-
This new blood test may be the future of detecting concussions
Lynn Hetzler Sports & FitnessDoctors, healthcare providers and even coaches may someday use a simple blood test to detect concussions in children, according to a new study in Academic Emergency Medicine. Concussion and traumatic brain injuries are a common, yet serious problem in the pediatric population. Hospitals treat about a quarter-million children for concussions and other traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) each year.
-
Exposure to sunlight may be key to avoiding winter’s seasonal colds
Dr. Denise A. Valenti Medical & Allied HealthcareFor most of us, the shorter days of winter bring an increased risk of health problems. Now, a group of researchers has found a genetic marker throughout the population worldwide that is partially responsible for the seasonal winter increases in health problems.
-
Stroke and stress: Women at greater risk
Dr. Denise A. Valenti Medical & Allied HealthcareAccording to two new studies, females working in high-stress jobs with low levels of control have a greater risk for stroke, and being female is also a risk factor for the stroke diagnosis to be missed by an emergency room provider. As if life was not stressful enough for women.
-
Study: Link between income and organ transplant access for the wealthy
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareWealthy people appear to have an edge when it comes to organ transplants, according to research presented last month at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2015. How is this true? Because these well-off patients register with more than one transplant center.
-
Rural telehealth gets another boost from the USDA
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationThe United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is expanding its Rural Development Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program — a surprising place for health IT innovation. The program, which began in 2009, will pump another $23.4 million in additional funding for 75 new projects in 31 states, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said in the announcement.
-
The absence of positive thoughts during depression
Dorothy L. Tengler Mental HealthcarePeople with depression or healthy people with a depressed mood can be affected by depressive thoughts. However, according to a recent study, depressive thoughts are maintained for longer periods of time for people with a depressed mood, and this extended duration may reduce the amount of information that these individuals can hold in their memory. Although it has been known that negative thoughts tend to last longer for those with depression, this study is unique in showing that these thoughts, triggered from stimuli in the environment, can persist to the point that they hinder a depressed person's ability to keep their train of thought.
-
Should pharmacists prescribe contraceptives?
Jason Poquette PharmaceuticalIf you had to guess the number of unintended pregnancies each year, what would you say? Ten thousand? One hundred thousand? Five hundred thousand? The number is actually more like 3 million unintended pregnancies per year in our country. That’s a staggering number, and amounts to about 50 percent of all pregnancies in the U.S. Wasn’t the discovery and development of "the pill" supposed to change all this?
-
Aortic valve replacement: Mechanical or biological?
Dorothy L. Tengler Medical & Allied HealthcareHeart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, killing more than 600,000 Americans each year, and more than 5 million Americans are diagnosed with heart valve disease each year. Heart valve disease can occur in any single valve or a combination of the four valves, but diseases of the aortic and mitral valves are the most common. Replacement of diseased valves with prosthetic heart valves reduces the morbidity and mortality associated with native valvular disease, but it comes at the expense of complications related to the implanted prosthetic device.
-
How 3-D-printed blood vessels may help organ transplantation
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareTransplant surgeons need more than simply a mass of cells — they need vessel inlets and outlets that they can connect directly to arteries and veins. One of the largest hurdles scientists face when engineering livers, kidneys or other large artificial tissues is keeping the cells alive.
-
Evidence grows in linking loss of smell to dementia
Dr. Denise A. Valenti Medical & Allied HealthcareA reduced ability to detect odors has been shown to be an indicator of risk for the development of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. A recently published study in JAMA Neurology lends further proof to these findings.
All Medical & Allied Healthcare Articles