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Reducing Medical Residents' Hours Would Cost $2.5B Annually, Study Says
Implementing proposed reductions in the number of hours medical residents work could cost as much as $2.5 billion annually, according to a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Baltimore Sun reports. The study follows an Institute of Medicine report that proposed reducing the maximum hours that residents can work without sleep from 30 to 16, increasing the number of days they must take off and improving their supervision (Desmon, Baltimore Sun, 5/21). In 2003, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education reduced the number of hours residents at teaching hospitals could work weekly from more than 100 hours to 80 hours. In the recent study, which was partially funded by IOM, researchers examined post-2003 literature on resident work hours and patient harm and evaluated it against additional labor costs. The authors concluded that the IOM recommendations "would be costly, and their effectiveness is unknown" (Shishkin, Wall Street Journal, 5/21). Teryl Nuckols, the lead author of the study, said that teaching hospitals would most likely need to hire more residents and experienced physicians to take care of patients, which would likely cost each teaching hospital $3.2 million annually (Baltimore Sun, 5/21). The study was accompanied by an NEJM editorial in which the authors "strongly disagree" with the IOM recommendations, claiming that reducing resident work hours "leads to an increase in the number of handoffs in care, and this increase outweighs the potential benefits of reducing residents" fatigue." The accreditation council said that more research is needed before it decides whether to adopt the IOM recommendations. The council"s decision will be announced in February 2010 (Wall Street Journal, 5/21).

NICE Issues Positive Final Appraisal Determination Recommending The Use Of Basilea's Toctino
Basilea Pharmaceutica Ltd. (SWISS: BSLN) announces that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) issued the Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) recommending the use of Toctino® (alitretinoin) within its licensed indication, as a treatment option for adults with severe chronic hand eczema that has not responded to potent topical corticosteroids.
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American Diabetes Association Related To Studies Published In Diabetelogia Suggesting Possible Link Between Insulin Glargine And Cancer
Diabetelogia, the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), published a series of research papers today examining a possible link between insulin glargine (brand name, Lantus) and cancer. Findings from these research papers are conflicting and inconclusive, and the American Diabetes Association cautions against over-reaction until more information is available.
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Lab Test: Inject Genes Into The Brain, Fat Disappears

It"s estimated two out of three Americans are now overweight or obese* - and spend about $60 billion a year to try and change it.** But someday losing weight might be as quick as a single injection - but this one wouldn"t be in the arm - it would be in the brain. It was Doctor Matthew During, MD, PhD of Ohio State University Medical Center who developed the concept - using a gene in lab mice known as BDNF. "We"re putting in a normal, healthy copy of the gene that"s already there, but just giving it the instructions to turn it on so that gene is now what we call being expressed," says Dr. During. And when it is expressed, that gene helps control not only how much the animals eat but how efficiently they burn calories. Clinical trials involving mice yielded impressive results. Within an hour of injection, insulin levels in the mice dropped by a third. Within weeks of injection, the mice shed half their weight. All from a single injection.*** Dr. During says going directly into the brain works best - and it"s a technique already in use. For years, surgeons have implanted devices in the brain to help with everything from Parkinson"s Disease to depression. And some day, During says, he could see the same for weight loss. "We do the surgery and drop in the gluid and it takes an hour or two. The patient then has a follow-up scan four four to six hours later, if everything looks healthy on the brain, we send them home," says Dr. During. While human tests have yet to start, the approach could someday be a viable option for people like Tammy Murray. Even though she"s committed to exercising and eating righ, she knows how easy it can be to get sidetracked. "When months go by, you get further and further away from your goal, your weight creeps up, your bad habits increase and you"re back where you started," says Murray. But these injections would be permanent and scientists say the results would be too. Scientists also say that there is a safety mechanism built into the injection that can shut down the gene therapy if anything goes wrong. Dr. During hopes to take his idea to the FDA for human studies within the next 12 to 18 Months. s: *Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity Among Adults, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, April 2006, retrieved from: here. **The U.S. Weight Loss & Diet Control Market, (9th edition), Marketdata Inc. April 2007, retrieved from here. ***Molecular therapy of obesity and diabetes by a physiological autoregulatory approach, Nature Medicine, Volume 15, Number 4, April 2009. Ohio State University Medical Center


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