Neonatal intensive care unit works to save the tiniest patients
To Lizet and Francisco Robles’ delight, the ultrasound showed their third child was going to be a girl. After having two boys, the family hoped to round out their family with a daughter. It looked like their wish was going to be granted. “We were excited, and everything was perfectly fine,” said Lizet, who was […]
Trial shows mavacamten effective in nearly 80% of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
Findings from a Cleveland Clinic-led clinical trial showed that the use of an experimental drug in severely symptomatic, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients significantly reduced the need for invasive procedures. The trial evaluated whether the drug, mavacamten, could be used as an alternative to heart surgery or alcohol septal ablation, therapies used to reduce thickening of the […]
Socioeconomic status impacts risk of hospital readmission and death following a heart attack
People living in disadvantaged areas are at increased risk of readmission to hospital and death after a heart attack coinciding with treatment disparities, a new Australian study has found. Researchers from the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute found socioeconomic disadvantage was an important factor when it comes to treatment gaps, with socioeconomic disadvantage associated with […]
Social media break improves mental health, according to a new study
Asking people to stop using social media for just one week could lead to significant improvements in their well-being, depression and anxiety, and could in the future be recommended as a way to help people manage their mental health, say the authors of a new study. The study, carried out by a team of researchers […]
New research confirms that racism in health care settings increases vaccine hesitancy among ethnic minority groups
A new study examining the associations between racial and ethnic discrimination and COVID-19 vaccine refusal has found that 1 in 10 people from ethnic minority groups who refused a vaccine has experienced racial discrimination in a medical setting since the start of the pandemic. They also experienced twice as many incidents of racial discrimination as […]
Vegan diets boost weight loss, lower blood sugar in adults with overweight or type 2 diabetes
A 12-week vegan diet may result in clinically meaningful weight loss and improve blood sugar control in overweight adults and those with type 2 diabetes, according to a meta-analysis of 11 randomized trials involving almost 800 participants (aged 18 or older), being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands (4-7 […]
UK study suggests under 45s and women more likely to gain weight and jump a BMI category during lockdown
New research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands (4-7 May), suggests that most adults in the UK did not lose or gain enough weight following the first pandemic lockdown to change their body mass index (BMI) category, but indicates that young adults (aged 45 years or younger) and […]
Virus found in pig heart used in human transplant
Researchers trying to learn what killed the first person to receive a heart transplant from a pig have discovered the organ harbored an animal virus but cannot yet say if it played any role in the man’s death. A Maryland man, 57-year-old David Bennett Sr., died in March, two months after the groundbreaking experimental transplant. […]
No health benefits among adults who used both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes
People who use both traditional (combustible) cigarettes and e-cigarettes do not reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease compared to people who exclusively use traditional cigarettes, according to new research published today in the American Heart Association’s flagship, peer-reviewed journal Circulation. Traditional cigarette smoking is well-established as contributing to a broad range of serious health conditions. […]
‘Stressed’ cells offer clues to eliminating build-up of toxic proteins in dementia
It’s often said that a little stress can be good for you. Now scientists have shown that the same may be true for cells, uncovering a newly-discovered mechanism that might help prevent the build-up of tangles of proteins commonly seen in dementia. A characteristic of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s—collectively known as neurodegenerative diseases—is […]