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Author Interviews, Critical Care - Intensive Care - ICUs, Genetic Research, Infections, JAMA / 17.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: QiPing Feng, PhD Division of Clinical Pharmacology Department of Medicine Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, Tennessee MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Sepsis is one of the leading causes of hospital mortality. Yet, there are no specific effective treatments for it. Recent information suggests that drugs that inhibit proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin type 9 (PCSK9) could have potential as a new treatment for sepsis. We used a genetic approach to test if variation in PCSK9 affected the risk of sepsis. In patients admitted to hospital with infection, neither variants in the PCSK9 gene nor predicted expression of PCSK9 were associated with risk of sepsis or poorer outcomes after sepsis.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Gender Differences, HPV / 16.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Ashish A. Deshmukh UT Health School of Public Health Houston MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The HPV vaccination is recommended for females and males for prevention of 6 cancers (cervical, oropharyngeal, anal, penile, vaginal, and vulvar). Nearly 43,000 HPV-associated cancer cases are diagnosed every year in the US. Yet, it is extremely unfortunate and something that continues to bother us that HPV vaccination coverage remains low (50% in 2018) in the US and completion rate is nearly 5% lower in boys. Different from some industrialized nations where vaccination policy is school-based, vaccination policy in the US is clinic-based and parents are generally responsible for making vaccination decisions for their children. Generally, there are two main factors that drive parents’ decision-making: (1) how much knowledge they have of HPV and (2) recommendation from a healthcare professional. We analyzed the National Cancer Institute’s Health Information National Trend Survey (HINTS) of over 6000 participants focusing on their knowledge of HPV and HPV vaccination and whether participants received any vaccination recommendation from their health care provider.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Infections, Pediatrics / 16.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Carrie C. Coughlin, MD Member of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology Assistant Professor, Dermatology Departments of Medicine and Pediatrics Washington University School of Medicine / St. Louis Children's Hospital   Cristopher C. Briscoe, MD Dermatology Resident, PGY-2 Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis    MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Briscoe: Superinfection of atopic dermatitis (AD) in pediatric patients is a common complication. Our study sought to determine the best empiric antibiotic choice for these patients while a bacterial culture is pending. We retrospectively analyzed 182 skin cultures from pediatric atopic dermatitis patients seen in the outpatient setting over five years and found that 170 (93.4%) grew Staphylococcus aureus. Of these, 130 (76.5%) grew methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA), 37 (21.8%) grew methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), and 3 (1.8%) grew both MSSA and MRSA. There was no statistically significant relationship between age, sex, race, or dilute bleach bath usage and MRSA infection. Interestingly, as compared to a separate group of pediatric atopic dermatitis patients seen in the emergency room, our patients had lower rates of MSSA susceptibility to doxycycline and MRSA susceptibility to TMP-SMX. (more…)
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, Environmental Risks, Gastrointestinal Disease / 14.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Philipp Schwabl, MD Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Department of Internal Medicine III Medical University of Vienna Vienna, Austria MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There is a lot of research published about microplastics being present in the ocean and subsequently also being found in the gut of sea animals, however there were no investigations if also humans involunterily ingest microplastics. This gave us rationale to perform a pilot study. (more…)
Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, Obstructive Sleep Apnea / 13.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mireia Dalmases Cleries, MD Hospital Universitari Arnau de Vilanova and Santa Maria Group of Translational Research in Respiratory Medicine Lleida, Cataluña, Spain MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Obstructive sleep apnea has been associated with poor blood pressure control and resistant hypertension. Moreover, it has been described that its treatment with continuous positive pressure (CPAP) could be an effective means of controlling blood pressure in this population. Nevertheless, studies assessing OSA prevalence, characteristics and association with blood pressure control in resistant hypertensive patients are limited and that’s the reason why we decided to perform this study. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Pediatrics / 13.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elizabeth Walshe, PhD Research Post-Doctoral Fellow Center for Injury Research and Prevention (CIRP) Children's Hospital of Philadelphia   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Motor vehicle crashes are a major public health concern and are the leading cause of death for adolescents in the US and other countries. Much of the research into why young driver crash rates are so high has focused on the role of driving experience and skills. But even among equally novice drivers, crash risk is still higher for younger novice drivers (17 year old new drivers have a higher crash risk than 20 year old new drivers). This suggests that crashes are related to development, and this is the focus of our research. We know from the field of neuroscience that the frontal lobe of the brain is still developing across adolescence and into adulthood along with some cognitive abilities. One of these cognitive abilities, called working memory is particularly important for managing complex tasks, such as driving. It allows us to monitor and update information in the moment (e.g. monitor and update information about the environment and the vehicle), and attend to multiple subtasks simultaneously (like multitasking to control the steering and speed, as well as other vehicle controls, perhaps while talking to a passenger or listening to the radio). Working memory has been shown to develop later, and at different rates for different people: some teens develop at a faster rate, and some teens develop a little later, even as late as the mid-twenties. In parallel, while crash rates are high for teen drivers, we also know that not all teen drivers crash. So what is it about those who do crash? Could this be related to their developing working memory? That question is what motivated this study. (more…)
