September 2, 2016

Mayo Clinic in the News Weekly Highlights

By Karl Oestreich

Mayo Clinic in the News LogoMayo 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.

 

Editor, Karl Oestreich;  Assistant Editor: Emily Blahnik

 

WESA Pittsburgh
St. Clair Hospital Brings A Virtual Mayo Clinic To Its Patients
by Mark Nootbaar

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. is known for employing doctors with highly refined subspecialties, and now St. Clair Hospital doctors can tap into that expertise. An agreement between the two hospitals, finalized this week, will allow St. Clair doctors to access eTumor Boards – a virtual version of tumor board reviews, in which multiple doctors brainstorm ways to treat an individual patient.  “There are certainlyPittsburgh NPR station cancers that affect millions of people in the United States but there are also cancers like sarcoma, which might be more on the order of a couple thousand a year,” said Mayo Clinic Medical Director of Provider Relations Ryan Uitti.

Reach:  WESA is a southwestern Pennsylvania’s only independent public radio news and information station. The station targets listeners, ages 18 to 64 and its website receives more than 171,000 unique visitors each month.

Additional coverage: Post BulletinKROC AMMSN, Pittsburgh Business Times, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tribune-Review, Observer-Reporter, seattlepi.com, KDKA Pittsburgh, Washington Times

Context:  St. Clair Hospital is the newest member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, a growing national network of independent health care providers committed to serving patients and their families through clinical collaboration. St. Clair Hospital remains independent and locally governed. Under this formal agreement, St. Clair Hospital has access to the latest Mayo Clinic knowledge and promotes clinical collaboration between physicians to benefit patients. The goal of St. Clair Hospital and Mayo Clinic is to help patients get answers to complex medical questions while staying close to home. “St. Clair is proud to be selected as the newest member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network,” says James M. Collins, president and CEO of St. Clair Hospital. “This clinical collaboration with Mayo – unique in western Pennsylvania – is rooted in our common philosophy. It will provide our physicians the expertise of Mayo Clinic to assist them as they treat challenging medical cases – at no additional cost to patients and insurers.” More information can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact: Rhoda Fukushima Madson

 

Huffington Post

Why Aren’t More Parents Vaccinating Their Kids Against Cancer?
by Erin Schumaker

The HPV vaccine got off to a rough start. For starters, the vaccine was originally only tested on and approved for girls and women. The vaccine wasn’t approved for boys until 2009, three years after it was Huffington Post Logointroduced, and wasn’t recommended for boys until 2011, according to NPR. “That was a terrible mistake,” Dr. Gregory Poland, who heads up Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group and serves as editor-in-chief of the journal Vaccine, told The Huffington Post. “It pretends that only women get or acquire the disease and that simply isn’t true.”

Reach: The Huffington Post attracts over 38.7 million monthly unique viewers.

Context: Gregory Poland, M.D. is a Mayo Clinic infectious disease expert. Dr. Poland and his team within the Vaccine Research Group aim to improve the health of individuals across the world by pursuing challenges posed by infectious diseases and bioterrorism through clinical, laboratory and epidemiologic vaccine research.

Contact: Rhoda Fukushima Madson

 

Twin Cities Business
Mayo’s Kogod Center On Aging Spawning Spinoffs, Breakthrough Research
by Don Jacobson

The same Mayo Clinic lab that earlier this year spawned a buzzworthy anti-aging startup firm has recorded another research breakthrough connecting “senescent” human cells to age-related maladies—in this case, osteoarthritis. The Robert and Arlene Kogod Center on Aging at Mayo Clinic is the home of researchers Jan van Deursen and Dr. James Kirkland (its director). They and colleagues have been investigating the roleTwin Cities Business Magazine Logo played in the aging process by senescent cells—living cells that have stopped reproducing due to age or damage.

Reach: Twin Cities Business is a monthly business magazine with a circulation of more than 30,000 and more than 74,000 readers. The magazine also posts daily business news on its website.

Context:  Researchers at Mayo Clinic have shown that senescent cells – cells that no longer divide and accumulate with age – negatively impact health and shorten lifespan by as much as 35 percent in normal mice. The results, which appear today in Nature, demonstrate that clearance of senescent cells delays tumor formation, preserves tissue and organ function, and extends lifespan without observed adverse effects. “Cellular senescence is a biological mechanism that functions as an ‘emergency brake’ used by damaged cells to stop dividing,” says Jan van Deursen, Ph.D., Chair of Biochemistry and Molecular biology at Mayo Clinic, and senior author of the paper. “While halting cell division of these cells is important for cancer prevention, it has been theorized that once the ‘emergency brake’ has been pulled, these cells are no longer necessary.” More information on Mayo Clinic's aging research can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact: Megan Forliti

 

News4Jax
Father with ALS hopes 'Ice Bucket Challenge' continues
by Joy Purdy

The millions of people who helped participate in the 2014 "Ice Bucket Challenge" helped raise more than a $100 million to fund ALS research. Since that summer of 2014, two major discoveries have brought News Jax 4 Logoresearchers like Mayo Clinic's local Neurogeneticist Dr. Rosa Rademakers closer to understanding how the disease attacks the body. The more dollars donated will allow for more extensive the research, like ways to predict the disease before it strikes. "Identify individuals who are at risk of developing the disease, even before they have any symptoms," explained Rademakers. "Or, it will allow us to be able to say who will have a fast disease progression or slow disease progression. These are very important things that we're still working on."

