Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Johns Hopkins, Outcomes & Safety, Surgical Research / 01.09.2015

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jill A. Marsteller, PhD, MPP Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Baltimore, Maryland and Juan A. Sanchez, MD, MPA, FACS, FACC Associate Professor of Surgery Associate Faculty, Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality Johns Hopkins Medicine Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The culture of healthcare organizations with regards to safety has an impact on patient outcomes.  A strong culture serves as a platform for preventing medical errors. This study examines the culture of safety along several dimensions in cardiac surgical teams and compares this data to surgery of all types using a large database. In our study, cardiac surgery teams scored highest in teamwork and lowest in non-punitive responses to error.  In addition, there was substantial variation on safety climate perception across team roles. For example, surgeons and support staff had higher perceptions of a safety climate than other team members. Compared to all types of surgery teams, cardiac surgery teams scored higher in overall perceptions of safety except for anesthesiologists who reported lower scores on communication about errors and communication openness. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, JAMA, Kidney Disease / 01.09.2015

George L. Bakris MD Professor of Medicine Director, Comprehensive Hypertension Center University of Chicago MedicineMedicalResearch.com Interview with: George L. Bakris MD Professor of Medicine Director, Comprehensive Hypertension Center University of Chicago Medicine Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Bakris: Aldosterone receptor antagonists such as spironolactone are known to reduce mortality from heart failure and reduce albuminuria, a well-known marker of diabetic kidney disease progression. Finerenone is a novel nonsteroidal aldosterone receptor antagonist and is associated with less hyperkalemia (high blood potassium levels) compared to traditional aldosterone receptor blockers like spironolactone. The current study was a dose finding study to ascertain the optimal dose of finerenone for reducing urine albumin (a key risk marker in people with diabetic kidney disease) that is also associated with the smallest rise in serum potassium. The main findings are that in a dose dependent manner finerenone reduced albuminuria and at the highest dose a modest rise in serum potassium. Finerenone was also very well tolerated.  (more…)
Author Interviews, CDC, Infections / 01.09.2015

Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Plague, a bacterial disease that is endemic to the Western United States, is most famous for the destruction it caused during the Middle Ages when it killed over half the population of Europe.  Today, plague still infects people around the world and there are a handful of cases each year here in the U.S.  However, this year where there are normally 3-7 cases, there have been 12 cases since the beginning of April. Medical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report? Response: One of the main reasons CDC issued our report on this year’s plague cases was because we want to remind clinicians and their patients that plague should be considered as a diagnosis if the symptoms, travel history, and exposure fit.  Most cases occur between late spring and early fall, so there might still be more cases this year.  It’s good to be aware of three things: where cases occur, how the disease is spread, and how to prevent it.
  1. Most cases occur in the Western United States, and so far this year the cases have been from Arizona (two), California (one), Colorado (four), Georgia (one, but exposed in California), New Mexico (two), Oregon (one), and Utah (one).
  2. Plague is spread when fleas become infected by feeding on rodents, such as chipmunks, prairie dogs, ground squirrels, mice, and other mammals that are infected with the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis. Fleas then spread the plague bacteria to humans and other mammals during their next feeding.
  3. Most important, CDC recommends that people who live in or travel to the Western United States wear long pants when possible and use insect repellent on clothing and skin when outside. People also should avoid direct contact with ill or dead animals and never feed squirrels, chipmunks, or otherwild rodents. In addition, pet owners should regularly use flea control products on their pets and consult a veterinarian if their pet is ill. Rodent habitat can be reduced around the home by removing brush, clutter, and potential rodent food sources such as garbage or pet food. If you have any symptoms of plague, please see a clinician and let them know where you’ve traveled and if you’ve had contact with rodents.
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Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Surgical Research / 01.09.2015

Dr. Rachel A Freedman MD MPH Assistant Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical SchoolMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Rachel A Freedman MD MPH Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Assistant Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Freedman: Despite a lack of medical benefit for most patients, the rates for bilateral mastectomy (double mastectomy) are on the rise in the U.S. Many factors have been cited as potential reasons for this increase, such as one’s race/ethnicity, education level, family history, and use of MRI. Cancer stage has not consistently been a factor in past studies. In this study, we surveyed 487 women who were treated for breast cancer in Northern California within the California Cancer Registry, we examined factors associated with the type of surgery a woman received. In our study, we found strong associations for stage III cancer with receipt of unilateral and bilateral mastectomy. In addition, higher (vs. lower) income and older age were associated with lower odds of having bilateral surgery. (more…)
Author Interviews, Endocrinology, JCEM, Menopause, Mineral Metabolism / 01.09.2015