Author Interviews, Emory, Heart Disease / 13.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Viola Vaccarino, MD, PhD Wilton Looney Professor and Chair in Cardiovascular Research Dept. of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health Professor, Dept. of Medicine, School of Medicine Emory University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Psychological stress has been linked to increased risk for cardiovascular disease. The mechanisms have not been clear. One hypothesis has been that chronic or repeated exposure to psychological stress can cause a phenomenon of “wear-and-tear” of the vascular system due to activation of the neuroendocrine stress systems, eventually leading to accelerated plaque formation and adverse cardiovascular events. However, this has never been demonstrated in humans. In some individuals, psychological stress can induce a transitory impairment of the endothelium, a phenomenon known as endothelial dysfunction. A healthy endothelium is essential in blood flow regulation and in maintaining cardiovascular health. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Cancer Research, Infections / 13.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Kai-feng Pan Director. Department of Cancer Epidemiology Peking University School of Oncology Beijing Cancer Hospital & Institute Peking University Cancer Hospital  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Based on a high-risk population in China, we have conducted a large randomized factorial-designed intervention trial (Shandong Intervention Trial) to examine the effect of short-term Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) treatment and 7.3-year vitamin and garlic supplementation on gastric cancer. During 14.7-years’ follow-up in the trial, 2-week treatment for H. pylori resulted in statistically significant reduction in gastric cancer incidence. Results for gastric cancer mortality and for the effects of garlic and vitamin supplementation, though promising, were not statistically significant. Longer follow-up was needed to determine whether the reductions in gastric cancer incidence from H. pylori treatment would persist and lead to a demonstrable reduction in gastric cancer mortality. It also remained unknown whether vitamin and garlic supplementation would yield a statistically significant reduction in gastric cancer incidence and mortality with additionally extended follow-up. In addition, the entire spectrum of effects of these interventions needs to be understood.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, JAMA, USPSTF / 12.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Carol Mangione, M.D., M.S.P.H., F.A.C.P. Division Chief of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research Professor of Medicine Barbara A. Levey, MD, and Gerald S. Levey, MD, endowed chair in Medicine David Geffen School of Medicine University of California Los Angeles Professor of public health at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We all want to find better ways to help prevent breast cancer, a disease that impacts the lives of too many women in the United States each year. Fortunately, the Task Force found there are steps that women at increased risk can take to reduce their chances of developing breast cancer. (more…)
Author Interviews, Ophthalmology, PLoS, Social Issues / 12.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Christopher W. Tyler D.Sc., PhD Division of Optometry and Vision Sciences School of Health Sciences City University of London London, United Kingdom MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The idea came from my previous  investigation of compositional regulates in paintings, which showed that there is a sense of balance  between symmetry and asymmetry in a composition, such that the asymmetry composition tends to appear more dynamic and interesting, but it needs to be anchored around a symmetric point for a comfortable sense of stability. That point in adult portraits tends to be the dominant eye, placed close to the centre line, but above the centre of the painting as a whole. Selfies are a fascinating art form and the lead author has published several papers on this topic from a cognitive neuroscience perspective. One fascinating feature of selfies is that they represent pseudo-artistic productions by individuals that do not generally have academic artistic training, making it interesting to compare them to self-portraits by real artists. If you then see the same phenomena, it is likely that these are rooted in our deep nature rather than on training and cultural conventions. (more…)
Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews, Memory, Pharmacology / 12.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: James O’Donnell, PhD Dean and professor Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy Ying Xu, MD, PhD Research associate professor University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical SciencesYing Xu, MD, PhD Research associate professor University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences     MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We have been studying cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase (PDE), an enzyme, for quite a while as a potential target for neuropsychiatric disease.  One aspect involves the effects of PDE inhibitors on memory.  This was prompted by our earlier finding that one form of the enzyme, PDE4, is in the NMDA receptor signaling pathway in neurons; this pathway has been implicated in memory.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA, MRI, Prostate Cancer, UCLA / 12.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rajiv Jayadevan, MD and  Leonard S. Marks, MD Department of Urology UCLA MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Men with low risk prostate cancer often enter “active surveillance” programs. These programs allow patients to defer definitive treatment (and avoid their associated side effects) until more aggressive disease is detected, if at all. Patients typically undergo a “confirmatory biopsy” 6 to 12 months after diagnosis to verify that their disease is low risk, and then undergo repeat biopsies every 1 to 2 years. These biopsies have traditionally been performed under the guidance of transrectal ultrasonography. Transrectal ultrasonography is unable to accurately visualize tumors within the prostate, necessitating that biopsy cores be obtained systematically from all parts of the prostate. MRI-ultrasonography fusion biopsy is a newer technology that has been shown to characterize biopsy findings more accurately than transrectal ultrasonography, leading to improved disease detection. This technology also allows us to visualize tumors within the prostate, and directly target these tumors during a biopsy session. (more…)