Reach: WJXT is an independent television station serving Florida’s First Coast that is licensed to Jacksonville. This Week in Jacksonville is a weekly public affairs program on WJXT.

Context: Rosa Rademakers, Ph.D., a neurogeneticist on Mayo Clinic’s Florida campus,  receiveed one of the highest honors in neuroscience: the 2016 Potamkin Prize for Research in Pick’s, Alzheimer’s and Related Diseases. The $100,000 prize is an internationally recognized tribute for advancing dementia research. It recognizes major contributions to the understanding of the causes, prevention, treatment and cure for Pick's, Alzheimer's and related diseases. More information can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact: Kevin Punsky

 

Wall Street Journal
Don’t Wait Until You’re Older to Fight Getting Old
by Sumathi Reddy

One of the hallmarks of aging is sarcopenia, which is the progressive loss of skeletal muscle that starts in the 30s, says Nathan LeBrasseur, associate professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.  It becomes noticeable in the late 30s and early 40s, when losing weight often becomes more difficult, he says. The loss of muscle mass happens at a rate of about 10% per decade, he says, whileWSJ Banner muscle strength and power—the ability to generate force over time—declines even more dramatically. Dr. LeBrasseur says this may go beyond muscle loss, and be related to impaired brain signals and changes to the circulatory system.

Reach: The Wall Street Journal, a US-based newspaper published by Dow Jones & Company, has an average circulation of 2.3 million daily which includes print and digital versions.

Context: Nathan LeBrasseur, Ph.D. is a Mayo Clinic researcher and is affiliated with Mayo Clinic's Robert and Arlene Kogod Center on Aging and Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. More information about his work can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact: Kelly Reller

 

WCCO CBS
Good Question: Why Are Knee Injuries So Common?
By Heather Brown

The Minnesota Vikings announced Tuesday that starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater has a complete tear in his ACL— the anterior cruciate ligament. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons says it is WCCO logothe most common kind of knee injury, with more than 200,000 of them reported every year. “The knee is particularly vulnerable because it transmits all of the forces from the ground up to the body,” said Dr. Nancy Cummings, an orthopedic surgeon at the Mayo Clinic.

Reach: WCCO 4 News is the most-watched newscast in the Twin Cities, in 5 out of 7 newscasts.

Additional Coverage:

KARE11, What is the anterior cruciate ligament, ACL? by Adrienne Broaddus — Dr. Nancy Cummings,  Mayo Clinic's Orthopedic surgeon and head physician for the Minnesota Lynx says the , restrains the knee from going into an abnormal position where other structures can get injured in the knee. "The ACL's purpose is to prevent your lower leg from moving forward on your upper leg when you do motion with your knee," she said. "A tear to your ACL is pretty serious. What it does is it puts other structures in knee at risk. It increases your risk of arthritis down the line."

Context: Nancy Cummings, M.D., is a Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine physician.

Contact: Rhoda Fukushima Madson

 

MPR
Mayo Clinic surgeon: Vikings' Bridgewater faces long recovery from knee injury

The Minnesota Vikings play the Los Angeles Rams Thursday night in a preseason game. It will be the team's first game since starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was injured during practice this week. Bridgewater dislocated his left knee and tore his ACL during non-contact drills on Tuesday. He'll have surgery soon and is expected to miss the remainder of the season. To find out more about the injury andMPR News logo how an athlete recovers from it, MPR's Cathy Wurzer spoke with Dr. Michael Stuart. He's an orthopedic surgeon specializing in knee injuries at the Mayo Clinic and the co-director of their sports medicine.

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:  Michael Stuart, M.D. is co-director, Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center, a global leader in sports and musculoskeletal injury prevention and rehabilitation, concussion research, diagnostic and interventional ultrasound, sports performance optimization, and surgical and nonsurgical management of sports-related injuries.

Contact: Rhoda Fukushima Madson

 

Star Tribune
NFL players with ACL injuries face uncertain recovery, shortened careers
by Jeremy Olson

Medical advances have made it possible for injured athletes such as Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to return from dislocated knees and ligament tears, according to physicians interviewed Wednesday, but Star Tribune Logothey nonetheless face long and uncertain roads to recovery… Improvements in surgical techniques and post-surgery rehab have turned a surefire career-ending injury into something that athletes such as Bridgewater can overcome, said Timothy Hewett, who directs the Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Research Center. “Twenty-five years ago, they would have cast him and he would have come back with a bunch of scarring, and it would have taken months to decrease the stiffness in the joint. We know now that you immediately move it.”

Reach: The Star Tribune Sunday circulation is 518,745 copies and weekday circulation is 300,277. The Star Tribune is the state’s largest newspaper and ranks 16th nationally in circulation.

Context: Tim Hewett, Ph.D. is Mayo Clinic sports medicine director of research, biomechanics. Dr. Hewett's research optimizes sports performance through a three-prong model he has developed. He expects to refine it at Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center so that it can be applied across the life span, from grade-school children to pro athletes to senior citizens.

