Author Interviews, Pain Research, Rheumatology / 18.12.2014

Sandra Goldsmith, MA, MS, RD Director of Public and Patient Education at Hospital for Special Surgery New York City.MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Sandra Goldsmith, MA, MS, RD Director of Public and Patient Education at Hospital for Special Surgery New York City. Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Almost 50 million adults in the United States suffer from some form of musculoskeletal disorder, which can affect their mobility and quality of life. Osteoarthritis (OA) is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and affects more than 70 percent of adults between the ages of 55 and 78. Research has shown that there is a connection between being physically active and maintaining joint health, pain relief and improved quality of life. This study attempts to support the efficacy of Hospital for Special Surgery’s hospital-based exercise programs in increasing physical activity and improving quality of life through pain relief and improved stiffness, fatigue and balance in the older adult community. This study found that after taking the exercise classes, fewer participants reported experiencing a high level of muscle/joint pain from their condition (56 percent before the program started vs. 47 percent after completing the program). The study also reported improved quality of life, as evidenced by statistically significant reductions in how much their pain interfered with their general activities, ability to walk, mood, sleep and enjoyment of life. In addition, 83 percent of participants indicated a reduction in stiffness; 82 percent said they felt their balance improved; and 67 percent said they experienced less fatigue as a result of taking part in the program. Health outcomes were also related to the type of exercise class participants chose, with the greatest reduction in muscle/joint pain reported by those who took t’ai chi. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Osteoporosis, Pharmacology, Testosterone / 03.12.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Shabbir M. H. Alibhai, MD, MSc and Husayn Gulamhusein, BHSc Department of Medicine, University Health Network Toronto, Ontario, Canada Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? MedicalResearch: In 2009, we published a research letter in JAMA which examined the rate of bone mineral density (BMD) testing in men starting androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in the province of Ontario, Canada, between 1995 and 2008. Despite being recommended as a tool to better characterize fracture risk and optimize bone health, use of bone mineral density testing was low throughout the study period. This current study focuses on another aspect of bone health, which is the use of bisphosphonates among men undergoing androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer. Bisphosphonates are generally safe and effective medications that can reduce fracture risk particularly in those at higher risk of future fracture. Throughout the 17-year study period, we found that rates of new prescriptions for bisphosphonates remained low. Even when focusing on those men who should be receiving bisphosphonates as per Canadian guidelines due to their high risk for future fracture, i.e. those with a prior fragility fracture or prior diagnosis of osteoporosis, prescription rates remained low. Moreover, in all three groups, new bisphosphonate prescriptions dipped between the 2007-09 and 2010-12 time periods. This may be partly due to recent negative media attention regarding the association of bisphosphonates with rare but serious side effects (i.e. osteonecrosis of the jaw and atypical femoral fracture). (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research / 02.12.2014

Dr. Pan Pantziarka Anticancer Fund, Brussels Belgium The George Pantziarka TP53 Trust, London, UKMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Pan Pantziarka Anticancer Fund, Brussels Belgium The George Pantziarka TP53 Trust, London, UK MedicalResearch: What is the background for this study? Dr. Pantziarka: The background of this study is that it is part of a series of investigations by the Repurposing Drugs in Oncology (ReDO) project into well-known non-cancer drugs which have evidence of activity that may be useful in cancer therapies. These drugs include mebendazole, itraconazole, diclofenac, nitroglycerin and cimetidine. (more…)
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, Hospital Readmissions / 02.12.2014

