Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Farhad Islami, MD PhD Scientific Director, Surveillance Research American Cancer Society, Inc. Atlanta, GA 30303  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Despite a continuous decline in cervical cancer incidence rates, earlier studies reported an increase in cervical adenocarcinoma incidence rates. However, those reports had major limitations, as they did not account for changes in hysterectomy prevalence and used cancer occurrence data covering only 10%-12% of the U.S. population (which may not be representative of the entire population, especially racial/ethnic minorities). Further, the most recent study examined the trends by age and histology through 2010. We examined contemporary trends in cervical cancer incidence rates in the U.S. (1999-2015) by age, race/ethnicity, major histological subtypes, and stage at diagnosis using up-to-date nationwide data after accounting for hysterectomy prevalence. (more…)
Author Interviews, Nature, Neurological Disorders, Nursing / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elsa F. Fouragnan PhD School of Psychology (Faculty of Health and Human Sciences) University of Plymouth MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Counterfactual thinking is a psychological process that involves the tendency to create possible alternatives to life events that are currently happening. It is very important because it gives us the ability to switch away from uninteresting activities if better ones become available. For example, if you are working or doing the housework, you may be thinking about gardening or watching a movie later. As soon as your duties are finished, you may engage in these more exciting activities. In our study, macaque monkeys were tasked to find treats under several colored cups (on a screen). Some of these cups were better than others but were not always available, thus the animals had to retain what they had learnt about the good cups in case they became available again. We found that a frontal part of the brain called the anterior cingulate cortex was responsible for tracking which cups were the best in order to efficiently switch to them if the opportunity arose. If this part of the brain was not functioning properly, then animals were stuck in non-optimal choices. To reveal the causal role of the anterior cingulate cortex, we used a new neurostimulation method called low-intensity repetitive ultrasound to modulates activity in this part of the brain with millimetre accuracy. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, JAMA, Technology / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Associate Professor Josip Car MD, PhD, DIC, MSc, FFPH, FRCP (Edin)​ Associate Professor of Health Services Outcomes Research,​ Director, Health Services Outcomes Research Programme and Director Centre for Population Health Sciences Principal Investigator, Population Health & Living Laboratory  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: In 2018, almost 8% of people with diabetes who owned a smartphone used a diabetes app to support self-management. Currently, most apps are not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We downloaded and assessed 371 diabetes self-management apps, to see if they provided evidence-based decision support and patient education.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Endocrinology, Gender Differences, Social Issues / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Eider Pascual-Sagastizabal, PhD Professor of Evolutionary Psychology and Education University School of Education of Bilbao (Leioa) University of the Basque Country  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The search for markers of aggression during childhood is a particularly relevant area of research, since the results of intervention and prevention during this developmental stage are more promising than those obtained during later stages. The psychobiological approach to aggressive behavior is of particular importance, as it analyzes the joint, interactive influence of both psychological and biological variables. We have found that there are different interactions on a biological and psychological level that could account for aggressive behavior in children. More deeply, empathy and hormones could together account for aggressive behavior. In fact, the interactions were different for boys and for girls.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Genetic Research / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rachid Karam, PhD Director, Ambry Translational Genomics Lab Ambry Genetics  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: DNA genetic testing (DGT) for hereditary cancer genes is now a well accepted clinical practice; however, the interpretation of DNA variation remains a challenge to laboratories and medical providers. RNA genetic testing (RGT) as a supplement to DGT is a means to clarify the clinical actionability of variants in hereditary cancer genes, improving our ability to accurately apply known strategies for cancer risk reduction. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brain Injury, Stem Cells, Surgical Research, University of Pittsburgh / 18.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. David Okonkwo, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Neurological surgery Director of the Neurotrauma Clinical Trials Center University of Pittsburgh Dr. Okonkwo discusses the results from the STEMTRA Phase 2 trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of SB623 in patients with chronic motor deficit from traumatic brain injury. The results were presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), April 2019 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of death and disability in the US and around the globe. The effects of TBI are often long-lasting, with more than one-third of severe TBI patients displaying a neuromotor abnormality on physical examination 2 years following injury and, yet, there are no effective treatments. The public health implications are staggering: there are approximately 1.4 million new cases of TBI in the US annually, resulting in over 50,000 deaths and 80,000 disabilities; over 5 million Americans currently suffer from long-term disability caused by TBI. A successful neuroregenerative or neurorestorative therapy, such as stem cell implantation, would have significant impact. (more…)
