The News Review:

- The fast track to being No. 2
- High cholesterol? Try lifestyle changes
- $1m endowment for equine studies at Georgia
- Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital performs transcatheter…
- Grant To Assess Heat Stress In Firefighters And Establish Fire And…
- New findings on vocal cord dysfunction

The fast track to being No. 2
Minneapolis Star-Tribune – Minneapolis Star Tribune – Aug 26, 2007
First impressions”My first impression of Eric was ‘K this is a really smart clinical person but I don’t know what kind of business person he is’” Starks said in a recent interview. “My first impression was one of caution of wait-and-see. “As regulators train a critical eye on medical devices demanding more clinical research before product approvals and surveillance of patients post-implant Starks said he has come to value Fain’s medical background. “He has really overachieved in everything we have asked him to do” he said. Starks has set a badly battered Boston Scientific squarely in his sights and will depend upon Fain to help propel St. Fain says he’ll do that by making existing devices better backing up ICD treatment with strong clinical evidence and becoming an innovation leader.

High cholesterol? Try lifestyle changes
Denver Post – Aug 26, 2007
Elizabeth Powers Dr. John Saultz and Andrew Hamilton recommended that doctors start with lifestyle modifications when a patient has high LDLs. These are the measures that have been found to work based on randomized controlled clinical trials the gold standard of clinical research. Alcohol: Consuming one or two drinks a day can lower LDLs by 4 to 10 milligrams. Red wine is considered most effective. For those who cannot drink alcohol purple grape juice may be a reasonable albeit less effective substitute. Exercise: Aerobic exercise like brisk walking jogging cycling and lap swimming can reduce LDLs by 3 to 16 milligrams and raise the good HDLs.

$1m endowment for equine studies at Georgia
Horsetalk – Aug 26, 2007
“This is the very first chair in equine medicine at UGA and enables us to hire a highly qualified faculty member who can provide a concentration in equine studies and to engage residents lab technicians and support staff to aid in that effort. Hodgson’s support will further enhance studies of diseases and conditions that affect horses including colic and laminitis while providing an exceptional learning environment for veterinary students residents and interns. “The Hodgson Chair provides a stable base over time for clinical research in the department reinforcing scientific investigations already under way that we hope will open new avenues for the treatment of horses” explained Andrew Parks head of UGA’s large animal medicine department. “Until now we have never had a position of this magnitude within our department. It comes at a very opportune time because it allows us to solidify a successful and expanding research program in the department. Born ctober 6 1924 in Athens Georgia Hodgson was the only child of Ralph and Isabella Hodgson. She attended Lucy Cobb and graduated from UGA in 1946 with a degree in English.

Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital performs transcatheter…
News-Medical.net – Aug 26, 2007
The minimally invasive procedure which involves the implantation of the first-ever catheter-based pulmonary valve replacement is currently performed by interventional cardiologists at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia University Medical Center — the only New York City site and one of only three sites nationally that is offering the procedure as part of an ongoing clinical research trial. Currently babies with absent or defective pulmonary valves may require open-heart surgery to implant a valved-conduit (a two-inch tube with a valve inside) to open the connection between their right ventricle and pulmonary artery. But because the conduit’s lifespan is limited by deterioration and patient growth traditionally the invasive surgery must be repeated several times as the patient grows older. The new transcatheter pulmonary valve (TPV) is designed to extend the lifespan of the conduit by improving the natural function of the patient’s heart. The goal is to reduce the need for multiple open-heart surgeries.

Grant To Assess Heat Stress In Firefighters And Establish Fire And…
Medical News Today – Medical News Today (press release) – Aug 26, 2007
—————————-Co-investigators of this trial include Joe Suyama M. assistant professor of emergency medicine and Steven Reis M. associate vice-chancellor for clinical research health sciences and professor of medicine University of Pittsburgh. Reis is a volunteer firefighter and medical officer of the Guyasuta Volunteer Fire Department.

New findings on vocal cord dysfunction
News-Medical.net – Aug 26, 2007
Treatment of VCD relies on correct identification of the disorder using breathing and relaxation techniques to help the vocal cords relax. During an acute VCD attack spirometry (a device that measures airflows) can show patterns that are highly suggestive of VCD. Doctors at Columbus Children’s Hospital performed a clinical research study using spirometry in Children’s Emergency Department to try to identify adolescents who had findings suggestive of VCD compared to an acute asthma attack. The year-long study (February 2005-February 2006) included patients 12-21-years-old who suffered from acute episodes of respiratory distress. The manuscript was published in the July issue of Pediatric Pulmonology. “Both asthma and VCD are very common and emergency departments across the country are seeing more and more kids with these kinds of symptoms” said Karen McCoy MD chief of Pulmonology at Columbus Children’s Hospital and a faculty member at The hio State University College of Medicine. “While they may appear similar to parents the conditions act differently and must be treated differently.