Category Archives: Health

Medical Technology: 3D Deep-Learning Systems Show Promise For Automated Detection Of Glaucoma (Lancet Audio)

Audio October 18, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

Our 3D deep-learning system performed well in both primary and external validations, suggesting that it could potentially be used for automated detection of glaucomatous optic neuropathy based on SDOCT volumes. Screening with the deep-learning system is much faster than conventional glaucoma screening methods (ie, by experienced specialists), can be done automatically, and does not require a large number of trained personnel on site. Further prospective studies are warranted to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness of incorporating this artificial intelligence-based model for screening for glaucoma, both in the general population and among at-risk people.

Health, News

Health Care: Greater Use Of “Biosimilars” Could Save System $7 Billion

October 16, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From a Health Care Finance News online article:

But greater use of biosimilars could create significantly more savings. If biosimilars obtained a 75 percent market share, less than the share of these medicines in many European Union nations, the resulting annual savings for the U.S. healthcare system could be nearly $7 billion, based on Winegarden’s analysis.

Not all drugs are created the same. Take generics and biologics: The former is a chemical-based medicine whose manufacture is easily replicated, while the latter is created using biological processes.

But there’s another key difference between those two classes of drugs, and it pertains to the financial state of the healthcare industry and to U.S. taxpayer dollars. Stated plainly, biosimilars have the opportunity to bring significant savings to state Medicaid programs and consumers with commercial insurance. That gives them a leg up over their chemical-based counterparts.

Health, Reviews, Studies

Health Care: How “Non-Profit” Hospitals Are Driving Up Medical Costs

October 15, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From an NPR online article:

The irony is most hospitals are “nonprofit,” a status that makes them tax exempt. Many (but not all) do enough charity work to justify tax benefits, yet it’s clear nonprofit hospitals are very profitable. They funnel much of the profits into cushy salaries, shiny equipment, new buildings, and, of course, lobbying. In 2018, hospitals and nursing homes spent over $100 million on lobbying activities. And they spent about $30 million on campaign contributions. Health industries have also been funneling hefty sums into dark money groups. But their political power isn’t just the result of lobbying or electioneering. Hospitals are often the biggest employers in states and cities across America.

A recent study by Yale School of Public Health economist Zack Cooper and colleagues takes a look at hospital politics and helps shed light on why American health care is so insanely expensive.

Cooper and his colleagues have spent years investigating whether this was true, filing Freedom of Information Act requests and crunching data. They’ve uncovered evidence that suggests it was true. They find that legislators who were on the fence and voted “yea” for the legislation were 700% more likely to see a large bump in Medicare payment rates to hospitals in their district. Between 2005 and 2010, Congress shelled out over $2 billion to 88 hospitals through the horse-trading Section 508 provision. It was a clear win for these hospitals, which spent the money on more equipment, buildings, services, and staff.

Health, Studies

Studies: Antibiotics Impair Microbiome Composition, Reducing Flu Immunity

October 12, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From a Science Magazine online article:

Antibiotic use diminished the gut microbiome composition and impaired the ability of the immune system to generate antibodies. Treatment with antibiotics also disturbed bile acid metabolism and caused inflammatory responses.

From the original findings the Journal “Cell.com”:

Emerging evidence indicates a central role for the microbiome in immunity. However, causal evidence in humans is sparse. Here, we administered broad-spectrum antibiotics to healthy adults prior and subsequent to seasonal influenza vaccination. Despite a 10,000-fold reduction in gut bacterial load and long-lasting diminution in bacterial diversity, antibody responses were not significantly affected. However, in a second trial of subjects with low pre-existing antibody titers, there was significant impairment in H1N1-specific neutralization and binding IgG1 and IgA responses.

In addition, in both studies antibiotics treatment resulted in (1) enhanced inflammatory signatures (including AP-1/NR4A expression), observed previously in the elderly, and increased dendritic cell activation; (2) divergent metabolic trajectories, with a 1,000-fold reduction in serum secondary bile acids, which was highly correlated with AP-1/NR4A signaling and inflammasome activation. Multi-omics integration revealed significant associations between bacterial species and metabolic phenotypes, highlighting a key role for the microbiome in modulating human immunity.

Diet, Health, Studies

Diet Studies: “Dietary Fructose” In Soft Drinks, Foods Impairs The Body’s Ability To Burn Fat

October 5, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From a Cell Metabolism online release:

In summary, dietary fructose, but not glucose, supplementation of HFD impairs mitochondrial size, function, and protein acetylation, resulting in decreased fatty acid oxidation and development of metabolic dysregulation.