Amy Jo Haavisto Kind, M.D., Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Division of Geriatrics University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health William S Middleton VA- GRECC Madison, WI 53705MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Amy Jo Haavisto Kind, M.D., Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Division of Geriatrics University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health William S Middleton VA- GRECC Madison, WI 53705 MedicalResearch: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Kind: By way of background: Socioeconomic disadvantage is a complex theoretical concept which describes the state of being challenged by low income, limited education and substandard living conditions for both the person and his or her neighborhood or social network. It is plausible that disadvantage would influence rehospitalization because vulnerable patients depend upon their neighborhood supports for stability, generally, and these needs are likely to be increased after a hospitalization. Yet, it is difficult to assess socioeconomic disadvantage during clinical encounters, yet the ADI provides an option for beginning such a discussion. ADI or Area Deprivation Index is a composite measure of neighborhood disadvantage, similar to other geographic measures of disadvantage employed in other countries for resource planning and health policy development. (more…)
Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Gender Differences, PLoS / 11.09.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Eero Haapala, MSc in Exercise Medicine, BASc PhD student University of Eastern Finland,School of Medicine Institute of Biomedicine, Physiology Kuopio, Finland Medical Research: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Our study is one of the first studies to investigate the different types of physical activity and sedentary behavior with academic achievement in children. Our main finding was that children who were more physically active during school recess were better readers in Grades 1-3 than less active children. We also found a direct relationship between physically active school transportation, which was mainly walking and cycling, and reading skills in boys. These findings suggest that particularly physical activity within a school day benefits academic achievement and that physical activity benefit academic achievement more in boys than in girls 6-8 years of age. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Stanford, Surgical Research / 24.06.2014

Kay W. Chang, MD Associate Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics Stanford University Department of Otolaryngology Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford Division of Pediatric OtolaryngologyMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kay W. Chang, MD Associate Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics Stanford University Department of Otolaryngology Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford Division of Pediatric Otolaryngology MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Chang: At 18 months after surgery, weight percentiles in the study group increased by a mean of 6.3 percentile points, and body mass index percentiles increased by a mean of 8.0 percentile points. The greatest increases in weight percentiles were observed in children who were between the 1st and 60th percentiles for weight and younger than 4 years at the time of surgery. An increase in weight percentile was not observed in children who preoperatively were already above the 80th percentile in weight. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, End of Life Care / 20.06.2014

Daniel Rocke, MD Medical School University of Michigan Medical School Ann Arbor, 2009.MedicalResearch.com Interview with Daniel Rocke, MD Duke Medicine Department Otolaryngology MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Rocke: I think the main point is that, to quote the paper, "end-of-life decision making by patients with cancer and their caregivers is significantly affected by their preference for quality of life or quantity of life, but OHNS physicians’ decision making is not." This is important because physicians counseling patients making end-of-life decisions are coming at these decisions from a different perspective that may not line up with their patients. If physicians recognize this, I think that these end-of-life discussions can be more productive (more…)
Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, JAMA / 19.06.2014

Carlos J. Rodriguez, MD, MPH Department of Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North CarolinaMedicalResearch.com Interview with Carlos J. Rodriguez, MD, MPH Department of Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Rodriguez: As a clinician there is a notion suggesting that lower blood pressure is better but our current research to date is controversial and not conclusive. We wanted to study a large group of people with hypertension and see whether over 20 years of follow up, if a lower systolic blood pressure would be associated with lower cardiovascular events (heart attack, stroke, heart failure, angina). We hypothesized that there would be a linear association between blood pressure and events, that lower blood pressure would be associated with lower events and that as the blood pressure went up there would be more events. We found this was not the case but that hypertensives with a blood pressure between 120-138mmhg have the greatest benefit and those with a blood pressure less than 120mmhg did not have additional benefit. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews / 19.06.2014

