Medical Research Journals

26 Aug

Posted at 14:12h in Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Chemotherapy, Genetic Research, JAMA, NEJM
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27366" align="alignleft" width="150"]Prof. Laura van ’t Veer, PhD Leader, Breast Oncology Program, and Director, Applied Genomics, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center Angela and Shu Kai Chan Endowed Chair in Cancer Research UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center Dr. Laura Van't Leer[/caption] Prof. Laura van ’t Veer, PhD Leader, Breast Oncology Program, and Director, Applied Genomics, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center Angela and Shu Kai Chan Endowed Chair in Cancer Research UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: MINDACT was designed to involve only patients with node negative and 1 to 3 positive lymph node breast cancer. Node negative breast cancer is a cancer that has not spread to the surrounding lymph nodes and therefore has a lower risk of recurrence. Scientists have also demonstrated that breast cancer which has spread to 1 to 3 lymph nodes may behave like node negative breast cancer. Patients with either node negative cancer or with a cancer that involves 1-3 lymph nodes are often prescribed chemotherapy, although physicians believe that approximately 15% of them do not require such treatment. MINDACT provides the highest level of evidence to show that using MammaPrint® can substantially reduce the use of chemotherapy in patients with node-negative and 1-to-3 node positive breast cancer – in other words, it can identify patients with these types of breast cancer who can safely be spared a treatment that may cause significant side effects, and will offer no to very little benefit.

25 Aug

Posted at 23:35h in Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Chemotherapy, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27352" align="alignleft" width="96"]Leni van Doorn, MSc Department of Medical Oncology Erasmus MC Cancer Institute Rotterdam, the Netherlands Leni van Doorn[/caption] Leni van Doorn, MSc Department of Medical Oncology Erasmus MC Cancer Institute Rotterdam, the Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The common cancer treatment capecitabine, a regular treatment for patients mostly diagnosed with breast-, colon- or gastic cancer, induces hand foot syndrome (HFS). HFS is a cutaneous condition that may lead to red palms and blisters in approximately 50% to 60% of the patients and is believed to result in the loss of fingerprints. This fingerprint loss has been described sporadically in the literature. The main aim of our prospective study was to have a closer look of the association between  hand foot syndrome and the loss of fingerprints.

25 Aug

Posted at 23:25h in AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Emory, Heart Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27344" align="alignleft" width="133"]Alvaro Alonso, MD, PhD Associate Professor Department of Epidemiology Rollins School of Public Health Emory University Atlanta, GA Dr. Alvaro Alonso[/caption] Alvaro Alonso, MD, PhD Associate Professor Department of Epidemiology Rollins School of Public Health Emory University Atlanta, GA MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is a major public health problem. Each year, 300,000-400,000 Americans experience SCD and, in more than half of these cases, sudden cardiac death is the first manifestation of heart disease. To date, however, we lack effective strategies to identify those at higher risk of developing sudden cardiac death so targeted preventive strategies can be applied. In this study, we develop and validate the first model for the prediction of SCD in ~18,000 adults without a prior history of cardiovascular disease. We show that information on demographic variables (age, sex, race), some traditional cardiovascular risk factors (smoking, elevated blood pressure, diabetes, HDL cholesterol) as well as some factors more specifically related to SCD causes (electrocardiogram QT interval) and novel biomarkers (albumin, potassium in blood, kidney function) can be leveraged to predict risk of SCD and identify individuals more likely to suffer this event.

