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Eating half a handful of nuts every day could substantially lower the risk of early death, a Dutch study suggests. Previous studies had already indicated a link with cardiovascular health, but this is the first to look at specific nuts and diseases. Maastricht University researchers found a 23% lower chance of death during the 10-year study in people eating at least 10g (0.3oz) of nuts or peanuts a day. There was no benefit for peanut butter, which is high in salt and trans fats. More than 120,000 Dutch 55-to-69-year-old men and women provided dietary and lifestyle information in 1986, and then their mortality rate was looked at 10 years later. The premature mortality risk due to cancer, diabetes, respiratory and neurodegenerative diseases was lower among the nut consumers.  There was an average 23% lower risk of 10-year mortality across all diseases, with a decrease of:

• 45% for neurodegenerative disease
• 39% for respiratory disease
• 30% for diabetes

Prof Piet van den Brandt, who led the study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, said: “It was remarkable that substantially lower mortality was already observed at consumption levels of 15g of nuts or peanuts on average per day.” The researchers had taken into account the mitigating factor that nut consumers ate more fruit and vegetables and that women who ate nuts were often leaner, and adjusted the results accordingly, Prof Van den Brandt told the BBC.

Source: BBC

The Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee (EMDAC) of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave the thumbs-up today to recommending, for the first time, approval for a new class of medications: proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin 9 (PCSK9) inhibitors.

They voted 13 to 3 in favor of alirocumab (Praluent, Sanofi/Regeneron) for lowering LDL cholesterol in patients with hypercholesterolemia, citing likely benefit especially for patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH). Other groups predicted to get special benefit to include those at high CV risk or who don’t tolerate statins. Although there was a lot of debate without consensus about these latter groups, the vote just focused on whether the drug’s benefits exceeded its risks to support approval “in one or more patient populations.”

The biggest discussion of the day was whether the drug should be approved based only on its effect on LDL-C—even before its CV-outcomes trial has been completed. Many panel members, including chair Dr Robert J Smith (Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI), did not agree that LDL-C lowering is sufficient for establishing effectiveness for reducing CV risk. “I just don’t think it predicts clinical outcomes. I would need to see the clinical outcomes,” he said.

However, Smith was among the “yes” votes today, noting that patients with HeFH really need this drug—a point that came out throughout all discussions. During the public-hearing session, 14 of 16 speakers gave strong approval for the medication, with most sharing stories of how they and/or family members have struggled with this disorder.

Source: Medscape

As the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) increases, so does the risk for death and cardiovascular disease, according to data from a large population study reported at the meeting sponsored by the European Association for the Study of the Liver.

There was a 50% increase in the adjusted all-cause morality rate when comparing patients who developed nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with those who had NAFLD (hazard ratio of 1.5).  The risk of death was also five times as high when comparing patients with NASH-related cirrhosis to those with NAFLD, with an adjusted hazard ratio of 5.1.

Heart failure (HF), atrial fibrillation (AF), type 2 diabetes mellitus, and chronic kidney disease (CKD) rates were also increased in patients with NAFLD, compared with those in the healthy population.

“Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease has got a strong association with cardiovascular disease; it may be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease, but that is still open to debate,” said study investigator Dr. Jake Mann, who is an academic clinical fellow in pediatrics at the University of Cambridge (England).

“What isn’t quite so clear is whether or not there is progressively increasing risk of cardiovascular comorbidities as you move from NAFLD to NASH to NASH cirrhosis,” he added at the meeting, which was sponsored by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL).

Source: Family Practice News

Using less than a drop of blood, a new test can reveal nearly every virus a person has ever been exposed to, scientists reported on Thursday.

The test, which is still experimental, can be performed for as little as $25 and could become an important research tool for tracking patterns of disease in various populations, helping scientists compare the old and the young, or people in different parts of the world.

It could also be used to try to find out whether viruses, or the body’s immune response to them, contribute to chronic diseases and cancer, the researchers said.

“I’m sure there’ll be lots of applications we haven’t even dreamed of,” said Stephen J. Elledge, the senior author of the report, published in the journal Science, and a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

“That’s what happens when you invent technology — you can’t imagine what people will do with it,” Dr. Elledge said. “They’re so clever.”

The test can detect past exposure to more than 1,000 strains of viruses from 206 species — pretty much the entire human “virome,” meaning all the viruses known to infect people. The test works by detecting antibodies, highly specific proteins that the immune system has made in response to viruses.

Tried out in 569 people in the United States, South Africa, Thailand and Peru, the blood test found that most had been exposed to about 10 species of virus — mostly the usual suspects, like those causing colds, flu, gastrointestinal illness and other common ailments.

Source: New York Times

This test is not yet commercially available but our comprehensive physicals include testing for individual viral infections and inflammation.

Have you received these tests?  How else can you confirm that you’re truly healthy and will stay healthy for many more years to come? 

