BIDMC researchers led a retrospective analysis of four randomized clinical trials focused on the effects of DAA therapies in patients with HCV-associated liver failure and developed a new means of predicting improvement in liver function in response to DAA treatment.
To determine which antibiotics reliably treat which bacterial infections, diagnostic laboratories that focus on clinical microbiology test pathogens isolated from patients. However, a recent study revealed that one aspect of these tests may fall short and not be stringent enough.
Researchers from the Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) provide a closer look at physicians’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about PCI public reporting.
New research led by scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health suggest that long-term exposure to traffic-related pollution significantly increases the risk of pediatric asthma, especially in early childhood.
The Cancer Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) today announced the launch of a new clinical and research institute that will build on BIDMC’s long history of leadership in immunotherapy and cell therapeutics.
Today Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) launched a first-of-its-kind Health Technology Exploration Center (HTEC) to speed research and innovation in the field.
In a review published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, Gregory R. Ciottone, MD, Director of the Division of Disaster Medicine in the Department of Emergency Medicine at BIDMC, advocates for an overhaul to the systems currently in place to respond to a chemical weapons strike on U.S. soil. In addition to calling for increased training and awareness, Ciottone also proposed a triage system – available online – based on recognizing the signs and symptoms of specific agents during the early phase of a chemical weapons attack.
In a groundbreaking paper published today in the journal Cell, investigators at the Cancer Research Institute Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have found dozens of important new genes, both coding and non-coding that impact sensitivity to chemotherapy. In doing so, the scientists developed a novel technique that marries CRISPR technology with big data mining to identify and assign function to non-coding RNAs
For the first time, a team of neuroscientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has demonstrated circadian control of aggression in male mice and identified the specific neurons and circuitry regulating the daily pattern.
A national working group led by an investigator at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has developed a Consensus Statement intended to inform safe prescribing of opioids for hospitalized adults with acute pain.
A new study led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at MGH identified genes associated with the body’s response to relaxation techniques and sheds light on the molecular mechanisms by which these interventions may work to lower blood pressure. The findings were published today in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.
New research finds significant differences in hospitals’ performance when readmissions were assessed for non-Medicare patients and for conditions other than those currently reported, showing that when these additional factors are taken into account, half of hospitals would be subject to a change in their financial penalty status.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s Christos Mantzoros, MD, MSC, the first scientist to document the role of the hormone leptin in regulating the body’s response to hunger in humans, is the recipient of the Endocrine Society’s Outstanding Clinical Investigator Award for 2018. Mantzoros accepted the award today at a special ceremony at the Society’s 100th annual meeting in Chicago.
A new, large-scale study – led by researchers at the Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and published online today in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes – examined the relationship between 30-day episode spending for inpatient and post-discharge care and patient mortality following a hospital admission for heart attack.
New research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association indicates that a common anatomic anomaly – a hole between the upper chambers of the heart that fails to close after birth – doubles the risk of stroke within 30 days of non-cardiac surgery.
Nurhan Torun, MD, an accomplished ophthalmologist internationally recognized for her expertise in ocular motility disorders, has been named Chief of Ophthalmology in the Department of Surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).
With opioid overdoses now a leading cause of nonintentional death in the United States, data show most of these deaths can be traced back to an initial prescription opioid. A new study led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Harvard Medical School (HMS) sheds light on the possible link between physicians’ opioid prescription patterns and subsequent abuse.
The Cancer Center and the Department of Pathology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has opened a new state-of-the-art facility dedicated to the study of non-coding RNAs (ncRNA). The Non-Coding RNA Precision Diagnostics and Therapeutics Core Facility will help accelerate the discovery and translation of ncRNA diagnostics and therapeutics, with the hope of leading to better cures and treatments for disease
Prostate tumors tend to be what scientists call “indolent” – so slow-growing and self-contained that many affected men die with prostate cancer, not of it. But for the percentage of men whose prostate tumors metastasize, the disease is invariably fatal. In a set of papers out today in the journals Nature Genetics and Nature Communications, researchers at the Cancer Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) shed new light on the genetic mechanisms that promote metastasis in the mouse model and also implicated the typical Western high-fat diet as a key environmental factor driving metastasis.