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Emily Krantz (né Amundson) MD Södra Älvsborgs Hospital Borås, Sweden Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: This study is a 10-year follow up of a double-blind placebo controlled trial in which women with post menopausal osteoporosis received Growth Hormone (GH) for 3 years (Landin-Wilhelmsen JBMR 2003;18:393-404). Positive effects of the treatment on the patients bone mineral density and bone mineral content were seen after another 7 years. Furthermore and most interestingly, fracture incidence decreased dramatically from 56% to 28% (p=.0003) in the osteoporosis patients while fractures increased significantly in the control group, from 8% to 32% (p=.0008). Health Related Quality of Life was also measured throughout the study’s duration and it did not change nor did it differ from the control group. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Thromboembolism / 01.09.2015

Line Melgaard MSc. Industrial Medicine, PhD student AALBORG Univerity Hospital Thrombosis Research Center Aalborg Aalborg Hospital Science and Innovation Center Aalborg DenmarkMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Line Melgaard MSc. Industrial Medicine, PhD student AALBORG Univerity Hospital Thrombosis Research Center Aalborg Aalborg Hospital Science and Innovation Center Aalborg Denmark Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: In recent years, use of the CHA2DS2-VASc score in predicting ischemic stroke, thromboembolism, and death has extended beyond the original disease state (atrial fibrillation) for which it was proposed. In addition, it is recognized that the cluster of multiple stroke risk factors included within the CHA2DS2-VASc score increases the risk of ischemic stroke, thromboembolism, and death, whether or not atrial fibrillation is present. Thus, there is a need to study the extent to which concomitant atrial fibrillation modifies the pattern of the association between CHA2DS2-VASc score and the risk of ischemic stroke, thromboembolism, and death in patients with heart failure.
  • Our principal findings were that patients with heart failure had a high risk of ischemic stroke, thromboembolism, and death, whether or not atrial fibrillation was present.
  • Second, the CHA2DS2-VASc score was able to modestly predict these endpoints, and had a moderately high negative predictive value at 1-year follow-up.
  • Third, at high CHA2DS2-VASc scores (≥4), patients with heart failure without atrial fibrillation had high absolute risk of ischemic stroke, thromboembolism, and death, and the absolute risk increased in a comparable manner in patients with heart failure with and without atrial fibrillation, exhibiting a clear dose-response relationship. Indeed, the absolute risk of thromboembolic complications was higher among patients without atrial fibrillation compared to patients with concomitant atrial fibrillation at high CHA2DS2-VASc score (≥4).
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Author Interviews, Critical Care - Intensive Care - ICUs, Infections, Outcomes & Safety / 01.09.2015

Leonard Mermel, DO, ScM, AM (Hon), FSHEA, FIDSA, FACP Professor of Medicine, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University Medical Director, Dept. of Epidemiology & Infection Control, Rhode Island Hospital   MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Leonard Mermel, DO, ScM, AM (Hon), FSHEA, FIDSA, FACP  Professor of Medicine, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University Medical Director, Dept. of Epidemiology & Infection Control, Rhode Island Hospital Adjunct Clinical Professor, University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy     Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Mermel: Arterial catheters are an under recognized source of hospital-associated bloodstream infection. As a result, arterial catheter infection prevention strategies are less well studied than with central lines.  We did a national survey and our findings reaffirmed the fact that physicians using these catheters underestimate the risk of infection.  Additionally and not surprisingly, infection prevention strategies are variable particularly concerning barrier precautions at insertion. Medical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report? Dr. Mermel: Arterial catheters can cause catheter-related bloodstream infections.  These devices should be aseptically inserted and managed post-insertion and removed as soon as no longer required for patient care.  We are also in need of better studies to clearly delineate the ideal infection prevention strategies with these catheters based on our understanding of the pathogenesis of such infections.  (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Multiple Sclerosis, OBGYNE / 01.09.2015

PD Dr. Kerstin Hellwig Neurologische Abteilung Universitätsklinikum St. Josef Hospital BochumMedicalResearch.com Interview with: PD Dr. Kerstin Hellwig Neurologische Abteilung Universitätsklinikum St. Josef Hospital Bochum Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Hellwig: The relapse risk is elevated in women with Multiple Sclerosis after delivery. We found that women with Multiple Sclerosis who breastfed exclusively had a significant lower relapse risk, than women who did not breastfed at all or breastfed some but not exclusively. After the introduction of supplemental feedings, the relase risk was similar between both groups. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, NIH, Weight Research / 31.08.2015

