W A B R E http://www.wabre.org Wisconsin Association For biomedical Research And Education Tue, 13 Mar 2012 10:01:14 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Preventing Trichiasis Recurrence After Surgery – Study Looks At Antibiotic Therapy http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/06/preventing-trichiasis-recurrence-after-surgery-study-looks-at-antibiotic-therapy.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/06/preventing-trichiasis-recurrence-after-surgery-study-looks-at-antibiotic-therapy.html#comments Tue, 06 Mar 2012 09:49:32 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=137 A study being published Online First by the Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals reveals that, 10% of patients who received a single dose of oral azithromycin (antibiotic) after surgery for trichiasis (a significant worldwide eye problem) experience trichiasis again compared to 13% of patients who received topical tetracycline therapy, with the protective effects apparent for up to 3 years after surgery, although not considerably different between the two medications.

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Preventing Trichiasis Recurrence After Surgery – Study Looks At Antibiotic Therapy

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/06/preventing-trichiasis-recurrence-after-surgery-study-looks-at-antibiotic-therapy.html/feed 0 New Approach To Nursing Education Gives Students The Chance To ‘Live Like A Nurse’ http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/02/new-approach-to-nursing-education-gives-students-the-chance-to-live-like-a-nurse.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/02/new-approach-to-nursing-education-gives-students-the-chance-to-live-like-a-nurse.html#comments Fri, 02 Mar 2012 09:49:40 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=139 Since they were pre-teens, Kathrine McKay and Kathryn Lito had aspirations of pursuing a nursing career. So when they applied to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.) program at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Nursing, they decided to take an accelerated approach to their education with the new Pacesetters program.

A redesigning of the four-semester B.S.N. curriculum, the Pacesetters track gives students their in-classroom course work, plus an opportunity to work a full-time clinical rotation schedule over 16 weeks during their final semester of school. To be admitted into the program, applicants must complete 60 hours of prerequisite course work.In a typical nursing school curriculum, the student might not get continuity-of-care experience and receive only brief, limited contact with each hospital’s system of care, location of supplies and charting methods.

“I’ve been able to connect with patients and follow them throughout the course of their treatment because we work three rotation shifts in a week,” said Lito. “Whereas the traditional student may not have the opportunity to see the same patient each shift of their rotation since it may be on a weekly basis.”

In addition, clinical preceptors within each unit serve as mentors who are able to address concerns or questions students may have during their shift. “Our preceptors have been very valuable to the experience because we get to observe them working, as well as get feedback on what we are doing,” said McKay. “The program really fosters a mentorship environment.”

Rozmus, along with Stephanie Meyers, Ph.D., R.N., director of the Pacesetters program, are observing and assessing the Pacesetters students to compare the new approach to the traditional track. Thus far, students are pleased with the route they selected and feel prepared.

“We have noticed that Pacesetters students have been very supportive of each other and want everyone to be successful,” said Meyers. She and Rozmus will continue to track the students after graduation to assess their competency, both from their perspective and from evaluations by the managers/preceptors.

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New Approach To Nursing Education Gives Students The Chance To ‘Live Like A Nurse’

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/03/02/new-approach-to-nursing-education-gives-students-the-chance-to-live-like-a-nurse.html/feed 0 Study Aims To Create Diabetes Food Box Model For Food Banks http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/28/study-aims-to-create-diabetes-food-box-model-for-food-banks.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/28/study-aims-to-create-diabetes-food-box-model-for-food-banks.html#comments Tue, 28 Feb 2012 09:49:45 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=141 Community food banks may soon be able to improve how the estimated millions of people living with Type 2 diabetes and food insecurity manage their disease. Researchers and community groups have come together to develop a model that ensures food banks can contribute to successful, long-term diabetes management.
ommunity food banks may soon be able to improve how the estimated millions of people living with Type 2 … Study Aims to Create Diabetes Food Box Model for Food Banks … Read the whole article on Newswise – Scinews …

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Study Aims To Create Diabetes Food Box Model For Food Banks

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/28/study-aims-to-create-diabetes-food-box-model-for-food-banks.html/feed 0 Medicare And Private Insurance Spending Similar Throughout Texas http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/24/medicare-and-private-insurance-spending-similar-throughout-texas.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/24/medicare-and-private-insurance-spending-similar-throughout-texas.html#comments Fri, 24 Feb 2012 09:51:27 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=147 Researchers compared variations in spending and inpatient admissions in 32 Texas regions between Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, the state’s largest health insurer, and did not find significant differences.

