Over the weekend, older versions of Android started receiving automatic updates for Market, bringing it into line with the Froyo look and feel of it. If you haven't already, fire up the Market and take a look, as chances are you haven't spotted it yet. (There was no alert to this update due to its automatic nature). You can now add a widget to your homescreen for the Market, and browse apps via the new tabs. [Phandroid] More »
Hi,
myself compleated B.E in mechanical engg in b'lore, then P.G. Diploma in PIPING TECHNOLOGY. now i am having a opportunities to get in 2 fields, namely
1. piping field of refineries (oil & petroleum)
2. refrigeration & air conditioning field (VOLTAS)
please inf
Looks like Dr. Daniel MacArthur & company went and did it, go get their genotypes, or browse them online. This should be interesting. Since Dr. MacArthur’s wife has agreed to be a participant in some ways Tobias MacArthur is also part of the project by implication. To some extent the same is true of the current or future children of all the participants. And you can work your way up and across the family trees as well. I’m 99.9% sure that this won’t really matter. I believe that by the time Tobias MacArthur is self-aware people won’t be so paranoid about genetic privacy. On the other hand I too have a raw 23andMe data file, and I haven’t posted it online, and I won’t just quite yet. This is a case where I’ll let others get on the elevator first to test it out.
(NaturalNews) For the first time, a long-term health study has demonstrated that the Mediterranean diet may help diabetes patients control their blood sugar without the use of medication.
"A Mediterranean-style diet is a very important part in the treatment of diabetes," said endocrinologist Loren Greene of New York University Medical Center, who was not involved in the study. "We knew that, but there just hasn't been a good study to confirm this before."
In a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers assigned 215 overweight, adult residents of Naples, Italy, to adhere to one of two diets. Participants in one group were assigned to follow a Mediterranean diet -- eating large quantities of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and certain healthy fats such as olive oil; favoring lean protein sources such as nuts, poultry and fish; and gaining no more than half their daily calories from carbohydrates. Read more...
SAN FRANCISCO -- September 9, 2010 -- A method that is widely used to predict the risk of a major coronary event may over- or under-estimate risk for millions of patients in the United States, according to a study appearing online first in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
The method in question is the simplified version of the so-called Framingham model, which is used to estimate a patient's 10-year risk of a myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, or other coronary event based on risk factors such as age, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and smoking.
National guidelines recommend using the risk estimates generated by the Framingham model to classify patients as among 1 of 3 risk groups. Guidelines recommend more aggressive strategies to treat cholesterol in patients classified into higher-risk groups.
The original Framingham model uses a complicated mathematical equation to calculate risk, while the simplified version is based on a point system, with a certain number of points for each risk factor. Read more...
These days, common diseases present themselves completely different from what they used to be like in former times – and many other diseases appear far more frequently than they did 20 to 50 years ago.
For instance, there are viruses found now, which did not exist before – and they cause new diseases. Bacteria – much feared in earlier days - today, appear completely differently, and are frequently significantly more aggressive, due to the deployment of antibiotics. Ancient diseases – former scourges of mankind – such as tuberculosis or poliomyelitis have almost disappeared.
However, the largest increase found these days is with autoimmune diseases that cause the body to turn against its own organs. Suchlike diseases are, for instance, polyarthritis, colitis ulcerative, MS, and probably also prostatitis. Furthermore, this applies to the formerly rare autoimmune thyroiditis (Hashimoto-thyroiditis), which is currently the fastest growing disease within the US. Unfortunately, it is frequently believed that the cause for those diseases is unknown. However, we do know that all those conditions are based upon various partial causes, which – in combination – actually release the respective disease. Usually, those partial causes are not even sought to be identified. Read more...
(HealthDay News) -- Exposure to the plastics chemical bisphenol A (BPA) can affect men's testosterone levels, a new study has found.
BPA is used in a large number of consumer products, including food and drink containers. A number of countries have moved to ban the use of the chemical in the manufacture of baby bottles and other feeding items.