Author Interviews, Pain Research, Rheumatology / 12.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: W. Benjamin Nowell, Ph.D. Director of Patient-Centered Research CreakyJoints, Principal Investigator of ArthritisPower MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Over the past fifteen years, the treatment options for people diagnosed and living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have grown. There are now many medications (particularly biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, or bDMARDs) proven to improve disease symptoms and immune system over activity, thereby reducing inflammation and joint damage. The American College of Rheumatology recommends a treat-to-target approach, which has the patient and rheumatologist setting goals for treatment effectiveness and making adjustments over time to meet those goals. This study aimed to determine if rheumatoid arthritis patients are satisfied with their treatment. The goal of this study was to identify the following: patients’ satisfaction with current RA treatment, the current unmet needs perceived by patients with rheumatoid arthritis in the United States, the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis that are most bothersome to patients, and the impact of symptoms on function and quality of life that may lead patients to need alternative treatments.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Social Issues / 11.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Heather Tulloch, C. Psych Clinical, Health, and Rehabilitation Psychologist Division of Cardiac Prevention and Rehabilitation Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine University of Ottawa Heart Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: It is well established that many caregivers experience distress when caring for a loved one with cardiovascular disease. For example, over 40% of caregivers in Ontario, Canada, report high psychological, emotional, physical, social, and emotional stresses imposed by the caregiving role. Ironically, caregivers are vulnerable to developing their own poor cardiovascular health. For example, chronic stress brought on by a caregiving role increases caregivers’ cardiovascular reactivity (i.e., blood pressure, heart rate) and impaired endothelial function. Many caregivers also report poor preventative health behaviours and low quality of life scores. (more…)
Author Interviews, Emory, Health Care Systems, JAMA, Kidney Disease, Transplantation / 11.09.2019

 A retraction and replacement have been issued due to a major coding error that resulted in the reporting of incorrect data in this study surrounding the difference in transplant rates between for-profit and non-profit dialysis centers. Please see link below:

Bauchner H, Flanagin A, Fontanarosa PB. Correcting the Scientific Record—Retraction and Replacement of a Report on Dialysis Ownership and Access to Kidney Transplantation. JAMA. 2020;323(15):1455. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.4368

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rachel Patzer, PhD, MPH Associate Professor Director, Health Services Research Center Department of Medicine Department of Surgery Emory University School of Medicine   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We know that historically, for-profit dialysis facilities have been shown to have lower rates of kidney transplantation than patients who receive treatment in non-profit dialysis facilities. However, these studies are outdated, and did not examine access to living donor transplantation or include the entirety of the end-stage kidney disease population  (more…)
AstraZeneca, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Diabetes, Heart Disease / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. David Berg MD Senior Fellow in Cardiovascular Medicine and Critical Care Medicine Brigham and Women’s Hospital Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the TIMI Study Group. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Heart failure is a frequent and important complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), but there are limited tools for identifying which patients with T2DM are at the highest risk of developing heart failure. In this study, we developed and validated the TIMI Risk Score for Heart Failure in Diabetes [TRS-HF(DM)], a novel clinical risk score that identifies patients with T2DM who are at heightened risk for hospitalization due to heart failure. Fortunately, the risk score also identifies patients who have the greatest absolute reduction in the risk of hospitalization for heart failure with a new class of glucose-lowering therapies called sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors.  (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Heart Disease, Sleep Disorders / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Nadine Häusler Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine University Hospital of Lausanne Lausanne, Switzerland MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There are controversial results regarding the effect of napping on cardiovascular disease (CVD) exist i.e. some studies report adverse effects of napping whereas other find beneficial effects of napping on CVD. Most studies compare nappers to non-nappers or study nap duration but neglect to take the frequency of napping into account. Moreover, studies measure naps in a different way, study different populations and include different confounders, which makes it hard to compare the results. Thus, we aimed to study the association between CVD and napping as a more holistic behavior i.e. not just the duration but also the frequency of napping. (more…)
