Biomarkers Identify Acute Kidney Injury in Emergency Patients
Published: January 9, 2012
(NEW YORK, NY, January 6, 2012) – Acute kidney injury (AKI) has severe consequences, with a 25 to 80 percent risk of in-hospital death. Researchers have found a way to diagnose AKI using a urine test, enabling emergency departments to identify these high-risk patients when they first arrive at the hospital. The study will be ...
More Than Other Drugs, Injected Meth is Associated with an Increased Risk of Attempted Suicide
Published: January 5, 2012
December 22, 2011 -- The dire physical and mental health effects of injecting methamphetamine are well known, but there’s been little research about suicidal behavior and injecting meth. In a recent study, researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and the University of British Columbia found that drug users who inject methamphetamine had ...
Same-Sex Marriage Laws Reduce Doctor Visits and Health Care Costs for Gay Men
Published: December 20, 2011
Gay men lead healthier, less stress-filled lives when states offer legal protections to same-sex couples, according to a new study examining the effects of the legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts. The study, “Effect of Same-Sex Marriage Laws on Health Care Use and Expenditures in Sexual Minority Men: A Quasi-Natural Experiment,” is online in the ...
Less Need for Blood Transfusion after Surgery
Published: December 15, 2011
Fewer patients need blood transfusion after surgery than is widely believed. A recent study found no ill effects from postponing transfusion until patients develop signs of anemia or their hemoglobin concentration falls below 8 g/dL. The results likely will reduce the number of blood transfusions—and costs—substantially. The study was published online on December 14, 2011, ...
NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia Surgeons Are First in NYC Area to Implant Total Artificial Heart
Published: December 14, 2011
Total Artificial Heart Improves Patient Survival to Transplant While Reducing Some Risks of Transplant Surgery NEW YORK (Dec. 14, 2011) — Surgeons at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center performed the first Total Artificial Heart implant in the New York City area to replace a patient’s dying heart. “For patients who will die without a heart transplant, the ...