“This research was based on aggregate data and leaves many questions unanswered about the causes of the variation in Medicare and private insurance spending” said Luisa Franzini, Ph.D., professor and director of the Division of Management, Policy and Community Health at The University of Texas School of Public Health, a part of UTHealth.

Recently, BCBSTX provided a gift to UTHealth to form The University of Texas School of Public Health/Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas Research Program in Payment Systems and Policy, a research program to foster research about cost and utilization of health care services in Texas.

“The funds and data provided by BCBSTX will allow us to investigate sources of variations in medical spending so that we can develop specific policies to control variations and lower healthcare expenditures,” said Franzini. “We are in the process of conducting research in order to provide more definitive explanations and recommendations for the public and commercial sectors.”

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Medicare And Private Insurance Spending Similar Throughout Texas

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/24/medicare-and-private-insurance-spending-similar-throughout-texas.html/feed 0 Statins May Lower Flu Mortality Rates http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/21/statins-may-lower-flu-mortality-rates.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/21/statins-may-lower-flu-mortality-rates.html#comments Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:51:34 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=149 “We may be able to combine statins with antiviral drugs to provide better treatment for patients seriously ill with influenza.”?

In order to assess the connection between influenza-related mortality and patients who received statins, the team analyzed adult individuals hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed influenza from 2007 to 2008.

33% of the 3,043 patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed influenza received statins, either before hospitalization or during. After adjusting for several factors, they discovered that individuals who did not receive the medication were nearly two times as likely to die from flu compared to patients who received statins.

According to estimates from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 5% to 20% of individuals in the U.S. are infected with influenza each year, and over 20,000 people are hospitalized for complications related to influenza. Schaffner explains that getting the flu vaccine each year is still the optimal defense against influenza.

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Statins May Lower Flu Mortality Rates

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/21/statins-may-lower-flu-mortality-rates.html/feed 0 New Robotic-Assisted Technology Transforms Treatment Of Kidney Tumors http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/18/new-robotic-assisted-technology-transforms-treatment-of-kidney-tumors.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/18/new-robotic-assisted-technology-transforms-treatment-of-kidney-tumors.html#comments Sat, 18 Feb 2012 09:52:07 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=151 The Porter Robotics Institute (PRI) now offers the latest in advanced surgical robotics available to patients with kidney tumors, allowing surgeons the ability to remove just a portion of the kidney.

Porter Adventist Hospital is among a handful of centers in the country with advanced fluorescence imaging technology, called Firefly, and only the second in the region. St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood also recently implemented the Firefly.

“The Firefly addition, along with our second da Vinci Si surgical system, will allow our surgeons even greater precision and flexibility in treating their patients with kidney cancer,” said Dr. Mark Jones, medical director of the PRI and the most experienced robotic kidney surgeon in the Rocky Mountain region. “The rapid growth of our robotic surgery program has helped us to acquire the latest advances in robotics to better serve our patients.”

Fluorescence imaging technology, coupled with real-time, 3D visualization and fully articulated instruments used by surgeons in the da Vinci Si Surgical System®, can result in a higher quality of life and documented long-term survival benefits for patients with kidney cancer.

