When Washington voters legalized marijuana in 2012, many parents found themselves with a new teachable moment. Though illegal for anyone under 21, the drug presented a dilemma similar to alcohol: Retailers sold it, people openly consumed it — sometimes to excess — and parents themselves struggled with how to talk to their kids about their...
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Infectious diseases: When a kiss is more than a kiss
Often referred to as the “kissing disease,” mononucleosis is a common ailment caused by the Epstein-Barr virus that is transmitted through saliva. Credit: CC0 Public Domain While you can get the virus through kissing, you also can be exposed through a cough or sneeze, or by sharing cups or utensils with someone who is infected....
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How whipworms wreak havoc on the gut
Signaling through interleukin-10 (IL-10) receptors on gut immune cells plays a critical role in protecting the gut lining and microbiota from disruption caused by whipworms, according to a study published January 31 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by María Duque-Correa of the Wellcome Sanger Institute in the UK, and colleagues. The human gut is...
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Study finds patient messages help predict medication adherence
Around two-thirds of patients treated for breast cancer will have had hormone-sensitive tumors and, after their initial treatment, will be advised to undergo hormone therapy for five to 10 years to prevent recurrence. Credit: CC0 Public Domain But around half of these patients will for various reasons decide to discontinue these drugs early and face...
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BD Unveils Nano Pen Needle for Accurate Subcutaneous Insulin Injections
BD is releasing its new Nano pen needle designed for achieving consistent depth during subcutaneous injections, particularly for diabetic patients on insulin. Intramuscular injections can occur when a patient applies too much force to many of the existing injection devices. The new BD Nano compensates for this by spreading the load across the injection site...
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Updated treatment guidelines for atrial fibrillation recommend a new class of blood thinners to help prevent stroke
A newer type of blood-thinning medications, non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs), is now recommended as the preferred alternative to warfarin for reducing the risk of stroke associated with atrial fibrillation (AFib), according to a focused update to the 2014 American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology/Heart Rhythm Society Guideline for the Management of Patients With Atrial...
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Women twice as likely to suffer from severe depression after a stroke
New research today published in the European Journal of Neurology has found that women are twice as likely to suffer from severe depression following a stroke than men. The team of researchers from King’s College London followed the progress of symptoms over five years after stroke onset in 2,313 people (1,275 men and 1,038 women)....
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A Cost-Effectiveness Model for Adjunctive Smoked Cannabis in the Treatment of Chronic Neuropathic Pain
Abstract Background: A recent meta-analysis affirmed the benefit of medicinal cannabis for chronic neuropathic pain, a disabling and difficult-to-treat condition. As medicinal cannabis use is becoming increasingly prevalent among Americans, an exploration of its economic feasibility is warranted. We present this cost-effectiveness analysis of adjunctive cannabis pharmacotherapy for chronic peripheral neuropathy. Materials and Methods: A...
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New Guidelines Steer Doctors Away From Prescribing Warfarin For Atrial Fibrillation
The American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology are no longer recommending the use of the blood-thinning drug warfarin for the treatment of atrial fibrillation. The American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology issued a new guideline that encourages the use of novel oral anticoagulants for patients who suffer from atrial fibrillation....
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Acromegaly: Are You Missing the Signs?
Acromegaly is one of those diseases that immediately caught our attention when we first heard about it in medical school. We stared at the textbook pictures of big hands and coarse faces—maybe a very tall young man photographed next to a person of average height. We were led to believe that although acromegaly is a...