Alva O. Ferdinand, DrPH, JD School of Public Health College Station, TX 77843MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Alva O. Ferdinand, DrPH, JD Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health College Station, TX   77843   MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Over the last decade, several states have enacted legislating making it illegal to text while driving. However, little is known about the impact that state texting-while-driving bans have had on roadway crash-related fatalities. Some states have banned all drivers from texting while driving while others have banned only young drivers from this activity. Furthermore, some states’ texting bans entail secondary enforcement, meaning an enforcement officer must have another reason to stop a vehicle before citing a driver for texting while driving, and other states’ texting bans entail primary enforcement, meaning an enforcement officer does not have to have another reason for stopping a vehicle. We conducted a longitudinal panel analysis examining within-state changes in roadway fatalities after the enactment of state texting-while-driving bans using roadway fatality data as captured in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System between 2000 and 2010. To further examined the impact of these bans on various age groups, as younger individuals are thought to engage in texting while driving more often than older individuals. States that had enacted texting-while-driving bans during the study period were considered “treatment” states and states that had not passed texting-while-driving bans were considered “control” states. We found that states with primary laws banning young drivers only saw an average of an 11% reduction in roadway following the enactment of such bans during the study period. States with primary laws banning all drivers were also associated with significant reductions for those aged 15 to 21 and those who were 65 years old or older. States with secondarily enforced bans, whether banning all drivers or young drivers only, did not see any significant reductions in roadway fatalities. (more…)
Author Interviews, Clots - Coagulation, Genetic Research / 18.06.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: David Ldr_david_l_brown. Brown, MD, FACC Professor of Medicine Cardiovascular Division Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO 63110 MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Brown: This meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials showed that using a genotype-based warfarin dosing algorithm did not improve the process or outcomes of anticoagulation compared to using a clinical dosing algorithm. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Lancet, Mental Health Research / 18.06.2014

Professor Louis Appleby Professor of Psychiatry C.B.E The University of Manchester in the UKMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Louis Appleby Professor of Psychiatry C.B.E The University of Manchester in the UK   MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Professor Appleby: “Patients with mental illness are two and a half times more likely to be victims of homicide than people in the general population according to our research published in The Lancet Psychiatry today. “In this study, the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness (NCI), based at The University of Manchester, examined data on the victims and perpetrators of all homicides in England and Wales between January, 2003 and December, 2005. We found that during the 3-year study period, 1496 people were victims of homicide, and 6% (90) of them had been under the care of mental health services in the year before their death. A third (29) of these patient victims were killed by other patients with mental illness. In 23 homicides in which the victim was a mental health patient killed by another mental health patient, the victim and the perpetrator were known to each other either as partners (9, 35%), family members (4, 15%), or acquaintances (10, 38%). In 21 of these 23 cases, both the victims and perpetrators were undergoing treatment at the same National Health Service Trust. Alcohol and drug misuse (victims 66%, perpetrators 93%) and a history of violence (victims 24%, perpetrators 24%) were common among both patient victims and perpetrators. The study also found that in the 3 years to 2005, 213 mental health patients were convicted of homicide—accounting for 12% of all homicide convictions.” (more…)
Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 17.06.2014

Michelle A. Mendez, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Nutrition University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Public Health Chapel Hill, NMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Michelle A. Mendez, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Nutrition University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Public Health Chapel Hill, NC MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Mendez: Using national surveillance data to examine trends in energy intake among children, we found that there was an initial decline in intakes from 2003-4 through 2007-08, which mirrored evidence that child obesity in the US may have begun to decline in that period. Subsequently, however, in 2009-10, energy intake increased in older children aged 12-19y, and reached a plateau in children aged <11y. This shift is consistent with reports that, particularly in older children, the downward trend in obesity levels may have been reversed in recent years. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, JCEM / 16.06.2014

L. Keoki Williams, MD, MPH Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research Department of Internal Medicine Henry Ford Health System Detroit, Michigan 48104MedicalResearch.com Interview with L. Keoki Williams, MD, MPH Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research Department of Internal Medicine Henry Ford Health System Detroit, Michigan 48104 MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Williams: Metformin is recommended as first line treatment for type 2 diabetes, and these recommendations are based on the results of clinical trials performed almost exclusively in white individuals.  This is the first study to specifically assess whether metformin is effective at reducing blood glucose levels in African American individuals.  In our large study of over 19,000 individuals, we showed that metformin was consistently more effective at reducing glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels (a measure of long-term blood glucose control) in African Americans when compared with white individuals. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cognitive Issues, Heart Disease / 13.06.2014

