Smart phone applications will enable the mobile health industry to reach out to 500 million of a total 1.4 billion smart phone users worldwide in 2015, according to a report from mobile market research firm research2guidance.

Austin Regional Clinic, a multispecialty healthcare group in Austin, Texas, has implemented Webmedxs suite of clinical documentation technology and services across all 18 of its clinic locations.

Endosonography performed better than traditional surgical staging in detecting nodal metastases in patients with lung cancer, while combining both procedures improved sensitivity to 94 percent and cut unnecessary thoracotomies by half, according to a study published Nov. 24 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The costs of medical services vary among countries, but the U.S. sees the highest expenses, according to a report evaluating the annual medical cost per services throughout 12 countries, released by the International Federation of Health Plans (IFHP).

The California Department of Public Health has assessed six California hospitals and one nursing home administrative penalties and fines totaling $792,500 after a determination that the facilities failed to prevent unauthorized access to confidential patient medical information.

Healthmed Services has launched HealthTrac, a web-based, open-source practice management tool for hospitals and physicians.

Boston Scientific is set to make headway in the aortic valve market by entering into a definitive agreement to purchase Sadra Medical for $225 million.

Elsevier has developed an iPhone App for First Consult, an online clinical information resource.