The field of immunotherapy – the harnessing of patients’ own immune systems to fend off cancer – is revolutionizing cancer treatment today. However, clinical trials often show marked improvements in only small subsets of patients, suggesting that as-yet unidentified variations among tumors result in distinct paths of disease progression and response to therapy.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has named Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) the agency’s National Non-profit Organization Partner of the Year.
New research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences indicates that lesions to brain areas in individuals exhibiting criminal behavior all fall within a particular brain network involved in moral decision-making.
Microscopes enhanced with artificial intelligence (AI) could help clinical microbiologists diagnose potentially deadly blood infections and improve patients’ odds of survival, according to microbiologists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).
Healthy adults mounted strong immune responses after receiving an investigational whole inactivated Zika virus vaccine, according to interim analyses of three Phase 1, placebo-controlled, double-blind trials conducted at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR), and Saint Louis University School of Medicine. The findings were published today in The Lancet.
Led by researchers in the Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), the large-scale analysis determined that 30 percent of readmissions following peripheral revascularization were related to complications associated with the procedure, while differences in hospital quality accounted only modestly for readmission risk.
The Universal Genomics Instructor Handbook and Toolkit, a new, free educational resource designed to educate clinicians in all medical specialties in genomic medicine, is now available to improve physician genomic education worldwide. Developed by a team led by Richard L. Haspel, MD, PhD, Pathologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Associate Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, the handbook and accompanying online toolkit were developed through funding from The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), one of the 27 institutes and centers at the National Institute of Health.
Cancer therapies including radiation and chemotherapy seek to treat the disease by killing tumor cells. Now a team including researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have shown that the dead and dying cancer cells generated by chemotherapy and targeted cancer therapy paradoxically trigger inflammation that promotes aggressive tumor growth. In a study published today in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, the team has illuminated the mechanism by which tumor cell death can drive primary tumor growth and metastasis.
Some individuals’ skin appears more youthful than their chronologic age. Although many people try to achieve this with creams, lotions, injections, and surgeries, new research published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology indicates that increased expression of certain genes may be the key to intrinsically younger looking — and younger behaving — skin.
Pier Paolo Pandolfi, MD, PhD, Director of the Cancer Center and Cancer Research Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
Poor nutrition and lack of exercise lead to the increasing prevalence of obesity which, in turn, is the major predictor of diabetes and future risk of cardiovascular disease in western societies. Excess weight is also closely associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), the increasingly common and potentially serious sleep disorder that is often marked by loud snoring. OSA affects about 5 to 10 percent of children 8 to 11 years old. While evidence suggests that OSA appears to exacerbate obesity and its comorbidities such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, its effects on children have not yet been studied in detail.
A common and potentially serious sleep disorder, obstructive sleep apnea affects at least one quarter of U.S. adults and is linked to increased risk of diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. In a paper published today in the journal Neuron, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) identified specific neural circuitry responsible for rousing the brain of mice in simulated apnea conditions. The findings could lead to potential new drug therapies to help patients with obstructive sleep apnea get more rest.
Research led by scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) demonstrated that epidural medication had no effect on the duration of the second stage of labor, normal vaginal delivery rate, incidence of episiotomy, the position of the fetus at birth or any other measure of fetal well-being the researchers investigated. The study compared the effects of catheter-infused, low-concentration epidural anesthetic to a catheter-infused saline placebo in this double-blinded, randomized trial of 400 women.
Proactive monitoring of blood levels of the therapeutic drug infliximab was associated with improved outcomes including lower risk of surgery and hospitalization.