25 Aug

Posted at 17:40h in Author Interviews, Columbia, Heart Disease, JAMA, Medical Imaging
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27269" align="alignleft" width="100"]Adam Castano, M.D., M.S. Division of Cardiology Columbia University Medical Center New York Presbyterian Hospital Dr. Adam Castano[/caption] Adam Castano, M.D., M.S. Division of Cardiology Columbia University Medical Center New York Presbyterian Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CA) is an increasingly recognized cause of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Traditionally, the gold standard for diagnosis has required an endomyocardial biopsy coupled with either immunohistochemistry or mass spectroscopy. These specialized tests are only performed at centers with experienced satff, do not yield prognostically useful information, may be inadvisable for frail older adults, and often present logistical challenges that lead to delayed care. Fortunately, single center studies have demonstrated excellent diagnostic accuracy using technetium 99m pyrophosphate (Tc99mPYP) cardiac imaging for noninvasively detecting ATTR-CA and differentiating it from another major type of cardiac amyloidosis called light chain (AL). But the diagnostic accuracy of this technique in a multicenter study and the association of Tc99mPYP myocardial uptake with survival were not known prior to this study. Therefore, we assessed in a multicenter study Tc99mPYP cardiac imaging as a diagnostic tool and its association with survival. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 229 patients evaluated at 3 academic specialty centers for cardiac amyloidosis and also underwent Tc99mPYP cardiac imaging. We measured retention of Tc99mPYP in the heart using a semiquantitative visual score (range 0-3) and a more quantitative heart-to-contralateral (H/CL) ratio calculated as total counts in a region of interest over the heart divided by background counts in an identical size region of interest over the contralateral chest. The outcome measured was time to death after Tc99mPYP imaging.

25 Aug

Posted at 17:36h in Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27281" align="alignleft" width="160"]Dr. Aaron Mitchell MD Hematology/Oncology Fellow University North Carolina Dr. Aaron Mitchell[/caption] Dr. Aaron Mitchell MD Hematology/Oncology Fellow University North Carolina MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: It is well known that many physicians work with the pharmaceutical industry. In some cases, this can create conflicts of interest with physicians' other responsibilities. The Open Payments law, passed as part of the Affordable Care Act, recently made these relationships public, which now allows us to study them more systematically.

25 Aug

Posted at 17:34h in Author Interviews, Dermatology, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27278" align="alignleft" width="80"]Lisa Earnest Ishii, M.D. Associate Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeryJohns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore Maryland 21287 Dr. Lisa Ishii[/caption] Lisa Earnest Ishii, M.D. Associate Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeryJohns Hopkins School of Medicine Baltimore Maryland 21287 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Hair transplantation for men suffering from male pattern hair loss is a common procedure to improve their appearance. However, to the best of our knowledge the impact of the procedure for men with hair loss had never been clearly demonstrated. We showed, for the first time, that men who undergo the procedure can have real improvements in attractiveness, age, and the appearance of successfulness as perceived by the casual observer in society.

25 Aug

Posted at 01:29h in Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Chemotherapy, Nature
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27306" align="alignleft" width="125"]Shyamala Maheswaran, PhD Associate Professor of Surgery Harvard Medical School Assistant Molecular Biologist Center for Cancer Research Dr. Shyamala Maheswaran[/caption] Shyamala Maheswaran, PhD Associate Professor of Surgery Harvard Medical School Assistant Molecular Biologist Center for Cancer Research MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: About 85% hormone receptor positive HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer patients show that cancer cells acquire HER2 expression during disease progression. These HER2 positive cells coexist with HER2 negative cancer cells, and these two populations are able to spontaneously oscillate between these two states; in culture and in cancers established in mice. Both HER2 positive and HER2 negative cells form tumors when injected into mice, but HER2 positive cancer cells form tumors more rapidly than HER2 negative tumors. At a molecular level, several growth factor pathways are activated in HER2 positive cancer cells, while activation of the Notch pathway, an embryonic signaling event, is observed in HER2 negative cells. Thus the HER2 positive and HER2 negative cancer cells exhibit differential sensitive to drugs: the HER2 positive cells, which are more proliferative and non-responsive to HER2-targeting agents, are responsive to chemotherapy drugs whereas the HER2 negative tumor cells are sensitive to Notch inhibitors. A combination of chemotherapeutic drugs and notch inhibitors effectively eliminate tumors formed by a mixture of these two population of cancer cells compared to either drug alone. These findings highlight the importance of tumor heterogeneity in cancer progression and drug responses and suggest that targeting all the different populations within cancers is necessary to effectively manage cancer progression.