Contact: Rhoda Fukushima Madson

New York Times, Gene Tests Identify Breast Cancer Patients Who Can Skip Chemotherapy, Study Says by Denise Grady — Although women who skipped chemo had low recurrence rates, their rates were slightly higher than those of women who had chemo. Dr. Kathryn J. Ruddy, a breast cancer specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., who was not part of the research, said in an email that the study was important because “it will help more patients avoid the toxicities of chemotherapy (potentially including permanent nerve damage, heart failure and leukemia).” Additional coverage: Seattle Times

Washington Post, CPAP machines don’t prevent heart attacks, strokes in some sleep apnea sufferers by Lenny Bernstein — Virend Somers, a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. who was not involved in the research, called the new study "a very important paper" because it provides the first large, randomized, controlled look at CPAP benefits that were only previously assumed. Somers, the Alice Sheets Marriott professor of medicine and a consultant in cardiovascular disease at the Mayo Clinic, said he would like to know whether better adherence to the CPAP regimen might convey more long-term benefits. It's unknown whether the adrenaline and blood pressure surges that come with taking off the mask and returning to an apneac state in the middle of the night are as harmful as sleep apnea itself, he said. Additional coverage: Salt Lake Tribune

Reuters, Players may be risking health by popping pain pills — Taking pain medication, before and after matches, has become the norm as the boundaries of physical possibility continue to expand. But taking too much is believed to actually slow down the recovery process after injury and taking them too regularly can cause long-term harm, some experts say.  "With respect to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, persons should take as little as possible for the shortest duration possible," Dr Eric Matteson, a consultant in the Division of Rheumatology at the Mayo Clinic, said by email.  "The concerns with prolonged use are risks of developing kidney failure and hypertension, as well as stomach ulcers." Additional coverage: Eurosport

Wall Street Journal, The Most Beloved Man in Tennis by Tom Perrotta — Juan Martín del Potro hits tennis balls so hard it’s a wonder they don’t pop. He has a body that should make people nervous—6-foot-6, 214 pounds and muscular—but the heart of a golden retriever. In tennis, everyone loves him and hopes he’s back for good…Last June, just before his third left wrist operation, he considered quitting. His surgeon, Dr. Richard Berger of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., understood why. “It’s awfully discouraging for somebody of Juan Martín’s stature to have to think about having yet another surgery,” Dr. Berger said. “He knew that my bag was empty. I had no other arrows in my quiver that I could use surgically without running the risk of making things worse, from a scar standpoint, from an instability standpoint. This last operation was pretty much it.”

Vox, Why parents of young children get sick more often by Julia Belluz —There is some good news here: Experience with previous similar viruses or bacteria will provide some protection, meaning the sickness in the parent won’t be as intense or as long-lasting as the sickness in the poor kid. "Usually the parents are not getting fevers," said Robert Jacobson, a professor of pediatrics at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. "And usually their illnesses are relatively short-lived and rarely complicated. So [parents’] illnesses are not as severe and have fewer complications."

WBAA NPR, New FDA Zika Guidelines Have Indiana Blood Centers Rushing To Comply by Sara Fentem — Indiana blood donation centers are rushing to comply with a recently-announced federal rule that all blood donated in the United States be tested for the Zika virus … No locally-transmitted cases of the virus have been recorded in Indiana, and the mosquito that carries the virus isn’t native to the state. However, Justin Kreuter, Medical Director of the Mayo Clinic’s blood donor program, says the measure means public health officials are getting in front of the problem. “Now that we are seeing vector-borne infections that go from mosquito to human, and also sexual transmission of Zika in the United States, at some point in places like Indiana, those travel history questions become less effective,” he says. Additional coverage: Willmar Radio

Jacksonville Business Journal, Women of Influence: Christina Zorn of Mayo Clinic — Christina Zorn wears several hats. There's vice chair of administration for all of the Mayo Clinics, including affiliates in Singapore and Dubai - but she doesn't go to the latter. She wears the chief administrative officer hat when she's working here at Mayo Clinic Florida and provides oversight for human resources, information technology and planning services across Mayo's multiple sites. Zorn is especially proud of the lung restoration center and two other buildings, which she and her team have been planning. Construction will begin in the fall.

SELF, 10 Genius Tricks R.D.s Use To Debloat ASAP by Zahra Barnes — So you can actually button your jeans again … 10. Walk it off. “One of the best things I’ve found that helps with the uncomfortable feeling of bloating is to get up and get moving. This usually means the dog gets to go for a walk as well, so it’s a win-win.” —Jason Ewoldt, R.D.N., L.D., wellness dietitian, Mayo Clinic Healthy Living Program

CBS News, How did Listeria get into recalled veggies? By Rachael Rettner — About 30,000 cases of precut vegetables are being recalled in many Southeastern states because they could be contaminated with Listeria. But how, exactly, do these bacteria get into veggies?…Listeria is found naturally in soil and water, and animals can carry the bacteria without appearing sick, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Raw vegetables can become contaminated with Listeria either through contact with soil or with animal manure that is used as fertilizer, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Today.com, New Baby Basics: What parents need to know about colic by Emma Davis — Welcome to what the Mayo Clinic calls "one of the first major challenges of parenting": colic.  Your newborn cries for no reason but with an intensity that suggests the world is ending...and offers repeat performances for weeks, if not months.  The good news: While there's no cure for colic, most babies grow out of it without any long-term consequences.