Dr. Alexandra White PhD in Epidemiology University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Postdoctoral fellow National Institute of Environmental Health ScienceMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Alexandra White PhD in Epidemiology University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Postdoctoral fellow National Institute of Environmental Health Science MedicalResearch: What is the background for this study? Dr. White: Many studies have shown that being overweight or obese is a risk factor for postmenopausal breast cancer. We know less about how obesity impacts breast cancer risk in premenopausal women. About a third of U.S. adults are obese, which is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30. Similarly, the prevalence of abdominal obesity, measured by a person’s waist circumference, has increased by 10% in the last decade. In 2012, more than two-thirds of U.S. women had a waist circumference that indicated abdominal obesity. Abdominal obesity may be a better predictor than BMI for breast cancer risk and other chronic diseases, because it is related to insulin resistance and can reflect metabolically active fat stores. In order to understand how different types of obesity (overall vs. abdominal) influence breast cancer risk, we used information from >50,000 participants in the Sister Study. The Sister Study, led by scientists at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health investigates environmental and genetic risk factors for breast cancer. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Sexual Health / 31.08.2015

Shannon K. Barth MPH Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Public Health, Post Deployment Health Epidemiology Program Washington, District of ColumbiaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Shannon K. Barth MPH Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Public Health, Post Deployment Health Epidemiology Program Washington, District of Columbia Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Response: This study used data from the “National Health Study for a New Generation of U.S. Veterans,” a population-based health study of 20,563 Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom Veterans and their non-deployed counterparts, conducted in 2009-2011.  A two-question measure of sexual harassment and sexual assault based on an existing clinical screen used by Veterans Health Administration (VHA) providers was included on the survey. Consistent with use in clinical settings, a veteran was considered to have experienced MST if they responded affirmatively to either of the two questions. While estimates of the prevalence of MST based on the clinical screener are available, these estimates only provide information about veterans who use VHA services and may not generalize to the broader OEF/OIF veteran population. This new survey provides a unique opportunity to assess MST experiences among a representative sample of OEF/OIF veterans in a confidential setting. Additionally, we were able to assess responses to the sexual harassment and sexual assault questions separately and collectively. Medical Research: What are the main findings? Response: The main findings from our study are that 41% of women and 4% of men reported experiencing MST. Veterans who reported using VHA services had a higher risk of MST compared to those who didn’t receive VHA services. The relationship between deployment to OEF/OIF and experiencing MST differed between men and women. Combat-exposed veterans had greater risk of reporting MST compared to those not exposed to combat, while controlling for deployment status. Among women, approximately 10% reported experiencing sexual assault. In contrast, 0.5% of male participants reported experiencing sexual assault. (more…)
Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, Compliance, Pharmacology / 31.08.2015

Dr M Lobo PhD FRCP Director Barts BP Centre of Excellence Consultant Physician and Hon Senior Lecturer NIHR Barts Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit William Harvey Research Institute, London MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr M Lobo PhD FRCP Director Barts BP Centre of Excellence Consultant Physician and Hon Senior Lecturer NIHR Barts Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit William Harvey Research Institute, London Medical Research: What hypothesis did you set out to investigate and why? Dr. Lobo: We investigated the clinical utility of a novel treatment algorithm for multi-drug intolerant patients with hypertension who are at very high risk of cardiovascular disease due to uncontrolled blood pressure and inability to take conventional (guideline-based) antihypertensive regiments. These patients are often poorly managed by primary care physicians (or specialists such as cardiologists) because there has been little interest/research in medication intolerance. There has however been a major focus on drug non-adherence as a cause of failure to control hypertension - we believe that a key cause of non-adherence is medication intolerance which patients do not always volunteer. Medical Research: What is the report's ultimate take-away message? Dr. Lobo: Our novel stepwise algorithm was successful in managing uncontrolled hypertension in the majority of patients without needing an increase in their medicines burden. The message therefore is that patients who do not tolerate their antihypertensives do not have to put up with side effects and resultant poor quality of life as we have demonstrated that there are ways to get around medication intolerances. (more…)
Author Interviews, Hospital Acquired, Infections, Pediatrics / 31.08.2015

Daryl R. Cheng, MBBS Monash Children's Hospital Victoria, AustraliaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Daryl R. Cheng, MBBS Monash Children's Hospital Victoria, Australia   Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Inanimate objects worn and used by health care workers (HCW), such as neckties and stethoscopes,  have been shown to be reservoirs for potential pathogens. Of particular concern in the pediatric setting are identity (ID) badges and lanyards. Many pediatric health care workers use them not only for identification but also as a distraction tool during examination or procedures. Children have an increased tendency to place these items in their mouth as health care workers lean over to examine or care for them, therefore completing the chain of transmission for a potential nosocomial infection. Whilst previous studies have demonstrated that ID badges and lanyards worn by health care workers may harbor pathogenic bacteria , there is paucity of comparative data suggesting that ID badges may be similarly contaminated with viral pathogens. However, given the higher incidence of viral infections in pediatrics up to 50% of preterm infants screened during their hospital stay y had viruses detected in  their nasopharynx, further evaluation of the viral burden and potential for nosocomial transmission of  prevalent viruses are of both clinical and economic significance. (more…)
Author Interviews, Education, Heart Disease / 31.08.2015