Author Interviews, Memory, NIH, Sleep Disorders / 17.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Leonardo G. Cohen, M.D., Ph.D., Senior Investigator Marlene Bönstrup, M.D., Postdoctoral fellow in  Dr. Cohen's lab NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Learning a new skill is typically divided into online (during practice) and offline (after practice has ended) components. Particularly motor skill learning occurs to a considerable degree offline, meaning that performance further improves even after practice has ended. A single practice session itself however, is typically divided into short (level of seconds) periods of practice and rest. In this study, we set out to investigate the contribution of those short periods of practice and rest to the learning during a practice session (i.e. online learning). We found that during early motor skill learning, when most of the total learning occurs, performance improvements actually precipitate during short periods of rest whereas during practice periods, performance mostly stagnated. We found a signature of neural activity predictive of those performance improvements during rest: The lower the beta rhythmic activity in the parietofrontal regions of the brain during those short periods of rest, the higher were participant’s performance jumps.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Lifestyle & Health, Red Meat / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Heli Virtanen, PhD Student University of Eastern Finland  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Optimal amount of protein in diet for supporting longevity is unclear. In addition, there have been indications that different protein sources have differential associations with mortality risk.  Thus, we investigated the associations of proteins and protein sources with mortality risk in the Finnish men of the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Lipids, Stroke / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Pamela M. Rist, ScD Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital, Division of Preventive Medicine Boston, MA 02215  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Although hypercholesterolemia is a risk factor for ischemic stroke, some prior studies have observed an inverse association between total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and risk of hemorrhagic stroke.  However, many studies were not able to study this association specifically among women. Our main result was very low levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol or low levels of triglycerides were associated with an increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke among women. (more…)
Addiction, Author Interviews, Education, Mental Health Research / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lina Begdache, PhD, RDN, CDN, CNS-S, FAND Assistant Professor Health and Wellness Studies Department GW 15 Decker School of Nursing Binghamton University  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: College students engage in activities such as binge drinking, abuse of ADHD medications as "study drugs" or use of illicit drugs during a critical brain developmental window that supports maturation of the brain (the prefrontal cortex) necessary for emotional control, cognitive functions and regulation of impulsive behaviors. These activities not only affect brain function, thus mental health and cognitive functions, but may dampen brain development with potential long-lasting effects. As for findings, we were able to identify neurobehavioral patterns that associate with mental wellbeing and mental distress in young adults. Based on evidence from the literature, we constructed conceptual models that describe how one behavior may lead to another until virtuous or vicious cycles set-in.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Mental Health Research, Vanderbilt / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lauren Gaydosh, PhD Assistant Professor Center for Medicine, Health, and Society Public Policy Studies Vanderbilt University  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: Several years ago, life expectancy at birth in the United States declined, and this decline has continued every year since. Part of the cause underlying this decline is that midlife mortality – deaths among those 45-54 – has been rising. This increase in midlife mortality has been attributed by some to the “deaths of despair” – a cluster of causes of death including suicide, drug overdose, and alcohol-related disease - and has been most pronounced among middle-aged white adults with a HS degree or less. In our research, we wanted to better understand the indicators of despair that would be predictive of these causes of death. Things like depression, substance use, and suicidal ideation. And study them in individuals before the period of elevated risk of death – in other words, before they reached middle age. Our goal was to evaluate whether these markers of despair were rising for a younger cohort, and whether this pattern was isolated to white adults with low education. (more…)
Author Interviews / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Héctor Peinado PhD Microenvironment and Metastasis Laboratory Molecular Oncology Program Spanish National Cancer Research Center Madrid, Spain  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: In this study we detected for the first time BRAF mutation by liquid biopsy in melanoma stage III patients that underwent lymphadenectomy. We obtained a novel biofluid from the drainage implanted 24-48 hours post-lymphadenectomy, called exudative seroma, and profiled BRAF mutation in circulating free DNA and extracellular vesicles. Those patients positive for BRAF mutation in the seroma had increased risk of relapse, therefore we believe that this technique identifies patients at risk of relapse by identifying residual disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, Global Health, Infections / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lynn Meurs, PhD EPIET fellow at Robert Koch Institute European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control Germany MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: It is unknown how Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL) -producing bacteria are spread, but several studies have shown that intercontinental travellers often return home with these drug-resistant bacteria. The aim of our study was to investigate into more detail what causes colonisation with these bacteria in people travelling to low and/or middle-income countries  (LMICs) in the tropics and subtropics. We found that out of the travellers that were ESBL-negative before travelling, 23% of returned with ESBL-producing bacteria. In line with previous studies, we found that travelling to Eastern, Southern, and Western Asia is associated with ESBL colonisation. Unexpectedly, we furthermore found that staying in a hotel as well as in private accommodation as compared to other types of commercial accommodation such as hostels, camping or guesthouses, was associated with the colonisation with these drug-resistant bacteria. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cognitive Issues, Memory, University Texas / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman PhD Founder and Chief Director, Center for BrainHealth, Co-Leader, The BrainHealth Project University of Texas, Dallas MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Finding effective treatments to reverse or slow rates of cognitive decline for those at risk for developing dementia is one of the most important and urgent challenges of the 21st century. Brain stimulation is gaining attention as a viable intervention to increase neuroplasticity when used in isolation or when combined with cognitive training regimens. Given the growing evidence that certain cognitive training protocols, such as SMART, benefit people with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), a population that is vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease, we were interested in exploring whether we could further increase the gains from cognitive training (i.e., SMART) when the training was preceded by brain stimulation using tDCS.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Education, JAMA, University of Pennsylvania / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Krisda Chaiyachati, MD, MPH, MSHP Assistant Professor Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine Clinical Innovation Manager Penn's Center for Health Care Innovation Perelman School of Medicine Medical Director, Penn Medicine's FirstCall Virtual Care   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: The United States spends more than $12 billion annually on training young doctors who have rates of burnout and depression at an alarmingly high rate. Yet, we have limited evidence as to what they are doing while training in the hospital. We sought to glimpse into how their day is spent. In the largest study to date, we observed 80 first-year internal medicine physicians (“interns”) for nearly 2200 hours across 194 work shifts at 6 different sites. Our research sought to understand what medical residents did by categorizing training activities into themes such as time spent in education or patient care.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Hospital Readmissions, JAMA, Outcomes & Safety / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Karen Joynt Maddox, MD, MPH Assistant Professor of Medicine Washington University Brown School of Social Work  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Medicare’s Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program has been controversial, in part because until 2019 it did not take social risk into account when judging hospitals’ performance. In the 21st Century Cures Act, Congress required that CMS change the program to judge hospitals only against other hospitals in their “peer group” based on the proportion of their patients who are poor. As a result, starting with fiscal year 2019, the HRRP divides hospitals into five peer groups and then assesses performance and assigns penalties.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Gender Differences, JAMA, Surgical Research / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nelya Melnitchouk, MD,MSc Director, Program in Peritoneal Surface Malignancy, HIPEC Dr. Melnitchouk is an associate surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital (BWFH) and instructor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Current literature on women in surgery show that female physicians, particularly those in procedural specialties, face many challenges in balancing responsibilities between work and home. We hypothesized that these challenges may affect career satisfaction more negatively for physician mothers in procedural specialties than those in nonprocedural specialties. In our study, we found that physician mothers in procedural specialties who had more domestic responsibilities were more likely to report a desire to change careers than those in nonprocedural specialties.  (more…)
Author Interviews, HIV, Microbiome, PLoS, Sexual Health / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Brent E. Palmer, PhD Associate Professor of Medicine Director, ClinImmune and ACI/ID Flow Cytometry Facility Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology University of Colorado Anschutz Medical College Aurora, Colorado 80045  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Previous studies showed that in western populations, men who have sex with men (MSM) have a distinct gut microbiome composition when compared with men who have sex with women (MSW). We wanted to understand how these microbiome differences in MSM could impact their immune system. To test this, we transferred feces from healthy MSW and MSM to gnotobiotic (germ-free) mice and examined the immune system in the mice post-transplant. In mice that received transfers from MSM, there were higher frequencies of activated T cells in gut tissues, which are the primary targets of HIV. This result suggested that gut microbes associated with MSM sexual behavior may actually contribute to HIV transmission by driving activation of HIV target cells. In fact, when we stimulated human gut derived cells with gut microbes isolated from MSM and MSW, cells that were stimulated with microbes from MSM were infected at a higher rate. (more…)
