Author Interviews, Endocrinology, JCEM, Testosterone / 23.11.2013

Dr Bu Beng Yeap MBBS, FRACP, PhD Professor, School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia Endocrinologist, Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes, Fremantle Hospital. School of Medicine and Pharmacology
Level 2, T Block, Fremantle Hospital, Alma Street, Fremantle, Western Australia 6160, AustraliaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Bu Beng Yeap   MBBS, FRACP, PhD Professor, School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia Endocrinologist, Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes, Fremantle Hospital. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We found that older men with testosterone levels in the middle of the range had the lowest mortality risk. Having a low testosterone level predicted higher mortality, and there was no benefit of having a high-normal testosterone level. Men with optimal rather than high testosterone levels lived longest. The other important finding was that men with higher dihydrotestosterone levels had lower mortality from ischaemic heart disease, suggesting that androgens may protect against heart disease in older men. (more…)
Antioxidants, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Medical Research Centers, Nature, Nutrition, Pancreatic / 23.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: dr_ying_baoYing Bao, MD, ScD Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School Boston, MA. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Bao: Frequent nut consumption is inversely associated with risk of pancreatic cancer in women, independent of other potential risk factors for pancreatic cancer. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Lymphoma, NEJM / 22.11.2013

Kieron M. Dunleavy, M.D. Metabolism Branch Lymphoma Therapeutics Section Staff Clinician Center for Cancer Research National Cancer Institute Bethesda, MD 20892MedicalResearch.com Interview with Kieron M. Dunleavy, M.D. Metabolism Branch Lymphoma Therapeutics Section Center for Cancer Research National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Dunleavy: We found that low-intensity therapy was highly effective in Burkitt's lymphoma and cured over 95% of patients with the disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Diabetes Care, Johns Hopkins / 21.11.2013

Caleb Alexander, MD, MS Department of Epidemiology, Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Division of General Internal Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore, MarylandMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Caleb Alexander, MD, MS Department of Epidemiology, Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Division of General Internal Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Alexander:
  • There have been large shifts in the types of treatments used to treat Type 2 diabetes during the past decade in the United States.
  • We document large declines in the use of glitazones and sulfonylureas and important increases in the use of the newer DPP-4 inhibitors and GLP-1 agonists.
  • We also found large shifts in the types of insulins used, with substantial reductions in the use of regular and intermediate insulins, and large increases in the use of long-acting and ultra short-acting  therapies.
  • Costs have increased significantly over the past 5 years, driven primarily by insulin and DPP-4 inhibitors
  • All of these changes notwithstanding, biguanides continue to remain a mainstay of therapy. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Heart Disease, JCEM, Weight Research / 21.11.2013

Carlos Lorenzo, MD Department of Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center 7703 Floyd Curl Drive San Antonio, Texas 78229MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Carlos Lorenzo, MD Department of Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center 7703 Floyd Curl Drive San Antonio, Texas 78229 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Lorenzo: Metabolically healthy obese individuals are at increased risk of developing of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. These findings were demonstrated in men and women and in Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites. Management of excess weight and any metabolic abnormality appears to be important for all individuals. Our study is also in agreement with previous studies that indicate that metabolically unhealthy normal weight individuals are at increased risk of developing of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Hospital Readmissions / 21.11.2013

Kumar Dharmarajan MD MBA Fellow in Cardiovascular Medicine Columbia University Medical CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kumar Dharmarajan MD MBA Fellow in Cardiovascular Medicine Columbia University Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What were the main findings of the study Dr. Dharmarajan: In the United States, 1 in 5 older patients is readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of hospital discharge. However, there is great variation in rates of 30-day readmission across hospitals, and we do not know why some hospitals are able to achieve much lower readmission rates than others. We therefore wondered whether top performing hospitals with low 30-day readmission rates are systematically better at preventing readmissions from particular conditions or time periods after discharge. For example, are hospitals with low 30-day readmission rates after hospitalization for heart failure especially good at preventing readmissions due to recurrent heart failure or possible complications of treatment? Similarly, are top performing hospitals especially good at preventing readmissions that occur very soon after discharge, which may signify poor transitional care as the patient moves form the hospital back home? (more…)
Author Interviews, Herpes Viruses, Infections, Nature, Pulmonary Disease / 21.11.2013

Gerard Nuovo MD Professor College of Medicine, The Ohio State University Satellite Laboratory, Ohio State Univ Comprehensive Cancer Center Phylogeny Inc, Powell, OhioMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gerard Nuovo MD Professor College of Medicine, The Ohio State University Satellite Laboratory, Ohio State Univ Comprehensive Cancer Center Phylogeny Inc, Powell, Ohio MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Nuovo: The main finding of the study was that idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis was strongly associated with an infection by a herpesvirus.  The data that supported this main finding included:
  • 1) detection of the viral DNA by in situ hybridization in each case of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and in none of the controls;
  • 2) the localization of the viral DNA to the nucleus of the cell that orchestrates IPF, the regenerating epithelial cell (herpes viruses localize to the nucleus of the target cell);
  • 3) the demonstration that the viral DNA co-localized with "pirated proteins" that the virus makes during productive infection (these were IL-17. cyclin D, dihydrofolate reductase, and thymidylate synthase); this combination of proteins are rarely if ever co-expressed in lung disease and  their co-expression per se was highly suggestive of a viral infection;
  • 4) the demonstration by RTPCR that the cyclin D RNA in IPF comes from the virus and not the human cells;
  • 5) the recognition that this family of herpesviruses (called gammaherpesvirus) causes IPF in other animals including horses, mice, and donkeys;
  • 6) the cloning of part of the gene of the virus from a clinical IPF sample that showed 100% homology to the published sequence of the likely viral pathogen - herpesvirus saimiri. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Weight Research / 21.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Prashanthan SandersMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Prashanthan Sanders Director, Centre for Heart Rhythm Disorders University of Adelaide | Royal Adelaide Hospital | SAHMRI NHMRC Practitioner Fellow Centre for Heart Rhythm Disorders Department of Cardiology | Royal Adelaide Hospital Adelaide 5000 | Australia MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Aggressive treatment of risk factors and weight reduced the symptom burden associated with atrial fibrillation. It is therefore important that in a similar manner to how we treat coronary artery disease, in atrial fibrillation there should be management directed at the reasons why these individuals got AF in the first place. (more…)
Author Interviews, Colon Cancer, Nature, Race/Ethnic Diversity, Stanford / 18.11.2013

James Murphy, M.D. Assistant Professor Department of Radiation Medicine and Applied Sciences Center for Advanced Radiotherapy Technologies UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center 3855 Health Sciences Drive La Jolla, CA 92093MedicalResearch.com Interview with: James Murphy, M.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Medicine and Applied Sciences, Center for Advanced Radiotherapy Technologies ,UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center La Jolla, CA 92093 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Murphy: This study evaluated racial disparity in metastatic colorectal cancer. In a large population-based cohort we found of over 11,000 patients we found that black patients were less likely to be seen in consultation by a cancer specialist, and were less likely to receive treatment with chemotherapy, surgery, or radiation. Furthermore, we found that this disparity in treatment accounted for a substantial portion of the race-based differences between black and white patients. (more…)
Author Interviews, CMAJ, Sleep Disorders / 18.11.2013

Mohamed El Shayeb MD, MSc Health Technology and Policy Unit University of Alberta 3025 Research Transition Facility Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G2V2MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mohamed El Shayeb MD, MSc Health Technology and Policy Unit University of Alberta 3025 Research Transition Facility Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G2V2 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. El Shayeb: Our study shows that limited channel level-3 portable devices, used at home, are of good diagnostic value compared to the comprehensive reference-standard level-1 sleep tests conducted in lab in the diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea (the most common subtype of sleep disordered breathing.)

Were any of the findings unexpected? None of the findings were unexpected. Level-3 portable devices are commonly used in clinical practice; however, this technology has been widely disseminated, without solid evidence about their diagnostic performance or the subpopulation of sleep disordered breathing patients who are most appropriately diagnosed with them. Our research provides a high level of evidence on the diagnostic performance of these devices, and most importantly, defines the subgroup of patients who are eligible for this test (patients with simple obstructive sleep apnea, and without significant comorbidities.) (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Lipids, Thyroid Disease / 18.11.2013

Angela M. Leung, MD, MSc Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine University of California Los AngelesMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Angela M. Leung, MD, MSc Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine University of California Los Angeles   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Leung: Despite current guidelines to screen for thyroid dysfunction as a secondary cause of newly-diagnosed hyperlipidemia, this was performed only about 50% of the time by primary care providers in over 8,700 patients at a large, urban Boston academic medical center. Approximately 5% of patients who had thyroid function checked were found to have hypothyroidism. The majority of hypothyroid patients who received treatment with levothyroxine had successful correction of the initial hyperlipidemia within one year. (more…)
Author Interviews, PLoS, Weight Research / 16.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Guang Sun MD, PhD Professor, Discipline of medicine Faculty of medicine, Memorial University Canada MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Sun: Plenty of anecdotal reports on how ‘Food Addiction’ may be a potential culprit of the rising prevalence of obesity. However to date no scientific study, based on a comprehensive criterion of the diagnosis of Food Addiction, has been performed at the population level. The main findings are in the following fours aspects: 1)         Food Addiction is indeed an important contributing factor in the development of obesity. 2)         The prevalence of Food Addition was 5.4% and increased concomitantly with obesity status defined by either body mass index (BMI) or body fat percentage (%BF). In another word, there is one food addict in every twenty adults (Newfoundland Province, Canada) 3)         Clinical Symptom Count(s) of Food Addiction is strongly associated with the severity of obesity. 4)         Women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with “Food Addiction” than men. (more…)
Author Interviews, NEJM, Urinary Tract Infections / 14.11.2013

