ALS, Author Interviews, Brain Injury, Mental Health Research, PLoS, Technology / 12.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Ujwal Chaudhary, PhD Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology University of Tübingen Tübingen, Germany MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder which causes an Individual to be in Locked-in state (LIS), i.e. the patients have control of their vertical eye movement and blinking, and ultimately in Completely Locked-in state (CLIS), i.e, no control over their eye muscle. There are several assistive and augmentative (AAC) technology along with EEG based BCI which can be used be by the patients in LIS for communication but once they are in CLIS they do not have any means of communication.  Hence, there was a need to find an alternative learning paradigm and probably another neuroimaging technique to design a more effective BCI to help ALS patient in CLIS with communication. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Immunotherapy, JAMA / 12.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Michael C. Heinrich, MD Professor of Medicine and Cell and Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Sciences University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Prior to 2000, there were no effective medical treatments for advanced GI stromal tumor and patients faced an average life expectancy of 18 months or less.  In our study of the  long-term treatment results using imatinib (Gleevec),  we found that approximately 7% of patients were still on front-line therapy at 10 years without any evidence of tumor progression.  More importantly, the estimated 10 year survival was 23%.   Progression-free and overall survival rates were significantly higher for patients with KIT exon 11-mutant GIST when compared with patients with KIT exon 9-mutant or “wild-type” GIST (no KIT/PDGFRA mutations). (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA, MD Anderson, Orthopedics / 12.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gabriel N. Hortobagyi, MD, FACP, FASCO Professor, Department of Breast Medical Oncology Division of Cancer Medicine The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, TX 77230-1439  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Bisphosphonates have been commercially available for several decades as supportive care for patients with bone metastases. They reduce the frequency and severity of bone-related complications. While the optimal dose and short-term scheduling of zoledronic acid (and previously, pamidronate) have been determined, there has been no research to determine how long these drugs need to be maintained nor the optimal dose and schedule beyond the first year of therapy. These questions are particularly important for this family of drugs, since they are incorporated into bone and not excreted from the body for many years. We set out to determine whether a reduction in the frequency of administration of zoledronic acid (every 12 weeks) was able to maintain the therapeutic efficacy of this intervention when compared to the “standard” schedule of administration (every 4 weeks). It was a prospective, randomized, non-inferiority trial that recruited patients with metastatic breast cancer with bone metastases and who had previously received 9 or more doses of zoledronic acid or pamidronate. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with one or more skeletal-related events. Four hundred and sixteen patients were randomized in a 1:1 ratio. The two groups were comparable at baseline. After the first year of follow-up, there was no statistically significant difference in SRE rate between the two arms, confirming the non-inferiority fo the every-12-week schedule of zoledronic acid. (more…)
Author Interviews, Lancet, Multiple Sclerosis, Neurological Disorders, Pharmacology / 12.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Tomas Kalincik, MD, PhD, PGCertBiostat Neurologist and Senior Research Fellow Melbourne Brain Centre | Department of Medicine | University of Melbourne Department of Neurology | Royal Melbourne Hospital Melbourne | Victoria | Australia MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Multiple sclerosis is a disease predominantly of young adults, with the peak of incidence in the 3rd and 4th decades. It is the most common cause of neurological disability in young adults. Only in Australia, 23,000 people are living with MS, with MS representing an annual cost of almost 1 billion $AU to the Australian society. It is a disease that presents with broad range of neurological symptoms and signs, which are typically temporary (these are called relapses) that with time can lead to permanent neurological disability. While there is currently no cure for MS, with appropriate therapy, its symptoms can be controlled and the disability progression slowed down. (more…)
