MedicalResearch.com - Latest news, interviews, and insights into medical research, health and wellness, fitness and addiction.
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Duke, JAMA, Ophthalmology / 14.03.2014

Glenn Yiu, MD, PhD Duke Ophthalmology Duke University Medical CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Glenn Yiu, MD, PhD Duke Ophthalmology Duke University Medical Center MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Yiu: This paper reported a child who suffered injury to both eyes from a powerful blue laser pointer purchased via the internet from overseas. Our report reviews the scientific basis for laser injuries in eyes and the factors that may affect outcomes, such as power, wavelength, duration, and distance of exposure. Newer green and blue lasers, especially high-powered ones, may be more prone to inducing eye injuries. We summarized the clinical features of ocular laser injuries, methods of prevention, and discussed how consumer availability of high powered lasers may require careful federal regulations. (more…)
AHA Journals, Heart Disease, Karolinski Institute, Kidney Disease / 13.03.2014

Martin Holzmann, MD, PhD Department of Emergency Medicine, Karolinska University Hospital Stockholm Sweden.MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Martin Holzmann, MD, PhD Department of Emergency Medicine, Karolinska University Hospital Stockholm Sweden. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Holzmann: The main finding is that patients with renal dysfunction are at increased risk of cardiovascular events after undergoing CABG for acute coronary syndromes. (more…)
Author Interviews, Genetic Research, Mayo Clinic, Mental Health Research, Nature / 12.03.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Dr. Sven Cichon, PhD Director, Division of Medical Genetics University Hospital Basel Human Genomics Research Group Department of Biomedicine University of Basel Basel, Switzerland MedicalResearch.com: What were the main findings of the study? Answer: We have identified two new gene regions that represent pieces of the jigsaw puzzle of genetic and non-genetic factors that lead to the development of bipolar disorder. One is the gene ADCY2 (Adenylate Cyclase 2) which is involved in signal transmission within nerve cells. The other region comprises two genes, both presumably playing a role in neurodevelopmental processes (MIR2113 and POU3F2). Importantly, these results come out of the largest of these kinds of studies so far, involving altogether more than 24,000 people. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Tobacco, UCSF / 12.03.2014

Lauren Dutra, ScD Postdoctoral Scholar, UCSF School of Medicine Cardiovascular Research Institute San Francisco, CA 94143MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lauren Dutra, ScD Postdoctoral Scholar, UCSF School of Medicine Cardiovascular Research Institute San Francisco, CA 94143 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Middle and high school students who used e-cigarettes were more likely to smoke tobacco cigarettes. They were also more likely to progress from experimenting with tobacco cigarettes to becoming regular smokers. Teen smokers who used e-cigarettes were more likely to be planning to quit in the next year and less likely to have abstained from smoking recently, compared to smokers who had never used e-cigarettes. They were also more likely to be heavier smokers (smoke more cigarettes per day) than those who had never tried e-cigarettes, that being said there are eliquids available that have no nicotine content whatsoever and these are therefore a much healthier option, you can see a wide variety of these at Gourmet E-Liquid. (more…)
Annals Thoracic Surgery, Author Interviews, NIH, Pulmonary Disease / 09.03.2014

Surya P Bhatt MD Assistant Professor Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine University of Alabama at BirminghamMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Surya P Bhatt MD Assistant Professor Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine University of Alabama at Birmingham MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Bhatt:  The forced vital capacity (FVC) maneuver is a difficult maneuver for many patients and the forced expiratory volume in the first 6 seconds (FEV6) has been shown to be a reliable substitute. We used imaging findings on computed tomography, COPD questionnaires and tests of exercise capacity to compare these two spirometric measures (FEV1/FVC and FEV/FEV6) in the diagnosis of airflow obstruction, and showed that FEV6 can be reliably substituted for FVC. Our findings suggest that using FEV6 may in fact identify more patients with disease than by using FVC. (more…)
Author Interviews, Hospital Acquired, Infections, NIH, Surgical Research, University of Pennsylvania, Wake Forest / 09.03.2014

William G Ward, Sr. MD Chair of Orthopaedic Surgery, Chief of Musculoskeletal Service Line - Guthrie Clinic One Guthrie Square Sayre, Pennsylvania 18840 (Professor Emeritus - Wake Forest University Dept of Orthopaedic Surgery)MedicalResearch.com Interview with: William G Ward, Sr. MD Chair of Orthopaedic Surgery, Chief of Musculoskeletal Service Line - Guthrie Clinic Sayre, Pennsylvania 18840 (Professor Emeritus - Wake Forest University Dept of Orthopaedic Surgery) MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of this study? Dr. Ward: The main findings of the study include:
  1. The use of disposable spun-lace “paper” gowns was associated with a dramatic decrease in the likelihood of culture-detected bacterial contamination on the surgeon’s gloved hand and gown sleeve.
  2. For a double-gloved surgeon, changing the outer glove just prior to implant handling should decrease bacterial contamination from the surgeon by about 50%.
  3. Bacteria suspended in saline solution transgressed the material of standard reusable scrub attire in 96% (26/27) of tested gowns and in 0% (0/27) of spun-lace disposable “paper” gowns. (more…)
Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, Diabetes, Genetic Research, University of Pennsylvania / 05.03.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Brendan Keating D.Phil Assistant Professor, Dept of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Lead Clinical Data Analyst, Center for Applied Genomics Children's Hospital of Philadelphia,Brendan Keating D.Phil Assistant Professor, Dept of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Lead Clinical Data Analyst, Center for Applied Genomics Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Michael V. Holmes, MD, PhD, MSc, BSc, MRCP Transplant Surgery Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USAMichael V. Holmes, MD, PhD, MSc, BSc, MRCP Transplant Surgery Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We found that individuals with a genetically-elevated BMI had higher blood pressure, inflammatory markers, metabolic markers and a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, although there was little correlation with coronary heart disease in this study population of over 34,500 European-descent individuals of whom over 6,000 had coronary heart disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Karolinski Institute, Kidney Disease / 04.03.2014

Juan Jesus Carrero PhD (Pharm and Med) Associate Professor in Renal Medicine Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Juan Jesus Carrero PhD (Pharm and Med) Associate Professor in Renal Medicine Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.   MedicalResearch.com: Why did you choose to study this particular question? Answer: We chose this question because there is currently an important knowledge gap regarding safety and effectiveness of common drugs in individuals with chronic kidney disease. Because kidney dysfunction interferes with drug metabolism and drug elimination, patients with kidney dysfunction have traditionally been excluded from randomized controlled trials. Yet, practice guidelines are afterwards extrapolated to those in the absence of formal evaluation. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cannabis, McGill, Rheumatology / 04.03.2014

Mary-Ann Fitzcharles, MB, ChB, MRCP(UK), FRCP(C) McGill University Health Centre Division of Rheumatology and Alan Edwards Pain Management UnitMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mary-Ann Fitzcharles, MB, ChB, MRCP(UK), FRCP(C) McGill University Health Centre Division of Rheumatology and Alan Edwards Pain Management Unit MedicalResearch.com: What are the highlights of your review? Dr. Fitzcharles: Thank you for your interest in the review article which will shortly be published in Arthritis Care & Research. This was not a research study but rather a review focused towards the use of herbal cannabis for patients with rheumatic diseases. The essence of our message after a thorough review of the literature is that there is not a single study published regarding efficacy or side effects of herbal cannabis in the rheumatic diseases. It is notable that almost 2 thirds of persons using herbal cannabis for therapeutic reasons report use for musculoskeletal complaints. In the 21st century, we cannot rely upon heresay or anecdote to justify use of a treatment intervention. It is unacceptable to recommend use of a substance without knowledge of concentration of molecules in the product, any knowledge of blood concentrations that might have a positive or negative effect, and formal study in defined patient populations with acceptable endpoint criteria and evidence for short and long term risks. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Cancer Research, University of Michigan / 04.03.2014