25 Aug

Posted at 01:18h in Author Interviews, Diabetes, Diabetologia, Nutrition, Weight Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27302" align="alignleft" width="125"]Jaime Uribarri, MD Professor, Nephrology Icahn School of Medicine Mt. Sinai Medical Center Dr. Jaime Uribarri[/caption] Jaime Uribarri, MD Professor, Nephrology Icahn School of Medicine Mt. Sinai Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We have been doing research in the area of dietary advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) for many years. AGEs are chemical compounds that form normally in the body in small amounts and also in food when cooking under high heat and dry conditions; a percent of AGEs in food is absorbed and part of it is retained in the body leading to increased smoldering inflammation and oxidative stress that eventually produce most of modern chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia, etc. We have previously demonstrated that a diet low in AGEs, which essentially means changing the cooking methods to include less application of heat, plenty of water,etc, decreases inflammation of oxidative stress in people with diabetes, chronic kidney disease and in healthy subjects. In the current study we applied the same low dietary AGE intervention to a group of obese patients with the so-called Metabolic syndrome, a risk factor for Diabetes Mellitus.

24 Aug

Posted at 21:00h in Author Interviews, Dermatology, Diabetes, Heart Disease, JAMA, Medical Imaging, NIH
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nehal N. Mehta, .MD., M.S.C.E. F.A.H.A. Lasker Clinical Research Scholar Section of Inflammation and Cardiometabolic Diseases NIH MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Psoriasis is associated with accelerated cardiovascular (CV) disease; however, screening for CV risk factors in psoriasis remains low. Coronary artery calcium (CAC) score estimates the total burden of atherosclerosis. Psoriasis has been associated with increase CAC score, but how this compares to patients with diabetes, who are aggressively screened for CV risk factors, is unknown.

24 Aug

Posted at 12:02h in Author Interviews, Lancet, Stroke
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Alexander Kunz MD Department of Neurology Charité-University Medicine Berlin Berlin, Germany MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Systemic thrombolysis with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) in acute ischemic stroke has been an approved therapy for over 20 years now. To date, tPA can be administered to eligible patients within a 4.5 hours time window after the onset of symptoms. Results from large thrombolysis trials and meta-analyses have shown, that the beneficial effects of tPA are inversely correlated with the delay from symptoms onset to start of tPA treatment. This relationship is frequently summarized in the slogan “Time is brain!” Currently, several research groups are evaluating the concept of pre-hospital thrombolysis using a mobile stroke treatment unit (MSTU) in order to achieve significant reductions in onset-to-treatment delays. MSTU are specialized ambulances equipped with a CT scanner and a mini-laboratory. In Berlin, Germany, we have been operating an MSTU (stroke emergency mobile vehicle, STEMO) since 2011. Previous studies had shown that start of tPA treatment was 25min earlier when patients were cared by STEMO than within conventional care, i.e. admission to hospital by regular ambulance and in-hospital tPA treatment. However, these studies did not prove, that earlier treatment in STEMO is associated with better outcome. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to compare 3-month functional outcome after tPA in patients with acute ischemic stroke who received STEMO care vs conventional care.

23 Aug

Posted at 20:42h in Author Interviews, Fertility, OBGYNE, PNAS
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27272" align="alignleft" width="150"]Peter Sutovsky PhD Professor of Animal Science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources University of Missouri Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the School of Medicine University of Missouri Health System Dr. Peter Sutovsky[/caption] Peter Sutovsky PhD Professor of Animal Science in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources University of Missouri Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the School of Medicine University of Missouri Health System MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Strictly maternal inheritance of mitochondria, the cellular power stations, and mitochondrial genes that mitochondria harbor, is a major biological paradigm in mammals. Propagation of paternal, sperm-contributed mitochondrial genes, resulting in a condition called heteroplasmy, is seldom observed in mammals, due to post-fertilization elimination sperm mitochondria, referred to as “sperm mitophagy.” Our and others’ recent results suggest that this process is mediated by the synergy of ubiquitin–proteasome system (UPS) pathway that recycles outlived cellular proteins one molecule at a time, and autophagic pathway capable of engulfing and digesting an entire mitochondrion. Here we demonstrate that the co-inhibition of the ubiquitin-binding autophagy receptor proteins SQSTM1, GABARAP, and UPS, and the UPS protein VCP dependent pathways delayed the digestion of sperm mitochondria inside the fertilized pig egg. By manipulating said proteins, we created heteroplasmic pig embryos with both the paternal and maternal mitochondrial genes. Such animal embryos that could be used as a biomedical model to research and alleviate certain forms of mitochondrial disease.

