http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Ed Wagner, MD, MPH, knew there had to be a better way. He and Group Health colleagues set out 15 years ago to explore how best to engage patients with chronic diseases in effective care. With Robert Wood Johnson Foundation support, they developed the Chronic Care Model. More than 1,500 U.S. and international medical practices have adopted the Model. Now the largest roundup of evidence on how the Model performs in practice confirms that it works. This review is in the January/February 2009 issue of Health Affairs, focused on a key part of reforming health care: caring for chronic diseases in a "fragmented" health care system. http://www.physorg.com/news150448410.html Medicine & Health Tue, 06 Jan 2009 07:13:30 EST news150448410 Administering antibiotics as a preventive measure to patients in intensive care units (ICUs) increases their chances of survival. This has emerged from a study involving nearly sixthousand Dutch patients in thirteen hospitals. Researchers at University Medical Center (UMC) Utrecht have published their findings in an article in The New England Journal of Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news150023113.html Medicine & Health Thu, 01 Jan 2009 09:05:13 EST news150023113 In recent years HIFU has been widely used for the treatment of solid tumors, such as liver tumor, bone tumor, and breast cancer. The mechanism for therapeutic actions of HIFU includes thermal effects and non-thermal effects with the latter dominated by cavitational effects. Adjusting acoustic parameters of pulsed high intensity focused ultrasound (PHIFU) can control thermal effects and non-thermal effects; short duty cycle and high intensity favors the occurrence of cavitation. Ultrasound contrast agent (UCA) can enhance cavitational effects. Lesions caused by non-thermal effects have characteristic pathological changes quite different from those of thermal lesions. http://www.physorg.com/news149769705.html Medicine & Health Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:41:45 EST news149769705 (PhysOrg.com) -- `Fock states will play a role in the future of quantum computing,` Andrew Cleland tells PhysOrg.com. `We have completed the first experimental measurement of the time decay of Fock states in a superconducting quantum circuit, and we believe this will provide useful information as we work toward developing a quantum computer.` Cleland is a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and works with a group headed by John Martinis. http://www.physorg.com/news149252720.html Physics Tue, 23 Dec 2008 11:05:20 EST news149252720 Mast cells are now recognized as "granular cells of the connective tissue", whose activation exacerbates allergic immune responses and as key players in the establishment of innate immunity as well as modulators of adaptive immune responses. The role of mast cells in the gastrointestinal mucosa is not only to react to antigens, but also to actively regulate the barrier and transport properties of the intestinal epithelium. http://www.physorg.com/news149247749.html Medicine & Health Tue, 23 Dec 2008 09:42:29 EST news149247749 A national alcohol research group is concerned that the media's misinterpretation of a recent British research study could encourage pregnant women to be more at ease with temperate alcohol consumption. http://www.physorg.com/news148912090.html Medicine & Health Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:28:10 EST news148912090 (PhysOrg.com) -- Low glycemic foods - beans, peas, lentils, pasta, rice boiled briefly and breads like pumpernickel and flaxseed - do a better job of managing glycemic control for type 2 diabetes and risk factors for coronary heart disease than high-fibre diets, including whole grain breads, crackers and breakfast cereals. http://www.physorg.com/news148836815.html Medicine & Health Thu, 18 Dec 2008 15:33:35 EST news148836815 Group-based treatment programs may effectively combat childhood obesity in rural communities, according to a new University of Florida study. Children who participated in one of two group programs - family-based or parent-only - were less overweight compared with children in a control group. The findings appear in the December issue of Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news148830529.html Medicine & Health Thu, 18 Dec 2008 13:48:49 EST news148830529 Persons with type 2 diabetes who had a diet high in low-glycemic foods such as nuts, beans and lentils had greater improvement in glycemic control and risk factors for coronary heart disease than persons on a diet with an emphasis on high-cereal fiber, according to a study in the December 17 issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news148709030.html Medicine & Health Wed, 17 Dec 2008 04:03:50 EST news148709030 A preliminary study suggests that economic incentives appear to be effective for achieving short-term weight loss, according to a report in the December 10 issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news148067564.html Medicine & Health Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:52:44 EST news148067564 An international coalition of pediatric cancer physicians and researchers has developed new systems to standardize studies of neuroblastomas across the world. In the December issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, the International Neuroblastoma Risk Group (INRG) presents three sets of papers outlining a: standard classification system; pre-treatment staging system; and an analysis of a rare group of patients. http://www.physorg.com/news148057220.html Medicine & Health Tue, 09 Dec 2008 15:00:20 EST news148057220 People who have a sibling with a mental illness are more likely to suffer episodes of depression at some point in their lives, say researchers who analyzed four decades of data. http://www.physorg.com/news148054365.html Medicine & Health Tue, 09 Dec 2008 14:12:45 EST news148054365 A traditional Mediterranean diet with an additional daily serving of mixed nuts appears to be useful for managing some metabolic abnormalities in older adults at high risk for heart disease, according to a report in the December 8/22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news147980284.html Medicine & Health Mon, 08 Dec 2008 17:38:04 EST news147980284 Those diagnosed with early stage dementia can slow their physical, mental and psychological decline by taking part in therapeutic programs that combine counseling, support groups, Taiji and qigong, researchers report. Some of the benefits of this approach are comparable to those achieved with anti-dementia medications. http://www.physorg.com/news147631818.html Medicine & Health Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:50:18 EST news147631818 More than 95 per cent of men who took degarelix for prostate cancer saw their testosterone levels fall dramatically as early as three days after they started treatment, according to a paper in the December issue of BJU International. http://www.physorg.com/news147529873.html Medicine & Health Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:31:13 EST news147529873 (PhysOrg.com) -- Ventricular assist devices, or VADs - surgically-placed mechanical pumps that can support failing hearts or buy time to transplant - are associated with high hospital costs and high rates of early death among Medicare recipients, say researchers at Duke University Medical Center. http://www.physorg.com/news146850214.html Medicine & Health Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:43:34 EST news146850214 Women who took the antidepressant fluoxetine during the first three months of pregnancy gave birth to four times as many babies with heart problems as women who did not and the levels were three times higher in women taking paroxetine. http://www.physorg.com/news146742845.html Medicine & Health Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:54:05 EST news146742845 A home-based program to improve exercise and diet led to significant, clinically meaningful improvement in body weight and physical function among older long-term cancer survivors in preliminary findings from the RENEW (Reach-out to ENhancE Wellness) trial, according to Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, Ph.D., from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center's Department of Behavioral Science. The data are being presented at the seventh annual American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Conference. http://www.physorg.com/news146242399.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:53:19 EST news146242399 (PhysOrg.com) -- A little bit of stress goes a long way and can have far-reaching effects. Neuroscientists from the University of Washington have found that a single exposure to uncontrollable stress impairs decision making in rats for several days, making them unable to reliably seek out the larger of two rewards. http://www.physorg.com/news146242257.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:50:57 EST news146242257 A new study shows that juvenile delinquents sentenced to either a juvenile retreat, probation or unsupervised community service were seven times more likely to commit criminal acts as adults than youngsters from the control group who managed to avoid the juvenile justice system. http://www.physorg.com/news146231189.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Nov 2008 11:46:29 EST news146231189 Severely obese patients who underwent two different gastric bypass techniques had lost up to 31 per cent of their Body Mass Index (BMI) after four years, with no deaths reported among the 50 study subjects, according to the November issue of the British Journal of Surgery. http://www.physorg.com/news146225359.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Nov 2008 10:09:19 EST news146225359 People are different, both physically and mentally, but genetically everyone is very similar. That's been the thought of scientists for decades now. But with population research becoming more and more common, the University of Alberta's Tim Caulfield is concerned that genetic research could awaken racist attitudes. http://www.physorg.com/news146158609.html Medicine & Health Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:36:49 EST news146158609 By adding the results of an imaging technique to the traditional risk factors for coronary heart disease, doctors at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston found they were able to improve prediction of heart attacks in people previously considered low risk. http://www.physorg.com/news145640287.html Medicine & Health Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:38:07 EST news145640287 A patient education program that included self-affirmation and positive affect in the form of occasional gifts significantly increased medication adherence among African Americans with high blood pressure, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008. http://www.physorg.com/news145640250.html Medicine & Health Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:37:30 EST news145640250 Low-dose aspirin as primary prevention did not appear to significantly reduce the risk of a combined end point of coronary, cerebrovascular and peripheral vascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a new study in JAMA. However, aspirin did significantly reduce the combination of fatal coronary and fatal cerebrovascular events. The article is being released early online Sunday, November 9 to coincide with its scientific presentation at the American Heart Association meeting. The study will appear in the November 12 print issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news145514326.html Medicine & Health Mon, 10 Nov 2008 04:38:46 EST news145514326 Use of radiology imaging tests has soared in the past decade with a significant increase in newer technologies, according to a new study that is the first to track imaging patterns in a managed care setting over a substantial time period. http://www.physorg.com/news145514003.html Medicine & Health Mon, 10 Nov 2008 04:33:23 EST news145514003 Unusually aggressive youth may actually enjoy inflicting pain on others, research using brain scans at the University of Chicago shows. http://www.physorg.com/news145252980.html Medicine & Health Fri, 07 Nov 2008 04:03:00 EST news145252980 What makes a great leader? Traits that we look for typically include a sense of power, great negotiating skills and lots of charisma. However, a recent study suggests that it is not just an outgoing personality and great communication skills that determine who is chosen as leader of a group. Previous research has implicated that there is a gender bias when selecting leaders; preference for a male versus female leader may depend on the specific situation that a group finds itself in. Psychologists Mark Van Vugt and Brian R. Spisak from the University of Kent wanted to explore this further and see if gender influences the selection of group leaders during various group competition situations. http://www.physorg.com/news144587356.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:09:16 EST news144587356 If Barack Obama had taken his mother's surname and kept his childhood nickname, American voters might literally see "Barry Dunham" as a quite different presidential candidate, a new study suggests. A name significantly changes our perception of someone's face and race, according to research in the journal, Perception. http://www.physorg.com/news144408474.html Other Sciences Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:27:54 EST news144408474 Reducing how often a patient receives amiodarone, a medication used for suppressing atrial fibrillation (irregular heart beat) but which causes side effects, did not decrease the overall amount of amiodarone-related and heart disease related side effects, but did increase the rate of atrial fibrillation recurrence and the risk of death from all causes and cardiovascular hospitalizations, according to a study in the October 15 issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news143219967.html Medicine & Health Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:19:27 EST news143219967