A SAMHSA/CDC study published in MMWR says emergency department visits tied to non-medical use of prescription pain relievers rose by 111 percent from 2004 to 2008.
The association's first national study, in 2006, found that 46 of every 1,000 inpatients were either infected or colonized with MRSA, a type of bacteria that causes serious infections and is resistant to powerful antibiotics, including methicillin.
A whistleblower brought the lawsuit, alleging the manufacturer had violated the Anti-kickback Act and the False Claims Act by paying various forms of illegal remuneration to physicians who prescribed the use of the company’s devices for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Officially lasting through Father's Day (June 20), the week gives health care providers, public policy makers, the media, and individuals an opportunity to encourage men and boys to seek regular medical advice and early treatment for disease and injury.
Global threats such as SARS, avian flu, and the more recent H1N1 influenza or swine flu, have led to a surge in demand for the products, the study notes.
Under Medicare rules, the companies could bill for expensive non-emergency transports only if the patient could not be transported by any other means, such as by car or by wheelchair van. Medicare audited the companies and found they had charged tens of millions of dollars for trips that did not meet this standard.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's 2010 conference in Bethesda, Md., has the theme "Changing Care, Changing Lives: Delivering on Quality for All Americans." Improving the quality of care, reducing health care-associated infections, and building momentum for patient safety are on the program.
Smokers of U.S.-brand cigarettes have higher exposures to major carcinogens and cancer-causing agents compared to smokers of foreign brands, according to CDC.
Genetics, diet, lifestyle, and a lack of health care are cited as factors contributing to the higher rate.
Institute 2010, the June 9-11 conference in Las Vegas hosted by America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), features a powerhouse lineup of speakers headed by former President Bill Clinton to shed light on U.S. health care's future.
Every organization has diff erent characteristics and safety challenges that must be considered when starting or enhancing an automated external defi brillator program. Only then can a workplace determine how many AEDs to purchase, where to place them, and how many employees to train.
Way back in the day, we used to pack up our cleaned CPR manikins, legs and all, into giant hard cases and drag those behemoths back to the storage room. The best you could hope for was to avoid getting a hernia trying to heave “Anne” up onto the rolling cart.
The American Heart Association's goal is to get 1 million people to learn about CPR during CPR Week, June 1-7.
“Our findings suggest that reducing sugar-sweetened beverages and sugar consumption may be an important dietary strategy to lower blood pressure and further reduce other blood pressure-related diseases,” said Dr. Liwei Chen, assistant professor at Louisiana State University Health Science Center School of Public Health in New Orleans.
Researchers found that during the early phase of the H1N1 outbreak in Hong Kong, 47 percent of people washed hands more than 10 times per day, 89 percent wore facemasks when having influenza-like illness, and 21.5 percent wore facemasks regularly in public areas.
FDA’s warning and decision to revise the labeling of proton pump inhibitors are based on the agency’s review of several epidemiological studies that reported an increased risk of fractures of the hip, wrist, and spine in patients using proton pump inhibitors.
Almost two-thirds of the more than 7,000 respondents did not know that all forms of UV exposure, whether from natural sunlight or artificial light sources found in tanning beds, are unsafe.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sibelius hailed the CDC report released Thursday. It focused on central line-associated bloodstream infections, which cause an estimated $2.7 billion in added health costs nationally.
"This report can help states, communities and others work together to increase the number of Americans who live healthier lives by creating communities that support and encourage physical activity,” said Dr. William Dietz, director of CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity.
Cryptococcus "is inhaled into the lungs of people who may have been near trees or soil where the microbes live,” says Dr. Christina Hull of the ubiquitous C. neoformans species (pictured), the spherical cells of which are 3 to 7 microns in diameter. Abandoned buildings also are often hotbeds.