Panelists participating on a Lincoln Financial Group-sponsored webcast focusing on long-term care issues urged consumers to adopt a “retirement mindset” and be certain to understand the funding options available well before a need arises.

Lincoln Financial Distributors, the wholesale distribution subsidiary of Lincoln Financial Group   (NYSE: LNC), sponsored the media webcast, “Understanding Long-Term Care Risks and the Funding Options Available,” to discuss ideas consumers should consider to financially prepare  themselves and loved ones should the need for long term care develop during retirement years.

Panelists on the webcast were Andrew Bucklee, head of Lincoln MoneyGuard Solutions Distribution; Steve Moses, president of The Center for Long-Term Care Reform; Bill Moss, director of Home and Community Services for Washington State; and Suzanne Schmitt, senior consultant  for Lincoln Insights.

“Long-term care comes in many different forms, including nursing homes, in-home care, and  hospital care,” said Bucklee. “If people don’t plan for this possibility before experiencing a major illness the financial consequences can be severe not just for the individual, but for an entire family.” Read the rest of this entry »


A new biomarker-based diagnostic test is more effective than the current best practice for early detection of adverse outcomes after acute kidney injury (AKI), which can be fatal for an estimated 50 percent of the critically ill patients who get the condition.

A multi-center study to be published April 26 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) reports that a kidney injury biomarker called “neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin” (NGAL) in urine or blood detects early subclinical AKI and its adverse outcomes in critically ill patients.  These same patients did not have diagnostic increases in serum creatinine, which is considered the current gold standard for detecting AKI.  Early NGAL testing may therefore allow earlier conventional medical interventions or introduction of novel therapies to improve the prognosis of AKI, the authors write.

Results of the retrospective study – which included pooled data from 2,322 critically ill adult and pediatric patients – also justify recommending a reassessment of what defines AKI, according to researchers from 13 international medical organizations collaborating on the study.

“This study describes a new biomarker (NGAL) that completely outperforms the current serum creatinine-based criteria for the early detection of AKI and its devastating clinical outcomes,” said Prasad Devarajan, M.D., director of Nephrology and Hypertension at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, and one of the study’s first authors.  ”This has enormous implications because AKI affects about 30 percent of all critically ill patients, in whom current therapeutic options are limited and unacceptably delayed.” Read the rest of this entry »


Results from a large pan-European study suggest that up to 135,000 deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD), such as heart attacks and strokes, could be prevented in Europe each year though better control of risk factors including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and diabetes.[1] This equates to one preventable death every four minutes.[1]

The European Study on Cardiovascular Risk Prevention and Management in Daily Practice (EURIKA) was a large public health study carried out in 12 European countries. The study included over 7,000 patients who had at least one risk factor for CVD. Results from the study were presented today by the panel of experts leading the research, at this year’s EuroPRevent medical conference in Geneva.

Dr Eliseo Guallar from the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA, one of the experts involved in the study, said: “We already know that certain, risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and diabetes, can increase the likelihood of developing CVD. However, our understanding of the link between these risk factors and the chance of dying from CVD – particularly if these conditions are poorly managed – is limited. With the EURIKA study, we aimed to quantify this link to establish how many lives we could save each year by providing better preventative care in Europe.”

In analysing results from the study, the experts estimated that the four key CVD risk factors accounted for nearly 60% (57.7%) of the risk of dying from CVD in the next 10 years (or ‘CVD death’), which equates to a 5.66% ‘excess risk of death’.[1] This means that of the 4.3 million deaths from CVD in Europe each year,[2] an estimated 5.66% are directly linked to the presence of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and diabetes.[1]

Results also suggest that poor management of these risk factors accounts for nearly 30% (29.2%) of the risk of CVD death, which equates to a 3.12% ‘excess risk of death’ – or up to 135,000 preventable deaths every year.[1]

Professor Julian Halcox, Cardiff University, UK, another of the experts involved in the study, said: “These data highlight the staggering number of lives that could be saved each year by managing risk factors for heart disease and stroke more effectively. Having calculated this link, we must now focus on providing the best preventative care to patients across Europe. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and diabetes can all be managed effectively through lifestyle changes, appropriate drug treatments or a combination of the two. Based on these data we are urging doctors and patients to work even more closely together to control these risk factors and reduce the long-term risk of cardiovascular death.”

CVD is the leading cause of death in Europe; it is responsible for 54% of deaths in women and 43% of deaths in men, killing more people than all cancers combined.[2] The main forms of CVD are coronary heart disease and stroke. Read the rest of this entry »


Mike McCready’s Public Service Announcements Highlight Community-Based Fundraising and Awareness through Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation Take Steps Walks

Mike McCready, guitarist and founding member of the American rock band, Pearl Jam, recently donated his time to create a radio public service announcement (PSA) series on behalf of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation to raise critical awareness for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The 60, 30, and 15 second PSAs will encourage Americans to register for one of over 130 Take Steps Walks in 2011 in communities around the country. Walkers will raise much-needed dollars for research into Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, chronic, painful, and often debilitating digestive diseases. Collectively known as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Crohn’s and colitis afflict over 1.4 million American children and adults.

McCready understands the ups-and-downs of living with an incurable digestive disease because he has Crohn’s disease. In the PSAs, he explains the chronic and debilitating pain of Crohn’s and colitis and the Foundation’s mission to find a cure for these digestive diseases and improve the quality of life for patients. He goes on to urge listeners to join him to end the suffering by signing up for a Take Steps Walk.

“I have been living with Crohn’s Disease for over 24 years,” says McCready.  “Luckily, my disease is now under control. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many of the 1 million plus Americans suffering from IBD.  I know first hand the tremendous impact CCFA’s programs can have on improving Crohn’s and colitis patients’ lives.  I encourage anyone inflicted or affected by these diseases to sign up for the Take Steps Walk program.” Read the rest of this entry »


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