Percentage of biopsies done between 2003 and 2008 that were surgical, according to a study in Florida; that rate should be 10% or less, medical guidelines say. Surgical biopsies are more invasive, have a higher risk of infection and scarring, and are more expensive than needle biopsies. [via The New York Times]
—REP. JACKIE SPEIER of California, describing her personal experience with miscarriage, during a House debate over federal funding of Planned Parenthood. At 17 weeks pregnant, Speier underwent a procedure to terminate pregnancy, after her fetus moved into the cervix where it could not survive and endangered her life. The House voted 240-185 to defund Planned [...]
Soon after CBS reporter Serene Branson’s on-air verbal meltdown last Sunday, speculation about its cause began flowing. Many experts reviewing the footage said Branson had demonstrated classic symptoms of stroke or some other neurological event. But according Branson’s doctors at UCLA, the results of a brain scan and blood work ruled out stroke. Instead Branson [...]
Although ecstasy (MDMA) — a drug best known for enhancing feelings of empathy and love — has been demonized by parents and politicians, researchers have been quietly studying its potentially therapeutic effects, and they’ve discovered that the data is not bearing out the worst fears about the drug’s harmful effects.
In the cage match that is the debate over whether kids do better if their moms stay home or work, everything is contested.
Most runners, whether they’re training for a marathon or simply out to get some exercise, will stretch before they take off. It’s a ritual that verges on the sacred, strongly connected to the intuitive sense that priming the muscles is a good way to avoid injuring them during the run to come.
Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have created a fascinating map of the U.S. showing — down to the county level — the geographical distribution of our sloth. But we at Healthland prefer to look on the bright side, so we’ve taken the data on inactivity and compiled a list of [...]
Nursing mothers, rejoice: Uncle Sam will now subsidize your breast pumps. For years, the Internal Revenue Service has insisted that breast pumps — relied upon by many working moms so that their babies can eat when they’re not around— be considered feeding equipment not worthy of a tax deduction. But last week, the IRS reversed itself, [...]
The government updates its Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) every five years, and typically their unveiling is a bit of a snoozer. But the latest batch of Uncle Sam’s how-to-eat instructions, made public on Jan. 31, have yielded some interesting backlash.
Percentage of imaging tests ordered by orthopedic surgeons out of fear of being sued, rather than out of necessity. Defensive imaging accounted for 11% of X-rays, 38% of MRIs, 33% of CT scans, 57% of bone scans and 53% of ultrasounds. Defensive medicine also accounted for 35% of costs, nearly all of it from MRIs. [...]