Teen Vogue, Increase in Cases of STD Shigella Prompts Warning in Southern California by Brittney McNamara — Shigella, a bacterial infection that can be spread sexually, is making a comeback in southern California right now, prompting a warning from the L.A. County Department of Health after two people died. According to the Department of Health’s website, at least two gay men have died from Shigella, which can be spread through various kinds of oral sex…The Mayo Clinic recommends seeing a doctor if you have symptoms of Shigella, see blood in your poop, or if you have a fever over 101 degrees Fahrenheit.

Finance & Commerce, Bob Lux: Rochester tower will be ‘legacy project’ by Brian Johnson — Developer Bob Lux on Thursday made a spirited sales pitch for his proposed 13-story mixed-use tower in Rochester, the day after the city’s planning commission deadlocked on the project. Lux, founder of Minneapolis-based Alatus LLC, told the Destination Medical Center Corp. board Thursday that the $105 million tower with 347 apartments and 21,000 square feet of retail-office space would be a “legacy project” for the city…Lux’s project, which includes a 560-space parking garage, would rise on a 2.77-acre site on the 1400 block of Second Street Southwest near the Mayo Clinic’s St. Marys Campus. The building site is within the Destination Medical Center area, a Mayo Clinic-anchored, taxpayer-supported buildout that aims to position the city as a magnet for health care research and related development.

KIMT, Mayo Clinic is looking for body donations by Hannah Funk — The anatomical bequest program at Mayo Clinic is looking for people to donate their bodies to science after they pass away. A presentation was held at the Mower County Senior Center Wednesday to discuss the importance of such donations. Shaun Heath is an Anatomy Assistant for Mayo Clinic says this is a way for doctors to improve their quality of patient care. “We help with the needs of the clinic in terms of training residents, fellows and also practicing clinicians that have better ideas for better patient care and how to implement that into their practice,” said Heath. “They need donors to be able to implement that and to make sure their ideas will work into practice.”

Tampa Bay Times, Even as medical marijuana becomes more widespread, there's little science to show it works by Claire McNeill — For decades, the federal government has used the lack of evidence about marijuana's efficacy to oppose the use of the plant or its components as pharmaceuticals. But many researchers say that very position makes serious examination of marijuana's potential benefits or harm extremely difficult…"There are tantalizing possibilities but no easy way right now to explore them," said Dr. J. Michael Bostwick, a professor of psychiatry in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine who wrote a review of medical marijuana's history, politics and research.

Goldendale Sentinel, KVH, Mayo Clinic, Select Medical launch enhanced Transitional Care program by Lou Marzeles — An association between Klickitat Valley Health (KVH) in Goldendale and the world-renowned Mayo Clinic has resulted in the formation of a new program at KVH called enhanced Transitional Care. A formal announcement of the program is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 1, at noon at a special Goldendale Chamber of Commerce lunch at the hospital (310 Roosevelt Ave.). Among the speakers will be Dr. Mark Lindsay, medical director of Allevant Solutions, a venture formed between the Mayo Clinic and Select Medical that focuses on post-acute medical care in rural hospitals.

KEYC Mankato, Soaring Cost For EpiPens Brings National Attention by Shawn Loging — Insect stings... medications... even foods... For people with serious allergies, one of those three things can be the source of constant concern that can lead to a deadly anaphylactic shock. And one product is seen as the best hope to stop the reaction, an EpiPen. Mayo Clinic Health System-Mankato Allergist Richard Crockett, M.D. said, "Even after sixteen years of doing allergy, I'm sort of amazed at how quickly epinephrine works. You see people go from like deaths door to looking pretty good in a matter of minutes."

Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, Harbor Bay makes $5.5M bet on downtown Rochester by Mark Reilly — Harbor Bay Real Estate Advisors, the firm behind a 26-story tower project near the University of Minnesota has bought a restaurant building near the heart of Rochester's Destination Medical Center. Finance & Commerce reports on the $5.5 million deal for the former Michael's Restaurant building at 15 S. Broadway Ave. The site is at Center Street West and South Broadway, about two blocks from Rochester's Mayo Clinic.

Mankato Free Press, Think of health in back to school planning by Brian Arola — Preparing your child for the upcoming school year involves more than just stocking up on school supplies. If you really want to make sure your child hits the ground running in the classroom, parents also can promote healthy habits in the final days leading up to school. That could include adjusting your child’s sleep schedule to reflect earlier wake-ups — no more late nights and sleeping in until noon. It could also mean getting your child into a local clinic for immunizations and physicals. Those two tips appeared in a Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato news release offering back-to-school health advice for area parents. The full list of tips, courtesy of Medical Director Dr. Waclaw Wedzina, are as follows…

Sleep Review, Why Actigraphy Should Be Considered Before An MSLT to Diagnose Narcolepsy by Yoona Ha — …Reimbursement on actigraphy is not guaranteed, so its use has been limited. That’s what led Robert Auger, MD, and several of his colleagues at the Center for Sleep Medicine at Mayo Clinic to conduct a study that compared data from sleep logs and actigraphy over a four-month period. The study concluded that actigraphy does provide more reliable data than those from sleep logs and that the longitudinal total sleep time information from actigraphy did influence clinicians’ decisions to proceed with further testing for narcolepsy. In a clinical update by Mayo Clinic, Auger further emphasizes the importance of using actigraphy prior to a MSLT. Auger was unable to be reached for this article. “We are performing the same tests as other doctors; the only thing we are doing differently is actigraphy,” he says on mayoclinic.org.

Post-Bulletin, 'That simple checkup may have saved my life' by Paul Christian — Melanoma is the most deadly of skin cancers. Some 76,380 cases are diagnosed every year, with 10,130 deaths (6,750 male, 3,380 female). Odds? According to Mayo Clinic dermatologist Dr.. Jerry Brewer, 1 in 43 will develop skin cancer, an alarming rate that has more than doubled the last 10 years."It is, though, very treatable if caught in time," he said.

MedPage Today, SNAP Won't Become Alzheimer's by Kristina Fiore — People with suspected non-Alzheimer pathophysiology (SNAP) probably aren't going to progress to Alzheimer's disease, two studies found…Since it was first reported in 2012 by Clifford Jack, MD, David Knopman, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, and others, SNAP has been something of a puzzle to Alzheimer's researchers. Patients are said to have it if they have no amyloid buildup in their brains, but they have another biomarker of neurodegeneration, such as cerebrospinal tau levels or brain volume changes on MRI.

Post-Bulletin, Ask Mayo Clinic: Jury still out on benefits of fermented foods — DEAR MAYO CLINIC: Are there any special health benefits to fermented foods? The jury's still out. In recent years, claims of possible health benefits of fermented dairy or plant foods, such as yogurt, kefir, aged cheese, tempeh, miso, sauerkraut and many others, have gained the spotlight. The digestive tract is loaded with beneficial bacteria. Likewise, live, active bacteria make fermented foods possible. These bacteria, known as probiotics, are where the potential health benefits in fermented food may be. — John K. DiBaise, M.D., Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Live Science, How Do EpiPens Work? by Sara G. Miller — The price of EpiPens has increased more than 400 percent since 2007. People who need to keep them on hand — often because they may need the emergency drug in case they have a life-threatening allergic reaction — brought the price increase to light, and eventually it reached Congress… In a person with anaphylaxis, the immune system releases a flood of chemicals in response to an allergen, according to the Mayo Clinic. These chemicals can cause an onslaught of severe and life-threatening symptoms throughout the body, including a drop in blood pressure and constricted airways, the Mayo Clinic says.

MPR, Creating a culture of health — By many measures the United States is unhealthy. A majority of Americans think that they have a healthy diet, but a report from the CDC says otherwise. Over three quarters of the population don't eat the amount the recommended amount of produce. When the Mayo Clinic did an assessment of the number of Americans with a healthy lifestyle it found that only about three percent of the population made the grade. The individuals that cleared the bar exercised at least 150 minutes a week, scored well on the USDA's healthy eating index, met their criteria on body fat percentage and did not smoke.

Undark Magazine, The Coming Era of Gene Doping? by Ian Evans — Michael Joyner, a researcher at the Mayo Clinic who focuses on exercise and athletics, agrees that genetic doping is possible. But he’s doubtful that it’s likely to happen anytime soon. Joyner said that he has been watching concerns about genetic doping since the 1970s, and has seen nothing come of it. In part that’s because even with recent advances, gene doping would still be prohibitively expensive for most athletes. Conventional steroids, in contrast, can be made cheaply in bathtubs — and that remains the real concern, Joyner suggested. “If it were me, Joyner said, “I would spend a little less time [policing] gene doping and more on traditional doping.”

Star Tribune, Young men are all thumbs, and researchers are worried by Gail Rosenblum — After adjusting for other factors, Lancet study author Dr. Darryl Leong found that each 11-pound decrease in grip strength was linked to a 16 percent increase in deaths, a 17 percent increase in cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular mortality, and a 9 percent increase in the risk of stroke. The findings were not surprising to Dr. Sanjeev Kakar, a Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon who specializes in the hand and upper extremities. He frequently notes evidence of a decrease in strength between manual and non-manual workers. “It’s very apparent in today’s world that a lot more people are doing office-type, sedentary work and using their mobile devices,” he said. Still, he takes the study’s findings with a grain of salt, noting that the cohort was made up of university students who, let’s be honest, aren’t likely to be found baling hay after class.

Star Tribune, Mayo Clinic News Network: Get the facts on hepatitis C —Testing for hepatitis C, which entails a basic blood draw and analysis, can be the difference between serious health complications later in life or a manageable — in some cases curable — condition. Victoria Louwagie, physician assistant at Mayo Clinic Health System, explores questions and answers to help you understand more about chronic hepatitis C.

Star Tribune, Crawling to better fitness by Alison Bowen — Your next best exercise doesn’t involve equipment, running, jumping or even standing. “Make the floor your friend,” said Danielle Johnson, a physical therapist at the Mayo Clinic Healthy Living Program in Rochester. As a working mom, Johnson is always looking for ways to challenge exercise norms. “We’re looking for things that are a little outside of the box sometimes,” she said. Crawling is one of those things.