Jaclyn Portanova, Ph.D School of Gerontology University of Southern California DavisMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jaclyn Portanova, Ph.D student School of Gerontology University of Southern California Davis Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Response: Over the past two decades, we have made a lot of progress in educating the public about the need to engage in advance care planning and make health care decisions, such as whether or not to receive CPR in a medical crisis. The media plays a major role in shaping the way people think about life-saving measures such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). In fact, a study published in 1996 showed that popular medical shows portrayed CPR as having a much higher rate of success than actual rates. We sought to determine if popular media has improved in the accuracy of their depiction of CPR survival rates. Medical Research: What are the main findings? Response: Nearly 70% of TV show patients who received CPR survived the initial incident. This success rate is twice as high as actual rates. Even more striking, survival rate to hospital discharge following receipt of CPR was four times higher in popular medical television shows than actual rates. Advance care planning discussions between physicians and patients were rarely portrayed, but when they did occur patient preferences were honored. (more…)
Author Interviews, Mental Health Research, Psychological Science / 30.08.2015

Brian W. Haas, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Psychology University of Georgia MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Brian W. Haas, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Psychology University of Georgia Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Haas: We used a new way to study Borderline Personality Disorder.  We studied the traits associated with this condition in healthy people not diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.  We found that people that possess more Borderline Personality traits exhibit reduced brain activity in parts of the brain important for empathy. (more…)
ADHD, Author Interviews, Memory / 28.08.2015

Dr. Graham Murray PhD University Lecturer Department of Psychiatry Addenbrooke's Hospital Cambridge UKMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Graham Murray PhD University Lecturer Department of Psychiatry Addenbrooke's Hospital Cambridge UK Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Murray: There is debate about the extent to which ADHD persists into adulthood, with estimates suggesting that between 10-50% of children still have ADHD in adulthood. Diagnosis (whether in childhood or adulthood) is currently reliant on meeting symptom checklists (such as the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual), and a current diagnosis is often the prerequisite to access health care from psychiatric services. We decided to follow up a sample of 49 teens who all had a confirmed diagnosis of ADHD at age 16. We also followed a control group made up of comparison healthy volunteers from the same social, ethnic and geographical background. When we used the symptom checklist criteria of persistence, only 10% of patients still met ADHD diagnostic criteria in adulthood. However, there is more to ADHD than this. When it comes to adult brain structure and function, it didn’t make any difference whether symptom checklists were still met or not. On reaching adulthood, the adolescent ADHD group show reduced brain volume in the caudate nucleus - a key brain region that supports a host of cognitive functions, including working memory function. When we assessed working memory ability, we noted persistent problems in the adolescent ADHD group, with a third of the adolescent ADHD sample failing the memory test. The poor memory scores seemed to relate to a lack of responsiveness in the activity of the caudate nucleus that we could detect using functional MRI scans. In the control group, when the memory questions became more difficult, the caudate nucleus became more active, and this appeared to help the control group perform well; in the adolescent ADHD group, the caudate nucleus kept the same level of activity throughout the test. It was as if, for the controls, when the test got harder, the caudate nucleus went up a gear in its activity, and this is likely to have helped solve the memory problems. But for the adolescence ADHD group, the caudate couldn’t go up a gear when the test became harder, and this likely resulted in poorer performance.  (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Nutrition, Weight Research / 28.08.2015

Dr Aseem Malhotra MBChB, MRCP Honorary Consultant Cardiologist - Frimley Park Hospital Consultant Clinical Associate to the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges Science Director- Action on Sugar Saving Londoners Lives - External Advisory Board MemberMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Aseem Malhotra MBChB, MRCP Honorary Consultant Cardiologist - Frimley Park Hospital Consultant Clinical Associate to the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges Science Director- Action on Sugar Saving Londoners Lives - External Advisory Board Member   Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Malhotra: It is a review of all the research up to date on what is the impact of diet on health. What type of diet has the most robust evidence for weight and health and how this can be translated into policy to rapidly reduce the burden of chronic disease. Medical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report? Dr. Malhotra:
  • That "low fat" diets to do not improve health outcomes and the public should stop counting calories.
  • That a high fat Mediterranean diet is more powerful in reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke than any medical treatment.
  • That it's effect is independent of cholesterol lowering.
  • That rapid weight loss through calorie counting combined with exercise doesn't only not improve health outcomes in the long term for diabetics but can also be potentially harmful by increasing CVD risk.
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Author Interviews, PLoS, Vaccine Studies / 28.08.2015