Author Interviews, Flu - Influenza, Genetic Research, PNAS / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jacob S. Yount, PhD Associate Professor Department of Microbial Infection and Immunity The Ohio State University, College of Medicine Co-Director, Viruses and Emerging Pathogens Program OSU Infectious Diseases Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Genetic defects in a human protein known as IFITM3 are linked to hospitalization and death upon influenza virus infections.  IFITM3 is an immune system protein that can inhibit virus entry into cells and it is produced as an early response to virus infections.  In order to better study the role of IFITM3 during infections, we engineered a mouse model that lacks this protein.   (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Heart Disease, Red Meat, Stroke, Vegetarians / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Tammy Y N Tong PhD Cancer Epidemiology Unit Nuffield Department of Population Health University of Oxford, Oxford, UK MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Vegetarian and vegan diets have become increasingly popular in recent years, partly due to the perceived health benefits, but also concerns about the environment and animal welfare. However, the full extent of the potential health benefits and hazards of these diets is not well understood. Previous studies have suggested that vegetarians have a lower risk of coronary heart disease than non-vegetarians, but data from large studies are limited, and little has been reported on the difference in risk of stroke. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nariman Sepehrvand, MD Research Associate & PhD Candidate Canadian VIGOUR Centre, and Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada Medical Research: Can you tell us a little bit about the background of this study? Dr. Sepehrvand: As you know the traditional randomized clinical trials (RCT) have been criticized from time to time for the lack of generalizability, high costs and lengthy processes. Pragmatic trials with the primary goal of informing patients, clinicians, healthcare administrators and policy-makers about the effectiveness of biomedical and behavioral interventions have the potential to address those shortcomings by enrolling a population representative of the populations in which the intervention will be eventually applied to and by streamlining and simplifying the trial-related procedures. We knew about the challenges that trialists encounter in the design and implementation of pragmatic trials, so we were wondering how pragmatic or explanatory are cardiovascular (CV) RCTs and if there has been any change over time! (more…)
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, JAMA, Pediatrics / 09.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elizabeth D. Kantor, PhD MPH Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center NY, NY MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There has been recent interest in understanding how exposures in childhood and adolescence relate to later-life health outcomes. Although inflammation is thought to play a role in the etiology of various diseases, little is known about the long-term implications of inflammation in early life. We therefore sought to evaluate how erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), a marker of inflammation, measured among ostensibly healthy men in late adolescence, relates to subsequent cause-specific mortality. We found that men with high inflammation in late adolescence experienced increased mortality due to cancer and cardiovascular disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, Emergency Care, JAMA, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 09.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Amresh D Hanchate, PhD Research Assistant Professor Department of Medicine, School of Medicine Boston University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: National guidelines require EMS transportation to the nearest suitable hospital. To what extent this occurs and whether this varies by the race and ethnicity of the patient is unknown since there is little to no prior research on destination patterns of EMS-transported patients to hospitals. (more…)
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, University of Pennsylvania / 09.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jordana Cohen, MD, MSCE Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology Renal-Electrolyte and Hypertension Division Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics Perelman School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: In the June 18, 2019 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, we published a systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating the cardiovascular risks of white coat hypertension (WCH; i.e. elevated office blood pressure and normal out-of-office blood pressure). The goal of the meta-analysis was to clarify previous mixed results regarding the risks of untreated WCH and treated WCH. The meta-analysis examined 27 studies – including 64,273 patients – and demonstrated that untreated WCH is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events (36%), all-cause mortality (33%), and cardiovascular mortality (109%) compared to normotension. This risk was strongest in studies with a mean age ≥55 years or that included participants with cardiac risk factors, such as diabetes and chronic kidney disease. We found no increased cardiovascular risk associated with treated white coat hypertension. (more…)
Author Interviews, Genetic Research / 09.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Dominic Furniss, DM MA MBBCh FRCS Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology, and Musculoskeletal Science University of Oxford MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We knew that there was a genetic component to handedness. Twin studies estimated that around 25% of the variation in handedness seen in the human population is down to genetic factors. Genetic factors associated with left handedness had been shown in specific patient populations, but this study has found factors in the general population and correlated them with functional brain imaging to shed more light on this fascinating subject. We have used both genetic and imaging data from the UK Biobank study to discover genetic variants that are related to left handedness. We have correlated these variants with changes in brain imaging, in particular showing increased functional connectivity between the language processing areas of the brain in left handers. The genetic variants that are associated with left handedness are also near to genes involved in forming the internal skeleton of neurons, and important in brain development, suggesting that being left handed is in part caused by a difference in brain development. It is clear, however, that there are also many non-genetic influences on whether a person is left handed or not. In addition, we confirmed previous observations that being left handed is associated with other neurological problems, such as schizophrenia, and protective of others, such as Parkinson's disease, and showed that this is related to shared genetic factors, and likely reflects differences in brain development.