McKesson has reported a 4 percent dip in net income, despite a 9 percent increase in revenues for the fiscal first quarter of 2011, compared with the year-prior results.

Evaluating hemoglobin A1c levels in diabetic patients can help improve the risk prediction for cardiovascular disease, according to a study published online July 25 in the Archives of Internal Medicine. These results may lead to a more accurate diagnosis for patients in certain risk categories.

The FDA has released, for comment purposes, draft guidance on mobile medical applications. The 29-page draft, issued July 21, contains nonbinding recommendations to inform manufacturers, distributors, and other entities about how the FDA intends to apply its regulatory authorities to select software applications intended for use on mobile platforms, the draft stated.

Recently many have questioned whether industry relationships between societies and physicians may be detrimental to healthcare due to their potential to cause conflicts of interest (COIs). In Julys issue of HeartRhythm, the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) deemed industry relationships necessary, but said that it is also imperative that professional societies put forth safeguards to help hinder these types of biases and keep relationships transparent.

The healthcare industry has seen a spike in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), with a total of $73.5 billion spent to finance 243 deals. This number is up 44 percent from the $51.1 billion spent in Q1 of 2011 and up a substantial 61 percent from the $45.7 billion spent in Q2 in 2010, according to a report issued by Irving Levin Associates.

VasoStar, a subsidiary of Frantz Medical Group (FMG), has been awarded an Ohio Third Frontier grant to further develop and commercialize an electromagnetic guidewire system for penetrating through vascular chronic total occlusions, in lieu of invasive open heart surgery such as coronary artery bypass graft.

Real-time pharmacy surveillance of high-alert medications increased the likelihood of intercepting medication errors, according to a six-month study published in the July issue of the Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety.

Planned median base salary increases reached 3 percent in 2011 for employees of large integrated health systems (IHS), which is an increase from 2010 when providers reported a planned 2.4 percent median base salary increase for healthcare employees, according to a compensation report from Hay Group Healthcare. Conversely, independent hospitals are reporting lower median base salary increases of 2.3 percent in 2011, reflecting the ongoing economic challenges facing those employers.