Thomas M. Hooton M.D. Associate Chief of Staff, Medical Service, Miami VA Healthcare System Professor of Clinical Medicine and Vice Chair for VA Affairs, Department of Medicine, UMSOM Clinical Director, Division of Infectious Diseases, UMSOMMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Thomas M. Hooton M.D. Professor of Medicine and Vice Chair for VA Affairs, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine Associate Chief of Staff, Medical Service, Miami VA Healthcare System Clinical Director, Division of Infectious Diseases MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Hooten: The main findings from this study are: ·        Voided urine colony counts of E. coli as low as 101 to 102 cfu/mL are highly sensitive and specific for their presence in bladder urine in symptomatic women (growth of bacteria in bladder urine is the gold standard for the etiology of UTI). Moreover, even when E. coli is found along with other mixed flora in voided urine, it should not be considered a contaminant since it likely represents true bladder infection. ·        On the other hand, enterococci and Group B streptococci, which are frequently isolated from voided urine, are rarely isolated from paired catheter specimens, suggesting that these organisms only rarely cause acute uncomplicated cystitis. In our study, E. coli frequently grew from the urines of these women and is the likely cause for UTI symptoms in such episodes. ·        Organisms usually considered contaminants, such as lactobacilli, occasionally grow from catheter urines, but they are rarely found alone with pyuria, suggesting that these bacteria rarely cause acute uncomplicated cystitis. ·        The etiology of a quarter of acute uncomplicated cystitis episodes is unknown.  It is possible that some of these women have E. coli urethritis, which has been documented in some women with UTI symptoms, but we did not do further studies to evaluate this. It is possible also that enterococci and Group B streptococci may also cause urethritis, but there is no published evidence of this in young women with UTI symptoms. ·        Although voided urine cultures growing mixed flora are common in women with acute cystitis, true polymicrobic cystitis, as determined by sampling bladder urine, appears to be rare in this population. (more…)
Author Interviews, Chocolate, Nature, Nutrition, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 12.11.2013

Magdalena Cuenca García, PhD University of Granada Department of Physiology, School of Medicine Avd. Madrid 12; 18012 Granada (Spain)MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Magdalena Cuenca García, PhD University of Granada Department of Physiology, School of Medicine Avd. Madrid 12; 18012 Granada (Spain) MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: In conclusion, the results of the present study showed that a higher chocolate consumption was associated with lower levels of central and total fatness in European adolescents. Of note is that the observed association was independent of total energy intake and saturated fat intake as well as objectively measured physical activity. In addition, results remained unchanged after adjusting for foods with high catechins concentration as fruit, vegetables and tea; as well as other products such as coffee that could influence the observed association between chocolate consumption and markers of total and central body fat. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brain Injury, Cognitive Issues, Lancet / 12.11.2013