In the new study, an international team of researchers analyzed data from 715 Italian adults, aged 20 to 74. They found that their average BPA exposure was more than 5 micrograms per day, which is slightly higher than recent estimates for the U.S. population.
Higher BPA exposure was statistically associated with hormone changes in men; specifically, small increases in levels of testosterone in the blood, according to David Melzer, professor of epidemiology and public health at the Peninsula Medical School in Exeter, U.K., and colleagues. Read more...
(HealthDay News) -- Injection drug users, particularly those with HIV, need to be carefully monitored for poor kidney function and considered for medical treatments when appropriate, researchers report.
In a new study, U.S. scientists analyzed the presence of proteinuria (excess excretion of protein in the urine, which can lead to kidney failure and an increased risk of cardivascular disease) in 902 injection drug users, including 273 who were HIV-positive. Overall, about one-quarter of the injection drug users had proteinuria and the prevalence was nearly three times higher among those with HIV (45 percent) than among those who were HIV-negative (16 percent).
Along with HIV infection, other factors that were linked to a higher prevalence of proteinuria were being unemployed, older age and having diabetes, hepatitis C infection or high blood pressure, said Shruti H. Mehta, of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and colleagues. Read more...
Some of us have a lot to learn about health and our cave-dwelling ancestors
Newspaper section: Mylife http://www.bangkokpost.com/advance-search/?papers_sec_id=12
A life with success and wealth is a desirable one. But a long life of suffering is definitely a miserable one.
While we are still young, we usually think of life as easy and with happy moments. That's why many people, particularly the young, tend to spend their lives living recklessly. For instance, many spend a lot of time smoking, drinking, not getting enough quality sleep and pushing themselves beyond their limits.
Then they wonder why they start to lose their precious youthful looks sooner than they thought they would.
Some examples of the signs include: Their faces look dry and sunken, their eyes lose their glistening sparkle and dark patches develop around them.
This phenomenon is something is commonly called "human metamorphosis".
To live a careless life is the quickest way to turn a young homosapien into an ageing one. They can even look elderly even in their teens.
Read more...
Immunice Support
(HealthDay News) -- A new study finds that men are more likely to cheat if their income is much lower than what their wife or female partner makes, while women are more likely to fool around if they make more than their husband or male partner.
The findings suggest that disparities in moneymaking play a significant role in infidelity, at least among the young couples they studied.
"With women, they were less likely to engage in infidelity the less money they make relative to their husband," said study author Christin Munsch. "But for men, the less money you make relative to your spouse, the more likely you are to engage in infidelity."
Munsch, a graduate student at Cornell University, said she came up with the idea of studying the effects of income on infidelity after hearing from a friend who has cheated on his partner. He told Munsch that "she made all the money, she had all the friends, and he'd moved up there to be with her. He felt completely powerless."
While there's been previous research into infidelity, it didn't look into differences in income among couples, Munsch said. Read more...
I just read in your article on "inflammatory responses" that coconut oil is one item to avoid. If I apply coconut oil to my skin to address dryness, can it make its way into my system and cause any problems?
The reason I recommend avoiding coconut oil in the diet is because it is a highly saturated fat (it's one of the few saturated fats that doesn't come from animals). Like other saturated fats, coconut oil can raise cholesterol levels and, therefore, should play only a very limited role, if any, in your diet. In the past, coconut oil was widely used in movie popcorn, candy bars and commercial baked goods but has been phased out of many of these products because of consumer opposition to unhealthy tropical oils.
And incidentally, despite the ongoing internet buzz that coconut oil can promote weight loss, there's no scientific evidence to back up those claims. Lauric acid, the main fatty acid found in coconut oil, has shown positive effects as an anti-viral agent in treating herpes, but all in all, I recommend avoiding dietary sources of coconut oil. Read more...
Healthy blood, blood disorders
Join us for the opportunity of a lifetime. Be involved in something incredible.
