Text Message Program Shows 60 Percent of Opioid Tablets Unused After Common Procedures

 

University of Pennsylvania :A Penn Medicine new study of how text messaging could inform opioid prescribing practices showed that 60 percent of opioids are left over after orthopaedic and urologic procedures.More than half of the opioid tablets prescribed for patients who underwent orthopaedic or urologic procedures went unused in a new study by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Using an automated text messaging system that regularly checked in with patients on their pain and opioid use, the study also showed that most opioids are taken within the first few days following a procedure and may not be necessary to manage pain even just a week following a procedure. The study was published today in JAMA Network Open.

Interventions delivered by mobile phone to help people adhere to medication to prevent cardiovascular disease

Cochrane: We reviewed the evidence on the effect of interventions delivered by mobile phone to help people in taking their medication to prevent cardiovascular disease (for example, heart attacks and strokes). We found four studies which included 2429 participants. Around 17.6 million people die from cardiovascular disease every year. Medications can help to prevent cardiovascular disease; however, many people who have been given these medications do not take them as often or as consistently as recommended. This means that the medication will not work as well as it could to prevent cardiovascular disease. Interventions delivered through mobile phones, for example, prompting by text messaging, may be a low cost way to help people to take their medication as recommended.

Can These Artificial Intelligence Apps Improve Mental Health?

Columbia: More than 20 percent of Americans will have symptoms of depression or anxiety this year, but only one in five of them will get adequate treatment. Increasingly, people are turning to smart phone apps for help. There’s only one problem: none of the thousands of mental health apps available have so far been adequately tested to see if they provide relief.

Interventions delivered by mobile phone to support client use of family planning/contraception

Cochrane: Contraception - methods or devices used to prevent pregnancy – has significant benefits for women's and children's health. Despite these benefits, an estimated 225 million women in developing countries were not using a modern contraceptive method in 2014 despite wanting to avoid pregnancy. Expansion of mobile phone use in recent years has led to increased interest in healthcare delivery via mobile phone and the potential to deliver support wherever the person is located, whenever it is needed, and to reach populations with restricted access to services. Mobile phone-based interventions have been demonstrated to be effective in other health areas, but not yet in the field of contraception.

Mobile phone app to identify premature babies in the developing world

Nottingham University. UK: A mobile phone app that will identify babies born prematurely in the developing world is being developed by researchers at The University of Nottingham. The technology will use distinctive features on the feet, face and ears of newborns to more accurately estimate the gestation of babies and to identify those who may need urgent medical care.

Mobile phones not causing increase in brain tumours

Auckland University. New-Zealand: The risk of brain tumours has not changed significantly with increased mobile phone use, according to new research from the University of Auckland.

FDA permits marketing of first system of mobile medical apps for continuous glucose monitoring

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today allowed marketing of the first set of mobile medical apps that allow people with diabetes to automatically and securely share data from a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) with other people in real-time using an Apple mobile device such as an iPhone.

Cell and Particle Size Measurement Developed Using Smartphone Based on Shadow Imaging Technology

Korea University: Using a smartphone, a KU research team has succeeded in developing cell and particle size measurement technology based on shadow imaging technology. The research was led by Professor Sung-Kyu Seo and Ph.D. student Mohendra Roy (first author) in the Department of Electronics and Information Engineering, College of Science and Technology, on the KU Sejong Campus.

Two hour screen limit for kids virtually impossible to enforce

University of Western Australia: A world-first longitudinal study by The University of Western Australia researchers examining the links between mental health and screen use by children and teenagers has found that guidelines to limit screen-based media-use to less than two hours a day are out of date and ‘virtually impossible' to enforce.

iPhone Separation Linked to Physiological Anxiety, Poor Cognitive Performance

University of Missouri. US: Cell phone use has become a common part of life as mobile devices have become one of the most popular ways to communicate. Even so, very little research exists on the impact of cell phone usage and specifically what happens when people are separated from their phones. Now, research from the University of Missouri has found that cell phone separation can have serious psychological and physiological effects on iPhone users, including poor performance on cognitive tests.

Electromagnetic smog unlikely to harm humans

NHS. UK: Are mobile phones likely to harm human health? Is there a potential health impact of environmental exposure to what some commentators have called “electromagnetic smog”? This is a term used to refer to a mix of low-level magnetic fields that exist in the modern environment. This "smog" is not just generated by mobile phones, but also by Wi-Fi routers, tablets, laptops, power lines and cell towers. In the modern world, you are never far away from a magnetic field.