Latest Health News

20Jul
2022

Common Lung Function Test Often Misses Emphysema in Black Patients

Common Lung Function Test Often Misses Emphysema in Black PatientsWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- The most common test of lung function, spirometry, probably is not detecting signs of emphysema in some people with the lung ailment, a new study says.In particular, Black men are at greater risk of suffering from undiagnosed emphysema, since the way spirometry results are interpreted appears to "normalize" their bad lung function, said lead researcher Dr. Gabrielle Liu, an instructor of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.The equations used to analyze spirometry results "incorporate race, and they basically normalize having a lower lung function if you're a Black adult compared to a white adult," Liu said.A spirometry test measures how much air you can breathe in and out of...

Regular Screening Pays Off for People at High Risk for...

20 July 2022
Regular Screening Pays Off for People at High Risk for Pancreatic CancerWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Pancreatic cancer often has a dismal prognosis, but a new study finds that screening high-risk people can catch the disease early and extend lives.Researchers at eight U.S. medical centers found that annual screening tests paid off for patients at high risk of pancreatic cancer due to genetics. Of those diagnosed with the cancer through screening, most had it caught at an early stage, and more than 70% were still alive five years later.That's a significant achievement, researchers said, in a disease as deadly as pancreatic cancer. Even with some treatment advances in recent years, only about 10% of patients survive for five years.That's largely because pancreatic cancer is hard to catch early, and most people are diagnosed only after it has...

AHA News: Rethink What You Thought You Knew About...

20 July 2022
AHA News: Rethink What You Thought You Knew About COVID-19 ReinfectionWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (American Heart Association News) -- Forget what you thought you knew about catching COVID-19 more than once. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, keeps evolving – and so has information about your risk of being reinfected."Two years ago, we thought if you had COVID once that you would never get it again," said Dr. Preeti Malani, an infectious disease physician at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. But especially with the variants that have become dominant in the U.S. this summer, that thinking no longer holds.When it emerged last November, the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 showed an ability to reinfect people who'd had earlier versions of the virus. This summer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the omicron subvariants...

Weather and Arthritis: Is There Really a Connection?

20 July 2022
Weather and Arthritis: Is There Really a Connection?WEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) – It’s long been conventional wisdom that weather makes arthritis pain worse. The issue has been studied through the years, with conflicting findings. But three recent studies found weather does have some impact, said Dr. Robert Shmerling, writing for the Harvard Health Blog.In one study with 222 participants who had arthritis of the hip, researchers from The Netherlands found that patients reported slightly worse pain and stiffness as barometric pressure and humidity rose, but the weather effect was small. Another study looked at weather-related symptoms among 800 European adults with arthritis of the hip, knee or hands. They reported increasing pain and stiffness with higher humidity, especially in cold weather. In general, changes in...

COVID Often Joined by Heart Disease, Diabetes

20 July 2022
COVID Often Joined by Heart Disease, DiabetesWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- In a mix of bad and good news, a new large study confirms that COVID can raise the risks of new-onset heart trouble and diabetes -- though those threats typically wane again after a few months.The study, of nearly 430,000 British COVID patients, found that the risks of suffering a blood clot or heartbeat irregularity shot up substantially for a month post-infection. After that, the heart risks dropped sharply, but remained somewhat elevated for another two months.A slightly different pattern was seen with diabetes: New diagnoses rose in the month after a COVID diagnosis, then declined gradually over the next two months before returning to normal.Experts said the findings confirm what's been known about the potential consequences of COVID --...

U.S. Hospitals Are Getting Safer for Patients, Study Finds

20 July 2022
U.S. Hospitals Are Getting Safer for Patients, Study FindsWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. hospitals became much safer places for patients over the past decade, with medical errors and adverse events declining significantly across the nation, federal government data show.Between 2010 and 2019, patient safety dramatically improved among the four types of conditions for which people are most often hospitalized: heart attacks, heart failure, pneumonia and major surgical procedures.People hospitalized for those problems became less likely to suffer from medication errors, hospital-acquired infections, procedure-related adverse events, pressure ulcers from being bedridden, or serious falls that cause injury, researchers found.“There has been a precipitous, very important drop in the number of these events, which to me validates...

Lonely Childhoods Make Adult Drinking Problems More Likely

20 July 2022
Lonely Childhoods Make Adult Drinking Problems More LikelyWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Having friends in childhood may help keep you clean and sober as a young adult, new research suggests.Researchers from Arizona State University (ASU) interviewed more than 300 college students who participated in assessments that focused on childhood loneliness, stress levels and drinking behaviors. The results determined there was a link between feelings of loneliness in their pre-adolescent years and current drinking and stress levels."In young adults, childhood loneliness before age 12 was associated with perceived stress right now and affected dysregulated drinking," said study author Julie Patock-Peckham, an assistant research professor in ASU's Department of Psychology.The research predicts a grim future as alcohol usage continues to...

Does Your Loved One Have an Eating Disorder? Look for These 7 Signs

20 July 2022
Does Your Loved One Have an Eating Disorder? Look for These 7 SignsWEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Roughly 30 million Americans have an eating disorder in their lifetime, and calls to a nationwide support group have surged during the COVID-19 pandemic.Between March 2020 and October 2021, the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) recorded a 58% increase in calls, texts and emails seeking help. Behind opioid addiction, eating disorders have the second highest risk of death of any mental illness — claiming about 10,200 lives a year in the United States.But would you know how to recognize if you or someone you love needs help? Most people who have an eating disorder never receive treatment, according to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health.And once someone begins displaying the more common characteristics of an eating...

Rehab: What to Expect After Your Knee Replacement

WEDNESDAY, July 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Most people who have had a knee replacement would agree that the procedure brings relief from pain.And following a comprehensive rehabilitation plan...

Fatal Drug ODs Are Soaring, Especially Among Minorities: CDC

TUESDAY, July 19, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- The nation's opioid epidemic is hitting minority groups the hardest, with the latest government study reporting the steepest increases in overdose deaths...
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