Academy Insider

FDA panel backs first pill to block HIV infection

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

The first drug shown to prevent HIV infection won the endorsement of a panel of federal advisers, clearing the way for a landmark approval in the 30-year fight against the virus that causes AIDS.

Continue your education at NCCHC's Live Learning Center

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

Academy members: Did you know? When you attend NCCHC's Updates in Correctional Health Care conference (May 19-22 in San Antonio) you will receive not only a nice member discount but also free access to recorded educational sessions from the meeting on the NCCHC Live Learning Center!

Conference info: http://ncchc.org/education/updates/index.html
Live Learning Center: http://ncchc.sclivelearningcenter.com/index.aspx?PID=4621

Possible diabetes diagnosis for 53 million Americans by 2025

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

A new report in Population Health Management (PHM) discusses the Diabetes 2025 Model for the U.S., its predictions on the increase in the number of people who have diabetes, and how this rise could impact the health care system. The researchers explained their predictions for specific states and population subgroups with 15-year projections. Based on the Diabetes 2025 Model, the authors believe that diabetes (mainly type 2) will affect 53.1 million Americans by 2025; it's an increase of 64 percent from 2010.

Tenth of state inmates report sexual attacks

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

Almost 1 in every 10 former state or local prisoners in America reported being sexually victimized at least once by an inmate or facility staff member in prison, according to a study released by the Justice Department.

Does your facility need a medical commissary?

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

When examining jail medical practices, consider all of the costs — not just the medication costs. For example, the total cost of providing a medication to a patient in the jail includes the cost of the medication (of course), as well as the cost of the various people — nurses, pharmacists, deputies, and practitioners — who spend time creating the prescription. Thinking of costs in this way can change our perspective.

Insight into why diabetics suffer from increased pain and temperature sensitivity

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

Why diabetics suffer from increased pain and temperature sensitivity is a step closer to being understood and effectively treated. Research published in the journal Nature Medicine reveals that a multi-national collaboration between scientists from Warwick Medical School in the UK, and universities in Germany, New York, Australia and Eastern Europe, has discovered key information around one of the most distressing side effects of diabetes.

Data suggests drug treatment can lower US crime

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

U.S. crime statistics show illegal drugs play a central role in criminal acts, providing new evidence that tackling drugs as a public health issue could offer a powerful tool for lowering national crime rates, officials said.

Addiction diagnoses may rise under guideline changes

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

In what could prove to be one of their most far-reaching decisions, psychiatrists and other specialists who are rewriting the manual that serves as the nation's arbiter of mental illness have agreed to revise the definition of addiction. The revision to the manual, known as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or D.S.M., would expand the list of recognized symptoms for drug and alcohol addiction, while also reducing the number of symptoms required for a diagnosis.

Changes triggered in brain's neuron structure by chronic cocaine use

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

Chronic exposure to cocaine reduces the expression of a protein known to regulate brain plasticity, according to new, in vivo research on the molecular basis of cocaine addiction. That reduction drives structural changes in the brain, which produce greater sensitivity to the rewarding effects of cocaine.

US asthma rates at all-time high, CDC says

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

The proportion of Americans with asthma increased from 7.3 percent in 2001 to 8.4 percent in 2010, marking the highest level ever, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. In 2010, an estimated 18.7 million adults and 7 million children had the disease — one in every 12 Americans.

HIV programs cut from Massachusetts county jails

17 May 2012 13:26:18 CDT

A new concern has hit those in Massachusetts' county jails. The state has recently eliminated more than $1 million for HIV testing and education in county jails. "I'm very concerned," said Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson. "Our clientele are people who are in for a much shorter amount of time. They're going to be going back into the community. We want them to be tested for HIV because they need to be aware if they have it, and number two, how to manage it."