June 24th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: Alzheimer's Disease, Arizona State University, BDNF, Brain Circuits, Brain Plasticity, Brain Treatment, Brain Wave Patterns, Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Central Nervous System Dysfunctions, Cognitive Function, Hippocampus, Mental Retardation, Motor Responses, Neurology, Neuron, Neurosurgery, Non-Surgical Brain Stimulation, Transcranial Pulsed Ultrasound, TTX-Sensitive Neuronal Activity
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Scientists at Arizona State University have developed a new method of non-surgical brain stimulation using pulsed ultrasound that enhances cognitive function in mice, and may one day be used to non-invasively treat patients with mental retardation, Alzheimer’s disease and other central nervous system (CNS) dysfunctions.
In intact motor cortex in mice, ultrasound was found to stimulate action potentials and elicit motor responses comparable to those only previously achieved with implanted electrodes and related techniques. It also activates meaningful brain wave patterns and the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus — one of the most potent regulators of brain plasticity. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
June 23rd, 2010 by BobDoherty in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: ACP, American College Of Physicians, Annals Of Internal Medicine, Black Colleges and Universities, Dr. Wayne Riley, Family Medicine, General Medicine, Howard University, Medical Schools, Medical Students, Medical Training, Meharry Medical College, Morehouse College, New Medical Residents, NIH Support, Physician Recruitment, Primary Care Output Rankings, Primary Care Physicians, Primary Care Track Record, Private School, Public Schools, Research-Intensive Medical Schools, Social Mission Score, Technical Medicine, Underserved Communities, University of California-San Diego, University of Colorado, University of Minnesota, Unversity of Washington
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A new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, ACP’s flagship journal, finds that medical schools vary greatly in producing more primary care physicians and getting them into underserved communities.
– “Public schools graduate higher proportions of primary care physicians” than private schools.
– “The 3 historically black colleges and universities with medical schools (Morehouse College, Meharry Medical College, and Howard University) score at the top” in training primary care physicians who then go on to practice in underserved communities. (Click here for an interview with two recent graduates of historically black colleges and with Wayne Riley, MD, FACP, who is the president and CEO of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee and a regent of the American College of Physicians.)
– “The level of NIH support that medical schools received was inversely associated with their output of primary care physicians and physicians practicing in underserved areas.” Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The ACP Advocate Blog by Bob Doherty*
June 22nd, 2010 by Davis Liu, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion
Tags: Boston Celtics, Doctors' Diagnosis, Expensive Tests, Imaging Tests, Kendrick Perkins, Knee Injury, Less Is More In Medicine, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, MCL, Medical Technology, MRI, PCL, Physical Exam, Too Many Medical Tests, Too Much Testing, Torn Medial Collateral Ligament, Torn Posterior Cruciate Ligament, Unnecessary Testing, Unnecessary Treatment, X-Ray Vision
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Boston Celtics basketball player Kendrick Perkins injured his knee during the NBA Finals against the Lakers when he landed awkwardly. Unable to weightbear, he left Game 6 not to return for the following pivotal Game 7.
Based on his mechanism of injury and his physical examination, his trainer reported that he tore his medial collateral ligament (MCL) as well as the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). More amazingly, this was done without the help of a MRI. Since Perkins was unable to play the final game, there was no urgent medical need to expedite the test, as regardless of the result his season was already done.
How do doctors know what’s wrong without X-ray vision or an imaging test? (Note that Perkins did get a X-ray, but X-rays generally don’t show ligament injuries.) Is it guessing? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Saving Money and Surviving the Healthcare Crisis*
June 22nd, 2010 by StevenWilkinsMPH in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: Communication Disconnect, Discussing New Medications, Doctor-Patient Communication, Drug Information, Family Medicine, Financial Incentives, General Medicine, Internal Medicine, Lack of Communication, New York Times, Patient Behavior, Patient Education, Patient Medication Adherence, Patient Noncompliance, Pay Patients To Take Medicine, Pharmacology, Primary Care, Warfarin
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The New York Times reported recently on efforts by providers and payers to increase patient medication adherence through the use financial incentives paid to patients. The article cited the use of small financial payments (<$100), awarded via lotteries, to patients that take Warfarin –- an anti-blood clotting medication.
There is certainly nothing wrong with financial incentives. Incentives have been proven successful in changing selected provider (quality and safety improvement) and patient behavior (stop smoking, weight loss and taking health risk surveys). But paying patients to take their medication is different. Actually, the evidence suggests that it is a just plain stupid idea for a whole lot of reasons. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Mind The Gap*
June 22nd, 2010 by Berci in Announcements, Better Health Network, News
Tags: Health Category, The Webby Awards 2010, WebMD, Winners In Health
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The Webby Awards have announced the 2010 winners. From WebbyAwards.com:
With nearly 70 categories, Website entries make up the majority of Webby Awards Winners, Nominees and Honorees. Some are beautiful to look at and interact with. Others are a testament to usability and functionality. And a handful excel across the board. To be selected among the best is an incredible achievement worthy of praise — and perhaps a little bragging.
Guess which website won the Health category? Yes, WebMD.
*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*
