Latest American Medical Association Stories

Researchers at Cleveland Clinic reported today that administration of a new drug– evacetrapib – can dramatically increase HDL (good) cholesterol, while significantly lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol). At the highest tested dosage, the levels of HDL more than doubled. The study was presented today by lead investigator Stephen Nicholls MD PhD, Cardiovascular Director of the Cleveland Clinic Coordinating Center for Clinical Research (C5), at the American Heart Association's Scientific...

A new, noninvasive diagnostic test for coronary artery disease is associated with a higher rate of subsequent invasive cardiac procedures and higher health-care spending. That's according to an observational study of Medicare recipients conducted by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. In the study, which will be published in the Nov. 16 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, patients who underwent coronary CT angiography were about twice as likely...

A recent study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) shows an increased risk of stroke and mortality among patients diagnosed with severe sepsis and new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) during hospitalization. Allan J. Walkey, MD, assistant professor of medicine at BUSM and a pulmonologist at Boston Medical Center (BMC), is the lead author of the study, which will be published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Walkey also will present the...

Authors of article in American Journal of Preventive Medicine say the Florida statute interferes with the physician-patient relationship A Florida law restricting physicians from counseling patients and parents about firearms safety endangers open communication between doctors and patients on a critical prevention and public health problem, experts warn in a "Current Issues" article published online today in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. The measure, signed into law by...

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Before the 'Affordable Care Act' (aka Obamacare) was signed into law in March of 2010, there were a series of high-level deals struck by the White House to help insure success for the struggling legislation. One of these involved the American Medical Association (AMA). American doctors have always wanted healthcare access for all patients, but the majority of physicians were not behind the AMA's decision to support Obamacare. With less than...

MALVERN, Pa., Nov. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AUXL), a specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced that the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the payment rates for the 2012 Current Procedural Terminology (CPT®) codes last night that will be used with XIAFLEX® for the treatment of adult Dupuytren's contracture patients with a palpable cord beginning January 1, 2012. The two new Category I CPT codes, issued by the...

Study details outcomes of patients who received the 'mini transplant' developed at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Age alone no longer should be considered a defining factor when determining whether an older patient with blood cancer is a candidate for stem cell transplantation. That's the conclusion of the first study summarizing long-term outcomes from a series of prospective clinical trials of patients age 60 and over who were treated with the mini-transplant, a "kinder, gentler"...

New Resource for Parents and Physicians Released at Annual American Academy of Pediatrics Meeting Philadelphia and Boston (PRWEB) October 19, 2011 This week at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Vaccine Education Center at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (VEC) and the American Medical Association released an updated information guide called Vaccines and Teens for parents and physicians, detailing the most current recommendations and information...

TAMPA, Fla., Oct. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The American College of Physician Executives today announced the creation of a new award aimed at medical schools and teaching hospitals making extraordinary strides in promoting a culture of leadership, professionalism, communication and teamwork among medical students and residents. Called the Leape Ahead Award, it recognizes those who create innovative and original projects that lead to a safer and higher quality environment for health care. The...

DNA-damaging platinum drugs work better against them; BRCA1 variations have no effect Women with high-grade ovarian cancer live longer and respond better to platinum-based chemotherapy when their tumors have BRCA2 genetic mutations, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the Institute for Systems Biology report in the Oct. 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. "BRCA2-mutated tumors are more vulnerable to these DNA-damaging agents,...