Latest News

Retirement-planning tool created here

Vickerman & Driscoll seeks to assist clients with online "bucket" system for figuring needed income

March 24, 2011

Spurred by the 2008 financial collapse, Spokane-based Vickerman & Driscoll Financial Advisors Inc. has developed a new retirement planning tool that breaks up post-employment income into a monthly spending plan instead of focusing on a lump-sum can

Financial companies lose trust

Study finds nearly half of those surveyed trust industry less than in '09

March 24, 2011

Despite a U.S. economic recovery from the depths of the financial crisis, nearly half of individual investors trusted financial-services companies less in 2010 than the previous year. Edelman's second annual Trust in U.S. Financial Services that

Community reinvested

Banks pursue lending targets despite declines in loan demand

March 24, 2011

Mike McLean

Though credit is tight and demand for loans is down, bankers here are looking for opportunities to ensure that they provide financial services fairly throughout their communities in accordance with the federal Community Reinvestment Act.The CRA

Antioxidants might cause fertility problems, study suggests

Though typically regarded as healthy, nutrients might interfere with ovulation

March 24, 2011

Typically viewed as healthy, antioxidants might have an unexpected side effect—they may cause fertility problems in women, suggests new research by Professor Nava Dekel and her team, of the Israel-based Weizmann Institute of Science's of a

Coffee linked to decreased risk of stroke in women

Long-term Swedish study shows health benefits for moderate java drinkers

March 24, 2011

Low or no coffee consumption was associated with an increased risk of stroke in a study of 34,670 women, ages 49 to 83, followed for an average just over 10 years. It's too soon to change coffee-drinking habits, but the study should ease the of is

All elderly women should get bone test, group says

Osteoporosis screening also recommended for women with risk factors

March 24, 2011

In an update to its 2002 recommendation, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now recommends that all women ages 65 and older be routinely screened for osteoporosis. The task force also recommends that younger women with increased risk for be

Less invasive hysterectomy procedures on increase here

Trend at Spokane-area hospitals said to climb ahead of national curve

March 24, 2011

Mike McLean

Spokane-area physicians are ahead of the national curve in employing minimally invasive techniques rather than open abdominal surgery when performing hysterectomies, two surgeons here say.About 55 percent of hysterectomies at the four major are

More people survive with, after cancer

11.7 million nationwide live through disease; 54 percent are women

March 24, 2011

The number of cancer survivors in the U.S. increased to 11.7 million in 2007, according to a report released earlier this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Cancer Institute, part of the National Institutes of

The vitamin D debate

More providers monitor nutrient levels in patients; some view supplements skeptically

March 24, 2011

Treva Lind

Vitamin D can help boost bone health. While it's thought to have other health benefits, how much or how little opens up some debate among Inland Northwest health providers.Within the past two years, doctors here have stepped up their screening D

Advancements may boost in-vitro fertilization success rate

Endocrinologist here touts new tests, embryo preservation method

March 24, 2011

Chey Scott

A reproductive endocrinologist here says emerging technologies in the field of reproductive health have the potential to increase live birth rates significantly for women who receive in-vitro fertilization treatments.Dr. Edwin Robins, owner and