23 Aug

Posted at 01:07h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Kidney Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Fan Fan Hou Chief, Division of Nephrology, Nanfang Hospital Professor of Medicine, Southern Medical UniversityFan Fan Hou MD Chief, Division of Nephrology, Nanfang Hospital Professor of Medicine, Southern Medical University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Previous trials (HOST and DIVINe) of folic acid therapy in CKD patients were conducted in patients with advanced CKD and treated with super-high dose of vitamin B or with cyanocobalamin that has been shown to be renal toxic. The current study sought to evaluated the efficacy of folic acid therapy without cyanocobalamin on renal outcomes in patients without folic acid fortification and across a spectrum of renal function at baseline from normal to moderate CKD. We found that treatment with enalapril-folic acid, as compared with enalapril alone, reduced the risk of progression of CKD by 21% and the rate of eGFR decline by 10% in hypertensive patients. More importantly, the presence of CKD at baseline was a significant modifier of the treatment effect (p for interaction = 0.01). Patients with CKD benefited most from the folic acid therapy, with a 56% and 44% reduction in the risk for progression of CKD and the rate of eGFR decline, respectively. In contrast, the renal protective effect in those without CKD was nominal.

22 Aug

Posted at 23:25h in Author Interviews, Frailty, Hip Fractures, JAMA, Pharmacology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27214" align="alignleft" width="160"]Jeffrey Munson, MD, MSCE Assistant Professor The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth Dr. Jeffrey Munson[/caption] Jeffrey Munson, MD, MSCE Assistant Professor The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?  Response: Fragility fractures due to osteoporosis are a common and costly event among older Americans. Patients who experience one fragility fracture are at increased risk to have a second fracture. Our group is interested in exploring ways in which the risk of a second fracture could be reduced. In this paper, we studied prescription drug use both before and after fracture. We know many prescription drugs have been shown to increase the risk of fracture, but we don’t know whether doctors try to reduce the use of these drugs after a fracture has occurred. Our study was designed to answer this question.

22 Aug

Posted at 23:21h in Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Emergency Care, JAMA, Kidney Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27209" align="alignleft" width="122"]Rachel Patzer, PhD, MPH Director of Health Services Research, Emory Transplant Center Assistant Professor Emory University School of Medicine Department of Surgery Division of Transplantation Dr. Rachel Patzer[/caption] Rachel Patzer, PhD, MPH Director of Health Services Research, Emory Transplant Center Assistant Professor Emory University School of Medicine Department of Surgery Division of Transplantation MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) make up less than 1% of all Medicare patients, but account for more than 7% of all Medicare expenses. Patients with ESRD have the highest risk of hospitalization of any patient with a chronic disease, and while hospital admissions have decreased over the last several years, emergency department utilization for this patient population has increased by 3% in the last 3 years. The purpose of the study we conducted was to describe the clinical and demographic characteristics associated with emergency department utilization.

22 Aug

Posted at 23:17h in Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Immunotherapy, JAMA

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mizuki Nishino, MD MPH Department of Radiology Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Boston, Massachusetts MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Immune-checkpoint inhibitors including PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors have brought remarkable advances in treatment of cancer patients. Immune-checkpoint inhibitors are associated with a unique set of adverse events,...

