Latest Health News

22Feb
2022

Allergic Reaction to Your First COVID Shot? Risk of Another Is Low, Study Finds

Allergic Reaction to Your First COVID Shot? Risk of Another Is Low, Study FindsTUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- So, you had a severe allergic reaction to your first COVID-19 shot. Does that doom you to the same after your second shot?Apparently not, claims a new analysis that found the risk of a second vaccine dose reaction is extremely low.Right now, the recommendation for someone who has had a severe reaction to the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine is to not get another. But among more than 1,300 patients who had a severe allergic reaction to a first jab, nearly 100% tolerated a second shot, the researchers found. By a severe allergic reaction, researchers mean swelling and closing of the airway, called anaphylaxis, which makes it hard to breathe and can be fatal. "Persons who have had an immediate allergic reaction to the first dose of an mRNA...

Sackler Family Sweetens Opioid Settlement Offer

22 February 2022
Sackler Family Sweetens Opioid Settlement OfferTUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- The wealthy Sackler family upped its cash offer to settle thousands of opioid-related lawsuits against the family and their company, Purdue Pharma.Instead of paying out $4.5 billion, the company is now offering $6 billion to settle the slew of lawsuits.But the family still wants all civil claims against them related to Purdue and opioids ended, and a ban on future such claims, according to a mediator's report filed late last week in bankruptcy court, The New York Times reported.Eight states and the District of Columbia refused to sign on to an earlier proposal because of those protections for the Sacklers.In her new mediator report, federal bankruptcy judge Shelley Chapman said that a “supermajority” of those states agreed to the new,...

Newly Diagnosed With A-Fib? Here Are Your Options

22 February 2022
Newly Diagnosed With A-Fib? Here Are Your OptionsTUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- If you've been told you have the heart rhythm disorder known as atrial fibrillation (a-fib), you need to take it seriously, an expert emphasizes."While a-fib itself isn't life-threatening, it can lead to a blood clot forming in the heart," said Dr. Christopher Rogers. He is a cardiac electrophysiologist with Penn State Health Medical Group–Berks Cardiology. "If a blood clot leaves the heart and goes to the brain, it can cause a stroke," he explained in a Penn State news release. Rogers also noted that a-fib "is a progressive disease, and as it advances, it's harder to treat. That's why we recommend people get diagnosed and treated sooner than later." Medications are often the first line of treatment and typically involve blood thinners to...

Should You Use Antibiotic Creams on Your Skin?

22 February 2022
Should You Use Antibiotic Creams on Your Skin?TUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- As winter winds leave your skin dry, cracked and prone to cuts and bleeding, a skin expert says you should resist the urge to use antibiotic creams or ointments.While it might seem sensible to use antibiotic topicals to combat germs and prevent infection with cuts, they can irritate your skin even more and cause a painful and/or itchy rash called contact dermatitis, dermatologist Dr. Marcelyn Coley warned."In addition to causing irritation and a rash, the widespread use of antibiotics -- including in instances when they aren’t needed -- has contributed to a major public health challenge known as antibiotic resistance," Coley said in an American Academy of Dermatology news release."Antibiotic resistance occurs when germs, such as bacteria,...

Sexual Harassment, Assault Tied to High Blood Pressure in Women

22 February 2022
Sexual Harassment, Assault Tied to High Blood Pressure in WomenTUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Sexual assault and workplace sexual harassment may increase women's long-term risk of high blood pressure and heart disease, a new study suggests.High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, which is the leading killer of U.S. women, accounting for one in three deaths.Sexual violence or harassment aren't recognized as risk factors for heart disease, but these findings suggest that screening for them could benefit women's heart health."Reducing sexual violence against women, which is important in its own right, may also provide a strategy for improving women's lifetime cardiovascular health," said study author Rebecca Lawn, a postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.Her team conducted a...

Construction Workers May Bring Toxic Metals Back Home

22 February 2022
Construction Workers May Bring Toxic Metals Back Home TUESDAY, Feb. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Construction workers may bring home more than the bacon -- they may also be exposing their families to toxic metals, a new study reveals.Toxic contaminants unintentionally brought from the workplace into the home are a public health hazard, but the majority of research to date has focused on problems related to lead. Much less is known about take-home exposures to other harmful metals. To learn more, researchers collected and analyzed dust samples from the homes of 27 workers in the greater Boston area. The study focused on construction workers but also included janitorial and auto repair workers. Construction workers had higher levels of lead, arsenic, chromium, copper, manganese, nickel and tin dust in their homes than janitorial and auto...

Early Trial Offers Hope Treating Rare 'Brittle Bone' Disease

21 February 2022
Early Trial Offers Hope Treating Rare `Brittle Bone` DiseaseMONDAY, Feb. 21, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- An experimental drug may help build bone mass in some adults with a rare brittle-bone disease, a small preliminary study suggests.The disease is called osteogenesis imperfecta. It's caused by defects in certain genes involved in making collagen -- a key protein in the body's connective tissue. Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is present at birth, and may leave children with soft bones that are deformed or break easily -- though the severity of the condition ranges widely.While experts have known the culprit genes involved in osteogenesis imperfecta, the new study points to a mechanism in the disease process: overactivity in a protein called TGF-beta.And when the researchers infused eight adult patients with a drug that inhibits the protein, five...

Getting Active Can Keep Those 'Senior Moments' at Bay

21 February 2022
Getting Active Can Keep Those `Senior Moments` at BayMONDAY, Feb. 21, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Want to preserve all those precious memories, including your first kiss and how you felt the first time you got behind the wheel of a car?If you do, start moving: New research shows that when sedentary older adults started to exercise, they showed improvements in episodic memory, or the ability to vividly recall meaningful moments and events.These benefits were most pronounced among folks who weren't experiencing any memory loss yet, but everyone saw some benefit when they exercised consistently several times a week.Episodic memory is the first to show changes in people living with Alzheimer's disease, said Dr. Neelum Aggarwal, a neurologist at Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center in Chicago, who was not involved in the new study. "As episodic...

Does Your Child Have Asthma? Look for the Signs

MONDAY, Feb. 21, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- If you're wondering whether your child may have asthma, there are some tell-tale signs to look for, an expert says.Asthma is the most common chronic...

Poll Finds Most Parents Would Use CBD to Treat a Child...

MONDAY, Feb. 21, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Cannabidiol (CBD) products are wildly popular among older adults for treating chronic pain and anxiety, and a new poll suggests that nearly three-quarters...
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