A primary care physician consults with an orthopedic specialist affiliated with secondopinions.com via telemedicine.

In this example a patient presents to their primary care physician with a severely broken ankle. The break is complex and the patient is young, so the doctor wants to consult with an orthopedic specialist for a second opinion before reducing the fracture.

Telemedicine provides an immediate interactive platform that connects the primary
care physician with the second opinion specialist.  Sharing the screen, the doctors view medical records and diagnostic images, annotate areas of interest and arrive at a consensus for treatment.

The combination of second opinions coupled with a real-time video-conferencing , an interactive multimedia whiteboard and diagnostic image viewer allows for an unprecedented level of professional collaboration and rapid turnaround, resulting in a highly favorable outcome.

Based on new a new study by an international research team, spearheaded by Professor Lukas Kenner from the Medical University of Vienna, the Veterinary University of Vienna, and the Ludwig Boltzmann Institiute for Cancer Research (LBI-CR); a gene that is normally responsible for the growth of cancer plays an unexpected role in prostate cancer. The gene known as Stat3 is managed by the immune modulator interleukin 6 and typically progresses the growth of cancer cells. The international team has since discovered the missing puzzle piece that helps layout the pivotal role Stat3 and IL-6 signalling play in prostate cancer progression and development. The study received its funding from LBI-CR and the FWF. While results of the study have recently published in the renowned scientific journal, Nature Communications. Continue reading →

Based on new research collected and released by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, diabetes patients who take glitazone antidiabetes drugs, whether it was rosiglitazone or pioglitazone, saw a 28 percent reduction in the likelihood of contracting Parkinson’s disease as opposed to those taking differing antidiabetic treatments. The study has since been published in PLOS Medicine. Continue reading →

Based on a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Utah and clinicians at Veteran Affairs  (VA) Salt Lake City Health Care System, overuse of antibiotics is a nationwide concern. The new study points to health care providers as being the major contributors regarding this issue, noting that 10 percent of them write antibiotic prescriptions for around 95 percent of patients who visit them complaining of sharp respiratory infection. Assistant professor of medicine at the University of Utah and clinician at the VA (Veteran Affairs) Salt Lake City Health Care System, UT, and study author Dr. Barbara Jones and her team published their discoveries in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Continue reading →

Based on a new study, cannabidiol, which is a nonpsychotropic constituent of marijuana, could in fact accelerate the healing process of bones by a significant margin. Due to the recent legislative moves to legalize marijuana for medicinal use and/or purposes across various states, researchers are now uncovering the beneficial possibilities marijuana may hold. Continue reading →

If you recently had devastating medical news delivered to you, it may be a good time to consider getting a second opinion. A person can become overwhelmed with diagnosis of a fatal disease such as cancer, or other pressing diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons, etc. Although this does not mean a second opinion should be sought after only if diagnosed with major diseases, but can valid for any diagnosis regardless of scale. A second opinion is left up to the patient. It remains his or her decision to make. If they feel confident in their doctor’s prognosis and suggested forms of treatment, then a second opinion may be of no real value. If, however, a patient is unsure, or would like further assessments to be made, then a second opinion is the best solution. Continue reading →

As we continue to progress using the latest technological gadgets to keep us occupied clamors on the U.S. healthcare system to reinvent itself using the popular Uber model. Uber utilizes the virtual world accessed by smartphones to offer transportation services in the physical world. This efficiency through technology is starting to seep its way in the field of medicine, as the efficiencies of a Uber-based model are quite appealing to millions of technologically savvy citizens who utilize and depend on business and consumer type apps to operate their daily tasks. By utilizing the same model, readily available and organizational medical services/tools could be adapted to reinvigorate the way in which the U.S. health care system operates. Continue reading →

In most cases, some brain tumors can prove to be quite arduous to completely eradicate, even following the best treatment. However, a group of researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO, have potentially discovered a means to cutting off the spear of brain tumors by examining the source by which the brain tumor stem cells regenerate. Continue reading →

Based on a new study funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health and published in the journal PLOS One, individuals who regularly use a specific heartburn medication over a long period of time may have inadvertently increased their chances of experiencing an adverse cardiac event. Continue reading →