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Heart Disease, JAMA / 12.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Frederick L. Ruberg, MD Director, Cardiovascular Medicine Fellowship Training Program Director, Pilot Grants Program, Boston University Clinical and Translational Science Institute Director, Advanced Cardiac Imaging Program Section of Cardiovascular Medicine Department of Medicine Department of Radiology Boston Medical Center  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: ATTR cardiac amyloidosis is an under-recognized cause of congestive heart failure in older adults that results from the deposition of misfolded TTR protein in the heart. One cause of ATTR cardiac amyloidosis is a genetic abnormality, inherited from an affected patient’s parent, that causes the protein TTR to misfold. The most common genetically inherited cause of ATTR amyloidosis in the US is called Val122Ile (V122I), named for the specific mutation in the TTR gene, that is seen in approximately 3.5% of US African Americans. ATTR cardiac amyloidosis was once an untreatable disease, but now new drugs are in different stages of clinical trial testing. Thus, recognition is important to get patients on the right treatments. One of the principal reasons why the disease is under-recognized is that doctors don’t have proven and available diagnostic tests that can be applied in the outpatient clinic. This study demonstrated that a new point-of-care diagnostic test, using measurement of a blood protein called retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4) and other standard of care test information, can accurately diagnose ATTR cardiac amyloidosis. We demonstrated the validity of this test in two separate cohorts of patients with proven ATTR cardiac amyloidosis due to the Val122Ile mutation and control patients with heart failure but without amyloidosis. (more…)
Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Karolinski Institute, Mental Health Research, PLoS / 11.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: soccer; creative commons imageTorbjörn Vestberg Licensed Psychologist & Researcher Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet Stockholm, Sweden MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The aim of our research is to study the importance of executive functions for successful behaviour. In our first study published in 2012 (Executive Functions Predict the Success of Top-Soccer Players) we showed that the level of elite soccer players’ higher executive functions was in general 2 standard deviations above the normal population. It was the same for both men and women. Moreover, we also found a strong correlation between the capacities of higher executive functions and the number of goals and assists the player made after two and a half year. In our new study we were interested in how the situation is at a younger age, from twelve to nineteen years of age. Because of the maturation of the brain, higher executive functions do not reach their full capacity before nineteen years of age. On basis of this, our question was whether there were other parts of the executive functions that correlated with success in soccer. In this new study, we focused on core executive functions like the working memory, as it reaches its full capacity in the early teens. We found that there was a moderate correlation with the accuracy of the working memory and the number of goals the junior elite players made during a period of two years. When we made a composite measurement of both the demanding working memory and the test for the capacity of the higher executive functions, we found a strong correlation between these results and the number of goals that the players made during the two years of time. When we measured IQ and physical features, like length, we found out that those did not influence the results. (more…)
Author Interviews, Gastrointestinal Disease, Infections, Microbiome, Rheumatology, Science / 11.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Randy Longman, M.D. / Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Medicine Jill Roberts Center and Institute for Research in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Weill Cornell Medicine Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Joan and Sanford I. Weill Department of Medicine Department of Microbiology and Immunology New York, NY 10021  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Inflammatory bowel disease is not limited to intestinal inflammation.  Up to 1/3 of patients with active disease suffer from extra-intestinal manifestations. The most common extra-intestinal manifestations in IBD is joint inflammation or spondyloarthritis.  Peripheral joint spondyloarthritis  carries a prevalence of 20% in Crohn’s Disease and 10% in Ulcerative Colitis, predominantly affecting joints of the lower limbs.  It has long been suggested that gut bacteria can drive this systemic joint inflammation, but microbial targets have not been characterized. (more…)
Author Interviews, CDC, Fertility, OBGYNE / 11.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Saswati Sunderam, PhD Division of Reproductive Health National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion CDC. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Assisted Reproductive Technology Surveillance – United States, 2014, the surveillance summary published this week in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), presents state-specific data on assisted reproductive technology (ART) use and outcomes. The report compares ART infant outcome data with outcomes for all infants born in the U.S. in 2014, and provides data on the contributions of  Assisted Reproductive Technology to total infants born, multiple birth infants, low birth weight infants, and preterm infants for each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. (more…)