22 Aug

Posted at 22:45h in Author Interviews, Dermatology, JAMA, Melanoma, Stanford
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27029" align="alignleft" width="200"]Susan M. Swetter, MD Professor of Dermatology Director, Pigmented Lesion & Melanoma Program Physician Leader, Cancer Care Program in Cutaneous Oncology Stanford University Medical Center and Cancer Institute Dr. Susan Swetter[/caption] Susan M. Swetter, MD Professor of Dermatology Director, Pigmented Lesion & Melanoma Program Physician Leader, Cancer Care Program in Cutaneous Oncology Stanford University Medical Center and Cancer Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Dysplastic nevi (DN) are frequently re-excised following initial biopsy due to concerns for malignant transformation; however, the long-term risk of melanoma developing in mildly or moderately dysplastic nevi with positive histologic margins is unknown. In this cohort study of 590 histologic DN that were followed over 20 years, 6 cases of melanoma (5 in situ) arose in the 304 DN with positive margins that were clinically observed, only 1 of which developed from an excisionally-biopsied dysplastic nevus. One melanoma in situ arose in the 170 cases that underwent complete excision at the outset. The risk of new primary melanoma at other sites of the body was over 9% in both groups.

20 Aug

Posted at 03:20h in AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Heart Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27217" align="alignleft" width="200"]Lu Qi, MD, PhD HCA Regents Distinguished Chair and Professor Director,Tulane University Obesity Research Center Department of Epidemiology Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine 1440 Canal Street, Suite 1724 New Orleans, LA 70112 Dr. Lu Qi[/caption] Lu Qi, MD, PhD HCA Regents Distinguished Chair and Professor Director,Tulane University Obesity Research Center Department of Epidemiology Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine 1440 Canal Street, Suite 1724 New Orleans, LA 70112 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Gallstone disease has been related to various risk factors of cardiovascular disease, and several previous studies suggest potential link between gallstone disease and heart disease. Our study, for the first time, provide consistent evidence for the association between gallstone disease and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

19 Aug

Posted at 17:38h in Author Interviews, CT Scanning, Lung Cancer, PLoS, Radiology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27200" align="alignleft" width="150"]Matthew B. Schabath PhD Department of Cancer Epidemiology H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute Tampa, Florida Dr. Matthew Schabath[/caption] Matthew B. Schabath PhD Department of Cancer Epidemiology H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute Tampa, Florida MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Our study is a post-hoc analysis of data from a large randomized clinical trial (RCT) called the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST). The NLST found that lung cancer screening with low-dose helical computed tomography (LDCT) significantly reduced lung cancer deaths by 20 percent compared to screening with standard chest radiography (i.e., X-Ray). In our publication, we performed a very detailed analysis comparing outcomes of lung cancer patients screened by LDCT according to their initial (i.e., baseline), 12 month, and 24 month screening results. We found that patients who had a negative baseline screening but tested positive for lung cancer at the 12- or 24-month screen had lower survival and higher mortality rates than patients who had a positive initial screen that was a non-cancerous abnormality but developed lung cancer in subsequent screens.

19 Aug

Posted at 13:06h in Author Interviews, Genetic Research, Heart Disease, Science
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27194" align="alignleft" width="130"]Johan LM Björkegren, MD, PhD Professor, Chief Clinical Science Officer Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York Dr. Johan Björkegren[/caption] Johan LM Björkegren, MD, PhD Professor, Chief Clinical Science Officer Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The STARNET (Stockholm-Tartu Atherosclerosis Reverse Network Engineering Task) study was launched in 2007 by myself and Dr. Arno Ruusalepp MD, PhD, Chief Cardiac Surgeon at Tartu University Hospital in Estonia, and senior co-author on the study. Unlike similar studies, STARNET obtained samples of several key tissues from 600 clinically well-characterized patients with CAD during coronary artery bypass surgery. By using sophisticated data analysis techniques, the researchers found that the gene expression data from STARNET were highly informative in identifying causal disease genes and their activity in networks not only in CAD but also for other cardiometabolic diseases as well as Alzheimer’s disease. By analyzing gene-expression data from multiple tissues in hundreds of patients with coronary artery disease, we were able to identify disease-causing genes that either were specific to single tissues or acted across multiple tissues in networks to cause cardiometabolic diseases.