Sameer Saini MD Veterans Affairs Center for Clinical Management Research, VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USAMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Sameer Saini MD Veterans Affairs Center for Clinical Management Research, VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Saini: The way that quality measures are defined can have important implications for how care is actually delivered. Current colorectal cancer screening quality measures use age to identify screen-eligible patients, encouraging screening in patients between 50 and 75 years of age. But they do not explicitly incorporate health status. In this context, our study had two main findings.
  • First, by focusing on age alone, we are not screening everyone who is likely to benefit. Specifically, many healthy people over 75 years of age (who are outside the target age range of the quality measure) may benefit from screening, but the current measure does not encourage screening in this population, leading to low screening use.
  • Second, some people who are NOT likely to benefit are being screened unnecessarily, like those with serious health problems. For example, people between ages 70-75 with serious health problems (who have limited life expectancy) are unlikely to benefit from screening, and may even be harmed by it. But the current quality measure encourages screening in such individuals due to their age, yielding relatively high screening rates. If the system focused on age and health status (rather than age alone), screening use would be more aligned with screening benefit, and we would have better health outcomes.
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Author Interviews, Health Care Systems, Lancet, Nursing, University of Pennsylvania / 04.03.2014

Professor Linda H Aiken PhD, FAAN, FRCN, RN Claire M. Fagin Leadership Professor in Nursing, Professor of Sociology Director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research University of Pennsylvania School of NursingMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Linda H Aiken PhD, FAAN, FRCN, RN Claire M. Fagin Leadership Professor in Nursing, Professor of Sociology Director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing MedicalResearch.com: Austerity measures and health-system redesign to minimise hospital expenditures risk adversely affecting patient outcomes. Against that backdrop, can you start by letting us know the background of the study?  Prof. Aiken: European Surgical Outcomes Study in 28 countries showed higher than necessary deaths after surgery. A comparable study in the US showed that despite the nation spending hundreds of millions of dollars on improving patient safety, there were no improvements in adverse outcomes after surgery in US hospitals between 2000 and 2009.  Clearly it is time to consider new solutions to improving hospital care for surgical patients, who make up a large proportion of all hospital admissions.  Our study was designed to determine whether there are risks for patients of reducing hospital nurse staffing, and what, if any, are the benefits to patients of moving to a more educated nurse workforce. (more…)
Annals Thoracic Surgery, Author Interviews, Dental Research, Heart Disease, Infections, Mayo Clinic / 01.03.2014

Dr. Kendra J. Grim Department of Anesthesiology Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Kendra J. Grim Department of Anesthesiology Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Grim: “The current guidelines say that if possible, treating the dental problems that patients have before heart surgery is best, to try to prevent both early and late heart infections. But the data is very unclear, because it’s very difficult to study. We found in our study that their risk of serious complications after having teeth removed may be higher than we thought. We were primarily looking at stroke, heart attack, renal failure and death. We found that actually the incidence of having one of those major morbidities was 8 percent.  Of that 8 percent, we had six patients, or 3 percent, of the total group who died between their dental surgery and scheduled heart surgery, so these patients never made it to their heart surgery. An additional 3 percent of patients died after heart surgery. “ (more…)
Author Interviews, HIV, Johns Hopkins / 25.02.2014

Samuel R. Friedman PhD Institute of Infectious Disease Research National Development and Research Institutes, Inc. New York, NY Department of Epidemiology Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MDMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Samuel R. Friedman PhD Institute of Infectious Disease Research National Development and Research Institutes, Inc. Ny, NY Department of Epidemiology Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Baltimore, MD MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Friedman: The main finding is that programs that helped protect people who inject drugs from HIV and those that helped them to get medical care seem to be associated with less HIV disease and less death related to HIV disease among the heterosexual population of large United States metropolitan areas. This is important.  Drug users in the US are widely despised, and their has been a lot of political opposition to programs like syringe exchange and drug abuse treatment. Our findings show that these programs are associated with better health and less death in the broader population.  It makes more sense to help people--even those you despise--stay uninfected, and to get medical care, than to restrict or attack programs for them. (more…)
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Heart Disease, UCSF / 25.02.2014

Dhruv S. Kazi, MD, MSc, MS Assistant Adjunct Professor Division of Cardiology San Francisco General Hospital Department of Medicine, and Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of California San FranciscoMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dhruv S. Kazi, MD, MSc, MS Assistant Adjunct Professor Division of Cardiology San Francisco General Hospital Department of Medicine, and Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of California San Francisco MedicalResearch.com: What is the background of your study? Dr. Kazi: When we first asked the research question -what is the role of genotyping among patients receiving a stent for ACS, we quickly realized that there were no RCTs that had directly compared ticagrelor with prasugrel. But in our opinion, that was precisely the reason to build a model and systematically synthesize the available literature. There are nearly half a million PCIs for ACS in the US each year, and each time, the physician and patients have to examine the trade-offs between the various alternatives. What our model does is that it explicates the trade-offs - makes them transparent, and quantifies them.  So patients and physicians can make an informed decision on what is the optimal therapy for them. (more…)
Author Interviews, CT Scanning, Lancet, Medical Imaging, MRI, Pediatrics, Stanford / 20.02.2014

