June 21, 2012

Mayo Clinic in the News is a weekly highlights summary of major media coverage. If you would like to be added to the weekly distribution list, send a note to Emily Blahnik with this subject line: SUBSCRIBE to Mayo Clinic in the News.

Thank you.

Karl Oestreich, manager enterprise media relations

NY Times
To Stay on Schedule, Take a Break
by Phyllis Korkki

A growing body of evidence shows that taking regular breaks from mental tasks improves productivity and creativity — and that skipping breaks can lead to stress and exhaustion… Mostly, though, workers don’t take enough breaks — especially breaks involving movement, says James A. Levine, a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic. He has done studies showing that workers who remain sedentary throughout the day are impairing their health. “The design of the human being is to be a mobile entity,” says Dr. Levine, who is also a proponent of standing, and even walking, while working and during meetings.

Circulation: The New York Times has the third highest circulation nationally, behind USA Today (2nd) and The Wall Street Journal (1st) with 1,150,589 weekday copies circulated and 1,645,152 circulated on Sundays.

Context: James Levine, M.D., Ph.D., is a Mayo Clinic endocrinologist who is often sought out by journalists for his expertise. Basing his techniques of non-exercise activity on years of Mayo Clinic research, he offers cost-effective alternatives to office workers, school children and patients for losing weight and staying fit. Author, inventor, physician and research scientist, Dr. Levine has built on Mayo’s top status as a center of endocrinology expertise and has launched a multi-nation mission to fight obesity through practical, common-sense changes in behavior and personal environment.

Public Affairs Contact: Traci Klein

NY Times
Really? Ginseng can help relieve fatigue
by Anahad O’Connor

Now there is some evidence that ginseng’s claim to fight fatigue may be deserved. In a small number of independent studies, researchers have found that ginseng extracts seem to help combat cancer-related fatigue, one of the most common side effects of chemotherapy and other treatments. The fatigue can be so severe that patients often call it paralyzing, and there are few options for alleviating it. In a randomized double-blind study with 290 cancer patients at the Mayo Clinic in 2010, more than twice as many patients taking 1,000 or 2,000 milligrams of ginseng a day reported less fatigue and more energy after eight weeks compared with those given a placebo.

Circulation: The New York Times has the third highest circulation nationally, behind USA Today (2nd) and The Wall Street Journal (1st) with 1,150,589 weekday copies circulated and 1,645,152 circulated on Sundays.

Context: High doses of the herb American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) over two months reduced cancer-related fatigue in patients more effectively than a placebo, a Mayo Clinic-led study found. Sixty percent of patients studied had breast cancer. The findings are being presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting. A news release was distributed by Mayo Clinic June 4. Previous coverage.

Public Affairs Contact: Joe Dangor,

MPR
Mayo Clinic growth boosts Rochester's boom

ROCHESTER, Minn. — In the heart of this city's downtown, workers pour concrete into a massive 14-foot pit. The concrete will create thick walls for a proton beam cancer therapy center, the latest Mayo Clinic construction project that has downtown Rochester in the midst of a construction boom.

Reach: Minnesota Public Radio operates 43 stations and serves virtually all of Minnesota and parts of the surrounding states. MPR has more than 100,000 members and more than 900,000 listeners each week, which is the largest audience of any regional public radio network.

Context: John Noseworthy, M.D., Mayo Clinic president and CEO and John Black, M.D., Chair, Facilities Commitee, conducted an interview with Liz Baier about how Mayo Clinic has helped define Rochester and what the Clinic’s current construction boom means for the city moving forward.

Public Affairs Contact: Karl Oestreich

Chicago Tribune
Setting sleep patterns early can help babies, parents rest easy
by Janice Neumann
…A new book by Mayo Clinic doctors says babies typically sleep 16 hours a day, though often only one or two hours at a time. "Mayo Clinic Guide to Your Baby's First Year," edited by pediatricians Esther H. Krych, Robert V. Johnson and Walter J. Cook, delineates baby's monthly sleep patterns for the first year, offering tips like encouraging babies to fall asleep in the crib rather than in parents' arms, putting them to bed at signs of sleepiness or fussiness, and leaving them alone for a few minutes when crying to allow them to settle on their own. Parents can also encourage activity during the day by talking, singing and playing, and opting for a relaxing bath or cuddling at night.

Circulation: The Chicago Tribune’s average weekday circulation is more than 425,000. Average Sunday circulation is more than 781,000. According to the Tribune, its newspaper reaches more than five million consumers while covering 76% of the market.

Context: Mayo Clinic distributed a news release May 10 about  the new book: Mayo Clinic Guide to Your Baby’s First Year which gives current, detailed information and wisdom from trusted Mayo Clinic pediatricians, who are parents themselves. Mayo Clinic’s comprehensive, easy-to-use book offers new parents trusted advice that’s at their fingertips when they bring baby home. Walter Cook, M.D., a Mayo clinic pediatrician who is also one of the book's authors, appeared on KARE11's Saturday morning news program June 16.