19 Aug

Posted at 12:52h in Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Heart Disease, JACC
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27190" align="alignleft" width="170"]Antonio Pelliccia, MD, FESC Chief of Cardiology Institute of Sport Medicine and Science Rome Dr. Antonio Pelliccia[/caption] Antonio Pelliccia, MD, FESC Chief of Cardiology Institute of Sport Medicine and Science Rome MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The awareness of the relevant role of arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) as cause of athletic field events and the refined Task Force (TF) criteria for the diagnosis of the disease have prompted a large scientific interest and triggered a vast scientific literature on this issue. Indeed, the recent observations by Heidbuchel and La Gerche based on data from a selected group of ultra-endurance athletes, suggesting that strenuous, chronic endurance exercise may ultimately cause, per se, RV dysfunction have further stimulated the need to define the characteristics and limits of training-induced RV remodelling. At present, however, no studies have assessed the characteristic of physiologic right ventricular remodelling as derived from a large population of highly-trained athletes, including a sizeable number of women and comprising a broad spectrum of summer and winter Olympic sport disciplines.

19 Aug

Posted at 00:14h in Author Interviews, Diabetes, Diabetologia, OBGYNE, Pediatrics, Weight Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26918" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr. Gang Hu, Associate Professor LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center & Director Chronic Disease Epidemiology Lab Dr. Gang Hu[/caption] Dr. Gang Hu, Associate Professor LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center & Director Chronic Disease Epidemiology Lab MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Some studies have found that maternal gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) places offspring at increased risk of long-term adverse outcomes, including obesity. However, most of studies are from high income countries, with limited data from low to middle income countries. The present study, conducted at urban and suburban sites in 12 countries, found that the increased risk for children of GDM mothers compared with non-gestational diabetes mellitus mothers was 53% for obesity, 73% for central obesity, and 42% for high body fat.

19 Aug

Posted at 00:10h in Author Interviews, Diabetes, NEJM, OBGYNE, Technology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Helen Murphy and Dr Zoe Stewart Institute of Metabolic Science University of Cambridge MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Controlling blood glucose levels is a daily challenge for people with Type 1 diabetes and is particularly crucial during pregnancy. Previous research shows that women with type 1 diabetes spend only 12 hours per day within the recommended glucose target levels, leading to increased rates of complications including preterm delivery and large for gestational age infants. National surveys show that one in two babies suffer complications related to type 1 diabetes in the mother. The hormonal changes that occur in pregnancy make it difficult for women to predict the best insulin doses for every meal and overnight. Too much insulin causes low glucose levels harmful for the mother and too little causes problems for the developing baby. The artificial pancreas automates the insulin delivery giving better glucose control than we can achieve with currently available treatments. Previous studies show that the closed-loop system also known as artificial pancreas can be used safely in children and adults and our study aimed to investigate whether or not it was helpful for women with type1 diabetes during pregnancy.

19 Aug

Posted at 00:05h in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, JAMA, Mental Health Research, OBGYNE
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27170" align="alignleft" width="179"]Krista F. Huybrechts, M.S., Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School Epidemiologist in the Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Boston, MA 02120 Dr. Krista Huybrechts[/caption] Krista F. Huybrechts, M.S., Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Epidemiologist Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston, MA 02120 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The use of antipsychotic medications during pregnancy has doubled in the last decade. Yet, information on the safety of antipsychotic medication use during pregnancy for the developing fetus is very limited: existing studies tend to be small (the largest study available to date includes 570 exposed women) and findings have been inconsistent. Concerns have been raised about a potential association with congenital malformations. The objective of our study was to examine the risk of congenital malformations overall, as well as cardiac malformations given findings from earlier studies, in a large cohort of pregnant women. We used a nationwide sample of 1.3 mln pregnant women insured through Medicaid between 2000-2010, of which 9,258 used an atypical antipsychotic and 733 used a typical antipsychotic during the first trimester, the etiologically relevant period for organogenesis. We also examined the risks associated with the most commonly used individual medications.