Dr Javier Martin PhD Principal Scientist Division of Virology National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Blanche Lane, South Mimms, Potters Bar United KingdomMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Javier Martin PhD Principal Scientist Division of Virology National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) United Kingdom Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Dr. Martin: The global eradication of polio appears to be within reach.  There has been no case of poliomyelitis caused by circulating wild type 2 poliovirus since 1999, no case of type 3 since November 2012 and the last case of type 1 in Africa was in August 2014, leaving some areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan as the main remaining reservoirs of circulating wild type 1 poliovirus. Poliovirus strains in the live-attenuated oral polio vaccine (OPV) are known to quickly revert to neurovirulent phenotype following replication in humans after immunisation. These vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) strains can transmit from person to person in populations with low immunity potentially leading to poliomyelitis outbreaks. (more…)
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Pancreatic / 28.08.2015

Jenny Permuth Wey, PhD, MS Assistant Member Departments of Cancer Epidemiology and Gastrointestinal Oncology Moffitt Cancer Cente MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jenny Permuth Wey, PhD, MS Assistant Member Departments of Cancer Epidemiology and Gastrointestinal Oncology Moffitt Cancer Center   Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Wey: Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers world-wide. It is currently the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, and is predicted to become the second leading cause by 2030. Currently there are no accurate methods to diagnose pancreatic cancer early when a patient may be eligible for surgery to remove the tumor and hopefully survive longer. To beat this disease, early detection is key, and our team has dedicated efforts to studying pancreatic cancer in its ‘precancerous’ state because we and other researchers believe that the identification and treatment of precancerous pancreatic lesions offers a promising strategy to reduce the number of people losing their lives to this disease. Similar to how colon polyps can progress into colon cancer, we now know that certain types of pancreatic cystic lesions can progress into pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer precursors/pre-cancers known as intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) account for nearly one-half of the estimated 150,000 asymptomatic pancreatic cysts detected as ‘incidental findings’ on computed tomography (CT) scans or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans each year during the clinical work-up for an unrelated condition.  Imaging alone cannot reliably distinguish between benign, pre-cancerous, and cancerous cysts, and cannot differentiate ‘low-risk’intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms' (defined as low- or moderate-grade disease) that can be monitored from ‘high-risk’ IPMNs (defined as high-grade or invasive disease) that should be surgically removed.  The decision to undergo pancreatic surgery is not trivial for the patient and medical team since pancreatic surgery can be associated with an estimated 40% chance of complications and a 4% chance of death. Noninvasive tests are needed to accurately detect precancerous lesions of the pancreas so that personalized risk assessment and care can be provided. microRNAs (miRNAs) are small molecules that act as ‘master-regulators’ of cancer-related processes in the body. One of the main purposes of our ‘proof of principle’ study was to measure miRNAs in the blood and determine whether a set of miRNAs could distinguish patients with IPMNs from healthy individuals. We then sought to determine whether a set of miRNAs could distinguish patients known to have ‘low-risk’ IPMNs from those with ‘high-risk’ IPMNs.  We show that new, relatively inexpensive digital technology could reliably measure miRNAs in blood plasma (the pale yellow liquid component of blood) from individuals newly-diagnosed with pancreatic cancer precursors (IPMNs) and healthy individuals.  Thirty miRNAs out of 800 tested showed higher levels in IPMN patients compared to healthy individuals, providing a preliminary ‘miRNA signature’ that may be found only in people with early pancreatic disease, suggesting it could serve as an early diagnostic tool.  Furthermore, we also provide preliminary data to suggest that a 5-miRNA signature can partially distinguish high-risk IPMNs that warrant resection from low-risk IPMNs that can be watched.  This is important clinically because it would be opportune to personalize care such that high-risk IPMNs that warrant resection are properly identified while individuals with low-risk IPMNs are spared the substantial  risks of mortality and morbidity associated with overtreatment from unnecessary surgery. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Fertility / 28.08.2015

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Camilla Sandal Sejbaek PhD Department of Public Health University of Copenhagen Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Previous literature have shown ambiguous results when investigating the association between becoming a mother and depression among women in fertility treatment. Small questionnaire-based studies with self-reported depression have shown that women in unsuccessful fertility treatment had a higher risk of depressive symptoms compared to women in successful fertility treatment. Two larger register-based studies using clinical depression (depression diagnosed at the psychiatric hospitals) have shown that women becoming a mother are at increased risk of clinical depression. Our findings, from a large register-based study with about 41,000 women in assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment, showed that women WHO became mothers had a higher risk of clinical depression compared to women in ART treatment WHO did not become mothers. The risk of clinical depression were more than five-fold higher within the first 6 weeks after becoming a mother to a live-born child. (more…)
Allergies, Asthma, Author Interviews, Microbiome, Pulmonary Disease / 28.08.2015