Dr Heike Daldrup-Link Associate Professor of Radiology Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo AltoMedicalResearch.com: Interview with: Dr Heike Daldrup-Link Associate Professor of Radiology Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We use magnetic resonance imaging, a technology based on magnetic fields rather than radiotracers or x-rays. The underlying technology is not new – it has been used for tumor staging for many years. This is an advantage as MR scanners are available in nearly every major Children’s Hospital where children with cancer are treated. What is new about our approach is that we combined anatomical and functional images, similar to current approaches that use radiotracers and CT (PET/CT):  We first acquired scans that showed the anatomy of the patient very well and we then acquired scans that depict tumors as bright spots with little or no background information. We did that by using an iron supplement as a contrast agent: The iron supplement can be detected by the MRI magnet and improved tumor detection and vessel delineation MR scans. We then fused the anatomical scans with the tumor scans. (more…)
General Medicine, JAMA, University of Michigan / 19.02.2014

Dr. David Hanauer, MD Associate Professor, University of Michigan Medical School 1500 East Medical Center Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5940MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. David Hanauer, MD Associate Professor, University of Michigan Medical School 1500 East Medical Center Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5940 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study Dr. Hanauer: From my perspective, the primary findings were that 65% of the general public is now aware of physician rating web sites and among those who are aware, about 36% had used them in the prior year.  Awareness and usage seems to be rapidly increasing compared to what has been reported in prior studies from just a few years ago.  We also found that patients consider word of mouth recommendations (from family/friends) to be almost twice as important as ratings sites are. (more…)
Cost of Health Care, Dartmouth, Health Care Systems, Mental Health Research, Yale / 18.02.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ellen R. Meara Associate Professor of The Dartmouth Institute Adjunct Associate Professor in Economics & Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Public Policy, Dartmouth College Ellen R. Meara Associate Professor of The Dartmouth Institute Adjunct Associate Professor in Economics & Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Public Policy, Dartmouth College MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of this study? Answer: When insurance coverage for young adults rose by over 15 percentage points following Massachusetts' 2006 health reform, use of inpatient care for mental illness and substance use disorders fell and emergency department visits for these conditions grew more slowly for 19 to 25 year olds in Massachusetts relative to other states. Also, their care was much more likely to be paid for by private or public insurance insurers. (more…)
Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Duke, Medical Research Centers, Stroke, UCLA / 18.02.2014

Gregg C Fonarow, UCLA Medical Ctr, Los Angeles, CA; Director, Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center Professor, Department of Medicine Associate Chief, Cardiology David Geffen School of MedicineMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gregg C Fonarow, UCLA Medical Ctr, Los Angeles, CA; Director, Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center Professor, Department of Medicine Associate Chief, Cardiology David Geffen School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Fonarow: The study examined data from hospitals that have adopted the American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s national quality initiative, Target: Stroke. The primary aim of Target: Stroke is to increase the number of stroke patients treated with tPA for acute ischemic stroke within 60 minutes or less after hospital arrival. The study demonstrated that patients received stroke therapy significantly faster in hospitals that participated in Target: Stroke. Between 2010 and 2013, the time between hospital arrival and use of tPA (door-to-needle time) dropped by 15 minutes, from 74 to 59 minutes, in hospitals that participated in Target: Stroke. This study found that the percentage of patients treated within the recommended timeframe increased from less than one-third before Target: Stroke to more than half afterwards. The Target: Stroke program goal of 50 percent or more of patients having door-to-needle times within 60 minutes was successfully achieved. Faster treatment was associated with improved patient outcomes and fewer complications, including death. (more…)
Author Interviews, Erasmus, JAMA, Stroke / 18.02.2014