18 Aug

Posted at 23:58h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Prostate Cancer
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27166" align="alignleft" width="138"]Dr. Ahmedin Jemal, DVM, PhD Vice President, Surveillance and Health Services Research American Cancer Societ Dr. Ahmedin Jemal[/caption] Dr. Ahmedin Jemal, DVM, PhD Vice President, Surveillance and Health Services Research American Cancer Society MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We previously showed large decrease in early stage prostate cancer incidence rates from 2011 to 2012 in men 50 years and older following the US Preventive services Task Force recommendation against routine prostate-specific antigen testing in 2011. In this paper, we examined whether the decrease in early stage incidence persisted through 2013. We found that early stage prostate cancer incidence rates in men age 50 and older decreased from 2012 to 2013, although the decrease (6%) was lower compared to the decrease from 2011-2012 (19%). In contrast, rates for distant stage disease between 2012 and 2013 remained unchanged.

18 Aug

Posted at 23:51h in Author Interviews, Colon Cancer, Genetic Research, Journal Clinical Oncology, MD Anderson
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27163" align="alignleft" width="114"]Y. Nancy You, MD, MHSc Associate Professor Section of Colorectal Surgery Department of Surgical Oncology Medical Director Familial High-risk Gastrointestinal Cancer Clinic University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Dr. Y. Nancy You[/caption] Y. Nancy You, MD, MHSc Associate Professor Section of Colorectal Surgery Department of Surgical Oncology Medical Director Familial High-risk Gastrointestinal Cancer Clinic University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Despite the progress in the treatment of many cancers, colorectal cancer (CRC) remains the third most common and lethal cancer in the US. Over 130,000 people are expected to be diagnosed and over 50,000 patients will die from CRC this year. In the recent years, the most exciting development has been our understanding of the molecular complexity of CRC. Currently, four major molecular subtypes of colorectal cancer are recognized. Our study focuses on the Consensus Molecular Subtype 1, which accounts for up to 15% of CRCs, and is characterized by a deficiency in DNA mismatch repair (dMMR), a high level of mutations (i.e. hypermutated), by instability in parts of the genome called microsatellites, and by strong immune activation. Prior to our study, patients with rectal cancer that belong to this molecular subtype have represented an unknown, in terms of their prognosis, and how the tumors respond to current treatments. More importantly, this molecular subtype harbor a genetic condition that can be transmitted within the family called “Lynch Syndrome”. So we designed our study to fill these gaps in our understanding that exist in this subtype of CRCs and to highlight key clinical care issues related to the caring for patients with a genetic syndrome. The main findings are that rectal cancers belonging to this molecular subtype have favorable prognosis, respond well to standard chemoradiation, and are linked to Lynch Syndrome and should be treated at centers with expertise in hereditary cancer syndromes.

18 Aug

Posted at 20:49h in Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Lipids, Nutrition, Omega-3 Fatty Acids
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27182" align="alignleft" width="149"]David Iggman, MD, PhD Unit for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences Uppsala University, Uppsala Center for Clinical Research Dalarna Falun, Sweden Dr. David Iggman[/caption] David Iggman, MD, PhD Unit for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences Uppsala University, Uppsala Center for Clinical Research Dalarna Falun, Sweden MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There is some controversy regarding which dietary fats are preferable and in what amounts, not least regarding the polyunsaturated fats. It is also challenging to adequately assess peoples intakes of dietary fats. The main findings of this study was that among fatty acids in the body (reflecting the intake during the last year or so), linoleic acid (omega-6) was associated with lower mortality in 71-year-old men with 15 years follow-up.

