PHILADELPHIA – New research from Penn Medicine shows that incisionless transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) surgery cuts length of hospital stay by 30 percent and has no impact on post-operative vascular complication rates when compared with conventional transfemoral TAVR, which requires an incision in the groin. The complete study is available in the current issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions. TAVR involves the replacement of the aortic valve without a traditional open-heart surgical approach. It is a treatment for aortic stenosis, a narrowing ...

Skin Cancer cells work together to spread further and faster, according to a new study published in Cell Reports. The discovery could lead to new drugs to tackle melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Cancer Research UK scientists at The University of Manchester found that some melanoma cells are particularly fast growing, but not very good at invading the surrounding tissue, while other melanoma cells are the opposite – highly invasive but slow-growing. In a tumour, the faster growing cells 'piggy-back' along with the more invasive cells, so together they ...

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – A yearlong study funded by the New Jersey Recovery Fund and conducted by researchers at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University has found that individual property owners in Sandy-affected towns are skeptical about the likelihood of community-based rebuilding solutions. Of the more than 400 online survey respondents, 45 percent indicated they were "pessimistic" or "very pessimistic" that the parts of their town affected by Superstorm Sandy would be rebuilt better than they were before the storm; another 24 ...

Being unemployed increases your risk of death, but recessions decrease it. Sound paradoxical? Researchers thought so too. While previous studies of individuals have shown that employees who lose their jobs have a higher mortality rate, more comprehensive studies have shown, unexpectedly, that population mortality actually declines as unemployment rates increase. Researchers from Drexel University and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor set out to better understand these seemingly contradictory findings. Using a nationally representative panel of individuals across ...

Music fans and critics know that the music of the Beatles underwent a dramatic transformation in just a few years, but until now there hasn't been a scientific way to measure the progression. That could change now that computer scientists at Lawrence Technological University have developed an artificial intelligence algorithm that can analyze and compare musical styles, enabling research into the musical progression of the Beatles. Assistant Professor Lior Shamir and graduate student Joe George had previously developed audio analysis technology to study the vocal communication ...

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (July 24, 2014) -- Some babies are at risk for autism because they have an older sibling that has the disorder. To find new ways to detect Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) earlier in life, researchers are exploring the subtleties of babies' interactions with others and how they relate to the possibility and severity of future symptoms. A new study helps us to understand the connection between early joint attention before one year and later ASD symptoms. Joint attention is an early form of communication that develops toward the end of the first year. ...

Narcissism, considered by some as the "dark side of the executive personality," may actually be a good thing when it comes to certain financial measures, with companies led by narcissistic CEOs outperforming those helmed by non-narcissistic executives, according to recent research co-authored by faculty at the USC Marshall School of Business. The study, "CEO Narcissism and Accounting: A Picture of Profits," published in The Journal of Management Accounting Research, by Professor of Accounting Mark Young, who holds the George Bozanic and Holman G. Hurt Chair in Sports ...

These molecules, which have similar counterparts in humans, affect the connections between nerve cells and influence the transmission of nerve signals into the hippocampus, an area of the brain that plays a significant role in learning processes and the creation of memories. The results of the study have been published in the journal Neuron. Brain function depends on the active communication between nerve cells, known as neurons. For this purpose, neurons are woven together into a dense network where they constantly relay signals to one another. However, neurons do not ...

July 17, 2014, Cleveland: Could the body's own immune system play a role in memory impairment and cognitive dysfunction associated with conditions like chronic epilepsy, Alzheimer's dementia and concussions? Cleveland Clinic researchers believe so, based on a study published online by PLOS ONE. The study focuses on the role of a protein known as S100B, which serves as a biomarker for brain damage. Normally, S100B is found only in the brain and spinal column. However, following a brain injury, it can leak through the blood-brain barrier into the blood. Once S100B enters ...

Glenview, Illinois -- The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) announced today the Online First publication of 'Total and State-Specific Medical and Absenteeism Costs of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Among Adults Aged ≥18 Years in the United States for 2010 and Projections Through 2020' in the journal CHEST. The report, presented by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), finds: In 2010, the total national medical costs attributable to COPD were estimated at $32.1 billion dollars annually. Absenteeism costs ...

Hundreds of fires covered central Africa in mid-July 2014, as the annual fire season continues across the region. Multiple red hotspots, which indicate areas of increased temperatures, are heavily sprinkled across the Congo (northwest), Angola (south), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (northeast), and Zambia (southeast). Thick gray smoke rises from some of the hotspots, and in some areas, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, strong winds drive the smoke to the south. The fire season is an annual event in this region, as residents burn scrub, brush and ...

The latest flare-up in the Middle East catches children in the midst of their long-anticipated summer break. The wail of sirens replaces the jingle of ice cream trucks, and boys and girls dash to a bomb shelter instead of playing tag at the park. Young people are enduring a summer of violence, devastation, panic, and isolation. What are the long-term effects of these conditions? A new study published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress by Prof. Michelle Slone of Tel Aviv University's School of Psychological Sciences and Dr. Anat Shoshani of the Interdisciplinary Center ...

Millenials are narcissistic, scientists are geeky and men like sports — or so cultural stereotypes would have us believe. Regardless of whether we believe them to be true, we all have extensive knowledge of cultural stereotypes. But how does this information become associated with certain groups in the first place? Research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, suggests that cultural stereotypes are the unintended but inevitable consequence of sharing social information. "We examined how social information evolves ...

