Focus: Hidden - Philly Metro

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Luis J. Montaner—noted HIV/AIDS expert—receives endowed professorship.

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Transcatheter aortic valve replacement, or TAVR, has been called one of the biggest advances in cardiac surgery in recent years. The procedure delivers a new, collapsible aortic valve through a catheter to the valve site within the heart - a repair that otherwise requires open heart surgery. While a boon for many patients who would not have been a candidate for conventional surgery, Penn Medicine researchers have discovered that marketing for TAVR does not accurately portray the risks associated with undergoing the procedure. Their analysis is available in the January 12 issue of JAMA Internal Medicine.

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Pediatric nurses play a key role in preventing post-traumatic stress in injured children and their families by practicing "trauma-informed care". A new study surveyed pediatric trauma nurses, revealing that they are knowledgeable about practicing trauma-informed care, but need for additional training to help families cope after a child’s injury.

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A first-of-its-kind randomized clinical trial from researchers at Penn Medicine and collaborators have shown that the most-suited treatment for each smoker may depend on how quickly they metabolize the nicotine in their body after quitting.

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For patients with spinal stenosis, long-term outcomes are comparable with surgery or conservative treatment, reports a study in the January 15 issue of Spine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Effective and efficient healthcare transitions—patient "handoffs" between providers, units, or healthcare systems—are a critical part of efforts to provide coordinated, high-quality patient care. A special focus on Healthcare Transitions is presented in the January/February issue of the Journal for Healthcare Quality (JHQ), the peer-reviewed journal of the National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ). The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW), a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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New Year’s weight loss resolutions are in full swing, but despite all the hype about the latest wearable tracking devices, there’s little evidence that this technology alone can change behavior and improve health for those that need it most, according to a new online-first viewpoint piece in JAMA. The paper, written by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, points out that even though several large technology companies are entering this expanding market, there may be a disconnect between the assumed benefits and actual outcomes.

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Military service members with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), or concussion, should follow a six-step process of progressive activity, leading to return to active duty, according to new clinical recommendations by an expert panel. The guidance appears in the January-February issue of The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, official journal of the Brain Injury Association of America, an annual special issue devoted to new research on TBI in the military. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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A new collaboration between NCCN and Flatiron Health will provide the opportunity to analyze key quality and outcomes metrics and identify trends and patterns in the care of patients with cancer.

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Drexel University’s College of Engineering will honor Ellen Kullman, Chair of the Board and CEO of DuPont, as its 2015 Engineering Leader of the Year. Kullman, who will be recognized at a ceremony on Feb. 23, will join an esteemed group of engineering trailblazers who have received the award.

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Even with modern genomewide analysis techniques, it has proven difficult to identify genetic factors affecting risk for depression, according to a topical review in the January issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Jefferson Appoints Sandra Dayaratna, M.D., as Division Director of the Generalist Division of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department

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People exposed to asbestos from mining in Libby, Mont., show long-term changes in lung imaging and function tests, even with relatively low asbestos exposure, reports a study in the January Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

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Adding radiation treatment to hormone therapy saves more lives among older men with locally advanced prostate therapy than hormone therapy alone, according to a new study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology this week from Penn Medicine researchers.

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Colder temperatures and less humidity helps the flu virus spread easier among people; so if this winter proves to be a bitter one, it will be especially important to protect yourself.

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Because of their responsibility for performing airway intubation and other invasive procedures, anesthesiologists will play an essential role in managing patients with Ebola virus infection. Scientific evidence guiding the anesthetic management of Ebola virus disease (EVD) is presented and analyzed in a special article published by Anesthesia & Analgesia.

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By adjusting the levels of a key signaling protein, researchers improved motor function and brain abnormalities in experimental animals with a form of Huntington’s disease, a severe neurodegenerative disorder.

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A simple technique may be most effective in preventing heart disease after radiation therapy for breast cancer.

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Many patients with type 2 diabetes in the United States may be discouraged from taking metformin—a proven, oral diabetes medicine—because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration inappropriately labels the drug unsafe for some patients also suffering from kidney problems, researchers from Penn Medicine and Weill Cornel Medical College report this week in a research letter published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

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An estimated 28,000 lemurs, the world’s most endangered primates, have been illegally kept as pets in urban areas of Madagascar over the past three years, possibly threatening conservation efforts and hastening the extinction of some of lemur species.

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For women who have undergone mastectomy, breast reconstruction using the patient's own tissues—rather than implants—provides higher satisfaction scores, reports a study in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

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Performed as part of body contouring procedures in patients with massive weight loss, a procedure called medial thigh lift carries a substantial risk of complications, reports a study in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

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Recovery of blinking function is a critical but easily overlooked outcome after facial transplantation, according to a report in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

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Elyse Hoffmann promoted to Wistar director of donor relations and special events.

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Recent guidelines seeking to reduce the use of neuroimaging tests for patients with headaches run the risk of missing or delaying the diagnosis of brain tumors, according to a special article in the January issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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A recent report provided anesthesiologists with reassuring data on the safety of caudal nerve block—sometimes called the "kiddie caudal"—for infants and young children undergoing surgery. But an editorial in the January issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia draws attention to some important limitations of the study and to the need for further research on the safety and efficacy of this widely used pediatric anesthesia technique.

