Harvard Health Content API

Electronic medical records may improve the quality of health care in hospitals, but more research is needed, a study says. The study looked at 2,021 U.S. hospitals. In 2003, 23% used at least a basic electronic medical record, or EMR. By 2007, 38% of hospitals used one. Quality of care for heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia improved at all hospitals between 2004 and 2007. The largest increase in quality was seen for patients with heart failure at hospitals with EMRs. But hospitals that adopted EMRs during the study did not see better quality over time, compared with hospitals that continued using paper records. The study was published online in the American Journal of Managed Care. CBC News wrote about it December 24.

So far, there are fewer cases of flu this season than last. But government officials say that more infections will certainly come. Through December 11, about 2,800 cases of flu have been reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). About two-thirds of those were in the Southeast. Three strains of flu are circulating: A, B, and H1N1 (also called swine flu). The B virus has caused the most infections in the Southeast. Each year, between 5 and 20 of every 100 Americans gets the flu, and about 200,000 people are hospitalized. HealthDay News wrote about flu activity December 23.

People in the “stroke belt” eat more fried fish than people in other parts of the country, a new study has found. Eight Southern states are called the stroke belt because of their high stroke rate. The new study included more than 21,000 people from across the United States. They were asked about their medical histories and filled out questionnaires about the foods they ate. The American Heart Association suggests eating fish at least twice a week. But only about 23% of those in the study followed that advice. People in the stroke belt were 17% less likely to eat non-fried fish twice a week than people in other regions. But they were 32% more likely to eat fried fish. Lean fish, such as cod and haddock, are more likely to be fried than fatty fish such as salmon. These fish are lower in healthy omega-3 fats than fatty fish. Frying also reduces omega-3 fats.

Regular exercise and vitamin D pills may be the best ways to prevent falls among older adults, an expert group says. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is an independent group that issues advice on preventive health care. The task force combined results from 54 previous studies. They included more than 26,000 people. Taking vitamin D reduced the risk of falling by an average of 17%. About half of the studies used doses above recommended levels. Some people also took calcium. Exercise reduced fall risk by about 13%. A variety of programs were included. Some worked on improving balance and flexibility. Some included weight training. Others focused on walking. The task force said other strategies also can help reduce falls. They include removing hazards in the home, changing medicines and fixing vision problems. The task force is writing formal guidelines for doctors.

Echinacea might help cold symptoms to go away a few hours sooner, a new study suggests. But the difference was so small it could have occurred by chance. Researchers recruited more than 700 adults and children with colds for the study. They were randomly divided into 4 groups. Two groups took echinacea pills. One group knew it was taking echinacea. The other group did not know. The third group took placebo (fake) pills. The fourth group didn’t get any pills. People were asked to write down their symptoms twice a day. For those taking echinacea, symptoms ended an average of half a day sooner. The journal Annals of Internal Medicine published the study. The Associated Press wrote about it December 21.