by Adam Pope, University of Alabama at Birmingham New research published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicinefrom the University of Alabama at Birmingham shows that video telehealth pulmonary rehabilitation interventions reduce 30-day all-cause readmission rates following hospitalization for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation. COPD includes a group of diseases, like emphysema and chronic bronchitis, that cause airflow obstruction and breathing-related problems....
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Lung cancer under-recognized in people who have never smoked
A group of respiratory medicine and public health experts are calling for lung cancer in never-smokers to be given greater recognition. Writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, they say that lung cancer in people who have never smoked is under recognized and presents a diagnostic challenge, particularly for GPs seeking to balance over-investigation with early diagnosis...
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Paying pharmacists for consultations about vaccines would actually save a lot of money
Pharmacists are underused resources in the healthcare system. Despite going through extensive training they are commonly working pretty much as cashiers, while they have enough knowledge to provide consultations. For example, now scientists from the University of Waterloo found that a small fee of $15 could significantly boost vaccine rates, prevent approximately 2,400 influenza cases in Ontario,...
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Circadian rhythm plays a part in weight loss
By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MD Weight watchers worldwide need to not only be careful about what to eat but also about the timing of the food intake finds a new study. The study is published in the latest issue of the journal Cell and is titled, “Insulin/IGF-1 drives PERIOD synthesis to entrain circadian rhythms with feeding...
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A spoonful of peppermint helps the meal go down
by Medical University of South Carolina Imagine that while eating a delicious meal at your favorite restaurant, your joy is cut short because of difficulty swallowing your food, followed by chest pain. If you go see a doctor about these symptoms, and there is no evidence of a cardiac cause of the chest pain, you could be diagnosed as having...
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Dapagliflozin improves glucose outcomes in type 1 diabetes
Chantal Mathieu, M.D., PhD., from the University of Leuven in Belgium, and colleagues assessed continuous glucose monitoring in patients with inadequately controlled type 1 diabetes (hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c] ≥7.7 to ≤11 percent) who received dapagliflozin as an adjunct to adjustable insulin as part of two phase 3 clinical trials. Pooled data included 1,591 patients receiving dapagliflozin 5 mg (530 patients), dapagliflozin 10 mg (529), or placebo (532). The...
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Newfound autoimmune syndrome causes muscle pain, weakness
by Tamara Bhandari, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis A previously unknown autoimmune muscle disease involving sudden onset of debilitating muscle pain and weakness has been identified by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The syndrome easily could be mistaken for other muscle diseases that require different treatment, so the findings are expected to help physicians treat patients appropriately, the researchers said....
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Benlysta approved for children with lupus
(HealthDay)—The intravenous drug Benlysta (belimumab) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat children with lupus, a chronic disease that triggers inflammation and damages tissues and organs throughout the body. Approved for adults since 2011, Benlysta is the first lupus treatment in the United States approved for children, the agency said in a news release. “While there is no cure for lupus, treatment can help our youngest...
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Earlier detection of diabetic retinopathy with smartphone AI
by Shelley Zalewski, University of Michigan A novel pairing of two technologies may offer a solution for better screening for diabetic retinopathy, a condition that can lead to permanent vision loss if not caught early. At the 2019 annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, researchers at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center...
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Giant Cell Arteritis and Polymyalgia Rheumatica
By Dr. Liji Thomas, MD Reviewed by Dr. Jennifer Logan, MD, MPH Giant cell arteritis (GCA), along with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), are autoimmune disorders involving the medium and large arteries which have muscular walls and vasa vasorum in their adventitial coats. What is GCA? GCA is one form of vascular inflammatory disorder that affects the large aortic branches, especially those of the carotid...