Mixed Bag

Metformin No Help for Non-Diabetic Hearts (CME/CE)
Despite hopes raised by two earlier trials, metformin did not appear to have any cardiovascular benefits in non-diabetic patients with established heart disease, the CAMERA study showed.

On average, carotid intima-media thickness -- a surrogate marker for atherosclerotic disease -- increased at a similar rate in the metformin and placebo groups through 18 months of treatment (P = 0.29), according to David Preiss, PhD, of the University of Glasgow in Scotland, and colleagues. MedPage Today

Online course improves physicians skill level for detecting skin cancer
Primary care physicians who took an online training course about skin cancer detection significantly improved their skill to properly diagnose and manage benign and malignant lesions, according to a national study from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. The physicians’ enhanced skill level also led to a reduction in unnecessary referrals to dermatology specialists. The findings are published online in the November/December issue of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine. Henry Ford Hospital

New procedure to revolutionise blood pressure treatment
Final results of a Monash-led three-year clinical trial assessing a novel procedure (percutaneous renal sympathetic denervation)to treat blood pressure has been published today in the prestigious journal, The Lancet. The study, conducted in Australia and Europe, found that the initial reports of a six-month blood pressure lowering benefit in this group of patients, who have treatment resistant hypertension, are sustained out to three years. MedicalXpress

The Tao of Pee
Although we don’t often think about it, fluid dynamics touches almost every aspect of our lives, from a billowing breeze that buffets a flag, to swirling river currents that shape canyons to the surging blood that sustains our lives. One of the basest of bodily functions -- urination -- is governed primarily by the equations of fluid motion.

Later this month, at the American Physical Society (APS) Division of Fluid Dynamics (DFD) meeting in Pittsburgh, Pa., two teams of researchers reveal new insight into the physics of peeing. NewsWise

FDA to ban artery-clogging trans fats
The FDA announced Thursday it will require the food industry to gradually phase out artificial trans fats, saying they are a threat to people's health. Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said the move could prevent 20,000 heart attacks and 7,000 deaths each year. AP