The curative and therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offers much promise, as these multipotent cells are currently being tested in more than 300 clinical trials in a range of diseases.
Uncategorized
New legislation would delay permanent SGR fix for another year
Legislation to avert a March 31 deadline to cut physician Medicare payments by 24% has been scheduled for a Thursday vote in the US House of Representatives. But the measure is another 1-year temporary patch and not a more permanent fix to Medicare’s sustainable growth rate formula.Hopes for a more permanent solution were raised in February, when House and Senate negotiators reached a 5-year deal to provide physicians with a 0.5% annual increase in Medicare reimbursements, leading to optimism for a longer-term “doc fix.”
Uncategorized
Prenatal diagnosis: A potential moral dilemma
Advances in fetal medicine helped by ultrasonography, amniocentesis, chorionic villus sampling, and maternal and fetal cord blood sampling are well-established. This has been coupled with progress in maternal fetal medicine, as pregnant women are incre…
Uncategorized
Novel endoscopic OCT system holds promise for future of vitreoretinal surgery
LISBON, Portugal – A novel endoscopic optical coherence tomography system specifically designed for the eye could provide important information during vitreoretinal surgery, improving anatomical and functional outcomes and reducing complication rates, according to one speaker. “It is only a prototype at the moment, but it will probably become the future of OCT-guided surgery,” Francesco Boscia, MD, said at the Controversies in Ophthalmology meeting.
Uncategorized
BLOG: The rising cost of generic drugs and what’s causing it
You’ve either seen it or heard about it from your patients: The cost of generics drug at the pharmacy is rising dramatically. In the past 2 years, generic drug makers have raised their prices on many age-old generic medications such as doxycycline and pravastatin, each of which increased tenfold in price in 2013, according to a survey by the National Community Pharmacists Association. About one-third of generic drugs are affected by this change, according to a study by Pembroke Consulting, a Philadelphia research firm, but not every dose of every (Read more...)
Motor learning: Lining up our sights
Neurologists at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have studied the role of the vestibular system, which controls balance, in optimizing how we direct our gaze. The results could lead to more effective rehabilitation of patients with vesti…