Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles

Secrets Revealed About How Disease-Causing DNA Mutations Occur
A team of Penn State scientists has shed light on the processes that lead to certain human DNA mutations that are implicated in hundreds of inherited diseases such as tuberous sclerosis and neurofibromatosis type 1. The results one day could influence the way couples who seek to have children receive genetic counseling. The team, led by Kateryna Makova, an associate professor of biology, also includes Erika Kvikstad, a graduate student in the Department of Biology, and Francesca Chiaromonte, an associate professor of statistics. Their findings will be published in the July 2009 issue of the journal Genome Research.

Plans To Control Doctors' Pay Big Issue In Massachusetts
Massachusetts officials are proud of their low rate of uninsured people, but the state also hosts the highest health care costs in the country, a problem that jeopardizes their achievement in expanding coverage, NPR"s Morning Edition reports. A commission charged with overseeing the insurance plan for 310,000 government workers recently voted - unanimously - that doing away with the current, fee-for-service model for paying doctors was the first step to controlling those costs. "Massachusetts policymakers want to replace fee-for-service with "global payment" - paying groups of health providers a flat yearly fee for each patient they cover," NPR reports (Knox, 8/5).
News of the day
Carbohydrate Acts As Tumor Suppressor
Scientists at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have discovered that specialized complex sugar molecules (glycans) that anchor cells into place act as tumor suppressors in breast and prostate cancers. These glycans play a critical role in cell adhesion in normal cells, and their decrease or loss leads to increased cell migration by invasive cancer cells and metastasis. An increase in expression of the enzyme that produces these glycans, í²3GnT1, resulted in a significant reduction in tumor activity. The research was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Nutrition

Crown Censure Of HM Prison Service, UK

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has called HM Prison Service to account over a case of Legionnaires Disease at Nottingham Prison. An inmate at Nottingham Prison was diagnosed with Legionnaires Disease on 8 March 2006. HSE conducted a thorough and detailed investigation to determine the likely of exposure. High levels of legionella bacteria were discovered in the hot and cold water system in the prison"s Health Unit. HSE found the Approved Code of Practice for controlling legionella bacteria in water systems had not been followed. This was a breach of Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. HM Prison Service attended a formal Crown Censure Hearing at HSE"s Nottingham Office today (12 June 2009). HM Prison Service accepted the Crown Censure after explaining the action it had taken to prevent a recurrence at Nottingham Prison or its other prisons. HSE Director for the Midlands Nick Ratty says the system for managing health and safety at Nottingham Prison had not been effective in controlling this well-known risk. "The standard was far below what is appropriate for a Prison," Mr Ratty said. "This case highlights the need for employers to properly manage hot and cold water systems and manage the risk from legionella bacteria where vulnerable people may be at risk." Notes 1. Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety." 2. While the provisions of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act apply to Crown bodies, including departments and agencies, Crown immunity means such bodies are excluded from the provisions for statutory enforcement, including prosecution and penalties. HSE enforces health and safety law in relation to Crown bodies in Great Britain. 3. A list of censured Crown Bodies is published online and in the HSE annual report. 4. Cabinet Office Personnel Information Note 45 (PIN 45), which deals with the enforcement procedures for Crown bodies, including Crown censures, can be found on HSE"s website at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/foi/internalops/sectors/public/7_01_34.pdf 5. Legionnaires Disease is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by bacteria found naturally in environmental water s, but can pose a risk to public health in certain circumstances where the conditions are right. There is more information available online at http://www.hse.gov.uk/legionnaires HSE


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009