Use this list as your guide:

Liver, spleen, pancreas, gallbladder, kidneys screening
Blood Pressure Monitoring

Sleep Study
Cholesterol analysis & Blood clot risk
Coronary Heart Scan Calcium Scoring
Exercise Stress Testing

Brain MRI
Blood Count
Tumor marker tracking
PSA
Thyroid, Sex Hormones (e.g. Testosterone)
Infectious Disease (e.g. Lyme, Hepatitis, Sexually transmitted)
Genetic (Celiac Disease)
Virtual Colonoscopy
Pelvic and Genital Imaging (bladder, prostate, uterus, ovaries)
Mammogram (3D Mammography)
Lung Imaging
Pulmonary Function Testing

Pap Smear
Bone Density Assessment
Dermatology Skin Screen

Hearing Assessment
Nutrition Counseling
Travel Medicine Consultations
Routine Vaccinations
Special Vaccinations 

The Presidential Healthcare Center makes convenience for you a top priority. 

Optional limousine service
Early (7 a.m.) appointments
Private Conference & Examination Suites
All Services performed on site
Priority Scheduling and Staff Escort throughout the facility
In office Phlebotomy & ultrasound
Barrier-Free, Extra Plush, Heated Exam Tables
Readily available above ground parking – and validation
Onsite Au Bon Pain – lunch provided after fasting
Completion of insurance claims for you with reimbursement directly back to you

The Presidential Suite at Sibley Hospital

The Presidential Healthcare Center offers Corporate and Small Business options that focus on annual Preventive Executive Physicals which include: intensive imaging, laboratory testing, and primary care services.

The Presidential Healthcare Center already provides care for executives from:

Northrop Grumman Corporation

EADS North America Airbus

Pentagon Federal Credit Union

Ernst & Young

LaSalle Hotels

Discovery Channel Multiple

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Persistent symptoms characteristic of urinary tract infection (UTI) that do not improve with time or treatment could indicate bladder cancer.

That’s the simple “take-home message” from a first of its kind study of UTI-like symptoms and bladder cancer, according to lead author Kyle Richards, MD, from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

The message is for clinicians and applies to both men and women, he told reporters during a press briefing here at the American Urological Association 2015 Annual Meeting.

Awareness is especially important when it comes women, said Dr Richards, because bladder cancer is most commonly associated with men.

“A lot of primary care doctors who are initially seeing these symptomatic patients are less aware that bladder cancer is even a possibility in women,” he explained.

And he pointed out that because bladder cancer most commonly presents as blood in the urine, or hematuria, UTI-like symptoms do not always raise suspicion for this cancer.

In their study — the first to look at patients with bladder cancer who present with UTIs — Dr Richards and his colleagues assessed the impact of this presentation on patient outcomes.

They report that diagnoses take longer and outcomes are poorer in men and women who present with UTIs than in men who present with hematuria.

Source: Medscape

Since its introduction in the 1960s, the oral contraceptive pill (OCP) has been linked to an increased risk of blood clots.

Now a Danish literature review confirms what has been suspected for years: that the so-called fourth-generation OCP doubles the risk of blood clots compared to second-generation OCPs.

The review was conducted by a medical student and a doctor at Aarhus University Hospital’s Department of Clinical Pharmacology.

They have gathered all the literature in the field and assessed its quality. This has enabled them to say with a high degree of certainty that the fourth-generation OCP is more dangerous in terms of an increased risk of blood clots than the second-generation OCP.

On the one hand, the blood has to flow freely in the veins, but on the other hand, it should also stop a bleeding in case of an injury. It’s a delicate balance. OCPs alter this balance so that the blood will clot more easily, and thereby increases the risk of blood clots.

The study primarily consisted of a comparison of the two generations of pills, but the researchers recommend that people should, whenever possible, stick to the second generation pills.

The problem with contraceptives is that they contain the synthetic estrogen-like hormone Ethinyl estradiol.This hormone increases the risk of blood clots because it increases the formation of clotting factors in the blood.

Source: ScienceNordic

Roughly a third of U.S. adults have the metabolic syndrome — and nearly half of those aged 60 and older have it — according to a research letter in JAMA.  Researchers evaluated National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2003 through 2012. The metabolic syndrome contributes to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.   Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2006 reported a metabolic syndrome prevalence of 34%.  Understanding updated prevalence trends may be important given the potential effect of the metabolic syndrome and its associated health complications on the aging US population. We investigated trends in the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome through 2012.  Among the other findings:

• The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome increased from 2003–2004 to 2007–2008 (from 33% to 36%) and remained stable thereafter.
• Women were more likely than men to be affected: in 2011–2012, the prevalence was 37% and 33%, respectively.
• Hispanics had the highest prevalence, at 39% in 2011–2012.
• The metabolic syndrome was more common among older than younger adults, ranging from 18% for those aged 20–39 years to 47% for those aged 60 and older.

Source: JAMA