October 2nd, 2010 by RyanDuBosar in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: ACP Internist, ADHD, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism, Children With ADHD, Chromosome 16, Copy Number Variants, Developmental Differences in the Brain, Genetics, Genome, Neurology, Pediatrics, Schizophrenia, The Lancet
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British scientists announced that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been linked to deleted or duplicated DNA segments (copy number variants), which leads to developmental difference in the brains of children with the condition.
Researchers scanned genomes of 366 children with ADHD and compared them with 1,047 unrelated, ethnically matched control subjects. They reported full results in The Lancet.
Rare copy number variants were almost twice as common in children with ADHD compared to the other children. Researchers commented to Reuters that there was a significant overlap between copy number variants found in ADHD and elements of the genome linked to autism and schizophrenia, specifically in a region on chromosome 16.
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
October 2nd, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: Bluetooth, Dynamic Controls, General Medicine, iPhone, iPortal, Medgadget, Medical Technology, New Zealand, Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation, Rehacare 2010, Wheelchair Control Hub, Wheelchair Joystick, Wheelchair Users
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Dynamic Controls out of Christchurch, New Zealand, has developed a system by which wheelchair users can control their iPhone using the chair’s own joystick.
Additionally, the iPhone can display important information about the wheelchair, such as the battery charge state, speed, seat adjustment, and heading direction.
All this is communicated via Bluetooth between the iPhone and the wheelchair. The new version of the iPortal system will be unveiled at Rehacare 2010 in Dusseldorf, Germany, next month.
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*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
October 2nd, 2010 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
Tags: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Calcium Consumption, Calcium Oxylate, Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, DASH diet, Dietary Calcium, Dr. Eric Taylor, Dr. Toni Brayer, Everything Health, Mediterranean Diet, Preventing Kidney Stones
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Over the years I have had a number of patients with painful kidney stones and once they have passed (or been removed) I have felt at a loss to helping them prevent them. “Stay hydrated” somehow didn’t seem adequate, although we know fluid intake can help stave off recurrent kidney stone attacks.
Some textbooks said “avoid calcium” since most stones are made of calcium oxylate. High oxylate levels can be found in some fruits and vegetables, as well as in nuts and chocolate. Yet there was no real scientific evidence that these foods caused stones. The evidence for who got kidney stones was all over the ballpark and for a physician, that means no prevention advice is really proven.
A new study published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology says that calcium rich foods such as low-fat milk and yogurt can be protective. What? Eat more calcium to prevent calcium-containing stones? It seems that higher intakes of calcium are actually associated with a reduction in kidney stone risk. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
October 1st, 2010 by KevinMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion
Tags: American Medical Students, Dating A Medical Student, Dr. Kevin Pho, Financial Advice, Financial Arrangement, Financial Burden For Doctors, Financing Medical School, General Medicine, KevinMD, Medical School Debt, Medical School Loan Repayment, Medical School Students, New York Times, Personal Relationships, Physicians' Salaries, Relationship Advice, Relationship Strain, U.S. Medical Schools
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The average medical school debt today, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, is $156,456.
The United States is the only country in the world were future doctors have to bear such a financial burden of their education. That places significant strain on any relationship involving an American medical student.
Recently, there was an interesting piece in the New York Times discussing this very issue. The article profiled a female medical student who had amassed $250,000 of school debt:
Still, if she and [her boyfriend] Mr. Kogler are going to move in together and get engaged, she wants their financial arrangements to be clear and fair. But how do you define fair when you’re bringing a quarter of a million dollars in debt to a relationship?
Indeed. It’s an issue that’s rarely discussed, yet frequently encountered by medical students. With that degree of debt, there is little room for flexibility should one’s future plans change. You have to continue working to pay off the loan. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*
October 1st, 2010 by Jennifer Shine Dyer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Health Tips, Research, True Stories
Tags: Baseball, Biomedical Ethics, Childen's Health, Chronic Disease In Children, Chronic Illness and Kids, Disabled Child, Disease Management, Dr. Jennifer Shine Dyer, Family Medicine, General Medicine, Internal Medicine, Kids With Chronic Disease, Longer Life, Pediatrics, Primary Care, Quality of Life, Secondary Treatment, Shay Days
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As a medical professional who often treats children with chronic diseases, my patients turn to me not only for treatment advice but often for advice on how to improve their quality of life. I often have difficulty addressing the latter as there is a paucity of research on quality of life outcomes as compared to biomedical outcomes.
However, preliminary data from DR Walker et al. (1) have shown that comprehensive disease management improves quality of life and thereby reduces medical costs for some common chronic illnesses. Recently, a patient shared a story with me that was written by an anonymous author which demonstrates the powerful effect of seemingly small efforts on the quality of life of a disabled child. Read more »