AACR, Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Mammograms / 10.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Firas Dabbous, PhD Manager, Patient Centered Outcomes Research Russell Institute for Research & Innovation Advocate Lutheran General Hospital Park Ridge, IL  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: When women are told that there is something abnormal on their screening mammogram that can cause stress and worry while undergoing additional testing, even when they are later told that there is nothing wrong. We wanted to know if receiving a false positive screening mammogram would cause women to think twice before getting their next screening mammogram, and maybe delay coming back for their next screen. This is important because patients who have a false positive experience may have higher chance to develop breast cancer at a later point in time. Therefore, it is important to understand their screening patterns to better educate and inform them about the importance of adhering to mammography guidelines and emphasize the importance of returning on schedule for their next screens. (more…)
Allergies, Author Interviews, Dermatology, Pediatrics / 10.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Esther van Zuuren MD on behalf of the authors Department of Dermatology Leiden University Medical Center Leiden, Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: In view of the high prevalence of eczema and the exponential increase in number of clinical trials over recent years, the NIHR designated this clinical topic, emollients and moisturisers for eczema, as a high priority. Widely prescribed as the basis of eczema management the treatment strategy is often supported by a mixed array of reviews and guidelines. Evidence for the effectiveness of emollients and moisturisers is also of variable quality. Eczema is a chronic skin disorder, the main symptoms being dry skin and intense itching with a significant impact on quality of life. As dry skin is an important feature, moisturisers are a cornerstone of eczema treatment, but there was uncertainty about their efficacy and whether one moisturiser is preferable to another. The main finding of our review is that indeed moisturisers are effective. (more…)
Author Interviews, Critical Care - Intensive Care - ICUs, Pediatrics / 10.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Bobbi Pineda, PhD Assistant professor of occupational therapy and of pediatrics Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We published findings in 2014 from a study in which we investigated differences in outcome among preterm infants hospitalized in an open ward NICU compared to those hospitalized in a NICU private room.  In this study, we found that infants who were in the open ward had differences in brain structure by the time they were discharged from the hospital, and by age 2 years they had significantly better language outcomes than those in private rooms.  The study NICU is located in an urban area and cares for families who have a high risk of social challenges, resulting in rates of parent engagement that were not optimal.  However, such findings made us question if the sensory exposure, specifically auditory stimulation, may be significantly reduced in the private room and could explain our findings. (more…)
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Endocrinology, NIH / 10.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mihail Zilbermint, M.D. Endocrinologist, Office of the Scientific Director Mihail Zilbermint, M.D. Endocrinologist, Office of the Scientific Director Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development National Institutes of Health Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development National Institutes of Health  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Diagnosing Cushing Syndrome is often difficult and challenging.  Diagnosing hypercortisolemia, could require the use of a combination of any of these tests: 24-hour free urine cortisol monitoring, an overnight dexamethasone suppression test, and measurement of late night salivary cortisol.  Cortisol levels may change daily, requiring that testing be repeated.  Undiagnosed and untreated Cushing Syndrome greatly increases morbidity and mortality risk. Cortisol levels can be detected in hair samples.  Much like hemoglobin A1C is a long-term indicator of blood glucose levels, efforts have been made to determine if hair cortisol could serve as a long-term measure of the body’s glucocorticoid levels.  We sought to compare the results of cortisol levels for Cushing Syndrome patients with data from data on cortisol in hair segments, to gain further information on the role of sampling hair cortisol as an initial or supportive method for diagnosing Cushing Syndrome. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Genetic Research, Hearing Loss, Nature / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gwenaelle Geleoc, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Otolaryngology F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School Boston, MA MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We seek to develop gene therapy to restore auditory and balance function in a mouse model of Usher syndrome. Usher syndrome is a rare genetic disorder which causes deafness, progressive blindness and in some cases balance deficits. We used a novel viral vector developed by Luk Vandenberghe and package gene sequences encoding for Ush1c and applied it to young mice suffering from Usher syndrome. These mice mimic a mutation found in patients of Acadian descent. We assessed recovery of hearing and balance function in young adult mice which had received the treatment. Otherwise deaf and dizzy, we found that the treated mice had recovered hearing down to soft sounds equivalent to a whisper and normal balance function. (more…)
