http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/medicine/ en-us Sat, 2 Jan 2010 21:38:55 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419689/posts Jodie Beckner demonstrated a move at Pilates Plus in La Jolla, where she teaches classes. Six years ago, Beckner suffered a permanent traumatic brain injury after a head-on collision on an icy Vermont road. She graduated from SDSU in December and hopes to go to nursing school. Peggie Peattie / Union-Tribune Mike Beckner was fixing dinner when he got the phone call parents dread — the one from a doctor trying to break awful news gently.Earlier that day, Nov. 11, 2003, his daughter, Jodie, had driven up a mountain to catch the first day of snowboarding season at a... San Diego Union Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419689/posts#comment Sat, 2 Jan 2010 21:38:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419086/posts For years our military has been in search of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) in Iraq and Afghanistan, and our intelligence agencies have also been scouring the world to unearth these threats. The heart and core of their plan is based on the most inhumane and unethical means of cutting costs: the rationing and denying of care. Even worse, the death panels that will ration and deny care, according to the Obama-Pelosi-Reid plan, will be unelected and unaccountable Federal bureaucrats. On Sunday, November 22, Fox News Sunday interviewed Senator Arlen Specter, who was a Democrat before he was Republican before... To The Point News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419086/posts#comment Fri, 1 Jan 2010 19:31:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418182/posts Mild electric shocks supplied by a portable device, a process called TENS, have been used for years to treat chronic low-back pain. Problem is, it doesn't work, a new study concludes. Anyone currently getting transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS) treatments should consult with their doctor about the new findings, researchers said. "The strongest evidence showed that there is no benefit for people using TENS for chronic low-back pain," said Dr. Richard M. Dubinsky of the Kansas University Medical Center. However, there is good evidence showing TENS can be effective in treating diabetic nerve pain, the researchers said. More research is... livescience.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418182/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 06:09:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417377/posts Mina Bissell will never forget the reception she got from a prominent scientist visiting Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, where she worked. She gave him a paper she had just published on the genesis of cancer. “He took the paper and held it over the wastebasket and said, ‘What do you want me to do with it?’ Then he dropped it in.” That was 20 years ago, and ever since, Dr. Bissell and a few others have struggled for acceptance of what seemed a radical idea: Gene mutations are part of the process of cancer, but mutations alone are not enough.... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417377/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:53:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416655/posts UCLA scientists have identified a molecular switch that prevents Huntington's disease from developing in mice. Published in the Dec. 24 edition of the journal Neuron, the discovery suggests a new approach to treating the genetic disorder, which ultimately leads to death in as little as 10 years. Affecting one out of every 10,000 Americans, Huntington's progressively deprives patients of their ability to walk, speak, think clearly and swallow. People who inherit the disorder don't show symptoms until mid-life, after many have had children and unknowingly passed on the disease. Currently, there is no effective treatment to prevent the onset or... University of California - Los Angeles via biologynews.net http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416655/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:43:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415528/posts A revolutionary new operation which could effectively cure high blood pressure has been developed by scientists, offering hope to hundreds of thousands of sufferers. In what is being hailed as the most exciting development in the field for 50 years, doctors can treat the condition with a simple procedure in under an hour. It could allow some sufferers to come off medication completely and offer hope for those for whom existing treatments have no effect. The technique, which is relatively straightforward and cheap for the NHS, could reduce the risk of a major heart attack or stroke in such patients... Telegraph UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415528/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 00:19:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415333/posts Researchers at National Jewish Health have discovered that a naturally occurring lipid in the lung can prevent RSV infection and inhibit spread of the virus after an infection is established. RSV is the major cause of hospitalization for children in the first two years of life, and is increasingly recognized as a dangerous pathogen in adults with chronic lung diseases, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. Currently, there is no effective vaccine for the virus. The findings, published in the December 21, 2009, issue of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also help explain how the lipid, known as... National Jewish Medical and Research Center via biologynews.net http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415333/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 16:25:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414858/posts A car crash victim who was believed to have been in a coma for the past 23 years has been conscious the whole time. Rom Houben was paralysed but could not let doctors know that he could hear every word they were saying, reports the Daily Mail. "I dreamed myself away," said Mr Houben, now 46, who doctors thought was in a persistent vegatative state. Doctors conducted a series of coma tests before concluding that his consciousness was "extinct". But three years ago, new hi-tech scans showed his brain was still functioning almost completely normally. Mr Houben said: "All that... Ananova http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414858/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 07:37:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414259/posts <p>Changes to Medicare will give the feds control of surgical decisions.Changes to Medicare will give the feds control of surgical decisions.