by Michael Addelman, University of Manchester A University of Manchester study of tens of thousands of patients in England with type 2 diabetes has shown that 77% of them have at least one other physical or mental health condition. The observational study highlights how some conditions, such as schizophrenia which is 2.4 times more likely...
Month: <span>July 2020</span>
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New app helps doctors to check patients’ jugular venous pressure remotely
by UT Southwestern Medical Center A new report from cardiologists at UT Southwestern raises the hope that doctors will be able to visually check the jugular venous pressure of heart failure patients remotely, using the camera on a smartphone. The finding is especially timely as telemedicine expands during the pandemic. The jugular venous pressure assessment,...
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Contrary to popular claim on social media, RNA vaccines do not alter our DNA
Inaccurate: RNA from a vaccine would not be able to directly alter our DNA, in part because of the chemical differences between the two nucleic acids. RNA also would not persist long enough to cause autoimmunity. Autoimmune diseases are chronic in nature, whereas RNA has a very short lifespan, being quickly degraded after it has...
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Phosphorus: Glowing, Flammable, and Essential to Our Cells
BY ABBEY BIGLER Of the 118 known elements, scientists believe that 25 are essential for human biology. Four of these (hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon) make up a whopping 96 percent of our bodies. The other 21 elements, though needed in smaller quantities, perform fascinating and vital functions. Phosphorus is one such element. It has...
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COVID-19 NEW Update: Diabetes is the Dynamite of Coronavirus? Here’s the Study
Another pandemic is about to rise in the future. But its already taunting the lives of most people around the world. Diabetes, a worldwide-known disease that could affect anyone, has a new update involving the recent pandemic, coronavirus. It turns out that once you are diagnosed with positive COVID-19, there’s a lot of chances that...
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Universal gut microbiome-derived signature predicts cirrhosis
by University of California – San Diego Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide, affecting an estimated one-quarter of the global population. It is a progressive condition that, in worst cases, can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer, liver failure and death. In a new paper published online June...
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Many antibiotic substitutions for self-reported penicillin allergies likely unnecessary
by Brian Burns, Massachusetts General Hospital Hospitalized patients who report an allergy to penicillin are often prescribed alternative antibiotics for infection that can be harmful, even though diagnostic testing or evaluations would show that the vast majority of these reported allergies could be disproven, according to researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital. In a national study...
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‘Brutal Pandemic Reality Check’: Top CDC Official Gives Grim Assessment on Coronavirus Containment
By Andrea Germanos, staff writer CDC principal deputy director Dr. Anne Schuchat said we’re “not even beginning to be over this.” Dr. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during a hearing on “An Emerging Disease Threat: How the...
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Blood test at COVID-19 diagnosis can predict disease severity, study finds
by University of Virginia Doctors can examine COVID-19 patients’ blood to identify those at greatest risk of severe illness and to pinpoint those most likely to need a ventilator, new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine suggests. The discovery could lead to new treatments to prevent deadly “cytokine storms” seen in severe...
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40% of virus carriers in Italian town show no symptoms: study
More than 40 percent of people diagnosed with COVID-19 in one Italian town showed no signs of being ill, according to research published Tuesday indicating that asymptomatic carriers may be significant spreaders of the virus. The authors said their research showed how important mass testing and isolating carriers was in containing clusters of the virus....