Author Interviews, Infections, Pharmacology / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Fernanda Buzzola IMPaM, UBA-CONICET MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Staphylococcus aureus represents a serious problem to public health due to methicillin-resistance and the bacterial persistence over a long period of time in the host. Approximately the 20% of the human population is at risk to acquire an endogenous infection by S. aureus as a consequence of its asymptomatic nasal colonization. Aspirin, the main source of salicylic acid in the human host, is currently taken by millions of human beings worldwide without medical prescription and widely indicated for defined purposes, including prevention of coronary thrombosis. Salicylic acid is a plant hormone known too for its use as a key ingredient in anti-acne preparations and medications for skin conditions. We also consume mild doses of salicylic acid when we eat fruits and vegetables. Iron is an important trace element for the human body and plays an essential role in blood formation. The metabolism of many bacteria, including S. aureus, also depends on the availability of iron molecules. Salicylic acid forms complexes with iron ions in the blood and so deprives not only us but also the staphylococcal bacteria of this element. S. aureus modifies its metabolism if the iron content is insufficient. The microorganism reacts to the changed – from its perspective, negative – conditions through the intensified formation of a biofilm, a sort of layer of slime formed by the aggregation of individual bacteria. The enhanced biofilm production allows the bacteria to survive for an even longer period under unfavourable living conditions. (more…)
Author Interviews, Psychological Science, Technology / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lazaros Gonidis PhD candidate Postgraduate Researcher University of Kent MedicalResearch.com: In general, why do we tend to underestimate time when we are distracted versus when we are doing something boring? Is the adage that “time flies when you’re having fun” true? Response:  In order to be accurate at time “keeping” we need to attend to it. Anything that distracts us makes us less accurate, and to be more specific, it makes us underestimate the duration of events. In simple terms when we experience an event that last 10 minutes a distraction could make it feel like 5 minutes. On the other hand when we are bored, let’s say during a non-interesting event, we tend to focus more on time keeping looking forward for the event to finish. In this case we would overestimate the event and 10 minutes could feel like 15 minutes. (more…)
Author Interviews, Hip Fractures, NYU, Orthopedics / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Afshin E. Razi MD Clinical Assistant Professor NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases Department of Orthopaedic Surgery New York, N.Y. 10016 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We did an extensive literature search and through our two previous seminars on this topic we were able to gather information to aid our colleagues on best ways of differentiating causes of hip and back pain. As an orthopaedic surgeon specializing in spine surgery I encounter many patients who present with concomitant back and hip pain. Many of these patients are also referred to me by surgeons who solely take care of hip problems such as total hip replacement or sport medicine specialist who treat younger patients with hip pain. It can be very difficult to properly diagnose the main issue and as such some patients go on to have unnecessary treatments, including surgery, because of their persistent symptoms. It was our goal to try to educate physicians, including orthopaedic surgeons, on the common differential diagnoses, appropriate clinical history and physical examination, diagnostic tools and their evaluations appropriately, as well as treatment options and priorities of which one to be treated first. More recently, it has been noted that some patients who have undergone total hip replacement with significant curvature of the spine had postoperative dislocation of the hip after reconstruction of the spinal malalignment. This article also talks about this newly seen problem. (more…)
Author Interviews, CDC, Gender Differences, HIV, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Donna Hubbard McCree, PhD MPH, RPh Association Director for Health Equity/Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: HIV diagnosis rates among women declined 40% between 2005 and 2014 with the largest decline, 42%, occurring in black women. However, in 2015 black women represented 61% of HIV diagnoses among women. Our goal in this analysis was to determine whether the decline resulted in a decrease in the disparities among African American, Hispanic and white women between 2010 and 2014. There is currently not a standard method for measuring HIV-related disparity. However, for this analysis we used three different measures – the absolute rate difference (the difference between the group with the lowest rate and the group with the highest rate); 2) the diagnosis disparity ratio (the ratio of the difference between the group rate and the overall population rate to the overall rate); and 3) the Index of Disparity (the average of the differences between rates for specific groups and the total rate divided by the total rate, expressed as a percentage). The absolute rate difference between black women and white women decreased annually, from 36.9 in 2010 to 28.3 in 2014. The diagnosis disparity ratio for black women compared to the total population decreased from 1.7 in 2010 to 1.2 in 2014. The Index of Disparity increased during 2010–2011, and then decreased each year during 2012–2014. Although disparities still exist, these findings indicate improvement. (more…)
