Hospital financial performance overemphasized, say doctors
Some patients are more profitable for Norwegian hospitals than others. Most hospital physicians believe that managers care too much about the financial operation of hospitals.
Medical treatments
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Hip fracture outcomes worse during busy periods
Elderly people are at greater risk of dying from hip surgery if surgeons are in a hurry.
Trained medical staff can perform safe, effective hernia surgery
Many low and middle-income countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, don’t have enough surgeons to perform vital surgeries, such as groin hernia repairs. Training non-doctor associate clinicians in this procedure provides a safe and effective solution, a new study shows.
Less psychiatric coercion in the early 1900s than in the 1970s
It’s easy to believe that society’s treatment of difficult, violent and criminally mentally ill people has become more humane over time. But that’s not the case. How patients at the end of the 19th century actually felt is difficult to say, but they were at least less exposed to mechanical coercion, according to an NTNU historian.
Mimicking effect of exercise with gene therapy
Gene therapy is the most effective method to be able to provide health benefits you normally gain through physical exercise. This means of “training” could be helpful for folks who can’t exercise in the usual ways.
Simple nasal spray ready to save lives
Between 250 and 270 people die each year from heroin or opioid overdoses in Norway. In the EU, thousands die. European users now have a better option available for helping each other.
Adverse effects from cancer drug trials explained
Certain type of cancer drugs that promote the death of cells can actually be harmful if combined with other treatments that damage our DNA, RNA or proteins, researchers have found.
Better treatment for people with inflammatory bowel disease
Chronic intestinal inflammation requires special individualized treatment. Finding the right treatment for each person may soon become easier.
Hope for new antibiotic that was discovered by accident
Cancer researcher Marit Otterlei made a chance discovery of a brand new antibiotic that has proven effective after several experiments.
Combination drug treatments for COVID-19 show promise in cell culture tests
One combination of two drugs was so effective that researchers hope others can begin clinical trials on the drugs now.
App for migraines
A daily 10-minute training session using an app could reduce migraine attacks for many sufferers, according to researchers.
Existing drugs may offer a first-line treatment for coronavirus outbreak
There’s no effective treatment for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, which was first detected in Wuhan, China. Developing new drugs and vaccines can take years. Existing drugs offer a possible quick response to the potential pandemic.
New mechanism allows the immune system to detect and respond to HIV
Nearly 40 million people were living with HIV in 2017, the UN says, with just over half taking antiretroviral therapy. These drugs have cut AIDS-related deaths by more than half since the 2004 peak, but the disease cannot be cured. A new mechanism uncovered by a Norwegian research group could improve the chances of developing one.
Proteins in blood test can reveal and predict disease
An analysis of 5 000 proteins from a blood sample is providing valuable information on a variety of diseases we might get or be at risk for. “Sensational” is the word from Christian Jonasson at the HUNT Research Centre about the US-British-Norwegian study.
Cholesterol crystals play an active role in stroke, heart attacks
Cholesterol crystals form from “bad” cholesterol and are found in plaques that line blood vessels. When these plaques rupture, they can cause heart attacks or strokes. New research suggests that cholesterol crystals in plaques can actually trigger strokes and heart attacks.
Botox blocks out facial pain
Patients with chronic facial pain get their teeth pulled, take a bunch of painkillers and are on a perpetual trek between health services – without finding anything that works to ease the pain. An NTNU researcher thinks Botox can help.
App improves quality of life for hard-hit patient group
A recently developed app with an in-built “enzyme calculator” reduces stomach pains and intestinal problems among patients with cystic fibrosis – a disease of the lungs and intestinal tract.
Well-known drug has less risk for preterm delivery in PCOS
Metformin significantly reduces the risk of late miscarriages and preterm births for women with PCOS. But the drug does not work to prevent gestational diabetes, according to a large Nordic study from NTNU and St. Olavs hospital.
C-sections by trained health officers a safe alternative
Sierra Leone has few doctors and even fewer surgeons to serve its seven million people. Since 2011, a non-profit group called CapaCare has been training community health officers to perform basic lifesaving surgeries. A new study shows the programme is working well when it comes to the most common surgery in the country — Caesarean sections.
How you can reduce your pain
Are you bothered by persistent pain? Here’s a pain physician’s advice on how to change your perceptions of pain and get a grip on it.
Experiments show that an “unknown” enzyme fights inflammation
An enzyme that normally repairs damaged DNA may be the key to a new treatment for inflammatory diseases.
Nasal spray developed at NTNU promises to save lives in twelve countries
It took ten years of hard work. Authorities in many European countries have now approved a nasal spray developed in Norway that can reverse an opioid overdose.
Exploring new uses for existing antiviral drugs
Broad-spectrum antiviral drugs work against a range of viral diseases, but developing them can be costly and time consuming. Testing existing anti-viral drugs for their ability to combat multiple viral infections can help.
Turning genes off for better cancer treatment
A treatment that kills the cancer cells in one fell swoop, without causing the patient to feel sick from the medication’s side effects? That’s the goal of new personalized cancer therapies that are being developed across the globe, including at NTNU.