Bariatric surgery reduces costs for patients with type 2 diabetes
A Kaiser Permanente found that bariatric surgery reduced health care costs for adults with type 2 diabetes and obesity. The study was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in February 2025. “The study shows that both Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and sleeve gastrectomy (SG) help reduce ...
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Research leads to finding ways to improve outcomes for heart failure patients with chronic kidney disease
Research by physicians at the Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center is helping patients with heart failure to transition more smoothly and safely to dialysis if they develop chronic kidney disease. ...
Medicaid enrollees less vaccinated during pregnancy across US
Most individuals in the United States who are pregnant are not getting the vaccines that could protect them — and their babies — from COVID-19, flu, and whooping cough, a new study shows. This is ...
Intensive blood pressure control and patients with chronic kidney disease
The benefits of intensive blood pressure shown in the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) also helps patients with chronic kidney disease, according to new research led by Kaiser Permanente ...
Vulnerable populations sought virtual care during pandemic
September 13, 2021Kaiser Permanente Southern California patients who were Latinx or low-income had the largest percentage increase in use of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Kaiser Permanente research recently published in Journal of Medical Internet Research. Increases in telehealth visits during the COVID-19 pandemic varied across age, sex, race/ethnicity, and household income groups, while decreases in ...Read more...Infant lung disease rates drop dramatically over 10-year effort
September 1, 2021Over the last decade, rates of a chronic lung condition known as bronchopulmonary dysplasia have dropped from 20% to less than 2% among very preterm babies at Kaiser Permanente Panorama City. As reported in JAMA Network Open, this decrease is associated with a novel system of care designed by Kaiser Permanente Southern California researchers. Meanwhile, the ...Read more...Young children gained weight during the pandemic
August 27, 2021A Kaiser Permanente study of nearly 200,000 children showed that children gained excess weight during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially those between 5 and 11 years old. The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “When we compared the weight gain among children from 2019 to 2020, we found that there was more ...Read more...5 questions for … Dr. Darryl Palmer-Toy
August 26, 2021Darryl Palmer-Toy, MD, PhD, is the physician director of the Regional Reference Core Laboratories for Kaiser Permanente Southern California. He has been in this position for 5 years. In this role, Dr. Palmer-Toy oversees the ancillary, clinical chemistry, and immunochemistry departments, which perform about 20 million tests per year. A student of proteomics (the study ...Read more...Bariatric surgery associated with better health for mothers
August 13, 2021A study of more than 20,000 Kaiser Permanente members in Southern California showed that women with obesity who underwent bariatric surgery prior to pregnancy experienced improved outcomes such as a reduced risk of serious pregnancy-related blood pressure conditions, and lower instances of a newborn needing to be sent to the neonatal intensive care unit, or ...Read more...Risk of severe COVID-19 higher for patients who recently needed asthma care
August 10, 2021A study of Kaiser Permanente Southern California members diagnosed with COVID-19 found that patients who needed clinical visits for asthma care in the 12 months prior to infection faced a higher risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes than patients who did not have asthma. Of patients who had recent asthma-related visits, those who also received medications for ...Read more...5 questions for … Dr. Sonya Negriff
August 10, 2021Sonya Negriff, PhD, is a developmental psychologist with expertise in the effects of child maltreatment on physical and mental health. She has been with the Department of Research & Evaluation for 3 years. Dr. Negriff examines the pathways linking child maltreatment to negative outcomes such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use, obesity, and sexual ...Read more...Where you live may affect your long-term survival after heart attack
August 2, 2021A study of more than 31,000 Kaiser Permanente members in Southern California showed that Black patients from disadvantaged neighborhoods were significantly more likely to die within 5 years of surviving a heart attack than white patients. In contrast, there was no difference in rates of death between white patients and Black patients who lived in ...Read more...COVID-19 vaccine trials for children are underway
July 30, 2021When their parents asked if they wanted to be part of a COVID-19 vaccine trial for children, Aidan and Avery Shih didn’t have to think about it for long. Both were eager to help end the pandemic. “The vaccine does help you not get COVID, of course, but then also it helps you so you don't spread COVID. So, if enough people get the vaccine, COVID will slow and hopefully eventually stop,” said Aidan, 11.Read more...New protocol allows teen to go home same day as chest surgery
July 27, 2021About 5 years ago, John Connell, now 16, was at a water park when a friend pointed his index finger at John’s bare chest and asked, “Were you in a car accident or something?” John looked down at his chest, and then at the chests of the other boys around him, and realized for the first ...Read more...