Author Interviews, Mental Health Research, Pediatrics, Technology / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Christopher J. Ferguson PhD Professor of Psychology Stetson University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The degree to which screen time influences youth across a variety of behavioral outcomes has been a source of debate and contention for decades. For many years the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended to parents that they allow older children no more than 2 hours of screen time per day. However, this number was never clearly based on good data. And in 2014 one study (Przybylski, 2014 in Pediatrics) suggested that ties between screen time and behavioral outcomes were very weak, and only seen for the most extreme screen users. So I was curious to see if these results would replicate for a large sample of US youth. (more…)
Author Interviews, Lung Cancer, PLoS / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kevin ten Haaf MSc Scientific researcher, Public Health Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Lung cancer screening is currently recommended in the United States, for persons aged 55 through 80 who smoked at least 30 pack-years (the average number of cigarettes smoked per day multiplied by the number of years the person has smoked) and who currently smoke or have quit within the last 15 years. Other countries, such as Canada, are investigating the feasibility of implementing lung cancer screening policies. However, the cost-effectiveness of lung cancer screening in a population-based setting is uncertain. Concerns have been raised on the feasibility of implementing lung cancer screening policies, especially with regards to the potential costs. In this study, the benefits, harms and costs of implementing lung cancer screening in the province of Ontario, Canada were assessed. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Heart Disease, PNAS, UT Southwestern / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lawrence Lum, Ph.D. Associate Professor Virginia Murchison Linthicum Scholar in Medical Research UT Southwestern Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Scarring of the adult heart due to excessive fibrotic responses is common after a heart attack, or following radiation therapy for the treatment of certain cancers. We have identified an anti-cancer agent currently in clinical development called WNT-974 that decreases fibrotic responses and improves heart function following myocardial infarction in mice. This unexpected observation was the outcome of a study focused on identifying unwanted adult tissue toxicities associated with this class of chemicals. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cognitive Issues, Gender Differences, Hip Fractures, Orthopedics / 09.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ann L. Gruber-Baldini, Ph.D. Professor, Division of Gerontology Director, Program in Epidemiology and Human Genetics Department of Epidemiology & Public Health University of Maryland School of Medicine  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: While men make up only about 25% of all hip fractures, the number of men who fracture their hip is increasing and we know men are more likely to die than women after a hip fracture. It is also known that those with cognitive impairments, typically due to delirium and Alzheimer's disease and related dementia, are more likely to do more poorly after the fracture. The impact of both sex and cognition on outcomes after hip fracture has not been fully explored. (more…)
Addiction, Author Interviews, Pediatrics / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kristi Roberts, M.S., M.P.H. Research Project Coordinator Center for Injury Research and Policy Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus, Ohio  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
  • We know that 74.1 million US households own at least one pet and one-half of households have a child age 19 years or younger living in the home so there is a potential for unintentional pediatric exposure to pet medication.
  • We realize that pets are common and an important part of families, especially those with young children. However, pets often require medications to keep them healthy and these medications could be dangerous to a child if the child is exposed (gets a hold of or swallows the medicine).
  • We looked at 15 years’ worth of data and found that over 1,400 children were exposed to a veterinary pharmaceutical product. That is about 95 each year or 2 children every week that are being exposure to medications intended for pets.
  • Children under 5 years old are the age group most frequently exposed to medications intended for pets. These young children typically ate or swallowed the medication after they found it when climbing on the counter or while the parent was trying to give the medication to a pet. Most of the calls were for medications intended for dogs.
  • Teenagers were also exposed to medications intended for pets but for different reasons. Many teens mistakenly took pet medication instead of human medication.
  • The majority of exposures occurred at home (96%) and were not expected to result in long-term or long-lasting health effects (97%).
  • While many people don’t think of their pet’s medication as harmful some medications, both human and veterinary, could be highly dangerous even at low dosages, especially for small children.