Evan Thacker PhD Brigham Young UniversityMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Evan Thacker PhD Brigham Young University Provo, Utah   MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Thacker: In this study of over 17,000 American adults aged 45 and above, we first measured people’s cardiovascular health based on their smoking habits, diet, physical activity, body weight, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and blood sugar. We then tracked these people for several years with cognitive function tests which measure memory and thinking abilities. The main finding of our study was that people who had the lowest levels of cardiovascular health at the beginning of the study were more likely to experience cognitive impairment – poor performance on the cognitive function tests – at the end of the study. People who had medium to high levels of cardiovascular health were less likely to experience cognitive impairment. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease / 11.06.2014

Laurie Lambert, PhD Unité d'évaluation en cardiologie Institut national d'excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS) Montréal, QuébecMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Laurie Lambert, PhD Unité d'évaluation en cardiologie Institut national d'excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS) Montréal, Québec MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Lambert: Patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) are frequently transferred for percutaneous coronary reperfusion from a hospital without this capability. Favourable outcomes depend on minimizing delays to treatment. A major component of delay is the time from the patient’s arrival at the first hospital’s emergency department to departure to the hospital where percutaneous reperfusion will be performed, the ‘door-in-door-out’ time or DIDO. We characterized this component of delay in a systematic field evaluation of STEMI treatment over a large and populous geographic area. The major contributors to DIDO time were the delays
  • (1) from the initial in-hospital ECG acquisition to transfer activation by the emergency physician and
  • (2) from arrival of the transfer ambulance at the first hospital to departure of the ambulance for the primary percutaneous coronary intervention center. When the DIDO interval was timely (30 minutes or less as recommended by guidelines), reperfusion treatment was far more frequently within guideline-recommended delays (90 minutes or less). In fact, this benchmark of DIDO time was met in only 14% of cases. We identified a number of factors associated with untimely DIDO, an important one being an ambiguous presenting ECG. DIDO times were faster when patients arrived at the first hospital by ambulance particularly when retransfer to the second hospital was with the same ambulance that had remained on standby.
(more…)
Author Interviews, FASEB, Nutrition, OBGYNE / 06.06.2014

Antonio E. Frias, MD Associate Professor | Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine Oregon Health & Science University Director, Diabetes and Pregnancy Program Assistant Scientist | Oregon National Primate Research Center Portland, Oregon 97239MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Antonio E. Frias, MD Associate Professor | Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine Oregon Health & Science University Director, Diabetes and Pregnancy Program Assistant Scientist | Oregon National Primate Research Center Portland, Oregon 97239 MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Frias: Resveratrol supplementation in pregnant nonhuman primates fed a Western-style diet improved maternal metabolism, restored placental blood flow, reduced placental inflammation and improved lipid deposition in the fetal liver.  However, there was an unexpected disruption of fetal pancreatic development that is very concerning. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Mediterranean Diet / 06.06.2014

Prof Jordi Salas-Salvadó Professor of Nutrition. Human Nutrition Unit (Director) Department of Biochemistry & Biotechnology, IISPV School of Medicine. Rovira i Virgili University. Reus, Spain. CIBERobn, Instituto Carlos III. Centre Català de la Nutrició - Institut d'Estudis Catalans (Director). Federation of Spanish Food, Nutrition and Dietetic Scientific Societies (President). Red Iberoamericana RIBESMET (Director) INC - World Forum for Nutrition Research and Dissemination (Chairman).MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof Jordi Salas-Salvadó Professor of Nutrition. Human Nutrition Unit (Director) Department of Biochemistry & Biotechnology, IISPV School of Medicine. Rovira i Virgili University. Reus, Spain. CIBERobn, Instituto Carlos III. Centre Català de la Nutrició - Institut d'Estudis Catalans (Director). Federation of Spanish Food, Nutrition and Dietetic Scientific Societies (President). Red Iberoamericana RIBESMET (Director) INC - World Forum for Nutrition Research and Dissemination (Chairman). MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: The main findings of our study are that olive oil consumption, especially the extra-virgin variety (which is the olive oil with the best quality because it has higher amounts of bioactive compounds than other varieties), is associated with a reduced risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease (stroke, myocardial infarction...) and also cardiovascular death in an elderly Mediterranean population from Spain who were at high cardiovascular risk (because they had several cardiovscular risk factors such as smoking, being overweight or obese, having a family history of cardiovascular disease...). This means there is even more reason to visit gringocool.com. We have conducted an observational study including more than 7000 individuals who had participated in a randomized clinical trial to evaluate effects of a Mediterranean Diet in on the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, NEJM / 05.06.2014