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New Robotic-Assisted Technology Transforms Treatment Of Kidney Tumors

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/18/new-robotic-assisted-technology-transforms-treatment-of-kidney-tumors.html/feed 0 Discovery May Lead To Safer Treatments For Asthma, Allergies And Arthritis http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/15/discovery-may-lead-to-safer-treatments-for-asthma-allergies-and-arthritis.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/15/discovery-may-lead-to-safer-treatments-for-asthma-allergies-and-arthritis.html#comments Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:52:10 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=153 Scientists have discovered a missing link between the body’s biological clock and sugar metabolism system, a finding that may help avoid the serious side effects of drugs used for treating asthma, allergies and arthritis. In a paper published last week in Nature, scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies report finding that proteins that control the body’s biological rhythms, known as cryptochromes, also interact with metabolic switches that are targeted by certain anti-inflammatory drugs. The finding suggests that side effects of current drugs might be avoided by considering patients’ biological rhythms when administering drugs, or by developing new drugs that target the cryptochromes. “We knew that our sleep and wake cycle are tied to when our bodies process nutrients, but how this happened at the genetic and molecular level was a complete mystery,” says Ronald M. Evans, a professor in Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory, who led the research team. “Now we’ve found the link between these two important systems, which could serve as a model for how other cellular processes are linked and could hold promise for better therapies.” Linking Metabolic Disease to the Circadian Clock Image: Courtesy of Salk Institute for Biological Studies Glucocorticoids are steroid hormones that occur naturally in the body and help

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Discovery May Lead To Safer Treatments For Asthma, Allergies And Arthritis

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/15/discovery-may-lead-to-safer-treatments-for-asthma-allergies-and-arthritis.html/feed 0 AMD Prevalence In India, China and Malaysia Similar http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/11/amd-prevalence-in-india-china-and-malaysia-similar.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/11/amd-prevalence-in-india-china-and-malaysia-similar.html#comments Sat, 11 Feb 2012 09:48:28 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=129 According to an investigation being published Online First by the Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, in Asia, the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) – an eye disease connected with aging that gradually destroys sharp, central vision – is similar among individuals from India, China and Malay. Chui Ming Gemmy Cheung, F.R.C.Ophth, of the Singapore National Eye Centre, and colleagues carried out a population-based investigation of individuals of Indian, Chinese and Malay ethnicities in order to determine the prevalence of AMD as well as risk factors for the condition among the three Asian groups. 3,172 individuals were enrolled to participate in the study. They underwent comprehensive systemic and ocular analysis, laboratory examinations as well as retinal photography.

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AMD Prevalence In India, China and Malaysia Similar

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/11/amd-prevalence-in-india-china-and-malaysia-similar.html/feed 0 Trial With Salbutamol For Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Stopped – Mortality Rose, Outcomes No Better http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/07/trial-with-salbutamol-for-acute-respiratory-distress-syndrome-stopped-mortality-rose-outcomes-no-better.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/07/trial-with-salbutamol-for-acute-respiratory-distress-syndrome-stopped-mortality-rose-outcomes-no-better.html#comments Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:48:36 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=131 A trial evaluating the intravenous infusion of salbutamol in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was stopped after patients receiving the drug had increased mortality and showed no improvement in outcomes. According to the findings of the BALTI-2 study reported online in an article published Online First in The Lancet, the authors Professor Fang Gao Smith and Professor Gavin D Perkins from the University of Warwick in the UK and their team stated that routine treatment of ARDS using this class of drug (?-2 agonists) cannot be recommended.

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Trial With Salbutamol For Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Stopped – Mortality Rose, Outcomes No Better

]]> http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/07/trial-with-salbutamol-for-acute-respiratory-distress-syndrome-stopped-mortality-rose-outcomes-no-better.html/feed 0 How Lymphoma Evolves – A Study Of Two Sisters http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/03/how-lymphoma-evolves-a-study-of-two-sisters.html http://www.wabre.org/2012/02/03/how-lymphoma-evolves-a-study-of-two-sisters.html#comments Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:48:44 +0000 premu http://www.wabre.org/?p=133 A 41-year-old woman with chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia received a bone marrow transplant and subsequent leukocyte infusion from her sister to control her leukemia, however seven years on, both sisters developed follicular lymphoma. Cases whereby donors pass on a malignancy to their recipients are well documented and usually of minimal risk to those in the transplant community, however this case presented scientists with the opportunity to study genetic abnormalities, which led to follicular lymphoma in both cases. Following standard chemotherapy, both sisters are currently in remission.

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How Lymphoma Evolves – A Study Of Two Sisters

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