Rebecca Normansell MA MB BChir Cochrane Airways Population Health Research Institute St George’s, University of London MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rebecca Normansell MA MB BChir Cochrane Airways Population Health Research Institute St George’s, University of London     Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Response: Asthma is a common, long-term, respiratory condition which affects over 300 million people worldwide. It is a burden not only for the individual with asthma but also for the health services that care for them and the wider economy, due to days lost from work and school. Asthma therapies aim to prevent attacks and improve symptoms by reducing airway constriction and inflammation, but they come with their own risks of side effects. For example, long-term high-dose inhaled corticosteroids have been associated with growth restriction in children and long-acting beta2-agonists as mono-therapy have been associated with increased risk of death in people with asthma. There is growing interest in developing novel treatments for asthma and one such treatment is specific allergen immunotherapy. Immunotherapy has the potential to be a useful approach for asthma as it is thought that for approximately half of people with asthma, allergies are an important trigger for their symptoms and attacks. Immunotherapy can be delivered by injection (subcutaneously) or under the tongue (sublingually) and aims to bring about immune tolerance. Immunotherapy has already been demonstrated to be effective in certain conditions, such as allergic rhinitis and wasp and bee sting allergy, but its effectiveness and safety in asthma is less clear. In fact, immunotherapy is not recommended at all for use in people with severe or uncontrolled asthma due to the risk of triggering a serious respiratory reaction. Medical Research: What are the main findings? Response: Our review looked for trials in which people with asthma who were given sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) were compared with those given placebo, or who continued usual asthma care. We found 52 randomised controlled trials which met our inclusion criteria, allocating over 5,000 people to either SLIT or placebo/usual care. Most of the participants had mild asthma and were allergic to either house dust mite or pollen. Despite the large number of eligible trials we were only able to perform a limited meta-analysis. This is because most of the trials did not report the efficacy outcomes we were most interested in: exacerbations and quality of life. Asthma symptoms and medication use were both more frequently reported, but often using different, un-validated scales so we did not perform a meta-analysis for these outcomes. However, we were able to combine serious adverse event data from 22 trials involving 2560 participants and data for all adverse events from 19 trials including 1755 participants. SLIT did not appear to be associated with an increased risk of serious adverse events, although very few events were observed overall. SLIT was associated with a small increase in the risk of all adverse events, which in absolute terms equated to an increase from 222 per 1000 people in the control group to 327 per 1000 (95% confidence intervals 257 to 404). Importantly, many of these events were mild and transient local reactions and did not generally result in participants withdrawing from the trial. (more…)
Author Interviews, Case Western, Dermatology, Genetic Research / 27.08.2015

Nely Aldrich, MD Department of Dermatology University Hospitals Case Medical CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nely Aldrich, MD Department of Dermatology University Hospitals Case Medical Center Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Aldrich:   To our knowledge, no formal studies have been performed on the genetic vs. environmental factors that lead to the development of rosacea. Our department has the unique opportunity to attend the Twins Days festival in Twinsburg, Ohio. This is a yearly festival where thousands of twin pairs come from all over the world. This was the perfect setting to ask our research question. Our main finding was that there is an approximately 50% contribution of genetics to rosacea and the other 50% can be attributed to environmental factors. Sun exposure, smoking, alcohol use, skin cancer history, and heart disease were also found to be correlated with a higher rosacea severity. (more…)
Author Interviews, Infections / 27.08.2015

Kyong Sup Yoon, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences and Environmental Sciences Program Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL 62026MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kyong Sup Yoon, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences and Environmental Sciences Program Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL 62026  Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Dr. John Clark (Professor, University of Massachusetts-Amherst) and I have been studying this matter for 15 years. The goal of our current study is to determine resistance (knockdown resistance or kdr conferred by 3 point mutations in voltage gated sodium channel alpha subunit gene) frequencies in US head louse populations collected from 48 contiguous states. We were able to analyze 109 populations from 30 states and found 100% kdr frequencies in 104 populations.  Hopefully, we can achieve our original goal in near future and publish it. head lice, cdc imageMedical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report? Response: We need to implement practical resistance management. Now, for the first time since introduction of pyrethroids, we have different compounds already available or will be (hopefully) available in near future. We suggest to use mixture strategies to minimize development of resistance to any new products. (more…)
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Endocrinology / 27.08.2015