EmpowHer, Facebook Live: How Patients Can Use SkinSAFE to Manage Their Skin Allergies by Erin Kennedy — We had the pleasure of joining a Facebook Live interview between Mayo Clinic and Dr. James Yiannias, a Board Certified Dermatologist and Associate Professor of Dermatology at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Scottsdale, AZ, today! During the interview, Yiannias discussed skin allergies, allergy testing, hypoallergenic products, and how patients can use SkinSAFE to filter millions of products free of allergens and discover products right for you, your skin and your lifestyle.  SkinSAFE is a tool created in conjunction with Mayo Clinic to show the ingredients in products so allergy sufferers and health conscious consumers can avoid ingredients that may be harmful to their skin. We rank all products based on how free they are from the top most common allergy causing ingredients identified by Mayo Clinic - we call this our Top Free score.

WRVO Oswego, Doctors may need to be more aware of patient's lives outside chronic illness — Living with a chronic disease can feel overwhelming when trying to keep up with treatment. However, some aspects could be improved simply by creating better communication between a patient and their doctor. This week on “Take Care,” Dr. Victor Montori talks about his new approach to the doctor-patient relationship, which he calls minimally disruptive medicine. Montori is a part of the knowledge and evaluation research unit at the Mayo Clinic and is the director of community engagement and late stage translational research for the Mayo Clinic Center for Clinical and Translational Science.

Post-Bulletin, Grant to allow ABC to purchase vanAbility Building Center received a $25,000 grant from Mayo Clinic that will be used to purchase a van, Executive Director Bruce Remme announced Thursday. "The ABC team and more importantly the participants who will benefit from this gift say thank you to the Mayo Clinic," Remme said. "Safe, reliable transportation is one of the most important things we do at ABC. Support like this makes it possible."

Health Data Management, Mayo Clinic picks one telemedicine vendor to ease use for clinicians by Greg Slabodkin — The Mayo Clinic has consolidated its emergency telemedicine services from using 11 vendors to just one as it seeks to grow its service offerings nationwide with greater efficiency and costs savings. InTouch Health, a Santa Barbara, Calif.-based telehealth network and services vendor, has been selected to replace the myriad companies that previously provided telemedicine services from Mayo to more than 45 hospitals across nine states.

Becker’s Hospital Review, 21 health systems with strong finances by Ayla Ellison — Here are 21 health systems with strong operational metrics and solid financial positions based on recent reports from Moody's Investors Service, Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings… Mayo Clinic has an "Aa2" rating and stable outlook with Moody's and an "AA" rating and stable outlook with S&P. The Rochester, Minn.-based system has an excellent enterprise profile and strong fundraising ability, according to the rating agencies.

Targeted Oncology, Insight into Drug Therapy and Stem Cell Transplant Options for Relapsed Myeloma Patients by John Otrompke — “The recommendations are a bit of a laundry list for the poor community oncologist who treats 40 different cancers. Those with myeloma may be less than 5% of his case mix, and he has so many choices that we try to help guide him,” said Joseph Mikhael, MD, professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix. “For example, we do have evidence some of these drugs work better in those with high-risk disease. And drugs like monoclonal antibodies have really minimal side effects, and so are more feasible to combine together with other drugs. Or perhaps the patient lives two-and-a-half hours away, and it’s hard to give them carfilzomib twice a week intravenously, when we have a different drug we could offer them,” added Mikhael.

NorthBay Business Journal, NorthBay Healthcare opens $58M cancer, wellness center — The official grand opening of the NorthBay Healthcare VacaValley Wellness Center and dedication of the newly relocated NorthBay Cancer Center on Friday, Aug. 26, introduced a $58 million facility on the new Vacaville hospital campus… In addition, the NorthBay Cancer Center physicians now work with Mayo Clinic experts through the Mayo Clinic Care Network for second opinions on patient treatment plans, thanks to a collaborative relationship announced earlier this year.

Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, Mayo Clinic doctors' startup lands funding for carpal-tunnel fixer by Katharine Grayson — A med-tech startup with Mayo Clinic ties that's developing a knife for carpal-tunnel surgery has raised about $425,000 in funding, according to documents from the state of Minnesota's angel-investor tax credit program. Two Mayo physicians — Dr. Darryl Barnes and Dr. Jay Smith — and Aaron Keenan co-founded Rochester, Minn.-based Sonex Health in 2014. The company developed the SX-One MicroKnife tool for performing carpal-tunnel release surgery. That procedure reduces pressure on nerves in the forearm that can cause symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, including numbness in hands.

Wisconsin Gazette, Digital distractions: ‘Is my smartphone making me dumb?’ and other digital age questions by Lisa Neff — Sending text messages on a smartphone can change the rhythm of brain waves, according to a study published in late June in the journal Epilepsy & Behavior. Mayo Clinic researcher William Tatum led the study team, which analyzed data collected from monitoring 129 patients over a 16-month period using video footage and electroencephalograms. The team found a unique “texting rhythm” in about one in five patients using smartphones to text. “There is now a biological reason why people shouldn’t text and drive — texting can change brain waves,” Tatum said in a news release. “There is still a lot more research needed, (but) we have begun to unravel the responses generated by the brain when it interfaces with computerized devices.”

Global Times, Wealthy Chinese patients going abroad for latest drugs, better service by Zhang Yu — In the past few years, many US hospitals have seen an exponential increase in the number of Chinese patients paying for treatment…The Mayo Clinic, a hospital in Rochester, Minnesota, has also seen a flood of Chinese medical tourists arriving in its wards. "China is the country where we see the greatest growth… Mayo Clinic attracted 400 Chinese in 2014 compared to 200 in 2013, 100 in 2010 and 30 in 2012," the organization's international office medical director Mikel Prieto told the International Medical Travel Journal.

