Two Cardiac Renewal Centers Open in OC; E-Healthcare Studied
UCI researchers studying the link between what you eat and the ways your body uses what you eat have found how a regulatory protein stabilizes cholesterol level in cells,a discovery that may lead to advances in treatment of high cholesterol levels.
Timothy Osborne and Mary Bennett, of the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, used a new technology for cellular observation to study a group of proteins, called sterol regulatory element-binding proteins, that regulate cholesterol and fatty acid levels in cells.
In addition to other regulatory activity, these binding proteins react to changing cholesterol levels by activating genes that either remove excess cholesterol from the blood or create more cholesterol when cellular levels are low. The UCI team found out how the process works in detail.
“If we can understand more about how these regulatory proteins work, we can find ways to make their interaction more efficient,” Osborne said.
“Therapeutically, we may be able to develop ways to have cells remove excess cholesterol from the blood to keep it from accumulating there, which can lead to the buildup of arterial plaque and to potential heart attacks and strokes,” he said.
Results also may lead to more knowledge of how genetics influences heart disease, stroke and diabetes. This could lead to better pre-screening practices to identify patients with defective metabolizing genes and result in earlier treatment and lifestyle changes.
Osborne and Bennett published the work in the June 6 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Angioplasty Alternative Gets OK
Cardiac Renewal Centers of America is opening facilities this month in Laguna Hills and Anaheim. The centers do EECP,enhanced external counterpulsation,an outpatient coronary artery disease treatment that the company says can be an alternative to angioplasty for many patients.
The procedure originally was approved by the FDA as a way to keep people in need of heart surgery alive long enough to get it. It has since been approved for treatment of angina,the pain in the upper body and limbs caused by obstruction of the arteries supplying blood to the heart.
EECP uses pressure cuffs on the legs to force blood through partially blocked coronary arteries and get it to the affected oxygen-starved heart muscle while it is resting between beats. The procedure also helps the heart grow new blood vessels to compensate for blocked ones, the company says.
A recent study at the State University of New York at Stony Brook found the five-year survival rate among EECP patients to be virtually the same as among patients who underwent bypass or angioplasty surgery. A 1999 study at several U.S. medical centers found more than 75% of heart patients’ conditions improved after EECP treatment.
Cardiac Renewal spokesman Curt Douglas cautioned, however, that “this therapy,like any therapy,is not for everyone. We don’t want people who need surgery not to get it.”
The cost is $10,000 for 35 one-hour sessions over seven weeks and is covered by Medicare and insurance.
About 100 centers in the U.S. do EECP. Pacific Palisades-based Cardiac Renewal Centers has four centers in Orange and Los Angeles counties.
For info: www.cardiacrenewal.com
Congratulations! It’s a Web Site
A recent study of 24 healthcare provider organizations by First Consulting Group in Long Beach and Minneapolis-based Scottsdale Institute evaluates the baby steps of the health industry online and looks at how it can grow into adulthood.
Although survey respondents all had aggressive growth plans for their e-health programs, the study found, that less than half of the companies and organizations involved in the study had written strategies.
However, most of the initiatives were less than 6 months old, so there is plenty of time for improvement.
The study specifically suggests bringing senior leadership and top-level executives more directly into e-health efforts, while transferring e-commerce responsibility from the IT area to the business side of the flowchart. More than 50% of the respondents had their Internet efforts under IT.
Also, the study says healthcare companies need to evaluate the myriad e-vendors and portals to see which are allies and which are adversaries. Two-thirds of respondents say they rely on internal resources for their Web activity.
First Consulting can be reached at (800) 345-0957 or www.fcg.com
Bits and Pieces:
Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center will provide health and wellness programs for Ladera Ranch. The partners plan nutrition and alternative medicine education, CPR classes, disease screening and Web-based services through the LaderaLife intranet system being installed by Cox Communications … You’re nobody till antibody loves you: Nexell Therapeutics of Irvine converted a worldwide licensing deal with Diaclone SA into an exclusive license for six monoclonal antibodies used in ex-vivo cell therapy. Nexell has had non-exclusive rights since January. Info: (949) 470-9011 … Now tightening even more braces: Orthodontists David Skersick and Edmond Henken combined their San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente practices into Skersick & Henken. Both offices will remain open. Info: (949) 661-3336 … They probably have laptops, anyway: Laguna Hills-based Cogent Healthcare now offers Internet-based continuing education for hospitalists (in-patient specialists). Aventis is a sponsor. Cogent works locally with Kaiser Permanente. Info: (949) 699-6000 or www.cogenthealthcare.com.