dr_Arfan_IkramMedicalResearch.com Interview with: M. Arfan Ikram, MD, PhD Departments of Radiology, Epidemiology, and Neurology Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Ikram: The main finding of the study, carried out within the Rotterdam Study and led by drs. Daniel Bos and Arfan Ikram (both from the Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands), was that intracranial atherosclerosis is a major risk factor for stroke in the Western (white) population. Traditionally, intracranial atherosclerosis has not been considered of major importance to stroke risk in Western populations. In contrast, most research on intracranial atherosclerosis originates from Asian and African populations, where is was actually recognized as the most important risk factor of stroke. Our study demonstrates that also in the Western population intracranial atherosclerosis is a major risk factor for stroke and should get more focus in clinical practice. Moreover, our findings indicate that its contribution to the proportion of all strokes is greater than that of atherosclerosis in other vessel beds that are further away from the brain. (more…)
Alcohol, Author Interviews, Genetic Research, University of Pennsylvania / 14.02.2014

Henry R. Kranzler, MD Professor, Department of Psychiatry Director of the Center for Studies of Addiction. University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, PhiladelphiaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Henry R. Kranzler, MD Professor, Department of Psychiatry Director of the Center for Studies of Addiction. University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Kranzler: The study had two main findings:
  • First, topiramate, at a maximal dosage of 200 mg/day, which is lower than the 300 mg/day used in prior treatment trials, substantially reduced the frequency of heavy drinking and increased the frequency of abstinent days more than placebo. The lower dosage was well tolerated.
  • Second, a variant in a gene that encodes a receptor subunit that binds topiramate moderated the response to topiramate. That is, C-allele homozygotes in the single nucleotide polymorphism rs2832407 in GRIK1, the gene encoding the GluK1 subunit of the kainate receptor, were the subgroup that accounted for the effects of topiramate on heavy drinking. This has important implications for the personalized treatment of alcohol use disorder, in that 40% of people of European ancestry have this genotype and, if confirmed, these findings would make it possible to screen people genetically to select an effective treatment.
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Author Interviews, Dermatology, JAMA, University of Pennsylvania / 13.02.2014

Dr. Misha A. Rosenbach Assistant Professor of Dermatology Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Section Editor, JAMA Dermatology Patient PageMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Misha A. Rosenbach Assistant Professor of Dermatology Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Section Editor, JAMA Dermatology Patient Page MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Rosenbach: There is strong agreement between teledermatologists and in-person dermatologists when evaluating inpatients at a tertiary care academic hospital.  The primary aim of this study was to assess telederm as a triage tool.  Many dermatologists are not full-time hospitalists, but work in private practice or clinics which may be remote from affiliated hospitals.  The goal was to evaluate whether teledermatology could help those providers assess the acuity of inpatient consults.  There was strong concordance. (more…)
Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins, NEJM / 13.02.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Richard P. Allen Department of Neurology Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD 21224, MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Allen:  This study should serve to change medical practice by reducing use of pramipexole and ropinirole to avoid the insidious worsening of restless legs syndrome that occurs for many on these drugs. Pramipexole (Mirapex) a medication that mimics dopamine in the brain  in usual therapeutic doses for treatment of restless legs syndrome (RLS) works at first but over time one year makes the disease worse for up to 9% of the patients on 0.5 mg a day. Pregabalin (Lyrica) an anti-convulsant and pain drug  that works on a calcium channel in the brain in therapeutic dose for RLS (300 mg a day) does not make the disease worse  (There is some natural progression of the disease shown to occur fro 1 - 2% or patients over a year.. seen in this study). Pregabalin is in the short run as effective as pramipexole (over 12 weeks) and in the long run over 52 weeks more effective. These results confirm what had been expected that the dopamine drug pramipexole makes worse Restless Legs Syndrome while a drug not directly acting on the dopamine system does NOT make restless legs syndrome worse. (more…)
Author Interviews, HPV, JAMA, Karolinski Institute, Vaccine Studies / 12.02.2014

Lisen Arnheim Dahlström Associate Professor (Docent) Institutionen för medicinsk epidemiologi och biostatistik Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics Karolinska Institutet SwedenMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lisen Arnheim Dahlström Associate Professor (Docent) Institutionen för medicinsk epidemiologi och biostatistik Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics Karolinska Institutet Sweden MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: The main finding, when studying HPV vaccine effectiveness against condyloma by dose level is that 3 doses offered the maximum protection, although 2 doses also offered a substantial protection. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Journal Clinical Oncology, Radiation Therapy, Sloan Kettering, Surgical Research / 12.02.2014

