The death of Rick Slayman, the first man to receive a kidney transplant from a genetically engineered pig, was caused by an 'unexpected cardiac event,' and there was no sign his body was rejecting the organ, his transplant surgeon said Wednesday. The disclosure, six months after the 62-year-old Weymouth resident died, was the first public explanation of Slayman's cause of death and the most detailed confirmation that Slayman's new kidney was still viable and doing its job two months after he underwent the historic procedure. In a May press release announcing his death, hospital officials said they had 'no indication' the death was caused by his transplant but provided no additional details.
A strain of mpox disease that had previously been undetected in the U.S. has been found in California. The patient contracted it after traveling from East Africa, where there has been an outbreak of the clade I strain. The person was treated in San Mateo County and then released. The person is at home recovering. The CDC says the strain presents a low risk to the general public. 'Casual contact, like you might have during travel, is unlikely to pose significant risks for transmission of mpox,' it said.
Some hospitals have begun to embrace programs targeted at spiritual support in addition to direct healthcare ones. Those programs are supported by a growing body of research on the health benefits of spiritual practice. One of those programs is out of Indiana University Health, which connects people being discharged from the hospital with individuals called 'connectors', if the patient doesn't have a community support network of their own.
The Elaine Marieb College of Nursing at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH), is launching a pioneering initiative to support local public health nurses and their health departments in each of Massachusetts’ 351 cities and towns, focusing on building a stronger and more responsive public health workforce to enhance health outcomes statewide.
The program, funded by the state with an initial $3.5 million over 28 months, addresses a critical need for training for some 300 public health nurses to address the diverse needs of local public health departments. UMass Nursing promoted the launch of the Public Health Nurse Consultant Program at the Massachusetts Health Officers Association (MHOA) Annual Conference, on Nov. 13-14, at the MassMutual Center in Springfield.
Researchers used artificial intelligence to predict the activity of thousands of genes in tumors based on routinely collected images of tumor biopsies. It could guide treatment without costly genomic tests.