BOSTON - Drinking too much alcohol can damage the liver, but investigators have discovered a protective response in the organ that might be targeted to help treat alcoholic liver disease. The team - led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania - also found that the same protective response may be involved in aversion to alcohol and could therefore help in the treatment of alcoholism.
Packed with nutrients linked to better health, walnuts are also thought to discourage overeating by promoting feelings of fullness. Now, in a new brain imaging study, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have demonstrated that consuming walnuts activates an area in the brain associated with regulating hunger and cravings. The findings, published online in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, reveal for the first time the neurocognitive impact these nuts have on the brain.
Since 2009, hospital intensive care units have witnessed a stark increase in opioid-related admissions and deaths, according to new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's (BIDMC) Center for Healthcare Delivery Science. Published online today ahead of print in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, the study is believed to be the first to quantify the impact of opioid abuse on critical care resources in the United States.
New findings from researchers at OpenNotes and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center shed light on what patients value about having access to their visit notes and being invited to participate more actively in the safety of their care.
Investigators from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed and tested an innovative, reliable means of analyzing pre-cancerous breast lesions diagnosing certain kidney diseases and using only a conventional light microscope. The technique – dubbed “expansion pathology or ExPath – enhances pathologists’ diagnostic ability and could mean earlier interventions for high-risk patients. The research team describes their joint effort in a paper published today in the journal Nature Biotechnology.
First-of-its-kind study looks beyond Medicare readmission rates to determine causes of short-term readmissions of patients across the spectrum of age and insurance types. While Medicare patients account for more than half of all readmissions, readmission rates of non-Medicare patients were still significant and costly.
Psychiatric disease and substance abuse were the most common diagnoses leading to readmission among non-elderly patients, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.
This research found that light makes migraine headaches more painful and induces negative emotions and unpleasant physical sensations. Laboratory studies identify previously unknown connections between nerve cells in the eye and neurons in the brain that regulate physiological, autonomic, endocrine and emotional responses. These findings offer promising path forward for researchers in treatment of migraines.
In a recent feasibility study, BIDMC tested an anti-epileptic drug for its potential impact on the brain activity of patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease. The team documented changes in patients’ EEGs that suggest the drug could have a beneficial effect.
By developing a new approach to imaging and manipulating particular groups of neurons in the mouse brain, scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have identified a pathway by which neurons governing feelings of hunger influence distant neurons involved in the decision of whether or not to react to food-related cues. Their findings could open the door to targeted therapies that dampen food cue-evoked cravings in people with obesity. The research was published online today in the journal Nature.
The study tested the efficacy of tildrakizumab, an antibody that targets only a very specific immune system pathway. More than 60 percent of all patients who received the active medication showed improvement, compared to less than 10 percent of patients who received placebos.
Chocolate consumption, particularly of dark chocolate, has been linked to improvements in various indicators of heart health. This study examined the possible association between chocolate intake and a lower rate of being diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. While this is an observational study, researchers believe these findings warrant further consideration to identify effective prevention strategies for atrial fibrillation.
New methodology allowed researchers at BIDMC to more easily investigate mechanisms of infection and provide new insight into how pathogens can work together to cause disease. Using the new tool, researchers confirmed a safer model for study of Brucella species, which cause a potentially debilitating infectious disease in humans and cattle.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s (BIDMC) Barbara B. Kahn, MD, an international leader in the field of diabetes, endocrinology and metabolism, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences (NAS).
New research from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Boston Children’s Hospital shows that chronic sleep loss increases pain sensitivity. It suggests that chronic pain sufferers can get relief by getting more sleep, or, short of that, taking medications to promote wakefulness such as caffeine. Both approaches performed better than standard analgesics in a rigorous study in mice, described in the May 8, 2017 issue of Nature Medicine.
A patchwork of state laws can make it confusing to navigate incapacitated patients’ medical wishes. Without clear national standards, the problem may worsen as the nation’s 75 million baby boomers continue to age, according to medical ethics research led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, the Mayo Clinic and the University of Chicago’s MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics.