Surveys of drug use form an important basis for the development of effective drug policies, and also for measuring the effectiveness of existing policies. For the first time in history, scientists have now made direct comparisons of illicit drug use in 19 European cities by a cooperative analysis of raw sewage samples.
The secret to the deadly 2011 E. coli outbreak in Germany has been decoded, thanks to research conducted at Michigan State University.
A new genre of medical tests - which determine whether a medicine is right for a patient's genes - are paving the way for increased use of personalized medicine, according to the cover story in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News. C&EN is the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
In a paper published in ”Nature Biotechnology” on the 22nd of July of 2012 Harvard researchers explain how making a jellyfish from rat DNA can help to solve cardiac problems.
Swedish researchers from the Karolinska Institutet managed to prevent onset of Type 1 diabetes in mice genetically susceptible to the disease by injecting them with specifically prepared cells.
EH Paris correspondent Annick Chapoy, reports on a French study that confirms the relevance of a drug with a long history in the management of other diseases
EyeMusic, developed by a team of researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, employs pleasant musical tones and scales to help the visually impaired "see" using music.
Despite the increasing capabilities of CT to detect or identify disease, fungal infections continue to elude diagnosis by imaging. Paradoxically, a CT examination has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool, helping to identify a probability of infection among immuno-compromised patients early enough to effectively treat the condition.
Findings from the landmark National Lung screening Trial (NLST) continue to make waves in the United States, and increasingly around the world. The principal investigator for the component of the NLST sponsored by the American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN), Denise Aberle, MD, said the NLST can provide a road map for public policy regarding lung cancer screening, though she cautions…
Will MRI become routine modality? Today, thoracic MRI is rarely performed in Europe. But this will change over the next decade, predicts Professor Hans-Ulrich Kauczor, Medical Director of the Radiology Clinic at University Hospital Heidelberg. He expects Germany to be at the forefront of this development because MRI technology, despite the high costs, is already widely used here and because CT…
Imaging of the chest is the most common radiological examination worldwide. With the incidence of respiratory problems and lung cancer growing, all radiologists should be familiar with the appropriate imaging protocols. In a field dominated by chest x-ray (CXR) and CT, controlling radiation dose is mandatory.
“With all that has been published in the past year on this subject, we will not lack interesting things to highlight and discuss during this session,” said Martine Remy-Jardin, MD, Head of Cardio-Thoracic Imaging at the University Centre of Lille, who will present an update on CT Imaging for thromboembolic disease on Friday afternoon at ESTI 2012.
The Johns Hopkins University (JHU), America’s first research university, in Baltimore, Md., USA, and the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI), a mobile and information technology development leader based in Berlin, Germany, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly research the innovative medical applications of integrated optical sensors: small, highly sensitive devices with…
Volume-targeted ventilated premature babies have a higher survival rate and suffer less ventilation-related lung damage – this is the result of a survey amongst international neonatologists.
A new report from Siemens Financial Services (SFS) shows that annual growth rates for global medical equipment leasing and renting have now outstripped growth in the medical device market as a whole. The global medical leasing market is currently expanding at a rate of 6.50%, outpacing the 4.98% growth rate of the global medical device market.
Johns Hopkins experts in the prevention and treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis are calling for increased screening and more rapid testing of the 9 million people worldwide estimated to be infected each year with TB, and now at risk for this form of the highly contagious lung disease.
The European operating room solutions market, comprising surgical lights, surgical tables and pendants, is primarily a replacement market. Although tightening budgets are hindering market prospects, the need for state-of-the-art operating rooms are creating lucrative growth opportunities.
Making prostate cancer therapy more effective, more comfortable for patients and less expensive for society? Dose escalation, up to 80 Gy and above, may be necessary to successfully treat localised prostate cancer with radiotherapy (RT).
A team of researchers at Rigshospitalet has found a new and simple way of detecting testicular cancer before it starts. This discovery will benefit patients in both Denmark and abroad.
Anja Behringer reports on a neglected risk factor. With an aging population multimorbidity is increasingly a major challenge for hospital care. Diabetes is one of the medical conditions frequently encountered in multimorbid patients since cardiac and vascular diseases are often accompanied by dysfunctions of the blood sugar metabolism.
Meeting with EH editor Brigitte Dinkloh, Congress Secretary Professor Alexis Ulrich MD (left), Assistant Medical Director at the Clinic for General, Visceral and Transplant Surgery at the University of Heidelberg, outlined the scientific programme, discussed some impressive advances in surgical procedures, and explained why the gathering bears the slogan Surgery in Partnership.
The world’s first gene cancer therapy study of an innovative oral vaccine is underway at the Surgical Clinic of Heidelberg University Hospital.
Figures suggest that imaging of pregnant women increased by 121% between 1997 and 2008, even though radiologists face several critical challenges when imaging these patients.
If the hopes of inventors are to be believed, in around 20 years’ time there will be ‘real artificial lungs -- for now the endpoint of a history that began 84 years ago with the invention of the iron lung. Until then, non-invasive and invasive mechanical respiration will continue to dominate the hospital, complemented by extracorporeal procedures for blood oxygenation and decarbonisation,…
Obesity is physically debilitating – and costly for healthcare. Losing excess weight has positive effects on the entire metabolism and improves life expectancy. However, for patients who cannot lose their morbid, excess weight through diet, today’s surgical interventions can help towards permanent weight loss – and reduction in insulin dependency for diabetics.