Summer 2011.
- Take part in the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Southeast India -
- Develop skills as a teacher and learn how to interact with different demographics -
- Immerse yourself in the rich Indian culture and lifestyle -
- Make lifelong friends and connections from both the U.S. and India -
- Gain valuable and impressive experience for any resume -
Interested?
Come to one of our informational sessions in the Student Union:
Thurs Oct. 7th 7pm-8pm Copper
Mon Oct. 18th 4pm-5pm Picacho
Sat Nov. 6th 2pm-3pm Presidio
Tues Nov. 9th 7pm-8pm Madera
Wed Nov. 17th 5pm-6pm Picacho
Sun Nov. 21st 11am-12pm Sabino
Mon Nov. 29th 3pm-4pm Sabino
Fri Dec. 3rd 4pm-5pm Sabino
Check out iapaindia.org and IAPA Summer Volunteer Program 2011 on facebook.
Send questions to iapa2011@gmail.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:
OCTOBER 5, 2010 JESSICA LAURINO
480-540-6518
MIDWESTERN UNIVERSITY to Host Open House for those interested in Physician Assistant careers as Part of
2010 National PA Week
[Glendale, Arizona- MIDWESTERN UNIVERSITY] will participate in National PA Week from October 6-12. This PA open house is a chance to those to come and visit/tour the Midwestern campus as well as gain the knowledge of what a PA does, and the road to becoming a PA. First and second year PA’s will be conducting this event and are willing to answer any questions following a prepared presentation by the PA students themselves.
Approximately 75,000 physician assistants (PAs) work in almost all medical settings and specialties across the country, and they provide a range of medical care to Americans. The role of PAs is vital to the success of health care, especially now that approximately 32 million Americans will have access to health care due to the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act that was passed in March. Well before health reform, there were more than 250 million visits to PAs by patients in 2008.
National PA Week is an opportunity for the community to better understand the value of PAs. Without PAs, providers in hospitals, private practice, nursing homes, correctional institutions and many other health care settings would simply be overrun. Studies show that PAs deliver high-quality care and that patients are highly satisfied with PA-provided care.
In celebration of PA week, Midwestern University- Glendale campus is going to hold various events on and off campus to help spread the word of what exactly a PA does in the health care setting. On campus, booths will be set up on October 7th during the lunch hour 11am-1pm teaching the other health professional programs about PA week and a PA’s role. Also, a toiletry drive is being held to help support a homeless shelter in Tucson, AZ which is in conjunction with ASAPA (Arizona State Association of Physician Assistants). Most importantly, the students of Midwestern are offering an open house to those who are interested in becoming PA’s.
WHO: Anyone interested in becoming a PA
WHAT: Open House/Tour of Midwestern followed by a presentation and Q&A session
WHEN: October 7th 2010 6pm-8pm
WHERE: Midwestern University- Glendale Campus, Meet in Ocotillo hall
If you are planning on attending please RSVP by Thursday AM Oct 7th to:
Jessica Laurino PAS-1 jessica.laurino@azwebmail.midwestern.edu
All students at Midwestern are members of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA). For more questions about the general PA profession http://www.aapa.org
Have you always been interested in helping people with disabilities and making new friends? If so, read on!
UA Best Buddies is a campus club that seeks to improve the lives of people with disabilities by forming mutually enriching one-to-one friendships between a person with and a person without a disability. UA Best Buddies gives UA students a unique fristhand opportunity to drastically change lives. For more general information please visit bestbuddies.org.
For those interested in learning more about the UA chapter, we will have our first NEW MEMBER ORIENTATION:
WHAT: UABB New Member Orientation
WHEN: Monday, Sept 27th, 2010 at 4:00pm
WHERE: Gould Simpson, 601
If you cannot make it to the meeting, don't forget to sign up for our listserv to receive all of our latest info! Listserv instructions:
To subscribe, send an email to listserv@listserv.arizona.edu with a blank subject and the following in the message body (make sure to insert your name in the ‘firsname’ and ‘lastname’ fields):
subscribe uabestbuddies firstname lastname
If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at astseng@email.arizona.edu!
