August 2008

From cycad roots, to cycad seeds, to flying foxes, to human brains. Ethnobotanist Paul Cox, PhD, is traveling the world, compiling evidence that cyanobacteria, even as it is sold as a health food, can cause ALS and other neurological diseases. Gulf War veterans may have been exposed as well.

Many states are seeing the HITECH money as an opportunity to aggressively promote health IT to improve healthcare through adoption of EHRs and health information exchanges.

If existing case law and legislation is clear and well-developed, then an asset protection plan that falls within the pre-set boundaries should have favorable and predictable results.

The story of how journal editors, the clinical research community, and Big Pharma managed to work together to protect the public health, ensure the continued advance of medical science, and safeguard vital intellectual property.

We have been publishing MDNG for a decade now, and healthcare technology has changed in so many ways in those years.

Unexpected technology applications are transforming daily practice—everything from how you search for clinical information to how you share and store your data.

What do physicians really think about the HITECH act, health IT stimulus incentives, and the government’s new role in their lives? Using the power of social media, we did a little research and asked MDNG readers to share their opinions, concerns, and advice.

You may have seen advertisements, or may already have been contacted by people who’ve promised to help you figure it all out so you can get your share of the stimulus money. Be wary.

Better patient education may help alleviate the rising cost of healthcare and lead to better health outcomes, because it helps patients make more informed decisions about their healthcare.

Can the application of chaos theory lead to better clinical rehabilitation and assistive devices for patients suffering from neuromuscular disorders?

Fewer than one in five physicians use e-prescribing, resulting in a paltry 35 million electronically transmitted prescriptions each year.

Dr. Charlie Kemp, director of Georgia Tech's Center for Healthcare Robotics, discusses the laser-guided EL-E robot, which he created to help disabled patients pick up and manipulate objects.

Cell phone applications and other high-tech tools are changing the way physicians approach patient education.

Boris Rubinsky, professor of bioengineering and mechanical engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, explains his research using cell phone technology to reproduce medical imaging, which can then be transferred to a physician through his or her cell phone.