Minnesota - October 2013 Archives

ROCHESTER, Minn. — oct. 21, 2013 —A Mayo Clinic physician and two other pediatric experts say that parental perceptions pose a major barrier to acceptance of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination — and that many of those perceptions are wrong. Their comments are published in Expert Review of Clinical Immunology, in an editorial on why HPV vaccination rates remain poor. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: Video and audio of Dr. Jacobson are available for download on the Mayo Clinic News Network. "The greatest misperception of parents is that the HPV vaccine isn't needed," says Mayo Clinic's Robert Jacobson, M.D., pediatrician in the Mayo Clinic Children's Center and lead author of the editorial. "Not only is that wrong, it's a dangerous idea to be spreading around. Recent figures show that at least 12,000 unvaccinated women develop cervical cancer from HPV every year." Other incorrect perceptions: The HPV vaccines are not safe, and they are given to children when they are too young.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 16, 2013 — A string of public mass shootings during the past decade-plus have rocked America leaving policymakers and mental health experts alike fishing for solutions to prevent these heinous crimes. A Mayo Clinic physician, however, argues that at least one proposal won't stop the public massacres: restricting gun access to the mentally ill. J. Michael Bostwick, M.D., a Mayo Clinic psychiatrist and author of the editorial published online in Mayo Clinic Proceedings today, argues several points including that mass shootings are carefully planned — often spanning weeks or months. There is plenty of time for a meticulous planner and determined killer to get a gun somewhere in that time, he argues. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: For audio and video of Dr. Bostwick talking about the editorial, visit the Mayo Clinic News Network. Dr. Bostwick's editorial is a commentary on an essay in the same issue of Proceedings titled "Guns, Schools, and Mental Illness: Potential Concerns for Physicians and Mental Health Professionals." The authors focus on recent mass shootings and argue that these actions were not and could not have been prevented by more restrictive gun legislation. They further contend that a diagnosis of mental illness does not justify stripping Second Amendment rights from all who carry such a diagnosis, most of whom will never commit violent acts toward others. Before reading the essay Dr. Bostwick — who is generally in favor of gun control — expected to disagree with its contents. Instead, he agreed.

Mayo Clinic Announces $10 Million Gift to Expand and Name the W. Hall Wendel, Jr. Center for Executive Health ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 16, 2013  — Mayo Clinic's Executive Health Program, which has kept thousands of business leaders healthy without major disruptions in their lives, begins a new chapter today with the announcement of a $10 million gift by W. Hall Wendel, Jr. to expand and name the W. Hall Wendel, Jr. Center for Executive Health. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: Video and audio are available for download on the Mayo Clinic News Network. The new center is located on the fifth floor of the Mayo Building and is the centerpiece of Mayo Clinic's worldwide program offering premium services and all-inclusive care targeted for busy business leaders.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic researchers have found a surprising occupational hazard for teachers: progressive speech and language disorders. The research, recently published in the American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease & Other Dementias, found that people with speech and language disorders are about 3.5 times more likely to be teachers than patients with Alzheimer's dementia. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: For audio and video of Dr. Josephs talking about the study, visit the Mayo Clinic News Network. Speech and language disorders are typically characterized by people losing their ability to communicate — they can't find words to use in sentences, or they'll speak around a word. They may also have trouble producing the correct sounds and articulating properly. Speech and language disorders are not the same as Alzheimer's dementia, which is characterized by the loss of memory. Progressive speech and language disorders are degenerative and ultimately lead to death anywhere from 8-10 years after diagnosis.

Federal budget furloughs put work on flu vaccines for 2014-15 'behind the curve' ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 10, 2013 — Flu season is under way, but how many Americans have been hit so far, how badly, and which influenza bugs are to blame is unclear. That information is important to prevent and manage outbreaks, and it is crucial for creation of the next batch of influenza vaccines. But this flu season, the nation is flying (and coughing, and sneezing, and maybe worse) blind. That's because the agency that normally keeps the country on top of influenza outbreaks — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — is largely out of commission due to the federal government shutdown. Mayo Clinic infectious diseases expert Gregory Poland, M.D., explains what the CDC normally does and what federal furloughs mean to efforts to protect people from contagious illnesses. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: Video of Dr. Poland is available for download from the Mayo Clinic News Network. What does the CDC normally do to track outbreaks? Dr. Poland: "The CDC has as one of its seminal missions infectious disease surveillance globally and nationally, and they're the only entity in the U.S. that tracks these things nationally. So now you've got a week, two weeks, who knows how long, where

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 10, 2013  — The public is invited to enjoy four Rosemary and Meredith Willson Harmony for Mayo Program concerts in October. Performances will be on Mondays from 12:10 to 1 p.m. in Barbara Woodward Lips Atrium, subway level, Rochester Methodist Hospital, Charlton Building, 10 Third Ave. NW. The musicians for the Oct. 21 performance have changed. Oct. 21: The John Paulson Quartet will perform a jazz concert. As professor and leader of jazz groups at Winona State and Saint Mary's universities, Paulson has toured internationally and released four commercial jazz albums and five master class albums for Saxophone Journal. Paulson (tenor sax and flute) joins Clifford Jack, M.D., professor of radiology at Mayo Clinic and local jazz guitar favorite; drummer Dr. Rich MacDonald, assistant professor of music at Winona State University; and freelance bassist Michael Sloane, a general services employee at Mayo Clinic.