Abdulmaged Traish; Photo by Vernon Doucette for Boston University Photography MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Abdulmaged M. Traish, MBA, Ph.D. Professor of Biochemistry Professor of Urology Boston University School of Medicine Boston, MA 02118   Medical Research: What is the background for this study?  Dr. Traish: This study was undertaken to evaluate the data in the contemporary literature on the use of finasteride and dutasteride for treatment of ( benign prostatic hypertrophy) BPH and androgenetic alopecia (AGA). These drugs were proven effective in management of patients withy BPH andandrogenetic alopecia; however, these drugs inhibit a family of enzymes widely distributed in many tissues and organs and therefore may have undesirable effects. Most importantly, few studies have been undertaken to evaluate the effects of these drugs on the central nervous system. The adverse impact of these drugs on sexual function and well-being in a subset of patients raised the questions that we do not know much about the safety of such drugs. Medical Research: What are the main findings?  Dr. Traish: The main findings of this study is that these agents, while useful in treatment of BPH and androgenetic alopecia, exert undesirable side effects on sexual function and well-being. More importantly, limited data is available on the impact of these agents on the central nervous system. (more…)
Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Sleep Disorders, Technology / 27.08.2015

Stephanie J. Crowley, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Biological Rhythms Research Laboratory Department of Behavioral Sciences Rush University Medical Center Chicago, IL 60612MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Stephanie J. Crowley, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Biological Rhythms Research Laboratory Department of Behavioral Sciences Rush University Medical Center Chicago, IL 60612 Medical Research: What is the background for this study? Dr. Crowley: Your readers may have seen recent reports by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC about problems with early morning school bells for teens and the need to push school start times later.  These recent calls for later school start times come from data showing that biological processes make it challenging for a teen to get enough sleep and be rested for school when they have to wake up very early for school.  One of these biological processes is the circadian timing system, which is the approximate 24-hour brain clock that regulates the timing of sleep and wake.  During the teen years, the brain clock is shifted later making it more difficult for many teens to fall asleep early enough to get sufficient sleep on school nights. Medical Research: What are the main findings? Dr. Crowley: Melatonin suppression, as tested in this new study, is a good indication of how light affects the circadian system.  Our findings show that even a very small amount of light (similar to “romantic mood lighting”) in the evening suppressed melatonin levels in the middle-school-aged adolescents.  Because evening light “seen” by the brain clock shifts the clock later in time, the message is that biologically-driven later sleep times starts at this early age and needs to be considered when managing school and sleep schedules. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Duke, Genetic Research, JAMA / 27.08.2015

Michaela Ann Dinan Ph.D. Assistant Professor in Medicine Member of Duke Cancer Institute Duke University School of MedicinMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Michaela Ann Dinan Ph.D. Assistant Professor in Medicine Member of Duke Cancer Institute Duke University School of Medicine Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Dinan: For many years we have known that overall, women with early stage, hormone receptor positive breast cancer show an overall survival benefit from the receipt of adjuvant chemotherapy.  However, depending on the age of the patient, we have also known that between 3 to 10% of patients appear to be truly experiencing this survival benefit and that we are treating a lot of women unnecessarily.  The use of the Oncotype DX assay has provided additional information for patients to assess who at low risk of disease progression and can forgo chemotherapy. In this study we looked to see whether the adoption of this assay was associated with reduce rates of chemotherapy in women over the age of 65.  We found that somewhat surprisingly, there was no overall association with receipt of the assay and use of chemotherapy.  However, in women who had high risk disease, receipt of the assay was associated with reduced rates of chemotherapy use.  In patients with low risk disease, receipt of the assay was associated with increased chemotherapy use. (more…)
Author Interviews, Social Issues / 27.08.2015

Juliana Schroeder PhD, Assistant Professor Berkeley Haas Management of Organizations Group University of California at BerkeleyMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Juliana Schroeder PhD, Assistant Professor Berkeley Haas Management of Organizations Group University of California at Berkeley Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Schroeder: Whereas much research examines how physicians perceive their patients,in this paper we instead study how patients perceive physicians. We propose that patients consider their physicians like personally emotionless “empty vessels:” The higher is individuals’ need for care, the less they value physicians’ traits related to physicians' personal lives (e.g., self-focused emotions) but the more they value physicians’ traits relevant to patient care (e.g., patient-focused emotions). ​In a series of experiments,we show that participants in higher need for care believe their physicians have less personal emotions. That is, they perceive physicians as emotionally "empty" the more they need them. This was true both when we manipulated need for care - for example, by having participants focus on potential medical problems or reminding them they needed to get a medical check-up - and also when we measured it, for example by comparing patients at a medical clinic (high need) to people not at a clinic (low need). (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Pain Research / 27.08.2015