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Clots - Coagulation, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Lancet / 08.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Deepak L. Bhatt, MD, MPH, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI, FESC Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Executive Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Programs, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Heart & Vascular Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) is known to improve outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS), prior myocardial infarction (MI), or recent coronary stenting. What was unknown is whether patients with diabetes and stable coronary artery disease – a group generally believed to be at high ischemic risk – would benefit from initiation of long-term DAPT with low-dose aspirin plus ticagrelor versus low-dose aspirin (plus placebo). This is what THEMIS was designed to test, with THEMIS-PCI designed prospectively to examine those patients specifically who had a history of previous percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Occupational Health / 07.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rachel Zeig-Owens, Dr.P.H., MPH FDNY Research Assistant Professor Albert Einstein Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Response: We found that the most exposed members, those who arrived first at the World Trade Center (WTC ) site—when the air-borne dust was thickest—have a 44% increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) compared to those who arrived later in the day. This is a level risk that was similar to other known risk factors for CVD.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Global Health, Mental Health Research, Pain Research, Psychological Science / 07.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dimitris Xygalatas, PhD Assistant Professor, Anthropology (Affiliate) Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP) UCONN MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Ever since I was a graduate student, I have been intrigued by the performance of ritual practices that involve pain, bodily harm, and other forms of suffering. These rituals carry obvious risks, including health risks, but despite these risks they are performed voluntarily by millions of people around the world. And even more intriguing is the fact that in various contexts such rituals are often culturally prescribed remedies for a variety of maladies. When I was doing my doctoral fieldwork, I studied the fire-walking rituals of the Anastenaria in Northern Greece, and I heard several people describing their experience of participation as one that involved both suffering and healing. And of course I am not the first anthropologist to document this link. But these observations seemed puzzling to me. Some years later, I met one of the co-authors of this paper, Sammyh Khan, who was asking very similar questions. We got a grant to design this study, and put together a team of researchers that spent two months in the field collecting data for this project. We studied the Hindu kavadi ritual, which involves piercing the body with numerous needles, hooks, and skewers, and various other forms of suffering. Our study took place in the island of Mauritius, where I have been conducting research over the last decade, but this ceremony is performed by millions of Hindus around the world. We used portable health monitors as well as interviews and survey instruments to document the effects of this ritual of psycho-physiological health and wellbeing.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Health Care Systems / 06.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Vivian Ho, PhD The James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics Director of the Center for Health and Biosciences Rice's Baker Institute for Public Policy MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: In 2003, approximately 29% of U.S. hospitals employed physicians, a number that rose to 42% by 2012. The share of physician practices owned by hospitals rose from 14% in 2012 to 29% in 2016. Economists refer to these relationships between hospitals and physicians as vertical integration, because they represent hospitals exerting more control over physicians as an essential part of inpatient care. As hospitals gain more control over physicians, they may incentivize delivery of more services but not necessarily higher quality care. When we launched this study, we hypothesized that tighter integration of physicians with hospitals would improve care coordination. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Heart Disease / 06.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jose Carlos Nicolau, MD PhD Heart Institute University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, Brazil  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There are few evidence about the late phase (1-3 years) of patients with diabetes and myocardial infarction, especially regarding quality of life (qol) and health resource utilization. Our study showed that the population with diabetes (dm), compared with the population without diabetes, have worse quality of life, more hospitalizations, and when hospitalized showed a longer hospital stay. Additionally, as expected, dm population have worse outcomes, including the composite of cv death, myocardial infarction or stroke, and all-cause death. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Heart Disease / 06.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. John McMurray Professor of Cardiology Institute of Cardiovascular & Medical Sciences University of Glasgow MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: SGLT2 inhibitors prevent the development of heart failure (HF) in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) – can they be used to treat patients with established heart failure? Also, although introduced as a glucose-lowering treatment for T2D, experimental evidence suggests these drugs may have non-glucose mediated benefits. So, might they be a treatment for HF even in patients without diabetes?  (more…)