Dr. Olivia Pagani Institute of Oncology of Southern Switzerland Ospedale San Giovanni, SwitzerlandMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Olivia Pagani  Institute of Oncology of Southern Switzerland Ospedale San Giovanni, Switzerland   MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Pagani: The studies show that also in premenopausal women (as already proven in postmenopausal women), aromatase inhibitors (AIs) (in this case Exemestane) given as adjuvant treatment are more effective than Tamoxifen in women with hormone receptor positive early breast cancer who are given concomitantly ovarian suppression to lower estrogen production. The 28% improvement in disease free survival is comparable to that seen in postmenopausal women. In particular, outcomes in women who did not receive chemotherapy (43% of the entire population, 29% of whom with node positive disease) were strikingly good (<97% were breast cancer free at 5 years). (more…)
Author Interviews, MRSA / 05.06.2014

Dr. Brad Spellberg MD Associate Program Director, Internal Medicine Training Program Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA Division of General Internal MedicineMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Brad Spellberg MD Associate Program Director Internal Medicine Training Program Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Division of General Internal Medicine MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Spellberg:  The rates of community-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CO-MRSA) varied dramatically among academic medical centers in California, New York, Illinois and North Carolina, suggesting there is not a uniform change in the "national epidemic" of the "superbug" that has generated extensive public health concern over the past decade, according to a new study.The study surveyed hospital records of 4,171 cases of MRSA and MRSA-related infections between 2008 and 2011 in five medical centers located in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, New York City and Raleigh-Durham, NC.The rates of MRSA acquired in the community declined 57% from 2008-2011 in the Los Angeles medical center. In contrast, CO-MRSA rates tripled at the New York medical center, while the rates remained stable in San Francisco, Chicago and Raleigh-Durham. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Respiratory, UT Southwestern / 04.06.2014

Dr. Eric M. Mortensen, M.D., M.Sc. VA North Texas Health Care System and University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, DallasMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Eric M. Mortensen, M.D., M.Sc. VA North Texas Health Care System and University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas   MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Mortensen: The main findings of our study was that for older patients hospitalized with pneumonia that with the use of azithromycin although there is a small increase in the number of non-fatal heart attacks there was a much lower decrease in mortality.   In addition there were no other significant increases in cardiac events.  So the overall risk:benefit ratio was that for each non-fatal heart attack there were 7 deaths that were prevented. (more…)
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, Colon Cancer, Erasmus, Sloan Kettering / 03.06.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Frank van Hees MSc Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands and Ann G. Zauber PhD Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: The main finding of our study is that colorectal cancer screening of individuals without previous screening is worthwhile well beyond age 75, which is the recommended age to stop screening in individuals with an adequate screening history. The exact age up to which screening should be considered in unscreened elderly depends on an individual's health status: in healthy individuals screening remains worthwhile up to age 86, whereas in individuals with a severe illness, such as heart failure, screening remains worthwhile up to age 80. (more…)
Author Interviews, Baylor College of Medicine Houston, JAMA, OBGYNE, Vaccine Studies / 16.05.2014

Flor M. Munoz, MD Department of Pediatrics Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Flor M. Munoz, MD Department of Pediatrics Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Munoz: 1. Tdap vaccine was safe and well tolerated during pregnancy 2. Women who are pregnant have adequate responses to the Tdap vaccine, similar to those of women who are not pregnant. 3. Antibodies to pertussis are efficiently transferred to the fetus through the placenta so that babies of mothers who were vaccinated during pregnancy had significantly higher concentrations of antibody at birth and up to 2 months of age, when compared to infants of mothers who were vaccinated post-partum. 4. Higher antibody concentrations in the first two months of life are likely to provide protection against pertussis during this period of high vulnerability 5. Infants of mothers who were vaccinated during pregnancy had adequate responses to their routine pertussis vaccines at 2, 4, and 6 months of age, and had expected and adequate responses to their 4th dose of vaccine at 1 year of age. The absolute concentration of antibodies to some of the pertussis antigens might be modestly lower after the primary series of vaccines in some infants of mothers who were vaccinated during pregnancy, but this difference does not persist after the 4th dose. (more…)
Breast Cancer, Mayo Clinic, Pain Research, Pharmacology / 06.05.2014

Judy C. Boughey, MD Chair, Division of Surgery Research Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Judy C. Boughey, MD Chair, Division of Surgery Research Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Boughey: Use of paravertebral block (a form of regional anesthesia) in women undergoing mastectomy results in less need for opioid medications and less frequent use of anti-nausea medication after surgery. (more…)
Author Interviews, Coffee, Diabetes, Diabetologia / 04.05.2014

Dr. Frank B. Hu MD MPH PhD Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology From the Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MAMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Frank B. Hu MD MPH PhD Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology From the Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Hu: We found that people who increased the amount of coffee they drank each day by more than one cup over a four-year period had a 11% lower risk for type 2 diabetes than those who made no changes to their coffee consumption, but those who decreased their coffee consumption by more than a cup per day increased their type 2 diabetes risk by 17%. (more…)
Author Interviews, Nature, Nutrition / 04.05.2014

Professor Gary Frost PhD RD Head of the Nutrition and Dietetic Research Group NIHR Senior Investigator Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism Faculty of Medicine Imperial College Hammersmith Campus London W12 ONNMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Gary Frost PhD RD Head of the Nutrition and Dietetic Research Group NIHR Senior Investigator Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism Faculty of Medicine Imperial College Hammersmith Campus London W12 ONN MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study?  Prof. Frost: That acetate that is derived from the fermentation of dietary fiber in the colon by the microbiota is taken up by the hypothalamus in the brain.  In the hypothalamus the way the cells metabolize acetate creates a signal that suppresses appetite (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Emergency Care, Heart Disease / 03.05.2014

Dr. Richard Body Emergency Department Manchester Royal Infirmary Manchester UKMedicalResearch.com Interview with:  Dr. Richard Body Emergency Department Manchester Royal Infirmary Manchester UK   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Body: This paper actually reports the findings of two consecutive, separate studies.  We aimed to derive and then externally validate a clinical decision rule to risk stratify patients with suspected acute coronary syndromes in the Emergency Department (ED).  This rule could then be used to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions while also making judicious use of specialist high dependency resources. In the first study we derived a clinical decision rule that incorporates 8 variables: high sensitivity troponin T, heart-type fatty acid binding protein; ECG ischaemia; worsening angina; hypotension (systolic blood pressure <100mmHg on arrival); sweating observed in the ED; pain associated with vomiting; and pain radiating to the right arm or shoulder.  When we validated the rule at a different centre, we found that its use could have avoided hospital admission for over a quarter of patients while effectively risk stratifying others.  Of the 10% of patients who were identified as 'high risk', approximately 95% had a major adverse cardiac event within 30 days.  The findings suggest that the Manchester Acute Coronary Syndromes (MACS) decision rule could be used to 'rule in' and 'rule out' acute coronary syndromes immediately, using information gathered at the time of initial presentation to the ED.  Before clinical implementation, we recommend that effect of using the MACS rule in practice should first be evaluated in a trial setting.  This will enable us to determine: (a) whether physicians and patients are likely to comply with (and be satisfied with) the MACS rule; (b) the safety of the MACS rule when used in practice; and (c) whether use of the MACS rule leads to cost savings for the health service. (more…)
Heart Disease, Vitamin D / 01.05.2014