dr_monica_morrow MedicalResearch.com Interview Invitation with: Monica Morrow MD Anne Burnett Windfohr Chair of Clinical Oncology Chief Breast Service memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Morrow: The study is the report of a Consensus panel examining the question of whether more widely clear lumpectomy margins than no ink on tumor decrease local recurrence.  A metaanalysis of published literature was used as the primary evidence base for the conclusion. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Menopause, Sexual Health, University of Pittsburgh / 11.02.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Holly Thomas, MD General Internal Medicine Fellow, Women's Health and Clinical Research University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA 15213 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Thomas: We found that, despite popular perception, the majority of women (85%) who are sexually active at midlife will remain sexually active four years later. We also found that the majority of women score low on a measure of sexual function. However, low sexual function scores did not mean women stopped having sex. In fact, the score on the sexual function measure did not predict whether women maintained sexual activity. Finally, we found that importance of sex was a strong predictor of whether women remained sexually active. Women who felt sex was moderately to extremely important in their lives were 3 times more likely to maintain sexual activity. (more…)
Author Interviews, Critical Care - Intensive Care - ICUs, Duke, Flu - Influenza, Vaccine Studies / 11.02.2014

Dr Cameron Wolfe MBBS(Hons), MPH Assistant Professor of Medicine Clinical / Transplant Infectious Diseases Duke University Medical CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Cameron Wolfe MBBS(Hons), MPH Assistant Professor of Medicine Clinical / Transplant Infectious Diseases Duke University Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Wolfe: The major findings of the study were that at least in our center, there was a significant burden of critical illness due to H1N1 influenza infection.  The average age of the patients admitted to the hospital was just 28yrs, consistent with the younger patient age in 2009 when H1N1 emerged.  Most critically, we also observed a significantly lower rate of influenza vaccine uptake in patients admitted to the Intensive Care Units at our center. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins / 10.02.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with study leaders: Shalini Selvarajah MD, MPH Postdoctoral Research Fellow Center for Surgical Trials and Outcomes Research Department of Surgery Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21287  and Edward R. Hammond, MD, PhD, MPH Research Associate International Center for Spinal Cord Injury Hugo W. Moser Research Institute at Kennedy Krieger Institute Baltimore, MD 21205. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Researchers: ·    Between 2007 and 2010, the number of serious traumatic spinal cord injuries (TSCI) in the United States (U.S.) increased, doing so more rapidly among older adults (age ≥65 years) compared to younger adults (age <65 years). Injuries from falls have overtaken motor vehicle crashes as the main cause of adult TSCI. ·    Older adults are more likely to experience worse outcomes compared to younger adults even after taking into account severity and mechanism of injury, as well as other co-morbid conditions. Older adults are 4 times more likely to die in the emergency room, and if admitted to inpatient care, they are 6 times more likely to die as inpatients compared to younger adults. ·    Emergency room charges for treatment of acute TSCI among adults increased 20% from $3,342 per encounter in 2007 to $4,024 per encounter in 2010 even after accounting for the cost of inflation. (more…)
General Medicine, Vanderbilt / 10.02.2014

Dr. Scott L. Zuckerman, MD Department of Neurological Surgery Vanderbilt Sports Concussion CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Scott L. Zuckerman, MD Department of Neurological Surgery Vanderbilt Sports Concussion Center MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Zuckerman: Our study evaluated 244 athletes who suffered sports-related concussion (SRC), 122 males and 122 females, and assessed for gender differences in number, severity, and resolution of post-concussive symptoms using reliable change index (RCI) methodology applied to days to return to symptom baseline. Both groups were matched on number of prior concussions, age, and days to first post-concussion assessment, which consisted of the 22 symptom Post Concussion Symptom Checklist  from the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) evaluation tool. (more…)
Author Interviews, Colon Cancer, General Medicine, PLoS, University of Michigan, Weight Research / 09.02.2014

Jenifer I Fenton Assistant Professor Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jenifer I Fenton Assistant Professor Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Fenton: This was a cross-sectional study, and thus, a snapshot in time. Although it cannot infer cause or temporality of obesity and colon polyp risk in men, it does show that obese men were more likely to have a polyp than their lean counterpart. In addition, there were serum biomarkers also associated with this risk. This could eventually lead to future blood tests to identify individuals at greater risk for polyps and inform screening recommendations. (more…)