News Releases - December 2015 Archives

Rochester, Minn. — Frailty can affect people of all ages and demographics. Defined simply as “an increased vulnerability to adverse health outcomes,” frailty can ...

Patients with Type 2 diabetes often tested much more frequently than clinically indicated, resulting in increased cost, time and potential overtreatment ROCHESTER, Minn. — In a study released online today in The BMJ, researchers from Mayo Clinic report a national trend toward overtesting glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) levels in adult patients with Type 2 diabetes. Overtesting causes redundancy and waste says the study team, adding unnecessary costs and time burden for patients and providers. In addition, excessive testing can result in overtreatment with hypoglycemic drugs, adding additional cost and potential health complications. Type 2 diabetes monitoring and treatment protocols are not well defined by professional societies and regulatory bodies. While lower thresholds of testing frequencies often are discussed, the upper boundaries are rarely mentioned. Yet, most agree that for adult patients who are not using insulin, have stable glycemic control within the recommended targets and have no history of severe hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia, checking once or twice a year should suffice. Yet, in practice, there is a much higher prevalence of excess testing. MEDIA CONTACT:  Elizabeth Zimmermann Young, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. McCoy are available in the downloads. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm5JSuc-6Vs

ROCHESTER, Minn. – Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered a series of proteins that could be diagnostic markers to identify bipolar I disorder. If this discovery sample can be validated through replication these markers may help as a diagnostic tool for psychiatrists treating mood disorders. The findings appear in the journal Translational Psychiatry. “The potential of having a biological test to help accurately diagnose bipolar disorder would make a huge difference to medical practice,” says Mark Frye, M.D., head of psychiatry and psychology at Mayo Clinic and first author of the study. “It would then help clinicians to choose the most appropriate treatment for hard-to-diagnose individuals.” Up to now psychiatrists have relied on observed symptoms and patient assessments based on interviews. That information is then compared to established diagnostic criteria. In contrast to other medical conditions – such as heart attack or cancer – there is no biological marker in mood disorders in general, bipolar disorder in particular, to help confirm clinical diagnosis. It is critical to differentiate bipolar disorder from other mood disorders as the treatments differ and a medication suited to one condition may be dangerous to patients with another. MEDIA CONTACT: Bob Nellis, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, email: newsbureau@mayo.edu Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. Frye are available in the downloads. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1_yxypeio4

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Scientists have recently found evidence that professional football players are susceptible to a progressive degenerative disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is caused by repetitive brain trauma. Now, researchers on Mayo Clinic’s Florida campus have discovered a significant and surprising amount of CTE in males who had participated in amateur contact sports in their youth. About one-third of these men whose brains had been donated to the Mayo Clinic Brain Bank had evidence of CTE pathology. CTE only can be diagnosed posthumously. The Mayo study, published in the December issue of Acta Neuropathologica, links amateur contact sports — football, boxing, wrestling, rugby, basketball, baseball and others played while in school — with the development of CTE, which when severe can affect mood, behavior and cognition. MEDIA CONTACT: Kevin Punsky, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu Journalists: Sound bites with study author Kevin Bieniek are available in the downloads.  https://youtu.be/_hHV3QEvA5M

ROCHESTER, Minn. – Burnout among U.S. physicians is getting worse. An update from a three-year study evaluating burnout and work-life balance shows that American physicians are worse off today than they were three years earlier. These dimensions remained largely unchanged among U.S. workers in general, resulting in a widening gap between physicians and U.S. workers in other fields. The study conducted by Mayo Clinic researchers in partnership with the American Medical Association compared data from 2014 to metrics they collected in 2011 and found that now more than half of U.S. physicians are experiencing professional burnout. The findings appear in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. “Burnout manifests as emotional exhaustion, loss of meaning in work, and feelings of ineffectiveness,” says Tait Shanafelt, M.D., “What we found is that more physicians in almost every specialty are feeling this way and that’s not good for them, their families, the medical profession, or patients.” MEDIA CONTACT: Bob Nellis, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, email: newsbureau@mayo.edu