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THURSDAY, April 30, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The coronavirus pandemic has put a spotlight on the sacrifices of America's health care workers, yet many of them live in poverty and can't afford health insurance. A new study finds that more than 600,000 health care workers are poor and potentially without insurance or paid sick leave, and up to 4 million have health problems that put them at risk of dying from COVID-19. "It's nice that politicians want to label health care workers heroes and that people are going out and banging pots for them. That's clearly raising people's morale. But it also is important to make sure they -- and everyone else in the country -- has health insurance and decent wages and sick leave when they need it," said lead researcher Dr. David Himmelstein. He's a...

THURSDAY, April 30, 2020 (American Heart Association News) -- Mothers who have high blood pressure are more likely to have babies with slightly different-shaped hearts, a finding that could impact future cardiovascular care for those women and their children, according to a new study. The research, published Thursday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, adds a new layer of understanding to how pregnancy complications affect prenatal and postnatal heart health. Past studies have shown premature birth and low birth weight may affect how an infant's heart forms. The new research looked at the prenatal experience – whether high blood pressure, also called hypertension, among pregnant women also might affect the shape of babies' hearts. Researchers from the United Kingdom...

THURSDAY, April 30, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Stress placed on the heart by COVID-19, a hesitancy by people to call 911, and even reluctance on the part of bystanders to perform CPR may be boosting rates of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, a new report finds. The data comes from four provinces in northern Italy, a region that was hit very hard and very early by the coronavirus pandemic. The researchers said that between Feb. 21 and March 31, 2020, there was a 58% jump in the number of cardiac arrests that occurred before victims could get to the hospital, compared to the same time frame last year. In more than three-quarters of the cases, COVID-19 was diagnosed in the affected patients, said a team led by Dr. Enrico Baldi, of the University of Pavia. His team reported their findings...

THURSDAY, April 30, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The coronavirus pandemic has led many older adults to postpone medical care, a new survey finds. The University of Chicago survey found that 55% of U.S. adults aged 70 and older experienced a disruption in their medical care during the first month of social distancing. Thirty-nine percent put off non-essential care and 32% delayed primary or preventive care since social distancing began. And 15% said they delayed or canceled essential medical treatment, the survey found. "The first month of social distancing in America certainly saved lives, and yet it also created a situation where many older adults are not getting the care they need to manage serious health conditions," said Dr. Bruce Chernof. He is president and CEO of the SCAN...