(more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Brain Injury / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Julianne Schmidt, PhD, ATC Assistant Professor Department of Kinesiology The University of Georgia Athens GA MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Less than half of all people with a concussion intend to reduce their driving at any point. Current recommendations surrounding concussion focus on when it is safe to return to sport or return to the classroom, but return to driving is usually ignored and has not been studied. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Orthopedics, Pain Research, Surgical Research / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jonas Bloch Thorlund Associate Professor (MSc, PhD) Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics Research Unit for Musculoskeletal Function and Physiotherapy University of Southern Denmark MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Arthroscopic partial meniscectomy is a very common knee surgery. Research evidence has seriously questioned the effect of this type of surgery for degenerative meniscal tears in middle-aged and older patients. Most young patients with traumatic meniscal injury (from sports or similar) also undergo this type of surgery. There is a general understanding that young patients with traumatic tears experience larger improvements in patient reported pain, function and quality of life. However, evidence for this presumption is sparse. (more…)
Author Interviews, Endocrinology, JCEM, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Alfonso Abizaid PhD Department of Neuroscience Carleton University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a compound considered to be a potential environmental hazard and an endocrine disruptor. We have found an association between exposure to BPA at levels that are considered safe by Health Canada and the EPA early in life, and the development of obesity. In addition, we found that this propensity to develop obesity is due to under development of the hypothalamic projection field of POMC neurons, a set of neurons that regulate satiety and stimulate metabolic rate. In this paper we replicate those findings and also show that this abnormal development is due to BPA altering the secretion of the hormone leptin at critical times where this hormone is important for the post-natal development of these POMC neurons. (more…)
Asthma, Author Interviews, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elina Jerschow, M.D., M.Sc., FAAAAI, FACAAI Associate Professor of Medicine, Allergy/ Immunology Division Director, Drug Allergy Center Montefiore Medical Center The University Hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine Bronx, New York 10461 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Asthma prevalence varies across and within countries, and markedly increased rates of asthma have been observed in recent decades. Recent time-trends may be attributed to increased urbanization and dissemination of a Western lifestyle. In the US, asthma disproportionally affects African-Americans and Hispanics/Latinos living in urban areas. Among Hispanics/Latinos, asthma prevalence varies from 5.7 % for Mexicans/Mexican-Americans to 16.5% for Puerto Ricans. Besides national background, US nativity, longer duration of US residence, and having one or two parents born in the US have been previously reported as acculturation-related risk factors for asthma in foreign born children. Asthma prevalence was also higher in foreign-born Latinos who relocated to the US as children. (more…)
Asthma, Author Interviews, Infections, Pediatrics / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Hiroyuki Mochizuki, M.D., Ph.D. Professor & Chairman Department of Pediatrics Tokai University School of Medicine Japan MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: My major is allergy and respiratory health of children. By this examination, we wanted to know the true influence of respiratory syncytial virus infection on childhood atopic asthma. We have confirmed that infantile asthma is heterogenic, and at least two kinds of phenotypes are present. (more…)
Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Richard Miech Institute for Social Research University of Michigan MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The main finding of this study is that teen vaping predicts future smoking.  We surveyed a nationally-representative sample of 12th graders in 2014 and then re-surveyed them a year later.  We found:
  • Among teens who had never smoked at baseline, those who vaped were more than four times more likely to have smoked a year later than those who didn't vape
  • Among teens who were former smokers at baseline, those who vaped were more than twice as likely to have smoked a year later than those who didn't vape
  • Among teens who were current smokers at baseline, smoking levels a the one-year followup were the same for vapers and non-vapers.
(more…)
Author Interviews, End of Life Care, JAMA / 08.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nathan A. Gray, M.D. Duke Palliative Care Durham, NC 27710 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The estimated number of undocumented immigrants living in the United States has been stable in recent years, but lengths of residence in the country are rising. This aging population of undocumented immigrants can expect to face an increasing burden of chronic disease and end-of-life needs, but may experience challenges in obtaining hospice care in the last months of life as many are uninsured and none are eligible for the Medicare Hospice Benefit. While hospice agencies do provide charity care, little is known about hospice agency approaches to caring for undocumented immigrants. We surveyed a national sample of hospice agencies and found that many hospice agencies do not enroll undocumented immigrants or place restrictions on the number enrolled. More than half of agencies sampled had received requests for enrollment of undocumented immigrants in the past year. Offering unrestricted enrollment was more common among larger, not-for-profit hospices in our sample. (more…)