The Atlantic Forest is a hotspot of biodiversity and one of the most species richness biome of anurans (frogs, tree-frogs, and toads) in the world. However, current levels of diversity might be still underestimated. In the past few years has been an increase in the description of new endemic species of this biome along with the advance of molecular techniques and availability of samples for DNA analysis. Using a more extensive number of samples for molecular and morphological analysis, researchers from the University of Richmond and The George Washington University ...

Researchers in Ohio and Rhode Island have identified two previously undescribed radiological signs of potentially life-threatening slippage of laparoscopically adjustable gastric bands. Adding widespread knowledge of the new signs—inferior displacement of the superolateral band margin by more than 2.4 cm from the diaphragm and the presence of an air-fluid level above the band on a frontal radiograph—to radiologists' knowledge base will aid them in diagnosing affected bariatric patients. These signs of serious complications are evident on upright frontal scout radiographs, ...

Insecticides similar to nicotine, known as neonicotinoids, were found commonly in streams throughout the Midwest, according to a new USGS study. This is the first broad-scale investigation of neonicotinoid insecticides in the Midwestern United States and one of the first conducted within the United States. Effective in killing a broad range of insect pests, use of neonicotinoid insecticides has dramatically increased over the last decade across the United States, particularly in the Midwest. The use of clothianidin, one of the chemicals studied, on corn in Iowa alone ...

WASHINGTON -- A new congressionally mandated report from the National Academy of Sciences concludes that the overarching lesson learned from the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident is that nuclear plant licensees and their regulators must actively seek out and act on new information about hazards with the potential to affect the safety of nuclear plants. The committee that wrote the report examined the causes of the Japan accident and identified findings and recommendations for improving nuclear plant safety and offsite emergency responses to nuclear plant accidents ...

Up to 5 percent of all prenatal ultrasounds uncover antenatal hydronephrosis, or enlarged kidneys, the most commonly detected prenatal abnormality in the United States. Many children with this abnormality are treated continually with preventive antibiotics for the first few years of life with the hopes of preventing the condition's associated urinary tract infections. Until recently, however, little evidence existed as to the benefits of this treatment, which involves considerable cost and inconvenience for families. But a study published this week in the Journal of Pediatric ...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- To reduce fire hazard in the United States, wildland managers often utilize the silvicultural practice of mechanically cutting woody shrubs and suppressed trees (ladder fuels). These cuttings and other post-logging debris are then burned during periods of low fire danger in order to dispose of the material. To improve the burning and minimize hazardous air pollutants, managers often cover all or part of the debris pile with low-density polyethylene plastic, commonly referred to as agricultural plastic, in order to keep water out. A recent study published ...

(Boston)--The age at which girls reach sexual maturity is influenced by 'imprinted' genes, a small sub-set of genes whose activity differs depending on which parent passes on that gene, according to new research published today in the journal Nature. The findings come from an international study of more than 180,000 women involving scientists from 166 institutions worldwide, including Boston University School of Medicine. The researchers identified 123 genetic variations that were associated with the timing of when girls experienced their first menstrual cycle by analysing ...

NEWPORT, Ore. -- A comprehensive 15-year analysis of the movements of satellite-tagged blue whales off the West Coast of the United States found that their favored feeding areas are bisected by heavily used shipping lanes, increasing the threat of injury and mortality. The researchers note that moving the shipping lanes off Los Angeles and San Francisco to slightly different areas – at least, during summer and fall when blue whales are most abundant – could significantly decrease the probability of ships striking the whales. A similar relocation of shipping lanes in the ...

Bottom Line: Men and women who have served in the military have a higher prevalence of adverse childhood events (ACEs), suggesting that enlistment may be a way to escape adversity for some. Authors: John R. Blosnich, Ph.D., M.P.H., of the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System, and colleagues. Background: The prevalence of ACEs among U.S. military members and veterans is largely unknown. ACEs can result in severe adult health consequences such as posttraumatic stress disorder, substance use and attempted suicide. How the Study Was Conducted: Authors compared ...

Bottom Line: An enhanced recovery program for patients after colorectal surgery appears to be feasible in a community hospital setting after having been shown to be successful in international and academic medical centers. Author: Cristina B. Geltzeiler, M.D., of Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, and colleagues. Background: The fundamental aspects of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programs are guidelines that focus on patient education, optimal fluid management, minimal incision length, decreased use of tubes and drains, opioid-sparing analgesia, ...

Bottom Line: A postoperative pneumonia prevention program for patients in the surgical ward at a California Veterans Affairs hospital lowered the case rate for the condition, which can cause significant complications and increase the cost of care. Author: Hadiza S. Kazaure, M.D., of the Stanford University School of Medicine, California, and colleagues. Background: Pneumonia is a common infection that accounts for about 15 percent of all hospital-acquired infections and as much as 3.4 percent of complications among surgical patients. How the Study Was Conducted: The ...

Most research on human cancer genes have been focused on the regions of the coding genome (exons) that are to be translated in the form of amino acids thus proteins. But just before each gene, there is a regulatory region or activator which controls the expression and activity of the adjacent gene. Until now, very little was known of the role exerted such DNA fragment in tumor development. An article published today in Nature in collaboration with the group of Manel Esteller, Director of Epigenetics and Cancer Biology, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), ...