</p> <p>Democrats are touting the American Medical Association's endorsement of President Obama's health plan. But there's an important reason why the American College of Surgeons and 18 other specialty groups are opposed.</p> The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414259/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:02:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414335/posts Democrats are touting the American Medical Association's endorsement of President Obama's health plan. But there's an important reason why the American College of Surgeons and 18 other specialty groups are opposed. The plan's most tangible efforts to restrain medical costs are through its controls on specialist physicians. Based on the government's premise that they often make wasteful treatment decisions, the health-care legislation in Congress will subject doctors to a mix of financial penalties and regulations to constrain their use of the most costly clinical options. The penalties and regulations are aimed first and foremost at surgeons and the medical devices... Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414335/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:52:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414482/posts In order to have the best Christmas you can, it is important to keep track of your health during the holidays, not only physically, but also mentally and spiritually. There are several health concerns to keep in mind over the Christmas holidays: TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414482/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 15:21:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413903/posts Republicans, emboldened by a new letter from the Congressional Budget Office, accused Democrats on Wednesday of "Bernie Madoff accounting" for double counting the savings from Medicare as a means to pay for the Senate health care bill. As the Senate prepares for a crucial vote before final passage of a massive overhaul bill that Democrats argue will reduce the deficit by $132 billion over 10 years, Sen. Jeff Sesssions, R-Ala, said the nearly $500 billion in cuts to Medicare actually will add $300 billion to the deficit "The real score on this legislation is that it would cause the deficit... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413903/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 18:35:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413604/posts The Ronald Reagan U.C.L.A. Medical Center, one of the nation’s most highly regarded academic hospitals, has earned a reputation as a place where doctors will go to virtually any length and expense to try to save a patient’s life. “If you come into this hospital, we’re not going to let you die,” said Dr. David T. Feinberg, the hospital system’s chief executive. Yet that ethos has made the medical center a prime target for critics in the Obama administration and elsewhere who talk about how much money the nation wastes on needless tests and futile procedures. They like to note... The New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413604/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 09:44:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413020/posts A city hospital nearly destroyed a New Jersey woman's life and wrecked her marriage after misdiagnosing her with terminal HIV, hepatitis and herpes, according to a bombshell lawsuit. Maria Osorio, 54, of Passaic, said she saw an ad on TV offering a $15 mammogram at Harlem Hospital over Valentine's Day last February and decided to take advantage of the screening. When a nurse offered her a free instant cheek swab and blood test, too, she accepted. That's when she was told she had HIV. "It was horrible. I wanted to throw myself on the subway tracks," she said. The shocked... 'HIV bungle' nightmare http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413020/posts#comment Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:20:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411474/posts TEHRAN -- Ruhollah Solook, a retired electrician living in Santa Monica, Calif., was in a desperate bind. He urgently needed a kidney transplant, as well as a series of radiation therapy diagnoses and treatments. The nuclear medicine was available in the United States, but the kidney was not. Solook, 78, an Iranian Jew who emigrated decades ago, never expected to find both in his native country. But there he was this month, recovering in an isolated room in Tehran's oldest hospital with a new kidney donated by a friend. "They have saved my life here," he said. "Now I hope... Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411474/posts#comment Sun, 20 Dec 2009 02:38:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2410343/posts Health insurance is an absolute necessity for students, yet a surprising number of students, both studying medicine and other fields, rely on their university's student health care clinic rather than paying for insurance. TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2410343/posts#comment Fri, 18 Dec 2009 13:58:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2410315/posts Among the weird findings: Pulling a tick off the wrong way can lead to meat allergy. An Australian doctor found the link while studying rising cases of the allergy among people who live on Sydney's tick-prone northern beaches. "I now tell everybody I see who lives anywhere near ticks to use `Aerostart' (spray-on engine cleaner) or another high-alcohol substance," said Dr Sheryl van Nunen. "Stun the tick before you scrape it out and it can't inject what it injects." The first US case of "cannabinoid hyperemesis" was recorded in the medical literature. The syndrome was first described in 2004 in... Herald