Cardiovascular Business, NHLBI provides $7 million in funding for personalized medicine cardiovascular trial by Tim Casey — Researchers from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and Toronto's Peter Munk Cardiac Center received $7 million in additional funding from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to support a randomized, personal medicine trial for patients undergoing coronary balloon angioplasty. The TAILOR-PCI (Tailored Antiplatelet Therapy to Lessen Outcomes after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention) study began in 2013. As of late August, 29 medical centers in the U.S., Canada and South Korea have participated in the trial. The researchers plan on enrolling 5,270 patients and finish the study by March 2020.

Dubuque Telegraph Herald, Avoid trans fats for heart health — Dear Mayo Clinic: I’ve heard that some foods that are labeled as “trans fat-free” might contain harmful trans fats. Is this true? Answer: Yes. Under labeling laws, a food can be labeled as “trans fat-free” or “containing no trans fat” if it has less than 0.5 grams of trans fats per serving.

Isabel El Angel de la Radio, Entrevista con Dr Rodolfo Savica, El Dr. Rodolfo Savica de la Clinica Mayo (Mayo Clinic) habla de un estudio que encontró que las mujeres pasando por la menopausia pueden reducir el riesgo de la enfermedad Alzheimer al usar un parche de estrógeno. #salud #Alzheimer #menopausia

Health Data Management, ONC picks 15 blockchain ideas as challenge winners by Greg Slabodkin — The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has announced winners of its challenge seeking industry ideas on how blockchain technology could be used in healthcare to protect, manage and exchange electronic health information…The Mayo Clinic submitted a blockchain-based approach to “sharing patient data that trades a single centralized source of trust in favor of network consensus, and predicates consensus on proof of structural and semantic interoperability.”

Alzforum, Homing in on Early Alzheimer’s Biomarkers: Does Connectivity Hold the Key? — At the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference 2016, held July 22-28 in Toronto, several speakers discussed specific imaging measures that appear to flag people at the highest risk for progressing to AD…In a well-received talk, David Jones of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, argued that network disruptions may precede and trigger amyloid and tau pathology, although the mechanism remains unknown. He put forward a method for calculating the communication breakdown based on changes in connectivity within and between subsystems of the default mode network.

KAAL, Rochester Arts Center, DMC Speak at Committee of the Whole Meeting by Breanna Levine — At Rochester’s Committee of the Whole Meeting Monday, the Rochester Art Center asked for more funding, and Destination Medical Center gave a brief update. The art center says since the civic center construction began, it has seen a steady decline in its income venues, such as admission, membership and grants. They say they’ve also seen a loss of over $100,000 dollars so far this year from a lack of space rentals…DMC says Mayo Clinic will also be announcing its development partner for Discovery Square sometime this week. “This partner will come together with Mayo Clinic to plan the first building for Discovery Square in the Mayo Clinic space. This is really an opportunity for DMC, it’s a key opportunity for jobs and economic development, and it really starts DMC,” said Lisa Clarke, executive director for DMC EDA.

American Journal of Managed Care, Too Much Focus on Tight A1C Control May Be Misguided in Diabetes Care, Mayo Clinic Study Finds by Mary Caffrey — Victor Montori, MD, and Rene Rodriguez-Gutierrez, MD, of the Knowledge and Evaluation Research Unit, published their findings in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. They reviewed a decade’s worth of journal articles and clinical practice guidelines (2006-2015), seeking statements that discussed the relationship between tight glycemic control and preventing diabetes complications.

Science, Alzheimer’s trial supports β amyloid origin of disease by Emily Underwood — Overall, Alzheimer’s researchers are urging caution about the new drug results—even those who are co-authors on the paper. The study was “grossly underpowered” to determine whether cognition was actually better in people who took aducanumab, or a statistical fluke, notes David Knopman, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and another trial investigator

The Scientist, Immunotherapy for Alzheimer’s Disease Shows Promise by Alison F. Takemura — Amyloid-β proteins form plaques in the brain that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Designed to clear these plaques, the antibody aducanumab is demonstrating early success after a year of testing in a Phase 1b clinical trial, according to interim results published today (August 31) in Nature…Yet other tests—including the more in-depth neuropsychological test battery—failed to reveal cognitive differences among treatment groups, said Ronald Petersen, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, who has consulted for Biogen, but was not involved in this particular project. “You could say, ‘Well, gee, why would gross measures be significant and the more finely tuned [tests] not [be]?’” he said. “It’s a good question.”

Twin Cities Business, Mayo Adds To Its List Of Gut Microbiome Startup Collaborators by Don Jacobson — In its efforts to stay at the forefront of the quickly emerging field of research into the human microbiome, the Mayo Clinic is adding to a growing list of collaborations with cutting-edge startups focused on understanding what the teeming microorganisms essential to digestion can tell us about a broad range of health issues. The Rochester nonprofit announced this month it established a formal collaboration with Cambridge, Mass.-based Evelo Biosciences, a new firm established last year after a $35 million investment from Flagship Ventures. That biotech-oriented fund has seen eight of its portfolio companies go public in recent years – four of them are currently worth at least $1 billion, according to the life sciences news site Xconomy.

