Latest Health News

23Jan
2020

Prescription-Strength Steroid Creams Sold Over-the-Counter Can Be Dangerous

Prescription-Strength Steroid Creams Sold Over-the-Counter Can Be DangerousTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Rubbing cream into your skin to calm an itchy rash may seem harmless, but not all topical anti-itch formulas are created equal. "People don't understand the potential dangers of prescription-strength steroid creams," said Dr. Lawrence Green, clinical professor of dermatology at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Hydrocortisone -- a topical steroid often used to treat a rash or allergic reaction -- is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for over-the-counter use in a potency greater than 1%. But in some stores it is easy to obtain without a prescription, a new study warns. The researchers found illegal corticosteroid creams at dozens of stores nationwide that specialize in foreign imports. For the study, the...

Blacks, Hispanics More Likely to Have Better Outcome...

23 January 2020
Blacks, Hispanics More Likely to Have Better Outcome After `Bleeding` StrokeTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- After a hemorrhagic stroke, often called a "bleeding" stroke, young black and Hispanic people are less likely than white people to be disabled or die within the following three months, a new study finds. Hemorrhagic strokes occur when a blood vessel ruptures, causing bleeding in the brain. This type of stroke is less common than ones caused by blood clots, but harder to treat and more often fatal. "Our study found that even when you account for factors that affect outcomes -- such as how big the stroke is -- race and ethnicity were still independent predictors of how well people would recover," said lead author Dr. Daniel Woo. He's associate director of University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Research in Ohio. For the study, Woo's team...

Racism Linked to Faster Aging Among Blacks

23 January 2020
Racism Linked to Faster Aging Among BlacksTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The racism black Americans face may age them prematurely, a new study suggests. This aging is occurring at the cellular level -- specifically, the shortening of telomeres, researchers say. Telomeres are the repetitive sequences of DNA that sit at the tips of your chromosomes -- like the plastic caps at the ends of a shoelace -- and help keep the chromosomes from fraying. Telomeres shorten with age -- and with stress. Shorter telomeres are linked to an increased risk of developing heart disease, stroke, diabetes and dementia. "One of the factors that can lead to more rapid telomere shortening is high levels of stress," said researcher Dr. David Chae, an associate professor at Auburn University in Alabama. "Racial discrimination is a...

Largest-Ever Study Ties Over 100 Genes to Autism

23 January 2020
Largest-Ever Study Ties Over 100 Genes to AutismTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- More than 100 genes appear to be involved in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), according to the largest genetic study of the condition to date. The study, involving over 50 centers around the globe, identified 102 genes associated with ASD -- including a few dozen that had not been recognized before. Some of the genes are also associated with intellectual disabilities and developmental delays, the researchers said. But others are unique to ASD, and appear related to the social difficulties that mark the disorder. Knowing the genes involved in ASD will help researchers better understand the causes and possibly develop new drug therapies for children with severe impairments, said senior researcher Joseph Buxbaum. "Autism exists on a...

Scientists Trace Coronavirus Outbreak to Snakes

23 January 2020
Scientists Trace Coronavirus Outbreak to SnakesTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Snakes may be the source of the new coronavirus outbreak in humans that started in China and has spread to other countries. Patients who became infected with the virus -- named 2019-nCoV by the World Health Organization -- were exposed to wildlife at a wholesale market where seafood, poultry, snakes, bats and farm animals were sold, researchers report. The Chinese scientists, led by Wei Ji, from the Department of Microbiology at Peking University Health Science Center School of Basic Medical Sciences in Beijing, conducted a detailed genetic analysis of the virus. They concluded that it appears to have formed from a combination of a coronavirus found in bats and another coronavirus of unknown origin. The mystery coronavirus developed a mix...

AHA News: What's Blood Type Got to Do With Clot Risk?

23 January 2020
AHA News: What`s Blood Type Got to Do With Clot Risk?THURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (American Heart Association News) -- People with blood types A and B may have higher risks for developing dangerous blood clots compared to people who have type O blood. That's according to new research that also showed a slightly higher risk for certain types of heart disease among the A and B groups. Past research has shown a likely link between heart disease and the ABO gene that exists in people with A, B or AB blood types, but not in people with type O blood. A 2017 preliminary study showed people with the ABO gene are at higher risk of heart attack during periods of heavy air pollution. The new study of more than 400,000 people published Thursday in the American Heart Association journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. Researchers...

The Damage of Vaccine Misinformation

23 January 2020
The Damage of Vaccine MisinformationTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- An examination of vaccination trends in Denmark shows just how damaging vaccine misinformation can be. From 2013 to 2016, negative information about the HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine spread widely through Danish media outlets. As a result, thousands of girls did not receive the vaccine. For the study, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill looked at four different time periods to study HPV vaccination rates in Denmark: the vaccine reaching uptake levels of other vaccines (2009); beginning of negative media information on the vaccine (2013); widespread negative media coverage (2015), and a national campaign to assure the public about the vaccine's safety (2017-2019). They found that after the misinformation...

Rare Disease Put This Young Mom in a Coma for 7 Months

23 January 2020
Rare Disease Put This Young Mom in a Coma for 7 MonthsTHURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Kertisha Brabson's mom rushed to the hospital after being told her adult daughter was acting out of her mind. "She was talking out of her head, dancing like she was at a concert," recalls Kertease Williams. "She was trying to get out of the room. They had to have a nurse in her room around the clock because she would try to leave." Neither woman could know it, but this incident in September 2018 was the start of an ordeal that would leave Brabson in a coma for seven months. Doctors thought she was brain-dead. Brabson, now 31, had anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. This is a rare disease in which the immune system attacks the brain and disrupts normal brain signaling. It first affected her ability to think clearly, but soon she was suffering...

New Clues Show How Stress May Turn Your Hair Gray

THURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The next time you tell your rebellious teenagers that their antics are giving you gray hair, know that the latest animal research seems to confirm your...

Health Tip: Warning Signs of Drowsy Driving

(HealthDay News) -- Drowsy driving was responsible for more than 72,000 vehicle crashes in 2013, according to the most recent statistics available from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and...
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