18 Aug

Posted at 10:55h in Asthma, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, NEJM, Pediatrics
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27010" align="alignleft" width="120"]Wanda Phipatanakul, MD, MS Associate Professor of Pediatrics Harvard Medical School Director, Asthma Clinical Research Center Boston Children's Hospital Asthma, Allergy and Immunology Boston, MA 02115 Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul[/caption] Wanda Phipatanakul, MD, MS Associate Professor of Pediatrics Harvard Medical School Director, Asthma Clinical Research Center Boston Children's Hospital Asthma, Allergy and Immunology Boston, MA 02115 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response:  Acetaminophen (e.g., Tylenol, Panadol) and ibuprofen (e.g., Advil, Motrin) are the only available treatments for pain and fever in toddlers and the most commonly utilized medications worldwide. Recently there has been controversy and even alarm with suggestive observational data that acetaminophen makes asthma worse. This has led some experts to recommend the avoidance of acetaminophen in children with asthma. We sought to find the answer to this burning question through the first prospective, double-blind, randomized clinical trial comparing acetaminophen versus ibuprofen head to head for use when clinically indicated for fever or pain. Is there a difference in asthma morbidity (exacerbations) in young children between the age of 12-59 months, who have asthma?

17 Aug

Posted at 23:56h in Author Interviews, Kidney Stones, Nature
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr-Jeffrey-RimerJeffrey D. Rimer PhD Ernest J. and Barbara M. Henley Associate Professor University of Houston Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Houston, TX 77204-4004 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: This project’s origin can be traced back to preliminary results obtained by Dr. John Asplin at Litholink Corporation revealing an organic acid, hydroxycitrate (HCA), was a promising inhibitor of calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) crystallization. COM is a principle component of human kidney stones. Interestingly, HCA is a molecular analogue of citrate (CA), the current therapy for stone disease. My research group at the University of Houston began collaborating with Dr. Asplin to explore the effects of HCA in more detail. We conducted in vitro assays using two techniques: bulk crystallization studies to quantify HCA efficacy and more detailed in situ atomic force microscopy (AFM) studies to assess the growth of COM crystal surfaces in real time.

17 Aug

Posted at 23:34h in Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Gender Differences, JAMA, Mental Health Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27045" align="alignleft" width="178"]Edith Chen, Ph.D. Professor Faculty Fellow, Institute for Policy Research Northwestern University Department of Psychology Evanston, IL 60208-2710 Dr. Edith Chen[/caption] Edith Chen, Ph.D. Professor Faculty Fellow, Institute for Policy Research Northwestern University Department of Psychology Evanston, IL 60208-2710 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Previous research has documented psychiatric consequences of childhood abuse, but less is known about possible physical health consequences. The main finding is that women who self-reported childhood abuse (in adulthood) were at greater risk for all-cause mortality compared to those who did not report abuse.

17 Aug

Posted at 23:29h in Author Interviews, Hepatitis - Liver Disease, NEJM
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Dr. F. Nevens, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Hepatology and liver transplantation University Hospitals KU Leuven, Belgium Prof. Dr. F. Nevens, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Hepatology and liver transplantation University Hospitals KU Leuven, Belgium MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a rare, autoimmune cholestatic liver disease that puts patients at risk for life-threatening complications. PBC is primarily a disease of women, affecting approximately one in 1,000 women over the age of 40. If left untreated, survival of PBC patients is significantly worse than the general population. The POISE trial evaluated the safety and efficacy of once-daily treatment with Ocaliva® (obeticholic acid) in PBC patients with an inadequate therapeutic response to, or who are unable to tolerate, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), the current standard of care. Ocaliva is the first PBC therapy that targets the farnesoid X receptor (FXR), a key regulator of bile acid, inflammatory, fibrotic and metabolic pathways. The trial’s primary endpoint was an alkaline phosphatase (ALP) level of less than 1.67 times the upper limit of the normal range, with a reduction of at least 15% from baseline, and a total bilirubin level at or below the upper limit of the normal range after 12 months of obeticholic acid therapy. These liver biomarkers have been shown to predict progression to liver failure and resulting liver transplant or premature death in patients with PBC.