International Alliance for the Prevention of AIDS (IAPA)
Are you interested in an unforgettable experience on the other side of the world?
Do you want to help others in a meaningful and significant way while gaining new cultural understanding?
The International Alliance for the Prevention of AIDS (IAPA) Summer Volunteer Program may be what you have been searching for. Every year, we select a group of students from Arizona universities to volunteer in Southeast India for two months in an effort to stem the growth of HIV transmission rates. Our volunteers are trained as teachers, spreading HIV/AIDS prevention education to high schools and high-risk communities. We also work closely with local orphanages and develop our own additional side projects to make an impact in other aspects of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Our volunteers will meet and interact with people from the US and from India with whom they will be able to form lasting relationships.
This is a life-changing opportunity that will not only contribute greatly to your personal growth, but will also stand out on any resume for medical or graduate school.
If you are interested in this program, please check out the IAPA website at http://www.iapaindia.org. To see more lives you could impact, you can also check out http://www.sheltertrust.org and http://www.peace-trust.in.
Any questions can be directed to iapa2011@gmail.com. We are also on Facebook, at http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/group.php?gid=150924141592499&ref=ts, where you can find immediate updates about the program.
Informational sessions will be hosted in the near future, so be on the lookout for more emails about IAPA!
Jobs! Jobs! Jobs! Find out more at the UA Career Services Kick-Off.
Back by popular demand: Government agencies showcasing their opportunities. Get off the bench and into the game at the UA Career Services’ Kick-Off on Wednesday, September 8th .
· Get your resume critiqued by professionals and employers.
· Get psyched (and prepare) for the upcoming career fair.
· Start (or complete) Campus Interviewing registration.
. Learn more about the resources available to you.
· Talk to representatives from the FBI, C.I.A., I.R.S., U.S. State Department and Teach for America about hiring opportunities in their agencies.
· Receive a list of employers attending the event.
· The first 100 students who practice their One-Minute Commercial at the Mock Interview booth will receive a free UA red cap.
· All that and you can grab a piece of pizza and soda too (while supplies last).
Never mind the big tailgate party. What you’ll find at the Career Services' Kick-Off is solid information that is critically important to YOUR future.
Jump Start Your Job Search TODAY!
UA CAREER SERVICES’ KICK-OFF
Sponsored by Valero Energy Corporation
Wednesday, September 8
11am to 2pm
Student Union Memorial Center
Suite 411
The Student Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) is currently accepting applications for the 2010-2011 school year. We are an organization under ASUA acting as the liaison between Campus Health and the student body. This year, SHAC has the biggest agenda in its history: we will be pursuing policy initiatives such as a tobacco free university; we have partnered up with the Arizona Cancer Center and College of Public Health to make this dream a reality. We will also begin a large endeavor with our Pandemic and Epidemic Prevention Team , which will have its first program to vaccinate the homeless against seasonal and pandemic influenza for the homeless. We have also partnered up with the Sarver Heart Center to spread the word of chest compression only cardiopulmonary resuscitation(CPR)developed here at the UA's Sarver Heart Center; as a benefit, every SHAC member will be trained in CPR for free, with one member being paid to learn to teach CPR. We will also host our annual Run for Your Life 5k Run/Walk as well as other projects, many focused on sports nutrition, fitness, sexual health, mental health and raising money for well deserved charities. We are looking for 30 highly motivated individuals to join our team aimed at bringing health and wellness to our community. We are looking for all different types of people, with all different skills, including website design, and marketing, or any health related knowledge. The only things required for our applicants are a strong work ethic and an intense passion for health and helping others. If you are interested in applying, the application can be found on our website at (shac.asua.arizona.edu). Applications are due by September 3rd in the ASUA office front desk, Student Union, 3rd floor.
