Allina News

[Fox 12 News, Mankato, Minn.] In order to get advice or a diagnosis on a minor medical condition, people are used to making an appointment and going to see their doctor. Now at New Ulm Medical Center, patients can take advantage of new, convenient services that allow them to check their symptoms and communicate with [...]

[CardiovascularBusiness, July 26, 2010] In-hospital mortality rates for patients diagnosed with aortic dissection are high at 26 percent, according to a study published in this month’s Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. Implementing quality improvement protocols and a multidisciplinary approach to treat this condition can result in a 43 percent reduction in mortality and improve delays [...]

[KMSP-TV Fox 9, July 26, 2010] A man was rescued from Lake Nokomis on Monday. Brett Wildly was headed fishing when authorities say a 19-year-old man was hanging out with three friends mad decided to cool off and hop in from the dock. He  jumped in but didn’t come up. Friends say it felt like [...]

[Coon Rapids Herald, July 21, 2010] Dr. Stephen Remole parted with his signature locks Monday in the name of exercise. In a matter of minutes, Remole’s gray locks were piled on the grass of the park behind Mercy Hospital and electrophysiologist was rubbing his hands along his hair-free head. Remole’s new hairdo is the result [...]

[New York Times, posted July 26, 2010] Common sense will go far. Plants should be presumed dangerous for consumption unless proved otherwise. “Just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s safe,” said Dr. Gregory Plotnikoff, 49, a medical researcher and a physician at the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing in Minneapolis. Dr. Plotnikoff has [...]

[KARE-TV, July 23, 2010] One kidney donation, 10 surgeries and five healthier people. That was the result when an anonymous donor gave a kidney, starting a chain that helped five patients get transplants. In this case, the donor at Fairview helped someone in Fargo, whose partner helped someone at Abbott Northwestern, who in turn helped [...]

[Star Tribune, July 23, 2010] Starting in August, new mothers will have a chance to multi-task in style in Buffalo, Minn. The local hospital is unveiling its new birth center, where every patient room will be equipped with an iPod docking station, a flat-screen TV and DVD player, a soaking tub, rocking chair and refrigerator [...]

[Pioneer Press, July 23, 2010] Hospitals in the Twin Cities and Fargo, N.D., reported Thursday an unusual series of five kidney transplant surgeries that shows just how far doctors are going to stretch the limited supply of organ donors. The so-called “kidney chain” got started this month with an altruistic donor in Minneapolis who donated [...]

[Star Tribune, July 22, 2010] An anonymous kidney donor last week launched a chain of 10 surgeries and five transplants at three hospitals in Minnesota and North Dakota. Though such exchanges have occurred in other states, this is the first time that such a complex kidney swap took place in Minnesota, long a leader in [...]

[Minnesota Public Radio, July 21, 2010] Former Vice President Dick Cheney is recuperating after doctors installed a mechanical heart pump that supplements the amount of blood being pumped through the body. The device is being given to a growing number of people with heart failure so severe that they would most likely die without it. [...]

[Star Tribune, July 22, 2010] If you’re having a heart attack, you may not need an emergency room at all, according to a groundbreaking study at United Hospital in St. Paul. Researchers found that patients get faster care, and are more likely to survive, if an ambulance crew takes them straight to a specialized hospital [...]

[WCCO-TV, July 21, 2010] Allina’s Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis is the site of trials for a new kind of heart pump that holds promise for the estimated five million Americans suffering from heart failure. The DuraHeart is a left ventricular assist system made by Terumo Heart, Inc. WCCO’s Dennis Douda [...]