Study also finds people getting procedure at younger ages, more having both eyes repaired ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 9, 2013  — As baby boomers enter their retirement years, health care costs for complex and debilitating conditions such as Alzheimer's disease are expected to soar. Not drawing as much attention is the likelihood of similarly rising expenses for common age-related medical procedures. A Mayo Clinic study looked at one of those — cataract surgery — and found that more people are getting the vision-improving procedure, seeking it at younger ages and having both eyes repaired within a few months, rather than only treating one eye. The demand shows no sign of leveling off, raising the need to manage costs and ensure access to appropriate cataract treatment, the researchers say. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: Video of Dr. Erie and b-roll of cataract surgery are available for download from the Mayo Clinic News Network. The findings are published in the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery. "Cataract surgery rates are rising in all age groups between 50 and 90, but the greatest increase is in the 70- and 80-year-olds. And part of that is that our older population, or the aging baby boomers, are working longer, they want to be more active, they have more demands on their vision," says senior author Jay Erie, M.D., a Mayo Clinic ophthalmologist. "That's why they're looking for surgery sooner — so that they can remain independent, remain active, continue to work."

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct. 8, 2013  — Most everyone is bound to get osteoarthritis — if they live long enough. That old saying among arthritis experts is backed up by the numbers. The painful and often debilitating joint condition is the most common form of arthritis. It affects at least 27 million Americans, and one form — knee osteoarthritis — may afflict as many as 1 in 2 people at some point in their lives. Obesity, joint injuries, joint overuse, a family history and simply aging are among risk factors. To mark World Arthritis Day on Oct. 12, Mayo Clinic rheumatologist Shreyasee Amin, M.D., and orthopedic surgeon Aaron Krych, M.D., offer these tips for preventing and coping with osteoarthritis: Prevention: Achieve a healthy weight to take a load off your joints. "Every pound lost can result in up to a 4-pound reduction in the load on the knee," Dr. Amin says.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Most patients whose breast cancer has spread to their lymph nodes have most of the lymph nodes in their armpit area removed after chemotherapy to determine if any cancer remains. A study conducted through the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group and led by Judy Boughey, M.D., a breast surgeon at Mayo Clinic, shows that a less-invasive procedure known as sentinel lymph node surgery successfully identified whether cancer remained in lymph nodes in 91 percent of patients with node-positive breast cancer who received chemotherapy before their surgery. In sentinel lymph node surgery, only a few lymph nodes, the ones most likely to contain cancer, are removed. The findings are published online in the Journal of American Medical Association. "Since treatment with chemotherapy before surgery can eliminate cancer in the lymph nodes in some patients, we were interested in evaluating whether sentinel lymph node surgery could successfully identify whether cancer remained in the lymph nodes after chemotherapy," says Dr. Boughey. Removing only a few lymph nodes reduces the risk of surgical complications such as numbness and arm swelling, she says. Researchers studied 756 women with node-positive breast cancer who received chemotherapy as an initial treatment. Of study participants, 637 patients had both sentinel lymph node and axillary lymph node surgery. Sentinel lymph node surgery correctly identified whether cancer lingered in 91 percent of patients, including 255 patients with node-negative breast cancer and 382 patients with continuing node-positive disease. Researchers also found that 40 percent of the patients had complete eradication of the cancer from the lymph nodes. The study had a false-negative rate of 12.6 percent, and the false negative rate was significantly lower with the use of dual tracers (blue dye and radiolabeled colloid) to identify the sentinel lymph nodes. Also, when more than two sentinel nodes were removed, the false-negative rate was less than 10 percent. Dr. Boughey says that technical factors in surgery are important to help ensure correct staging, especially in the setting of patients who have received chemotherapy prior to surgery. She anticipates that with appropriate patient selection, less extensive axillary surgery can be used for women who have the disease in their lymph nodes successfully eradicated by chemotherapy. The study was conducted through the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group, part of the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology, and funded by the National Cancer Institute.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Oct 1, 2013 — Mayo Clinic's Sports Medicine Center will host Ice Hockey Summit II: Action on Concussion on Oct. 8–9, 2013. The summit will bring together top scientists, trainers, coaches, officials, retired professional players and manufacturers from across the United States, Canada and Europe to discuss concussion-related issues, including the science of concussion, impact on youth athletes and hockey community response. While the summit will focus on ice hockey, concussion-related topics will apply to all sports. "This is an opportunity for experts across the hockey world to come together to make the sport safer for our athletes," says Michael Stuart, M.D., co-director, Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center. "Hockey players at all levels are bigger, stronger and faster. Therefore, we must improve our ability to diagnose, treat and prevent traumatic brain injury." The Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center is facilitating this conference with support from the Brian Mark Family Foundation,Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation, Hockey Equipment Certification Council, International Ice Hockey Federation and USA Hockey. The summit is intended to build on the first Ice Hockey Summit: Action on Concussion held in 2010. Prioritized action items from that summit helped foster mandatory concussion education for all USA Hockey coaches, improved teaching of body contact at younger ages, and rule changes, such as penalties for all hits to the head, a delay in body checking until the bantam level and the elimination of dangerous acts, such as checking from behind. As a result of these rule changes, Minnesota Hockey/Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center data showed a marked reduction in checking from behind penalties. At the conclusion of this year's summit, participants will again develop an updated action plan that will be shared with the hockey community.