The below news item has been circulating for a couple of weeks following a suit originally filed about 3 years ago. Several folks have asked me what I know about this.
Did Mayo intentionally defraud the government of potentially millions of dollars for frozen sections not performed?
It is a difficult question to answer and I really do not know how strong the lawsuit claim is.
I do not think Mayo intentionally would do this but it is a complicated issue.
The story actually begins about 100 years ago when Dr. Louis B. Wilson, credited with being the Father of Research at Mayo Clinic, developed the first techniques to rapidly fix tissue for sectioning during surgery at the request of Dr. William Mayo or what we recognize in pathology as the "frozen section". His techniques live on at Mayo today much like they did over 100 years ago. The history of the procedure has recently been reviewed with reference to the original article by Dr. Wilson.
Enough history. Fast forward about 100 years and according to Mayo's GME FAQ's on the frozen section practice it mentions: "The frozen section rotation is probably best thought of as neither a frozen section rotation nor a general surgical pathology rotation, and perhaps that is why residents have come to refer to it as the “sink” rotation. The volume and variety of specimen material seen by residents while on the sink is comparable to what would be seen during a general surgical pathology rotation at a large medical center, yet the workflow is that of a frozen section laboratory. " The site goes on to mention " In the Mayo frozen section labs, a single-color toluidine stain is used because it produces a fast and easily readable stain. The toluidine blue stain produces a slightly different staining pattern compared to H&E, but the morphologic features are inherent to the tissue."
I never understood "morphologic features are inherent to the tissue". Histology is artifact. We create it with dyes - a chemical process creates purple nuclei and pink cytoplasm. In the case of toluidine blue stain, as above, it is largely monochromatic with less contrast than traditional H&E stains, whether frozen or fixed.
Until recently, with increasing pressure from CAP inspectors, slides reviewed at frozen may not have had a corresponding H&E permanent slide to review for frozen-final correlation. The tissue used in the frozen section was "blocked" without making an H&E slide. Again, the practice is unique and would be difficult to validate in many other labs if one takes an objective view.
It also turns out that given the water based nature of the stain and the stain itself it was difficult to make a "permanent" slide for later review as the stain may continue to permeate the tissue.
Given the unique practice, essentially a general surgical pathology practice with final diagnosis made on frozens at the time of surgery rather than "permanent" sections, issues related to frozen section slides, blocks and permanent slides could all potentially complicate billing algorithms as the suit alleges.
While the parties bringing forth the suit and the Justice Department are looking at the letter of the law, a persistent question will remain whether whatever may have happened here in regards to billing was justifiable (i.e. cost effective) given potential lack of need for second surgeries, immediate intraoperative staging and overall costs to the system for additional laboratory technical and professional resources to generate additional slides, reviews and reports as compared to outcomes in a "frozen section = final diagnosis" practice alone. This practice is highlighted on Mayo's breast cancer website:
"Mayo Clinic physicians may use frozen section evaluation of tissue during breast cancer surgery to determine whether all of the cancer has been removed. Mayo Clinic's unique frozen section pathology laboratory provides rapid, accurate microscopic analysis of tissue while the patient is in surgery. Mayo surgeons know if they have achieved negative margins (removed all the cancer) while the patient is still in the operating room. Frozen section analysis may prevent the need for patients to undergo additional surgery."
It should be noted from a similar story out of Minneapolis -- "The Justice Department indicated in a September 21 court filing that it intends to intervene in the allegation that the Mayo Clinic billed for services that were not performed. The department will not become involved, however, in the claims that the Mayo Clinic improperly obtained laboratory accreditation and failed to retain histopathology slides for the appropriate time period.
Courtesy of genomeweb.com:
The Justice Department has joined a lawsuit against the Mayo Clinic alleging it submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid for thousands of surgical pathology tests over 10 years that its labs never performed.