AZ Big Media, 12 Most Influential Healthcare Projects in Arizona by David McGlothlin — Arizona has about 110 hospitals across the state, according to U.S. News & World Report. Four are nationally ranked and seven others meet national high performance standards… Mayo Clinic: According to the 2015-2016 U.S. News and World Report, Mayo Clinic is ranked the No. 1 hospital in Arizona and is nationally ranked in 12 medical specialties. It brings in patients from across the world and provides all medical services a patient may need — doctor visits, testing, surgery, hospital care — under one roof. The Scottsdale campus opened in 1987 and includes the Mayo Clinic Building, the Samuel C. Johnson Research Building and the Mayo Clinic Collaborative Research Building.

Insight News, Mayo Clinic expands emergency telemedicine practice — Mayo Clinic is expanding in the telemedicine arena through its newly announced strategy of a converged emergency telemedicine practice. “By combining the breadth and depth of Mayo Clinic knowledge and expertise with a standardized technology across the enterprise, we will be able to create a comprehensive, integrated, multispecialty emergency telemedicine program. Through this program, we can provide specialty consults and guidance for medical and surgical emergencies in adults and children,” said Dr. Bart Demaerschalk, a Mayo Clinic neurologist and the medical director of synchronous (telemedicine) services for the Mayo Clinic Center for Connected Care.

Post-Bulletin, Hospitality booms: 3 million visit Rochester in 2015 by Andrew Setterholm — The hospitality industry in Rochester hit new highs in 2015 as the city attracted more visitors than ever before and more spending at local businesses.,,Mayo Clinic continues to be by far the most popular reason for visitors to travel to Rochester; in 2015 about 67 percent of visitors listed Mayo Clinic as the primary reason for their visit. Another 16 percent visited for conventions or sports events.

Chippewa Herald, Laser treatment now an option for cataract removal — A question I’ve often been asked is “Can cataract surgery be done with laser?” Until recently, the answer was no. Popular in recent years is laser refractive surgery, known by names such as LASIK and PRK. This technology reshapes the cornea, the clear domed windshield on the surface of the eye, to better focus light through the lens inside the eye and onto the retina, eliminating or reducing the need for glasses…Dr. Ronald J. Hessler, M.D., is an ophthalmologist who sees patients in the Eye Care Center at Mayo Clinic Health System in Menomonie, Wisconsin.

Mankato Free Press, VINE pool project takes the plunge by Brian Arola — Pam Determan, executive director at VINE, said if all goes as planned, the pool should be filled with water by the end of January. Based on member surveys, she expects the pool to be well used. On top of member access, Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato will rent out the pool for warm water therapy sessions. Dr. John Jakovich, doctor of osteopathic medicine at Mayo in Mankato, said he recommends aquatic therapy to his patients on a near daily basis because the lack of gravity helps put less strain on muscles and joints compared to land-based therapies. Mayo currently has limited access to area pools, he said, but nothing compared to the arrangement with VINE.

WEAU Eau Claire, Doctors remind parents to also get back to school check-ups by Jessica Bringe — Back to school health for parents may mean check-ups for kids, but doctors are asking them not to forget about another important patient as well. Mayo Clinic Health System says adult patients should take the time to get their annual check-up too. Terri Nordin, M.D., says it’s great for parents to take their kids to get a yearly check-up but those kids “rely on their moms and dads to stay healthy all year long too. So, making sure, as parents, we visit the doctor and make sure our health is optimized is a really good strategy to keep your kids healthy too.”

WKBT LaCrosse, Wisconsin may see future physician shortages by Sarah Thamer — If you walk into a Wisconsin hospital today, you'll notice plenty of working doctors. If you walk into a Wisconsin hospital in 20 years, you might notice fewer white coats. A report from the Wisconsin Council on Medical Education and Workforce warns that the state may have a shortage of 4,000 doctors by the year 2030. And local doctors have been experiencing some shortages. "It has many factors some of which have to with just fewer people going into medicine or fewer people graduating from medical school," said David Rushlow, service chief medical officer with Mayo Clinic in La Crosse.

LaCrosse Tribune, Seeds for success teaches kids to harvest kale and eat it, too by Mike Tighe — This is the second week for Seeds, a pilot program in which youngsters ages 7 to 12 participate for full days, beginning at the co-op helping to prepare their own breakfasts, said Anne Seehaver, executive director of the nonprofit organization Grow La Crosse. Cultivating its growth is the corporate sponsorship of Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare, she said, adding, “In my opinion, that is the reason we’ve been able to grow so fast, with cash and in-kind contributions.”

Salud Cronica, Los trasplantes de Mayo Clinic entre los mejores de EU Mayo Clinic, con sus tres sedes, continúa siendo el principal proveedor de atención Médica en Estados Unidos para trasplantes de órgano sólido y se ubica entre los mejores del país por sus resultados sobre la supervivencia de pacientes e injertos. Según el Registro Científico de Receptores de Trasplantes (SRTR, por sus siglas en inglés), que consiste en una base de datos nacional de estadísticas sobre trasplantes, los programas de trasplante de Mayo Clinic en Arizona, Florida y Rochester (Minnesota) obtienen una puntuación estadísticamente mejor en la supervivencia de pacientes e injertos al cabo de un mes, un año y tres años desde el trasplante. La referencia a la supervivencia del injerto significa que el órgano trasplantado todavía funciona.

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