It’s becoming well established that maternal stress during pregnancy can affect fetal and child development as well as birth outcomes, and a new study from researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian now identifies the types of physical and psychological stress that may matter most. The study was published online
Clinical Trials & Research
After years and decades in which healthcare providers were freely prescribing opioids for all sorts of painful conditions, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published guidelines to help bring down opioid prescription rates and with them, addiction and overdose-related death rates. Though these were not binding, they urged physicians to be cautious
Even successful methods for diagnosing, treating and caring for people who are suffering from cancer are not enough without effective, practical tools and guidance for putting those methods into practice. To bridge this gap between cancer interventions and their implementation within communities across the country, the National Institute of Health’s National Cancer Institute is funding
Food insecurity is linked to higher disease rates but not much is known about the reasons for this. A new study of more than 10,000 Canadian households shows that this connection may be at least partially attributed to lack of access to prescription medication. “We knew that negative health outcomes are associated with food insecurity.
Move over, salamanders, we humans can also regrow some of our body tissues. At least, this is what a new study published on October 9, 2019, in the journal Science Advances, reports. Using a mechanism quite similar to that by which amphibians like salamanders, and some zebrafish, grow back lost body parts, human joint cartilage
VCU Health, the major Richmond medical system that includes the state’s largest teaching hospital, said it will no longer file lawsuits against its patients, ending a practice that has affected tens of thousands of people over the years. VCU’s in-house physician group filed more than 56,000 lawsuits against patients for $81 million over the seven
A study shows that MedSafer, an electronic decision-support tool developed by RI-MUHC researchers, helps reduce inappropriate medications prescribed to the elderly The elderly are often prescribed multiple medications for different health conditions. While some medications are needed, polypharmacy and medication overload can be costly and even harmful. However, reducing the number of potentially inappropriate medications
Elevated blood pressure or gestational hypertension in pregnant mothers can lead to a multitude of complications that can affect the baby. In severe cases, pregnant mothers can develop preeclampsia, a sudden increase in blood pressure after the 20th week of pregnancy. Preeclampsia may pose a serious threat to the mother and her baby. It includes
The identification of oncogenic mutations has provided further insights into the tumorigenesis of meningioma and the possibility of targeted therapy. Interestingly, the authors identified a number of mutations in non-NF2 genes, including a hotspot TERTp c. 124: G > A mutation that may be related to poor prognosis and FGFR3 mutations that may represent biomarkers
Pulmonary embolism (PE), a blood clot lodged in one of the pulmonary arteries in the lungs, is the third leading cause of cardiovascular-related death in the United States. While most patients are treated with anticoagulants (commonly known as blood thinners), the use of novel interventional devices that remove or dissolve clots in the lungs has
Cancer cells – especially the more aggressive ones – seem to have an ability to change. It’s how they evade treatment and spread throughout the body. But how does a cancer cell get the energy it needs to do this? “We wondered if a cancer cell that wants to change its function can redirect energy
Transgender people who are also racial and ethnic minorities have a difficult time finding a health care setting where all aspects of their identity are welcome, understood and addressed. In a new study published in the October issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, a research team from the University of Chicago Medicine shows
When we first purchase a smart phone, all of our settings and applications are the same. But as time passes, everyone’s phones will change drastically as we adapt them to our own individual needs and preferences. In the same way, our memories and life experiences are loaded into our brains, making one person unique from
Oct 1 2019 Kayla and Lance Edwards are excited to publicly announce the birth of their daughter Indy Pearl Edwards through a landmark uterus transplant clinical trial at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, a part of Baylor Scott & White Health. “Lance and I are overjoyed to announce the birth of our miracle daughter,
A recent study concludes that medical research papers often do not describe placebos adequately. The authors believe that this could cause underreporting of harms and overreporting of benefits. A new study underlines the importance of explaining placebos more thoroughly. To find out whether a drug or medical intervention works, researchers must pit it against a
Virginia Commonwealth University has been awarded a $50 million federal grant to oversee a national research consortium of universities, hospitals and clinics that will study the long-term impacts of mild traumatic brain injuries or concussions on service members and veterans. The principal investigator on the grant is David X. Cifu, M.D., professor and chair of
A study led by UCLA researchers found that adding ribociclib, a targeted therapy drug, to standard hormone therapy has been shown to significantly improve overall survival in postmenopausal women with advanced hormone-receptor positive/HER2- breast cancer, one of the most common forms of the disease. The results were presented during the press briefing and the Presidential
Most states reimburse less for spinal surgery in Medicaid patients, compared to Medicare reimbursement for the same procedures, reports a study in Spine. The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer. Led by David S. Casper, MD, of the Rothman Institute at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, the study shows disparities between
In a new study, Biodesign researchers reveal that a lifelong dietary regimen of choline holds the potential to prevent Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Choline is a safe and easy-to-administer nutrient that is naturally present in some foods and can be used as a dietary supplement. Lead author Ramon Velazquez and his colleagues at the ASU-Banner Neurodegenerative
Whole breast radiation and partial breast radiation following a lumpectomy yield similar cosmetic outcomes for women diagnosed with early stages of cancer who wish to preserve their breasts. Findings of the new analysis from a phase III clinical trial were presented at the 61st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Partial
Using a new technique that can identify genetic profiles of individual cells, University of Notre Dame researchers modeled a breast cancer tumor’s potential resistance to a drug, and then identified a drug combination that reversed that resistance. Siyuan Zhang, the Dee Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at Notre Dame, and his team used a new
The cells of our immune system constantly communicate with one another by exchanging complex protein molecules. A team led by researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now revealed how dedicated cellular control proteins, referred to as chaperones, detect immature immune signaling proteins and prevent them from leaving the cell. The body’s defenses
A new imaging study of the mummified arteries of people who lived thousands of years ago revealed that their arteries were more clogged than originally thought, according to a proof-of-concept study led by a researcher with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). It is in the October print edition of the
Five innovative cancer-fighting projects at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) received just over $11 million during the latest round of grants awarded by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). Four of the grants were awarded to scientists at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth for research and a
Depression is the most common psychiatric comorbidity in people with epilepsy. Clinical studies have found that 20% to 30% of people with epilepsy have depression; the incidence may be as high as 50% to 55% in people visiting hospital epilepsy centers. Untreated depression is associated with lower quality of life, poor treatment adherence, higher health
Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a vaccine to protect against genital herpes. Tested on both mice and guinea pigs, the immunization led to “mostly sterilizing immunity” from the virus–the strongest type of immunity. The results of the study are published today in Science Immunology. In the
About one in three diabetic patients develops diabetic retinopathy (DR), which can impair vision and lead to blindness. A new study in The American Journal of Pathology, published by Elsevier, provides clear evidence that high glucose increases the levels of enzymatic precursor—lysyl oxidase propeptide (LOX-PP)—that promotes cell death, which was verified in an animal model
Researchers keep on developing new drugs to fight cancer, and while some are indeed effective, others never fulfill their promise. A new study now explains why many cancer drugs may not work in the way their developers think they do. But within the problem also lies the solution. A new study finds that many new