The government's position, filed this week under the federal False Claims Act in a US District Court in Minneapolis, said that "over the course of the last 10 years, Mayo has routinely billed Medicare, Medicaid and other federally sponsored health care programs for surgical pathology services that have not been performed," according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
The suit, which was originally filed in November 2007 by attorney and neurologist David Ketroser, accuses Mayo of billing Medicare for permanent specimen slides and for examining the slides, "even though no slides were prepared or examined," the paper says. "Instead, the suit charges, Mayo routinely prepared only frozen section slides, which were not retained."
The suit also claims Mayo failed to comply with federal regulations that require clinical lab to retain pathology slides for 10 years.
The plaintiffs in the suit include former Mayo patients, survivors of deceased Mayo patients, and Minnesota attorney David Ketroser.
Mayo officials did not respond to a request for comment, according to the Tribune-Review.
A few days after its original report, the paper wrote that Mayo officials said the Clinic reimbursed the government for what the paper called "billing errors" on the pathology tests.
Mayo spokesman Bryan Anderson said Minnesota-based Mayo discovered the errors three years ago — "long before Mayo became aware that the sealed complaint [against it] had been filed" — and "voluntarily" refunded $242,711, the paper said.
The total amount of Mayo's alleged fraudulent billing was not immediately clear.
Answer: Entamoeba histolytica/dispar
Congratulations to all of the viewers who wrote in with the answer – you recognized that the morphologic features and size were consistent with these two closely related protozoa. E. histolytica is a recognized pathogen, although it only causes disease in approximately 10% of the people it infects. E. dispar, on the other hand, is generally considered a non-pathogen. Unfortunately, the two are morphologically indistinguishable, and require isoenzyme, antigen, or molecular methods to distinguish them. The only exception to this is when E. histolytica trophozoites are seen invading the bowel wall on histologic section, or contain ingested RBCs on ova and parasite exam. No ingested RBCs are seen in this case, so it is not possible to differentiate between the two organisms.
The answer to the second part of the question is that an asymptomatic host could still be infected with either E. histolytica or E. dispar (remember that most E. histolytica infections are asymptomatic).
Finally, just to make life difficult for clinical parasitologists, there is now a THIRD species of Entamoeba which is morphologically indistinguishable from E. histolytica and E. dispar. Entamoeba moshkovskii is now recognized to be a wide spread environmental organism and occasional human parasite. Therefore, I suppose that the most correct answer to this case is “Entamoeba histolytica/dispar/moshkovskii!!
However, while there are over a dozen FDA 510(k) clearances for digital analysis of immunohistochemistry procedures, the waiting game continues for how the agency wants to regulate digitalization of hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) slides using whole slide imagng (WSI) systems, according to Steve Potts, PhD, CEO of digital pathology service provider Flagship Biosciences (Flagstaff, AZ). Potts recently spoke at a histology image analysis webinar on regulation and digital pathology hosted by Denver-based Digital Pathology Consultants.
There has been no word from the FDA since October 2009, when stakeholders—including the CAP and digital pathology companies—testified before the agency’s Hematology and Pathology Devices Advisory Committee during a public comment period to address oversight of whole slide imagining (WSI) systems.
One key issue is whether these systems should be subjected to the agency’s Class II or Class III requirements. While Class II products are frequently “cleared” by the 510(k) process, Class III devices must go through the PMA process. This process requires more investment—both in money and time—as the device has to be “approved” as safe and effective after undergoing clinical trials. The CAP testified at the hearing, primarily on recommendations for validating WSI systems.
Dr. Potts speculates that WSI will likely be considered Class II devices and will need to be cleared by the FDA. He added that subsequent pathology procedures using this device will then be considered laboratory developed tests (LDTs), as the regulatory filings will likely be for specific applications. However, this could further delay momentum, as the FDA is currently crafting LDT oversight framework.
Nevertheless, Dr. Potts believes that once these regulatory barriers are negotiated, digital pathology will move ahead at breakneck speed. “When this technology starts to move into labs and pathology practices, it will come fast,” he predicted.
