New Anesthesia Technique Lets Patients Cooperate During Carotid Surgery

Can a patient be awake and communicating with the anesthesiologist and surgeon during general anesthesia? With a new “cooperative patient” anesthesia technique, the answer is yes, according to a study in the June issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

An Italian research team, led by Dr. Sergio Bevilacqua of Ospedaliera Universitaria Careggi, Florence, report on the use of their “cooperative patient general anesthesia” technique in 181 patients undergoing carotid artery surgery (endarterectomy) for stroke prevention. The patients received conventional general anesthesia up to the time that the carotid artery was clamped, as must be done so that the surgeon can repair it.

DxS And Exiqon Diagnostics To Host A Joint Personalized Cancer Therapy Workshop During The ASCO Annual Meeting

DxS Ltd, a personalized medicine company and leader in the field of companion diagnostics is working in partnership with Exiqon Diagnostics, a company on the forefront of individualizing cancer care through its novel molecular and cell-based oncology clinical laboratory services, to present a timely and relevant workshop on personalized cancer therapy.

The workshop, which will take place on Friday, May 29, 2009 will coincide with the start of the 2009 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Orlando Florida, and is entitled ‘Personalizing Cancer Therapy: KRAS and other Predictive Assays’.

Women With Gestational Diabetes During Pregnancy Have A Substantial And Persistently Elevated Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes Post-Birth

Women who develop gestational diabetes (GD) during pregnancy have a seven-and-a-half times increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes post-birth, which lasts throughout their lifetime. However, there is no agreed policy on the long-term follow up of these women and many do not return for the currently recommended 6-week post-birth diabetes check. An Article in this week’s diabetes special issue of The Lancet says that the strength of the association suggests that both disorders have an overlapping cause-and this should act as an incentive for women to attend the recommended post-birth check. This attendance could be an opportunity to provide advice on diet and exercise, and treatments to delay or prevent onset of diabetes-as well as alerting these women to symptoms of future diabetes, and to alert general practitioners responsible for their long-term care.

Take The Sex Survey During National Condom Week, UK

Terrence Higgins Trust is using this year’s National Condom Week (18-24 May) as an opportunity to promote safer sex. The aim of the initiative is to raise awareness of the importance of condom use to prevent sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancies.

THT will be displaying National Condom Week posters in its service centres and using campaign materials in its outreach work.

This year National Condom Week also heralds the start of a massive survey into the sexual habits of the Brits. Durex is launching The British Sex Survey which covers everything from safer sex to what’s hot and what’s not!

Huckabee Compares Abortion To Slavery During Fundraiser For Antiabortion Group

Former Arkansas governor and Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee on Monday during a fundraiser for the antiabortion group Vitae Caring Foundation likened abortion to slavery, the AP/Kansas City Starreports. According to Huckabee, who made the comments during the fundraiser keynote address, when the U.S. abolished slavery, the country decided that it was immoral for one person to have complete control over another — an idea that should extend to pregnant women and fetuses.

Pediatric Radiation Exposure And Effective Dose Reduction During Voiding Cystourethrography

UroToday.com – A study by Dr. Valerie L. Ward et al. compared radiation exposure and effective dose in children who underwent voiding cystourethrography (VCUG) performed with grid-controlled variable-rate pulsed fluoroscopy (GCPFL) to radiation exposure and effective dose in children who underwent VCUG performed with continuous fluoroscopy (CFL). These effective doses were compared with those estimated with radionuclide cystography (RNC).

A Female Songbird Out-Sings Male Conspecifics During Simulated Territorial Intrusions

Birdsong is a model system for animal communication studies, but our knowledge is greatly biased towards male birds.

We investigated function of female song in stripe-headed sparrows (Aimophila ruficauda) and found that during simulated territorial intrusions by a female, male or duetting pair, females played a leading singing role in territory defense and overall responded more strongly than males.

This role-reversal is novel among songbirds. These results suggest that females sing competitively against other females, and that intrasexual selection may be greater among females than among males.

Value Of Advanced CT Scans To Check For Clogged Arteries Supported By Study

In a development that researchers say is likely to quell concerns about the value of costly computed tomography (CT) scans to diagnose coronary artery blockages, an international team led by researchers at Johns Hopkins reports solid evidence that the newer, more powerful 64-CT scans can easily and correctly identify people with major blood vessel disease and is nearly as accurate as invasive coronary angiography.

Reporting in the

Proteins Strangle Cell During Division

New type of cell division discovered

A Swedish research group, partly financed by NWO, has discovered a new mechanism for cell division in a microorganism found in extremely hot and acidic conditions. The results of the research offer insights into evolution, but also into the functioning of the human body. The research has been recently published in PNAS, the magazine of the American National Academy of Sciences. Thijs Ettema, member of the research group, received a Rubicon grant from NWO in 2006 to gain experience abroad.

During These Times Of Economic Crisis A Cardiologist Warns Against Signs Of A Cardiac Crash

Rising unemployment rates, the worst Wall Street crises since the end of World War II, record home foreclosures. There is plenty of stress to go around. What effect is stress having on our health and what can we do about it?

“Prolonged stress, both emotional and physical, impacts the overall cardiovascular status of our patients, particularly their blood pressure,” said Keith Churchwell, M.D., executive medical director of the Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute.