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 ...
Researchers seek to reduce heart disease at home and abroad
August 2, 2019Reducing heart disease and one of its major risk factors, high blood pressure, has long been a focus for Kaiser Permanente Southern California’s Department of Research & Evaluation. The work currently in progress will affect lives locally and globally. Several recent studies delved into aspects of blood pressure because high blood pressure is a major risk ...Read more...Grant funds work to predict early-stage pancreatic cancer
August 1, 2019The National Institutes of Health has awarded Kaiser Permanente a grant to find a way to predict early-stage pancreatic cancer. Leading the project is principal investigator Bechien Wu, MD, MPH, a clinician investigator with the Department of Research & Evaluation and a gastroenterologist with the Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center. “Pancreatic cancer is the fourth ...Read more...Research: RSV infection can be deadlier than flu in adults
August 1, 2019In many ways, the initial symptoms of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus are indistinguishable. But, research published in Clinical Infectious Diseases last month showed that RSV infection may be even more dangerous than the flu in older adults. The Kaiser Permanente Southern California study of hospitalized adults revealed that RSV infection, a highly contagious respiratory virus ...Read more...Mom’s diabetes could influence child’s risk of autism or ADHD
August 1, 2019Since publishing in JAMA about strong associations between a mother’s diabetes and autism in 2015, Anny Xiang, PhD, a researcher with the Kaiser Permanente Southern California Department of Research & Evaluation, expanded that work to consider other neurological development disorders to find more nuances with the association, including one published just last month. A study published ...Read more...5 questions for Dr. Bobeck S. Modjtahedi
August 1, 2019Bobeck Modjtahedi, MD, is 1 of 4 physicians appointed to the 2018 Southern California Permanente Medical Group Clinician Investigator Program. The program gives clinician researchers protected time in their schedule to conduct innovative research and use what they learn to transform medical practice. His research involves creating models that can predict a patient’s risk of ...Read more...Use of cholesterol-lowering medications increasing
July 29, 2019According to a study published in the journal Cardiovascular Drugs and Therapy, use of cholesterol-lowering statins increased within Kaiser Permanente Southern California after new treatment guidelines called for broader use of the medication to treat and prevent cardiovascular disease. The study documented trends in the use of statin medications and statin dosages at Kaiser Permanente Southern ...Read more...Advancing Scientific Discoveries Through the Kaiser Permanente Research Bank
June 19, 2019Ed Ellison, MD, co-Chief Executive Officer, the Permanente Federation, LLC, highlights the value of the Kaiser Permanente Research Bank and the opportunity for Kaiser Permanente members, including employees and physicians, to contribute to important scientific discoveries that benefit all communities. To learn more visit: https://researchbank.kaiserpermanente.org/Read more...Kaiser Permanente improves emergency care for chest-pain patients
April 3, 2019Emergency physicians at Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Southern California reduced hospital admissions and cardiac stress testing by using new criteria to assess the level of risk patients with chest pain have for subsequent cardiac events. The emergency department assessment was implemented across Kaiser Permanente Southern California and has improved the quality and efficiency of care for ...Read more...Kaiser Permanente co-hosts embedded research conference
February 20, 2019Organizations like Kaiser Permanente can make continuous improvements in the quality, safety, and value of patient care and at the same time contribute to scientific knowledge nationally and internationally by embedding researchers in their health care systems. This week, leaders in the movement toward learning health care systems will meet in Pasadena, Calif. to create a ...Read more...Flu vaccine is safe for hospitalized patients
January 18, 2019Hospitalized patients who received the flu vaccine had no increased risk of outpatient visits or hospital readmission within seven days of discharge, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. The study also showed that vaccinating hospital patients did not increase the risk of fever or rates of laboratory evaluations for infection. It ...Read more...