prof_david_menonMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof David K Menon MD PhD FRCP FRCA FFICM FMedSci Head, Division of Anaesthesia, University of Cambridge 
Consultant, Neurosciences Critical Care Unit 
BOC Professor, Royal College of Anaesthetists Professorial Fellow, Queens' College, Cambridge Senior Investigator, National Institute for Health Research Box 93, Addenbrooke's Hospital, 
Cambridge CB2 2QQ, UK MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for your study? Dr. Menon: We have known for some time that a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI) results in a significant (between 2 and 10 fold) increase in the likelihood of getting dementia in later life.  On possible mechanistic explanation for this comes from the finding that about a third of individuals who died of TBI, regardless of age, are found at autopsy to have deposits of β-amyloid in the brain, often Aβ42, which is the same variant of amyloid seen in the brain of patients who have Alzheimer’s Disease. However, such detection after death has made it impossible to examine the linkage of such early amyloid deposition to late dementia.  More recently, imaging with positron emission tomography (PET) and Pittsburgh compound B (PIB) has been used to image amyloid deposits in Alzheimer’s  Disease.  However, the technique had not been validated in traumatic brain injury. (more…)
General Medicine, PLoS / 12.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jonas D. Finger and  Dr. Gert B.M. Mensink Jonas Finger, MPhil (Epidemiology) MA (Sports Sc) MA (Political Sc) Robert Koch-Institute - Department of Epidemiology and Health MonitoringDivision 24 - Interview surveys and European collaboration General-Pape-Straße 62-66, 12101 Berlin Germany MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: People with a low level of education consume energy dense foods (sugar- and fat-rich foods) more frequently and low energy foods (fruit and vegetables) and alcohol less frequently compared to people with a high level of education. A new study aspect is that the role of physical activity level for the link between education and high energy food intake was also investigated. People with a low level of education have more frequently physically-demanding jobs leading to a higher level of total energy expenditure compared to sedentary office workers (mainly high educated). The latter are more active in their leisure time. The study provides some evidence to support the hypothesis that the low educated consumed more energy dense foods than the high educated because they expend more energy due to the physical work they do. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Lancet, Radiation Therapy / 11.11.2013

Prof Jayant S Vaidya PhD Clinical Trials Group, Division of Surgery and Interventional Science University College London, London, UKMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof Jayant S Vaidya PhD Clinical Trials Group, Division of Surgery and Interventional Science University College London, London, UK MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Vaidya: The main findings are
  • a) these are longer term results that have confirmed our original publication in 201
  • (b) We found that when TARGIT intraoperative radiotherapy is given at the time of lumpectomy for breast cancer, the local control and survival from breast cancer is similar to several weeks of whole breast radiotherapy
  • c) we also found that with TARGIT there are significantly fewer deaths from other causes - i.e., fewer deaths from cardiovascular causes and other cancers
(more…)
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Lancet, Stroke / 07.11.2013

Dr. Colin Derdeyn Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology and the Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USAMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Colin Derdeyn Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology and the Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study?  Dr. Derdeyn: The primary results indicate that medical management, consisting of dual antiplatelets for 3 months after a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or stroke, and rapid, effective control of blood pressure (systolic BP less than 140 mm Hg and 130 mm Hg if diabetic) and LDL-cholesterol (less than 70 mg/dl), in addition to management of other risk factors, is superior to angioplasty and stenting in addition to the same medical regimen for reducing the risk of future stroke in patients with severe atherosclerotic stenosis (>70%) of a major intracranial artery.    In addition, while there were subgroups at higher risk for stroke on medical treatment (older age, female gender, prior stroke in the territory),  none of these subgroups appeared to have a benefit from stenting (i.e. stroke rates in the stenting groups in these subgroups was higher too). (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, JAMA / 07.11.2013

Richard L. Kravitz, MD, MSPH Professor and Co-vice Chair (Research) Interim Director, UC Center Sacramento Co-Editor in Chief, Journal of General Internal MedicineMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Richard L. Kravitz, MD, MSPH Professor and Co-vice Chair (Research) Interim Director, UC Center Sacramento Co-Editor in Chief, Journal of General Internal Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for your study? Dr. Kravitz: Depression in the United States is both undertreated and overtreated.  As the de facto mental health care system for many, primary care is at the nexus of this problem.  Up to 30% of patients with major depression in primary care go undiagnosed.  At the same time, partly as a result of marketing, lots of patients who don’t need meds are started on antidepressants.   So we were interested in finding ways to get more truly depressed patients into treatment without overtreating patients who don’t need it. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 07.11.2013

Thomas H. Inge, M.D., Ph.D. Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics Director of the Surgical Weight Loss Program for Teens Director for the Center for Bariatric Research and Innovation Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical CenterMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Thomas H. Inge, MD, PhD, FACS, FAAP Surgical Director, Surgical Weight Loss Program for Teens Director, Center for Bariatric Research and Innovation Attending Surgeon, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center Professor, UC Department of Surgery Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Inge: The mean age of the 242 participants of this observational study was 17.1±1.6 years and the median BMI was 50.5 kg/m2.  Fifty-one percent demonstrated four or more major co-morbid conditions.  Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, vertical sleeve gastrectomy, and adjustable gastric banding were performed in 66%, 28%, and 6% of subjects, respectively.  There were no deaths during the initial hospitalization or within 30 days of surgery; major complications were seen in 19 subjects (8%). Minor complications were noted in 36 subjects (15%).  All re-operations and 85% of re-admissions were related to WLS. (more…)
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, General Medicine, Mediterranean Diet, Nutrition / 06.11.2013

Cécilia Samieri, PhD Institut pour la Santé Publique et le Développement, Case 11, Université Bordeaux Segalen, 146 rue Léo Saignat, 33076 Bordeaux Cedex, FranceMedicalResearch.com Interview with Cécilia Samieri, PhD Institut pour la Santé Publique et le Développement, Case 11, Université Bordeaux Segalen, 146 rue Léo Saignat, 33076 Bordeaux Cedex, France MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Samieri: That women with healthier dietary patterns at midlife were 40% more likely to survive age 70 or over free of major chronic diseases and with no impairment in physical function, cognition or mental health. (more…)
JAMA, Weight Research / 05.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nicholas J. Christian, PhD Graduate School of Public Health University of Pittsburgh MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Christian: We found that the differences between measured and self-reported weights following bariatric surgery were small and did not systematically differ by measured body mass index or degree of postoperative weight change. The average degree of underreporting by self-report was 0.7 kg for women and 1.0 kg for men. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Wake Forest / 05.11.2013

Elsayed Z Soliman MD, MSc, MS, FAHA, FACC Director, Epidemiological Cardiology Research Center (EPICARE) Wake Forest School of Medicine Medical Center Blvs, Winston Salem, NC 27157MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elsayed Z Soliman MD, MSc, MS, FAHA, FACC Director, Epidemiological Cardiology Research Center (EPICARE) Wake Forest School of Medicine Medical Center Blvs, Winston Salem, NC 27157 Atrial Fibrillation and the Risk of Myocardial Infarction MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Soliman: Using data from the REGARDS study, one of the largest US cohorts, we examined the risk of incident myocardial infarction (MI) associated with atrial fibrillation (AF). Overall, AF was associated with almost double the risk of MI. When we adjusted for common cardiovascular risk factors and potential confounders, the risk remained significantly high; about 70% increased risk. When we looked at women, men, blacks, and whites separately,  we found significant differences between races and sex.  AF in women and blacks was associated with more than double the risk of MI. This compares to less than 50% increased risk of heart attack associated with AF in men and whites . So AF is basically bad for all, but the risk of MI associated with AF is more pronounced in women and blacks. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ / 04.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: r. Christopher Jones MD Attending Physician Department of Emergency Medicine, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University One Cooper Plaza, Camden, NJ 08103, USADr. Christopher Jones MD Attending Physician Department of Emergency Medicine, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University One Cooper Plaza, Camden, NJ 08103, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Jones: We identified a group of 585 clinical trials with at least 500 participants which had been prospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov and completed prior to 2009. Following an extensive search of the medical literature, we were unable to identify published manuscripts for 171 (29%) of these studies. For these unpublished studies we also determined whether results were available in the ClinicalTrials.gov results database, and we found that 133 studies had no results available either in the published literature or on ClinicalTrials.gov. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Sugar, Weight Research / 02.11.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Adam D M Briggs Academic Clinical Fellow British Heart Foundation Health Promotion Research Group, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7LF, UK MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: For the first time this study estimates the impact of a sugary drinks tax in the UK on obesity. We estimate the tax would reduce the number of adults with obesity by around 180,000 or just over 1% of all adults who are obese, and the number of adults who are either overweight or obese by 285,000. The greatest reductions are seen in young adults. We also estimate that the effects of the tax will be similar across all income groups. (more…)
Author Interviews, Lancet, Vaccine Studies / 01.11.2013

Dr Belén Pedrique Epidemiologist Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative DNDi, 15 Chemin Louis Dunant 1202 Geneva, Switzerland MedicalResearch.com Interview with : Dr Belén Pedrique Epidemiologist Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative DNDi, 15 Chemin Louis Dunant 1202 Geneva, Switzerland MedicalResearch.com : What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Pedrique: Of the 850 new drugs and vaccines approved for all diseases in 2000-2011, 4% (37) were for neglected diseases, defined broadly as those prevalent primarily in poor countries: malaria, tuberculosis, 17 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), 11 diarrheal diseases, and 19 other diseases of poverty, excluding HIV/AIDS. Globally these neglected diseases represent an 11% health burden, based on a recent assessment of 2010 disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs). Most newly developed therapeutic products were repurposed versions of existing drugs. Of the 336 brand-new drugs (new chemical entities, or NCEs) approved for all diseases in 2000-2011, only four, or 1%, were for neglected diseases; three were for malaria, and one for diarrheal disease. None were for any of the 17 WHO-listed NTDs Of 148,445 phase I-III clinical trials registered as of Dec 31, 2011, only 1% (2,016) were for neglected diseases. (more…)