quality of Life at the End of Life

Chemotherapy for patients with end-stage cancer was associated with worse quality of life near death for patients with a good ability to still perform many life functions, according to an article published online by JAMA Oncology IN JULY 2015. A release from the JAMA Network Journals explains that physicians have voiced concerns about the benefits… Continue reading Chemotherapy and Quality of Life at the End of Life

Better Communication Needed on End-of-Life Directives

Increasing numbers of people have advanced care planning, but a survey found that almost 40 percent of them didn’t discuss their preferences with the people they designated as their representatives. A study led by Johns Hopkins researchers reviewed nearly 2,000 surveys with people whose loved ones died of cancer. They found a 40 percent increase… Continue reading Better Communication Needed on End-of-Life Directives

Healthcare Workers Not Removing Protective Garments Correctly

Fewer than one in six (4/30) healthcare workers (HCW) followed all CDC recommendations for the removal of personal protective equipment (PPE) after patient care, according to a report published in July 2015 in American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). A release from… Continue reading Healthcare Workers Not Removing Protective Garments Correctly

Phase 1 Drug Trials Are Safe for Most Subjects

Phase 1 trials with healthy volunteers are often perceived as risky and even unethical. But according to new research, less than 1 percent of 11,000 healthy volunteers for new drugs suffered serious complications. In a Phase 1 trial, clinicians test a new drug on people for the first time. The study, by researchers from the… Continue reading Phase 1 Drug Trials Are Safe for Most Subjects

Peppermint Oil and Cinnamon to Treat Chronic Wounds

Infectious colonies of bacteria called biofilms that develop on chronic wounds and medical devices can cause serious health problems and are tough to treat. Now, according to a July 2015 release from the American Chemical Society, scientists have found a way to package antimicrobial compounds from peppermint and cinnamon in tiny capsules that can both… Continue reading Peppermint Oil and Cinnamon to Treat Chronic Wounds

The Arts Help Doctors Hone Their Observational Skills

The visual and narrative arts can help physicians hone their observational skills — a critical expertise increasingly needed in today’s medicine, according to Caroline Wellbery, MD, PhD, a Georgetown University Medical Center family medicine professor. Her article was published in July 2015 in Academic Medicine. A release from the university notes that Dr. Wellbery explains… Continue reading The Arts Help Doctors Hone Their Observational Skills

Older Athletes Return to Sports After Rotator Cuff Repair

Outcomes following the arthroscopic repair of rotator cuff tears in older athletes appears to be successful a majority of the time, according to research presented on July 11th 2015 at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine’s (AOSSM) Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida. Forty-nine patients were included in the study with a mean age of… Continue reading Older Athletes Return to Sports After Rotator Cuff Repair

Hospital Hazards That Can Harm Older People

Hospital stays can be risky, especially for older people. For example, many seniors who could walk on their own and care for themselves before entering the hospital lose these abilities during their stay. They may also develop delirium (sudden, intense confusion). As part of the Choosing Wisely series, the American Academy of Nursing has partnered… Continue reading Hospital Hazards That Can Harm Older People

Potential Danger of “Domestic Surgical Tourism”

Some of the nation’s largest businesses encourage employees to travel to large U.S. medical centers for complex elective surgical procedures. As part of these medical travel programs, companies negotiate lower prices for patients to receive high-quality surgical care at some of the nation’s premier hospitals. However, up to 22 percent of surgical patients experience unexpected… Continue reading Potential Danger of “Domestic Surgical Tourism”

Why Becoming Your Own Health Advocate Can Save Your Money and Your Life

As a pharmacist, I’ve seen many patients from all ages and walks of life—rural communities, large metropolitan areas, wealthy, low-income, Spanish-speaking, non-English speaking, multi-racial, multi-cultural—you name it. And while I’d noticed some differences between these groups, one day I realized that there was one thing that united them all: Many of these people – patients—were… Continue reading Why Becoming Your Own Health Advocate Can Save Your Money and Your Life

Developing Better Clinical Trials

Although double blind randomized controlled trials (DBRCTs) are considered the gold standard in evaluating a drug or therapy, it may be time for a new model, according to researchers. They say that DBRCTs don’t factor in patient behaviors, such as diet and lifestyle choices, that can affect the drug or treatment being tested. A recent… Continue reading Developing Better Clinical Trials

Intensive PT Helps Stroke Survivors Regain Arm Function

The key to regaining arm function after suffering a stroke is to spend more time in an intensive physical therapy program, according to a University of Florida Health study done in June 2015. A release from the university notes that UF Health researcher Janis Daly Ph.D. said that after a stroke, the brain and body… Continue reading Intensive PT Helps Stroke Survivors Regain Arm Function

Your Health History in A Drop of Blood

Thanks to new technology, scientists can use a single drop of human blood to test for current and past viral infections. The method, called VirScan, was developed by researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It is an efficient alternative to existing tests for specific viruses one at a time.… Continue reading Your Health History in A Drop of Blood

Better Healing for Skin Wounds

 A newly developed “hydrogel” helps skin wounds heal more quickly, according to researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. The material, which is injected, creates an instant scaffold that allows new tissue to latch on and grow within the cavities formed between linked spheres of gel, according to a news… Continue reading Better Healing for Skin Wounds