Dietary sugars, fructose and glucose, promote hepatic de novo lipogenesis and modify the effects of a high-fat diet (HFD) on the development of insulin resistance. Here, we show that fructose and glucose supplementation of an HFD exert divergent effects on hepatic mitochondrial function and fatty acid oxidation. This is mediated via three different nodes of regulation, including differential effects on malonyl-CoA levels, effects on mitochondrial size/protein abundance, and acetylation of mitochondrial proteins. HFD- and HFD plus fructose-fed mice have decreased CTP1a activity, the rate-limiting enzyme of fatty acid oxidation, whereas knockdown of fructose metabolism increases CPT1a and its acylcarnitine products. Furthermore, fructose-supplemented HFD leads to increased acetylation of ACADL and CPT1a, which is associated with decreased fat metabolism.

Health, Reviews, Technology

Future Of Hospital Design: EIR Healthcare’s Prefab “MedModular” Hospital Rooms Are Customizable

September 30, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From the EIRHealthcare.com website:

EIR Healthcare collaborates with each hospital to customize the optimal space. Through our technology and design, doctors, nurses and any healthcare professional interacting with patients in a MedModular room are equipped to provide nothing short of excellence within every interaction. EIR Healthcare was presented with a 2018 iF Design Award for our “Hospital of the Future” professional concept.

When a MedModular room is delivered, it is done so with every detail already executed from both technology and space design standpoints, which results in optimizing the efficiency in which hospitals and other healthcare environments are constructed – and completed.

Website: https://eirhealthcare.com/EIR

Health, Technology

Health Technology: Digital Therapeutics Startup “Kaia” Targets Chronic Pain With AI-Guided Exercise

September 18, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From a VentureBeat.com online review:

Kaia’s iOS and Android apps were developed with the help of physiotherapists, pain management physicians, orthopedic surgeons, and clinical psychologists, the company claims, and are registered as Class 1 medical devices with the Food and Drug Administration. They serve up video clips covering basic back and COPD pain information and step-by-step physiotherapy exercises, in addition to psychological strategies, such as mindfulness and muscle relaxation.

During each of the over 120 15-minute exercises, in-app computer vision models track connective points on the body through a device’s front-facing camera while an on-screen wireframe model illustrates the steps. Audio feedback informs users whether they’re performing exercises correctly and how they might improve, and a built-in chat tool allows them to consult with a physiotherapist or sports scientist on questions related to specific moves.

Health, Television

TV Worth Watching: “Diagnosis” From The New York Times Featuring Lisa Sanders MD On Netflix

September 17, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

Dr. Lisa Sanders crowdsources diagnoses for mysterious and rare medical conditions in a documentary series based on her New York Times Magazine column.

Health, Studies

Health Studies: Epidemic Of Physical Inactivity, Processed Foods Results In “Stiffer Hearts” Which Compromises Endurance

September 17, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From Phys.org online article:

“As a result, today’s epidemic of physical inactivity in conjunction with highly processed, high-sodium diets contributes to thicker, stiffer hearts that compromise the heart’s ability to cope with endurance physical activity, and importantly this may start to occur prior to increases in resting blood pressure,” explains Shave.

The landmark study analyzed 160 humans, 43 chimpanzees and five gorillas to gain an understanding of how the heart responds to different types of physical activity. In collaboration with Harvard University’s Daniel Lieberman and Aaron Baggish, UBC Professor Robert Shave and colleagues compared left ventricle structure and function in chimpanzees and a variety of people, including some who were sedentary but disease-free, highly active Native American subsistence farmers, resistance-trained football linemen and endurance-trained long-distance runners.

Health, Studies

Health Studies: Reducing Skin Inflammation With “Topical Emollient” Cream Reduces Chronic Disease

September 16, 2019 Intellicurious Leave a comment

From a Wall Street Journal online article:

…a new small study in humans suggests that using a barrier-forming cream, such as those with an ingredient called ceramide, to treat and prevent problems associated with aging skin—such as dryness, itching and cracking—may help reduce the low-grade inflammation that occurs in otherwise healthy people as they age. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and the San Francisco Veterans Hospital say reducing age-related inflammation could help slow the progression of age-related disorders associated with chronic inflammation, such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and loss of muscle mass.

Systemic disease usually stems from multiple sources, so skin protection alone is unlikely to be a panacea, experts say. But the hope is that it can help slow the onset or progression of chronic conditions that often crop up in patients with skin disorders such as psoriasis. And the UCSF study, which was published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology in March, provides the first hint in humans that protecting the skin with a barrier cream might benefit otherwise healthy adults whose skin invariably starts to lose its barrier function around middle age.

To read PDF of study, click below:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jdv.15540?referrer_access_token=lXsArqMcf5AHrI-R4oiwg4ta6bR2k8jH0KrdpFOxC67kdqa5-Q_Q8ltT6uQSa3kUEZMm6mEN7_8mvDywkPe9AOCn7aCLNi_CV3iAMck0BQxAu1SyLpdlTkFwF7hXxUCR6TazFFGPRwZ_EfW2P-26dA%3D%3D

News, Views and Reviews For The Intellectually Curious