Public Affairs Contacts: Ginger Plumbo, Kelley Luckstein

KARE 11
Mayo Clinic's Guide to Your Baby's First Year

Being a parent can be tough. You may not always know the right answer but there are plenty of tools out there that can help parents navigate through parenthood. Mayo Clinic's Guide to Your Baby's First Year is just one tool aimed at helping parents care for their new infant…Dr. Walter Cook is live on the show.

Reach: KARE has won the demographic of viewers 25 to 54 years-old in almost every Nielsen ratings sweeps period since the late 1980s, while placing second overall in households at 5, 6, and 10 p.m. since May 2006, trailing rival CBS affiliate WCCO.

Context: See Chicago Tribune piece above.

Public Affairs Contacts: Rebecca Eisenman, Ginger Plumbo

KARE 11
Duluth woman receives rare double organ transplant at Mayo
by Lindsey Seavert

Most of us don't look forward to any time in the hospital, but imagine living in a hospital room for half a year. Last December doctors told Jessica Danielson, 30, of Duluth she had to move into St. Mary's Hospital Mayo Clinic until she received two lifesaving organ transplants. After more than six months of waiting, she's now received a new heart and liver…Doctors at Mayo Clinic say her lifesaving heart-liver transplant is only seen at the hospital around twice a year, and a six month wait wouldn't be unusual for the rare procedure, because both organs have to come from the same person.

Reach: KARE has won the demographic of viewers 25 to 54 years-old in almost every Nielsen ratings sweeps period since the late 1980s, while placing second overall in households at 5, 6, and 10 p.m. since May 2006, trailing rival CBS affiliate WCCO.

Context:  Jessica Danielson, who has been patiently waiting at Mayo Clinic for a new heart and liver, received her transplants earlier this week. Her story was chronicled by Nightline in early May which was reported here along with other regional coverage.

Public Affairs Contacts: Nick Hanson, Ginger Plumbo

WDIO Duluth
Jessica Danielson receives transplant

Meanwhile, there is very good news for a Duluth woman tonight. At this hour she is finally getting the rare organ transplant she needs to survive. Jessica Danielson has been at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester since last December waiting for a heart and liver transplant. There have only been 113 operations in US history and just today, she learned she had a match. We talked to her about the long-wait for this moment earlier this year.

Reach: WDIO-TV/10, Duluth, Minn. and WIRT-TV/13, Hibbing, Minn., are owned by Hubbard Broadcasting. WDIO has traditionally finished first in news ratings since it first went on the air in the mid 1960s. The station’s broadcast coverage is northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.

Context: See KARE story above.

Public Affairs Contacts: Nick Hanson, Ginger Plumbo

Florida Times-Union
Mayo Clinic scientist building case that Alzheimer's may be caused by genes
by Charlie Patton

Alzheimer's disease is the "epidemic of our century." That's the opinion of Nilufer Ertekin-Taner, a neurologist and neuroscientist with the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville who is intimately involved in research on the disease. Ertekin-Taner was the lead investigator on a study, the results of which were published online recently in PLoS Genetics, in which she and her co-authors build the case that neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's are primarily caused by genes that are either too active or not active enough, rather than by harmful gene mutations. Additional coverage: Topix.

Circulation: The Florida Times-Union reaches more than 120,000 daily and 173,000 readers Sunday.

Context: Nilufer Taner, M.D., Ph.D., a neurologist and neuroscientist at Mayo Clinic in Florida,  is the lead investigator on a study which was published online recently in PLoS Genetics. The authors build the case that neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's are primarily caused by genes that are either too active or not active enough, rather than by harmful gene mutations.

Public Affairs Contact: Kevin Punsky

Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal
Mayo will get millions to battle 'information overload'
by Mark Reilly

The federal government is providing $60 million to fund health-reform efforts at the Mayo Clinic which says that it can generate savings of nearly three times that amount for U.S. taxpayers.

Circulation: The Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal is published by American City Business Journals which owns more than 40 other local business newspapers.

Context: Mayo Clinic issued a news release June 20 announcing that Mayo Clinic and its collaborators have been awarded nearly $60 million from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to improve health care delivery. The grants will improve critical care for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in intensive care units, improve care and outcomes for patients who have depression and diabetes or cardiovascular disease, and work with patients with chronic conditions and their families to better engage them in medical decisions. Additional coverage: Post-Bulletin.

Public Affairs Contact: Shelly Plutowski

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Tags: alzheimer's disease, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Business Relations, Cancer, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Chemotherapy, Chicago Tribune, Complementary/Alternative Medicine, Dr. James A. Levine, Dr. John Black, Dr. John Noseworthy, Endocrinology / Diabetes, Esther H. Krych, Express Clinics, Facilities, Florida Times-Union, GI, ginseng, government funding, Government Relations, health reform, History, Industry News & Competitive Intelligence, Innovation (Center of), Jessica Danielson, KARE 11, Mayo Clinic Guide to Your Baby's First Year, Mayo Clinic in the News, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, Minnesota Partnership, MPR, Neurology, Nightline, Nilufer Ertekin-Taner, Pediatrics, PLos Genetics, Preventive Medicine, proton beam cancer therapy, Proton Beam Cancer Therapy Center, Research, Robert V. Johnson, Sleep Medicine, St. Marys Hospital, Technology, The New York Times, Transplant, Walter J. Cook, WDIO Duluth, Wellness