Vagal Nerve Stimulation for Treatment-Resistant Depression

Via Eureka Alert:

VNS Therapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression Proves Effective for Some Patients

DALLAS – Aug. 31, 2005 – Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy, a treatment recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment-resistant depression, produced a positive response in more than 25 percent of patients in a national, yearlong study led by UT Southwestern Medical Center psychiatrists. Sixteen percent to 20 percent of the study group experienced total remission....Full Story

Grand Rounds #49

Since their is not much else going on around here, I will call your attention to Grand Rounds #49 which was posted today.

If you are just looking for a quick fix rather than a lot of reading, see Sumer's Radiology quiz.

A Bad Time for a Pap Smear

A friend mine who is an advanced practice nurse, employed by a recent graduate of the program, just informed me of a new contraindication to performing a pap smear.
A patient missed her appointment, so my friend called her to reschedule. The reason she missed her appointemt: "I was on my minister at the time".

New Process May Lead to Mad Cow Diagnosis

Via Yahoo Science News:

New Process May Lead to Mad Cow Diagnosis - WASHINGTON - One of the biggest hurdles in fighting ailments such as mad cow disease and its human version has been the lack of a way to diagnose the illness. A new process may point the way to a useful blood test......Read more

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

UPDATE: It has not, see the comment for details.

A P2P Network for Bikes

Via Wired News:

A P2P Network for Bikes- Thousands of commuters in Lyon, France, are using pedal power instead of gas, under an ambitious new program that lets people rent bikes from public racks at low cost. It's kind of like peer to peer for public transport.
The rent-a-bike scheme, called Vélo'v Grand Lyon, is open to anyone armed with a credit card. It costs 1 euro ($1.20) an hour, but there is no charge for the first 30 minutes. Since 90 percent of trips take less than half an hour, most subscribers pay nothing.....Read more.

Grand Rounds #47

Grand Rounds #47 is now up at Circadiana.

Quotes of the Day

"A liberal is a person whose interests aren't at stake at the moment." - Willis Player

This was not posted to be inflammatory, I just thought it was funny.

Even funnier is this one:

"I don't want to achieve immortality through my work... I want to achieve it through not dying."-Woody Allen

Body Worlds

I recently visited the Body Worlds exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. It was awesome. Since they won't allow photography in the exhibit, you will have to click the link for some examples of the work. We bought our tickets online and got there early so there was very little waiting, but when we got out of the exhibit, this is the line we saw waiting to get tickets:

I probably could not have waited in that line, even though that was our sole reason for going. If you plan to visit, hurry because it leaves Chicago on Sept. 5th.

I also highly recommend seeing The Blue Man Group in Chicago or elsewhere if you get a chance, I saw them for the second time on this trip and it was great.

Grand Rounds #46

The 46th edition of Grand Rounds has been posted at Parallel Universes. The CC's First submission, GI photo quiz, can be found among the entries.

Jefferson in front of the Rotunda at the U of Va. which he started in 1819. 

Memorial to Clark at the U of Va in Charlottesville, Va. 

Guest GI Photo Quiz

After a few weeks' respite from our overindulgence in the fecal arts, which may have nearly killed the blog, I can present to you a case that is worthwhile. This was sent to me from my friend who is a new gastroenterology fellow in New York who made this finding while learning to drive the colonoscope a few weeks ago.

JD: This is a 65 year old white man with past medical history of only hypertension who was in for screening colonoscopy. He is a retired firefighter and has been married for 40 years. He has 4 children and 8 grandchildren, and has lived in New York, all of his life. He has not traveled, and denies any unusual foods. These photos were taken in the right colon at approximately 11:00 AM. The patient was asymptomatic. What is the most likely diagnosis and treatment?

Truman by David McCullough

I posted the audio CD, Truman by David McCullough in the sidebar. If anyone who has heard it wants to comment on their rating, please do so and I will post it.

Pancreatic cancer risk higher in newly diagnosed diabetes patients 50 and older

Via Eureka Alert:

Pancreatic cancer risk higher in newly diagnosed diabetes patients 50 and older-Bethesda, Maryland (August 1, 2005) – According to a study published today in the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) journal Gastroenterology, 1 in 120 people newly diagnosed with diabetes age 50 and older have a higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer--a risk that is eight times more than expected for the general population.....Read more.