Dr. Sebastiano Mercadante MD Director, Anesthesia and Intensive Care Unit and Pain Relief and Palliative Care Unit La Maddalena Cancer Center, Palermo, ItalyMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Sebastiano Mercadante MD Director, Anesthesia and Intensive Care Unit and Pain Relief and Palliative Care Unit La Maddalena Cancer Center, Palermo, Italy Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Mercadante:  Breakthrough cancer pain (BTcP) has been defined as a transitory increase in pain intensity that occurs either spontaneously, or in relation to a specific predictable or unpredictable trigger, despite relatively stable and adequately controlled background (1). Breakthrough cancer pain is a common problem in patients with cancer and is associated with significant morbidity. In a recent report in which a pragmatic definition of breakthrough cancer pain was used (2), the prevalence of BTcP was 75% (3). Oral morphine (OM) has been traditionally offered as a breakthrough cancer pain medication in doses of about 1/6 of the daily opioid regimen for years, although this approach has never been supported by any evidence. Different technologies have been developed to provide a rapid onset of effect with potent opioid drugs such as fentanyl (rapid onset opioids, ROOs) delivered by non-invasive routes. Fentanyl products have been shown to be significantly superior to oral opioids, but it has been suggested that the dose of fentanyl should be individually titrated in order to enable effective analgesia to be delivered while minimizing the risk of clinically significant adverse effects. The need of dose titration with rapid onset opioids has never been appropriately assessed and this statement is derived by a series of weaknesses of papers published for regulatory issues. Indeed, the only existing study comparing dose titration and proportional doses, reported that proportional doses of (Fentanyl buccal tablet) FBT are more effective and safe over dose titration method. NICE guidelines did not provide evidence for that, at least at certain time intervals after administration. To scientifically compare rapid onset opioids and oral morphine, we used a similar approach and made a strict selection of patients, according to a more specific algorithm for a diagnosis o fbreakthrough cancer pain. Thus, patients were randomized to receive in a crossover design Fentanyl buccal tablet and oral morphine, both given in doses proportional to opioid daily doses, for the management of breakthrough cancer pain. This comparative study has shown that, when giving the drugs for breakthrough cancer pain in doses proportional to the opioid regimen for background pain, Fentanyl was clearly superior for efficacy and rapidity in comparison with oral morphine. The analgesic effect was more intense either at 15 and 30 minutes after study medications were given. A larger number of episodes treated with Fentanyl buccal tablet  presented a decrease in pain intensity of ≥33% and ≥50% in comparison with episodes treated with oral morphine, and a relevant difference in SPID30 was reported. Of interest, adverse effects commonly observed in patients receiving opioids were not severe and did not differ between the treatments, suggesting that the use of proportional doses of both drugs are safe, reflecting what is derived by the long-lasting experience with oral morphine.   (more…)
Author Interviews, Social Issues / 27.08.2015

Asmir Gračanin, PhD Tilburg University Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology & Department of Communication and Information Sciences Tilburg The NetherlandsMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Asmir Gračanin, PhD Tilburg University Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology & Department of Communication and Information Sciences Tilburg The Netherlands Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Gračanin: Background for this study are primarily the results from previous paper and pencil studies in which people (retrospectively) claimed that crying made them feel better, which also corresponds to popular cultural beliefs. The remaining background were the results from lab studies that showed mood decreases immediately following crying episodes that were typically induced by emotional films. So, as you can see in both cases background is quite devoid of any theory, but it represented enough motivation to try to see what is really happening here. In addition, human tears are surprisingly understudied and we do not know exactly what is their function, so any research that looks for their intra-individual as well as inter-individual functions is badly needed. In this laboratory study we found that those individuals that cried felt much worse immediately after crying (which corresponds to previous lab studies), but their mood recovered surprisingly quickly (new finding), and finally it went even above the initial levels, that is, they felt even a bit better than before the emotional film that made them cry (corresponds to previous retrospective but not lab studies). No mood changes were observed in those that did not cry. Therefore, it seems that there is something to the popular belief that crying makes one feel better. However, we suspect that people could misinterpret that large mood improvement, which appears just necessarily after the initial mood deterioration, as a general mood improvement. So it is a strong return to initial mood levels that people could experience as a relief. In addition, we did observe a general mood improvement as well, although this effect was quite small. Thus, if there is general positive effect of crying on one's mood, it seems to take more time. This is the first such laboratory finding. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA / 27.08.2015

Jay R. Desai, PhD, MPH HealthPartners Institute for Education and Research Minneapolis, MN 55425MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jay R. Desai, PhD, MPH HealthPartners Institute for Education and Research Minneapolis, MN 55425 Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Desai: SUPREME-DM is a consortium of 11 integrated health systems throughout the United States that serve a culturally and economically diverse population of 16 million members. This study monitors changes in cardiovascular outcomes from 2005 through 2011 among the 1.2 million members identified with diabetes and a matched sample of 1.2 million members without diabetes. We found very encouraging and sustained declines in the rates of myocardial infarction/acute coronary syndrome (MI), stroke, heart failure (HF), and all-cause mortality among adults with and without diabetes.   Declines were greatest among the 15% adults who were already at high risk for cardiovascular events (such as people with diabetes or a prior history of heart disease). There was less improvement in cardiovascular event rates and mortality among the other 85% of members with low to moderate cardiovascular risk. (more…)