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Just like holly wreaths, twinkling lights, Santa Claus, flying red-nosed reindeer and decorated evergreen trees, myths and superstitions have become part of our holiday lore. A Temple University psychologist offers the truth behind some of these false holiday beliefs.

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New findings show how an inactivating polymorphism in the TLR5 Gene that occurs in more than one out of 15 people, plays important role in progression of luminal breast cancer and ovarian cancer

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Russel E. Kaufman steps down as the Wistar Institute President & CEO and Dario C. Altieri, Wistar Cancer Center Director, named new CEO.

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Type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients who have developed low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) as a complication of insulin treatments over time are able to regain normal internal recognition of the condition after receiving pancreatic islet cell transplantation, according to a new study led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, published online in Diabetes.

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The cause of prostate cancer may be linked to Parkinson’s disease through a common enzyme family called sirtuins.

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Researchers gain new insight into how motor neurons in the brain die during ALS

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Jason H. Moore, PhD, has been named the first permanent director of the Penn Institute for Biomedical Informatics (IBI), at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. His appointment starts March 1, 2015. Moore is an expert in genetics and biomedical informatics, who is currently on faculty at Dartmouth College.

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Researchers have discovered a way to repurpose fibroblasts into functional melanocytes, the body's pigment-producing cells. The technique has immediate and important implications for developing new cell-based treatments for skin diseases such as vitiligo, as well as new screening strategies for melanoma.

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The Fatherhood Research and Practice Network, a collaboration between Temple University and Denver’s Center for Policy Research, has awarded $350,000 to four projects that will evaluate fatherhood programs in order to determine how to best serve low-income fathers.

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All children should undergo vision health screening between age 36 and 72 months—preferably every year—using evidence-based test methods and with effective referral and follow-up, according to recommendations published in the January issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Frequent kidney dialysis can cause systemic inflammation, leading to complications such as cardiovascular disease and anemia by triggering the complement cascade, part of the innate immune system. Complement is inadvertently activated by modern polymer-based dialysis blood filters. New work has found an effective way to avoid these problems by temporarily suppressing complement during dialysis.

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Wolters Kluwer Health is pleased to announce that, Retinal Cases & Brief Reports, a publication dedicated to publishing peer-reviewed case reports and brief reports in the diagnosis and treatment of retinal and vitreous diseases, has been accepted for indexing by MEDLINE/PubMed and Scopus. All articles back to Volume 1 Issue 1 now appear in PubMed and going forward all articles will be indexed immediately upon publication.

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In a newly published study, Paul Lieberman and his lab report how this aggressive virus known for cold sores can manipulate the protective ends of our chromosomes to replicate and spread.

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The Ebola virus travels from person to person through direct contact with infected body fluids. But how long can the virus survive on glass surfaces or countertops? How long can it live in wastewater when liquid wastes from a patient end up in the sewage system? In an article published Dec. 9 in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Drexel University plot a course for future study of the virus.

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Today marks the 20th anniversary of the first (contemporary) Russian invasion of Chechnya. While made by the Yeltsin administration, that decision has had an enormous impact on current Russian identity and now President Vladimir Putin's power. Moreover, this strategy of two decades ago has a familiar ring: promote popular approval during hard times by turning to violence against some undesirable “other” — Chechen terrorists in 1994 and Ukrainian fascists today.

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Hospitals with robotic surgical systems are more likely to perform "nephron-sparing" partial nephrectomy—a recommended alternative to removal of the entire kidney—in patients with kidney cancer, reports a study in the December issue of Medical Care. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Two-thirds of women treated for early-stage breast cancer in the U.S. receive longer radiation therapy than necessary, according to a new study published in JAMA this week from Penn Medicine researchers Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD, PhD, and Justin E. Bekelman, MD.

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Home Healthcare Now: The Interprofessional Journal for Home Care and Hospice Clinicians announced today a relaunch of the publication. Formerly known as Home Healthcare Nurse, the new name and direction of the journal reflects today’s interprofessional approach to practical clinical care. Home Healthcare Now is the official publication of the Visiting Nurse Association of America, and is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Terri Erbacher, a school psychologist at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and colleagues' new book addresses all aspects of suicide prevention and intervention.

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In the first year after the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) reduced the number of continuous hours that residents can work, there was no change in the rate of death or readmission among hospitalized Medicare patients, according to a new study published in JAMA. The study was led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

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Researchers at Penn Medicine, in collaboration with a multi-center international team, have shown that a protease inhibitor, simeprevir, a once a day pill, along with interferon and ribavirin has proven as effective in treating chronic Hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) as telaprevir with interferon and ribavirin, the standard of care in developing countries. Further, simeprevir proved to be simpler for patients and had fewer adverse events. The complete study is now available online and is scheduled to publish in January 2015 in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

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Within a few months after drug withdrawal, patients in recovery from dependence on prescription pain medications may show signs that the body's natural reward systems are normalizing, reports a study in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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The promise of a new year sparks the desire to get healthy – a goal Karin Richards, chair of the kinesiology program at University of the Sciences, says should begin with a physical exam at the doctor’s office.