Sun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2410315/posts#comment Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:59:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2408768/posts One more item added to what candidate Obama said on the campaign trail about prescription drugs (see bolded paragraph) and what President Obama who cut a deal with drug companies has to say. No wonder Obama's poll numbers are falling so rapidly as he continues to do a 180 from what he said on the campaign trail. When we first heard about Obama's ties to radicals like Communist Frank Davis who was his mentor, Bill Ayers, Bernadine Dohrn, Louis Farrakhan, and others we suspected he would lurch to the left if he was elected. That said, his lurch to the... Democrats for sale,/ Washington post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2408768/posts#comment Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:15:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406363/posts New federally financed drug research reveals a stark disparity: children covered by Medicaid are given powerful antipsychotic medicines at a rate four times higher than children whose parents have private insurance. And the Medicaid children are more likely to receive the drugs for less severe conditions than their middle-class counterparts, the data shows... --snip-- The F.D.A. has approved antipsychotic drugs for children specifically to treat schizophrenia, autism and bipolar disorder. But they are more frequently prescribed to children for other, less extreme conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, aggression, persistent defiance or other so-called conduct disorders — especially when the... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406363/posts#comment Sun, 13 Dec 2009 01:07:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2405213/posts As I have been stating all along on this website, the CDC was lying about there being no mutation of the H1N1 virus. Utah woman died of mutated H1N1 strain"...A 28-year-old Utah woman who died this summer of H1N1 swine flu had a mutated form of the novel virus." (...) "...It was so minor, she said, that the CDC didn't notify the state of the mutation. The health department instead asked about the case after learning of it from a blog." The headlines in the summer: August 21, 2009 H1N1 flu virus hasn't mutated, CDC officials reportSeptember 25, 2009 Swine... It's a Kwazy Life http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2405213/posts#comment Fri, 11 Dec 2009 08:31:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404956/posts A natural glue that sticks mussels to rocks and boat hulls has inspired US scientists to develop a new type of medical adhesive for use in pancreatic islet transplantation, an experimental medical procedure for treating patients with type 1 diabetes. The glue, developed by Phillip Messersmith's team at Northwestern University in Evanston, consists of a branched poly(ethylene glycol) core with catechol-derived end groups. Speaking at the Materials Research Society's meeting in Boston last week, Messersmith explained that the catechol functional group plays a key role in the solidification and adhesive capabilities of the marine blue mussel Mytilus edulis' adhesive proteins. 'Catechol in the presence of an... Chemistry World http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404956/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:19:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404403/posts A temporal twist to a therapeutic technique could block old terrors. Fearful memories can be wiped out for at least a year using a drug-free technique, according to a study done in the United States. The technique exploits the way that human brains store and recall memories. When a long-term memory is recalled, it goes through a brief period of vulnerability, after which it must be stored anew to be remembered again. While the memory is in its fragile state, it can be modified or disrupted. Studies in animals1 have used drugs to interfere with this reconsolidation process, stirring hope... Nature News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404403/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 08:56:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2403646/posts As U.S. health care costs continue to escalate, Consumer Directed Health Care (CDH) can be a positive force for change that allows patients to gain greater control over their healthcare decisions, allow employers to reduce their healthcare benefit expenditure, enable insurers to increase membership by making more affordable insurance available and provide opportunities for financial institutions to expand their presence in the healthcare industry TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2403646/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 13:51:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2402722/posts Constipation is one of those topics few like to talk about, according to WebMD.com. If you've suffered from this problem, though, you know it can be both painful and frustrating. Almost everyone gets constipated at some time during his or her life. It affects approximately 2% of the population in the U.S. Women and the elderly are more commonly affected. Though not usually serious, constipation can be a concern. TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2402722/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 12:40:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402657/posts A two-headed compound obtained from soil bacteria may hold the key to developing the next generation of antibiotics, researchers in the UK report. The compound, called simocyclinone, was found to shut down crucial bacterial enzymes in an unusual two-pronged attack. It is hoped the research could inspire the development of potent new antibiotics, which could also be less vulnerable to resistance developing against them. 'The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as MRSA has created a strong need, both clinically and sociologically, to find new antibiotics,' says Anthony Maxwell, who led the research at the John Innes Centre in Norwich, UK. 'To do... Chemistry World http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402657/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 07:32:41 GMT