Author Interviews, Hospital Acquired, Infections, Merck / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elizabeth Rhee, MD Executive Director, Infectious Disease Clinical Research Merck Research Laboratories MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Would you briefly explain the condition of ventilated nosocomial pneumonias? Dr. Rhee: Nosocomial pneumonia (NP) is a lung infection that occurs during a hospital stay. NP is often serious, and is associated with high mortality. It is one of the most common health-care associated infections in both the U.S. and Europe, accounting for over 20% of such cases. Gram-negative bacteria, mainly Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PSA) and Enterobacteriaceae, are frequent causes of nosocomial pneumonia. Limited options currently exist for the management of NP caused by Gram-negative pathogens. This is concerning because rates of resistance to Gram-negative bacteria are growing, and they are becoming increasingly difficult to treat. Forms of nosocomial pneumonia include hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), and ventilated HAP. High rates of death (ranging from 20% to more than 50%) are especially associated with ventilated HAP. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a Gram-negative bacterium, is the most common cause of HAP/VAP in both the U.S. and Europe. Patients with NP are often critically ill, requiring ventilator support and time in intensive care, and it was important to look at this population as we explore new options for the treatment of NP. Ceftolozane/tazobactam (C/T) is an antipseudomonal cephalosporin/beta-lactamase inhibitor combination with broad in vitro activity against Gram-negative pathogens, including multi-drug resistant (MDR) P. aeruginosa and many extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) producers. It is FDA approved for complicated intra-abdominal and urinary tract infections in adults at 1.5g (1g ceftolozane/0.5g tazobactam) q8h. C/T is currently being studied at an investigational new dose of 3g (2g/1g) q8h, for the treatment of ventilated nosocomial pneumonia, in the ASPECT-NP Phase 3 trial. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Opiods / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Joel E. Segel, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Health Policy and Administration The Pennsylvania State University University Park, PA 16802 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Earlier research has shown that the societal costs of opioid misuse are high, including the impact on employment. However, previous work to understand the costs of opioid misuse borne by state and federal governments has largely focused on medical costs such as care related to overdoses and the cost of treating opioid use disorder. Our main findings are that when individuals who misuse opioids are unable to work, state and federal governments may bear significant costs in the form of lost income and sales tax revenue. We estimate that between 2000 and 2016, state governments lost $11.8 billion in tax revenue and the federal government lost $26.0 billion.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Pulmonary Disease / 16.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Sameer Arbat, MBBS, MD Interventional Pulmonologist at Department of Pulmonology KRIMS Hospitals, Ramdaspeth, Nagpu  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the major preventable chronic respiratory diseases. Worldwide chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death. A retrospective data of non-smoker COPD patients coming to our tertiary health care centre-KRIMS Hospitals, India was collected from year 2016-2018. About 180 patients were found to be non-smokers who were diagnosed as COPD on their spirometry findings. Out of 180 non-smoker COPD patients, 54% were females. In our study 61% patients belonged to rural areas and 38% belonged to urban areas showing that rural region has higher majority of COPD patients than urban. Most people having this disease were housewives working on biomass wood smoke exposure and farmers working with toxic chemical sprays.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Emergency Care, Gastrointestinal Disease, Pediatrics / 15.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Danielle Orsagh-Yentis, MD Pediatric GI Motility Fellow Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus, Ohio MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Foreign body ingestions are quite common in young children. Much of the literature and advocacy to date has focused on the harms of button battery and magnet ingestions. We found that foreign body ingestions in children younger than 6 years of age have been increasing over the past 2 decades. This overall increase is mirrored by the rise in coin, toy, and jewelry ingestions, as well as batteries, which, when swallowed, have the potential to cause considerable harm.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Weight Research / 15.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Igor Snast, MD Department of Dermatology Rabin Medical Center–Beilinson Hospital Israel MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Acne is the most common skin disorder among adolescents. Obesity has been suggested to promote acne, however various studies evaluating the relationship between obesity and acne have yielded contradictory outcomes. Our population-based study demonstrates that overweight, obese and severely obese youths have decreased odds of having acne (20%, 35% and 50% respectively) compared to normal-weight subjects. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, University of Pennsylvania / 14.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Genevieve P. Kanter, PhD Assistant Professor (Research) of Medicine Medical Ethics and Health Policy University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine Philadelphia, PA  19104-6021 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: Physicians frequently have financial relationships with pharmaceutical and medical device firms, but only recently has information on these financial ties been made available to the public. The Open Payments program, created by the Physician Payment Sunshine Act, has made this industry payments information available through a public website since 2014. Because transparent institutions are believed to engender greater public trust, public disclosure of industry payments could increase public trust in the medical profession, which may have been weakened by physicians' relationships with industry. On the other hand, Open Payments may have decreased public trust because of the focus of media reporting on physicians receiving the largest sums of money. We sought to investigate how Open Payments and the public disclosure of industry payments affected public trust in physicians and in the medical profession. We compared changes in trust among patients who lived in states where payments information had, by state statute, previously been made available, to changes in trust among patients who lived in states where this information became newly available through Open Payments. (more…)
Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Gender Differences, Heart Disease, JAMA, Johns Hopkins, Women's Heart Health / 14.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Erin D. Michos, MD, MHS, FACC, FAHA, FASE Associate Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology Associate Director of Preventive Cardiology Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Victor Okunrintemi, MD, MPH Department of Internal Medicine East Carolina University Greenville, North Carolina  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: Women are less physically active than men on average, and the lack of regular physical activity has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and poorer health outcomes. Although recommendations encouraging regular physical activity has been in place for decades, we do not know how much of these recommendations are met, particularly among high risk women with established cardiovascular disease for secondary prevention. This study was therefore designed with the aim of describing the 10-year trends for the proportion of women with cardiovascular disease who do not meet these recommend physical activity levels, overall and by key sociodemographic groups, and the associated cost implications. (more…)
Author Interviews, Genetic Research, Microbiome / 13.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kyung Mo Kim Senior research scientist Korea Polar Research Institute. Professor Gustavo Caetano-Anollés Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology University of Illinois Arshan Nasir Distinguished Fellow Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Horizontal gene transfer is the process by which unrelated microorganisms can exchange genes. The famous examples would be transfer of antibiotic resistance genes among bacteria that renders many commercially expensive antibiotics useless. From an evolutionary point of view, it complicates our understanding of how bacteria are related since even distantly-related bacteria can share genes and then cluster together on evolutionary trees. Thus better understanding horizontal evolution is important for both public health and our basic understanding of microbial taxonomy and evolution. There are some excellent existing methods of HGT detection that compare DNA features (e.g. GC%, codon usage) or statistical similarity between genomes to identify foreign genes. However, these methods work better to identify recently transferred genes. Transfers that happened millions or billions of years ago cannot be reliably detected since DNA sequences evolve over time during which foreign DNA can become more host-like. That is why we focused our attention on utilizing approaches that are based on sound evolutionary principles. If a gene is horizontally acquired, then a phylogenetic tree of that gene will be different from the reference or known tree of the organisms. The true phylogenetic tree of organisms describes how organisms have descended from a common ancestor through inheritance of genes. If a gene is acquired from a source outside the parents or from an unrelated organism, then there will be a conflict between gene tree and the reference/known species tree. This conflict can be indication of HGT. (more…)
Aging, Author Interviews, Cognitive Issues, Lifestyle & Health / 13.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Carla R. Schubert, MS Researcher,  EpiSense Research Program Dept. of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences School of Medicine and Public Health University of Wisconsin Madison, WI  53726-2336  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Mildlife is an important time-period for health later in life and also when declines in sensory and cognitive functions may begin to occur. Hearing, vision and smell impairments have been associated with cognitive impairments in older adults and with worse cognitive function in middle-aged adults.  These associations may be reflecting the close integration of sensory and cognitive systems as both require good brain function. (more…)
Author Interviews, Emergency Care, Global Health, JAMA / 12.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Margaret B. Greenwood-Ericksen MD, MSc Department of Emergency Medicine University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 87109 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: I’m an emergency physician, so I see first-hand how emergency department use patterns provide a lens into the status of health care delivery in the communities they serve. Troubling declines in the health of rural Americans coupled with rising rural hospital closures – with little access to alternative sites of care like urgent care – all led me to hypothesize that rural populations may be engaging with the health care system differently than their urban counterparts. Understanding the health care use of individuals in rural areas may yield insights into addressing rural health disparities. Further, this information may help healthcare systems and policymakers to make data-driven decisions informing new models of healthcare delivery for rural communities. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Health Care Systems, JAMA, Outcomes & Safety, Surgical Research, Yale / 12.04.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Daniel J. Boffa, MD Associate Professor of Thoracic Surgery Yale School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Prominent cancer hospitals have been sharing their brands with smaller hospitals in the community.  We conducted a series of nationally representative surveys and found that a significant proportion of the U.S. public assumes that the safety of care is the same at all hospitals that share the same respected brand.  In an effort to determine if safety was in fact the same, we examined complex surgical procedures in the Medicare database. We compared the chance of dying within 90 days of surgery between top-ranked hospitals, and the affiliate hospitals that share their brands.  When taking into account differences in patient age, health, and type of procedure, Medicare patients were 1.4 times more likely to die after surgery at the affiliate hospitals, compared to those having surgery at the top-ranked cancer hospitals. (more…)