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Hospitalized patients who had conversations about religion and spirituality with the health care team were the most satisfied with their overall care. However, 20% of patients who would have valued these discussions say their desires went unmet, according to a new study by Joshua Williams from the University of Chicago and his colleagues.1 Their work appears on-line in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
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Hospice services substantially improved the provision of care and support for nursing home patients dying of dementia and their families, according to an analysis of survey responses from hundreds of bereaved family members. The research comes as hospice funding has received particular scrutiny in the debate over Medicare spending.
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The current focus in federal health policy on coordinating patients' health care throughout the entire continuum of care has resulted in promotion of Accountable Care Organizations (ACO), Medical Homes, and Integrated Delivery Networks.
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Surgical removal of brain metastases remains an important part of palliative therapy for metastatic cancer.
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Menstrually related migraine is difficult to treat and options are limited. Hormonal manipulation is controversial and unproven.
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Teriflunomide, an orally administered inhibitor of dihydro-orotate dehydrogenase, was found to be superior to placebo in reducing relapses in a 2-year, Phase 3 clinical trial in patients with multiple sclerosis.
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Forty-nine clinical centers and 18 positron emission tomography (PET) centers in the United States and Canada participated in a randomized, blinded-adjudication clinical treatment trial of 195 patients with symptomatic atherosclerotic internal carotid artery occlusion (AICAO) who also had hemodynamic cerebral ischemia identified by ipsilateral increased oxygen extraction fraction measured by PET.
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New recommendations for HPV vaccine; guidelines for treatment of essential tremor; updates on smoking cessation drugs; and FDA actions.
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In a restrospective review, rituximab appeared beneficial for patients with medication-resistant myasthenia gravis.