Joshua Lewis, Ph.D Raine Foundation / Alan Robson Fellow Bone and Vascular Research Group School of Medicine and Pharmacology University of Western Australia Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes Sir Charles Gairdner HospitalMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Joshua Lewis, Ph.D Raine Foundation / Alan Robson Fellow Bone and Vascular Research Group School of Medicine and Pharmacology University of Western Australia Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Lewis: We tested the hypothesis raised by others that calcium supplementation with or without vitamin D increases coronary heart disease and mortality risk in elderly women. To do this we undertook a meta-analysis of published and unpublished data from patient level and cluster randomized controlled trials of calcium supplements with or without vitamin D in elderly women. Importantly all events included in this large meta-analysis were verified by clinical review, hospital record or death certificate. We did not observe any significant increase in all-cause mortality or coronary heart disease events that included myocardial infarction, angina pectoris and acute coronary syndromes and chronic coronary heart disease. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness / 01.05.2014

Lara McKenzie, Ph.D. MA Associate Professor of Pediatrics Center for Injury Research and Policy The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, OhioMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lara McKenzie, Ph.D. MA Associate Professor of Pediatrics Center for Injury Research and Policy The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, Ohio MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. McKenzie: Our study was the first to compare and describe epidemiological patterns of basketball-related injuries presenting for treatment to emergency departments and to the high school athletic training setting using surveillance data captured from large, nationally representative samples. Specifically, we compared estimated national incidence, rates of injury and body sites injured, and diagnoses. Nationally, an estimated 1,514,957 athletes with basketball-related injuries reported to the emergency department and 1,064,551 presented to the athletic training setting. Patterns of basketball-related injuries presenting to the emergency department differ from those presenting to the high school athletic training setting for treatment, with those presenting to the emergency department being more severe. In general, injuries that could be relatively quickly assessed and more easily diagnosed and treated, such as strains and/or sprains, presented more commonly to the athletic training setting, while injuries that required more extensive diagnostic or treatment procedures, such as fractures, were treated more commonly in the emergency department. (more…)
Author Interviews, Lancet, Mental Health Research / 20.04.2014

Dr. George Patton Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC, AustraliaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. George Patton Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC, Australia MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Patton: Although there has been wide acceptance that the teens are a time when emotional problems are common, views have been polarized about their significance. Some have viewed these problems are usual for this phase of life with little significance for later life mental health; others have argued that early psychiatric intervention was essential given the risks of ongoing disorders. In this sample almost two thirds of girls and a third of boys had an episode of emotional troubles (anxiety and depression) at a level that would concern a family physician. For those where the episode were brief lasting weeks to months, recovery without further later life episodes was common. In contrast those with persistent (longer than 6 months) or recurrent emotional problems during the teens had a high likelihood of similar problems with depression and anxiety in their twenties. In general these emotional problems persisted more in females than in males. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, McGill, Pediatrics / 16.04.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ethan K Gough, PhD candidate Department of Epidemiology Biostatistics and Occupational Health McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Antibiotic use produces significant gains toward expected growth in children, for their age and sex, from low- and middle-income countries. Children included in our study were generally smaller in height and weight than adequately nourished children of the same age, reflecting the spectrum of stunting and wasting malnutrition seen in low- and middle-income countries. Antibiotic use had a larger impact on weight than height, and the effect on weight was larger in populations who may be at greater risk of infections and early mortality, such as populations with a high prevalence of HIV infection or exposure, and a high prevalence of severe acute malnutrition. (more…)