Articles Posted by ConservativeMind
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Managing a stroke victim's blood sugar levels after they receive powerful clot-busting drugs might help them survive their health crisis, a new trial finds. People with high blood sugar levels were more likely to suffer a potentially deadly brain bleed after clot-busters reopened their blocked brain arteries, researchers found. The risk was particularly high in older patients with more severe strokes. "These data suggest that more focus and research is needed on the management of high blood sugar in the treatment of stroke patients, particularly those with higher risk, more severe strokes," said Dr. Andrew Southerland. For the study, researchers...
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Researchers from the University of Cologne have found a new use for cnicin, a substance produced in blessed thistle. Blessed thistle (Cnicus benedictus) is a plant in the family Asteraceae and also grows in our climate. For centuries, it has been used as a medicinal herb as an extract or tea, e.g. to aid the digestive system. Researchers at the Center for Pharmacology of University Hospital Cologne and at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Cologne have now found a completely novel use for cnicin under the direction of Dr. Philipp Gobrecht and Professor Dr. Dietmar Fischer. Animal...
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Keeping blood pressure under control could be crucial for women in preventing uterine fibroids, new research shows. Middle-aged women tracked for up to 17 years in a new study were 37% less likely to develop these painful growths if they treated their high blood pressure with medication. On the other hand, "patients with new-onset hypertension had a 45% increased risk of newly reported fibroids," said a team led by Susannah Mitro. As outlined in the study, uterine fibroids are benign but painful tumors that arise in the uterus and affect up to 80% of women by the age of 50....
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A team of researchers is uncovering how the juice from red cabbage, long used in traditional medicine, can alleviate inflammation-associated digestive health conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in mice, offering hope to Americans who suffer from IBD, including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Santayana Rachagani's team found red cabbage juice boasts a diverse array of bioactive compounds that improved gut health and alleviated the symptoms of IBD in mice. "Red cabbage juice alters the composition of gut microbiota by increasing the abundance of good bacteria, resulting in increased production of short chain fatty acids and other bacteria derived...
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After the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) in 2002, many women have resisted taking hormone therapy (HT), especially after age 65 years, because of fears of increased risks for various cancers and heart disease. A new study shows that those fears may be unfounded, depending on the type, route, and dose of HT. A new large-scale study based on the records of 10 million senior Medicare women from 2007 to 2020, however, suggests that the implications of HT use beyond age 65 years vary by type, route, and dose. These findings are in line with the 2022 HT Position Statement of...
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A study shows that a non-invasive imaging test can help identify patients with coronary artery blockage or narrowing who need a revascularization procedure. Doctors use coronary CT angiography (CTA) to diagnose narrowed or blocked arteries in the heart. A CTA exam receives a score from mild (0–1) to severe (4–5). Patients with scores above 3 typically require medical treatments. Doctors have traditionally relied on invasive coronary angiography to image vessels and more recently have added fractional flow reserve (FFR) to identify and assess significant blockages. To assess CT-FFR, Dr. Randhawa conducted a retrospective study of patients who underwent coronary CTA...
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Scientists have discovered that a type of fat accumulates as tissue ages and that this accumulation can be reversed through exercise. Researchers analyzed both mice and human tissue before and after exercise allowing them to draw this conclusion. "The idea that we could reverse aging is something that was long considered science fiction, but these findings do allow us to understand a lot more about the aging process," says Riekelt Houtkooper. "Everyone says that 'it's just part of getting older,' but this doesn't actually have to be true," says Georges Janssens. In recent years, laboratory research has shown that we...
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Metformin is a widely prescribed drug for managing type 2 diabetes. In recent years, indications of its potential anticancer properties have emerged in research. A study has found that metformin activates the body's immune cells. The effect was particularly observed in what are known as dendritic cells, which are the most effective in helping the immune system identify cancer cells as foreign entities. "Our study found that metformin contributed to the metabolism of dendritic cells so that they became active and enhanced the immune response against cancer cells," says Rita Turpin. Identifying this effect can help to develop anticancer therapies...
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Combining a low dose of blood pressure medication with a higher intake of dietary-resistant starch might help stave off diabetic kidney disease, according to results from a new animal study. "Our study suggests that combining dietary interventions with a low dose of established medications for diabetic kidney disease management can provide a more feasible and lower side-effect alternative for patients to implement and improve their health outcomes by helping maintain their kidney integrity," said Claudia Carrillo. Dietary-resistant starch is found in unripe bananas, cooked and cooled potatoes, legumes and whole grains. This type of carbohydrate ferments in the large intestine,...
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Previous studies have questioned whether gut microbe imbalances and vitamin D deficiency may be linked to schizophrenia. New research published in Neuropsychopharmacology Reports now indicates that taking probiotics plus vitamin D supplements may improve cognitive function in individuals with the disease. For the study, 70 adults with schizophrenia were randomized to take a placebo or probiotic supplements plus 400 IU vitamin D daily for 12 weeks. Severity of the disease and cognitive function were evaluated by tests called the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the 30-point Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), respectively. A total of 69 patients completed the...
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Removal of armpit lymph nodes can leave many breast cancer patients with lingering lymphedema, a painful and unsightly swelling of the arm. It's long been known that if a breast cancer has extensively spread within the lymph nodes, removing those nodes is the patient's only recourse. …To help clarify things for patients with such findings, de Boniface and colleagues tracked outcomes for nearly 2,800 breast cancer patients from five countries. All had metastases that were larger than 2 millimeters in one or two of their sentinel nodes. About half of the group were randomly chosen to undergo more complete armpit...
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Regular aerobic exercise later in life prevents genomic instability characterized by DNA damage and telomere dysfunction, according to a study. "These new findings will greatly impact our understanding of the mechanisms of how aerobic exercise improves vascular health at the level of genomic stability," says Jisok Lim, Ph.D. Late-life exercise used to be thought of as ineffective. However, existing studies indicate aerobic exercise later in life lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease-related mortality. Yet, specific factors contributing to this effect have not been completely understood. Researchers examined whether regular exercise with aging may prevent DNA damage and telomere dysfunction. Telomeres...
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The average pain trajectories after shoulder surgery vary with different analgesic interventions, according to research. Sheila Gokul, M.D. and colleagues examined average pain trajectories with different analgesic interventions for 48 hours after shoulder surgery in a systematic review of randomized controlled trials and cohort studies assessing pain scores according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Data were included from 74 studies, with 4,676 patients. The researchers identified three main treatment groups: continuous nerve block (CNB), single shot nerve block (SSNB), and conventional analgesia (CA). At 12 hours postoperatively after all shoulder surgeries, pain scores differed...
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Labor induction with vaginal misoprostol during childbirth achieves vaginal delivery rates similar to the oral alternative while significantly reducing the need for oxytocin, the most commonly used labor-inducing drug, researchers report. The findings highlight the potential benefits of standardized labor management to provide safer, more streamlined induction methods for women at term. This research addresses a long-standing challenge in obstetrics, where a lack of standard guidelines often leaves induction decisions dependent on variables such as professional expertise, institutional environment, and patient-specific considerations. "Obstetricians have very little high-quality evidence to guide the practice of labor induction," said Emily Adhikari, M.D. Studying...
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Half of all patients discharged from hospital after a heart attack are treated with beta-blockers unnecessarily. This is according to a new study. Today, when patients are discharged from hospitals after an acute heart attack, they are regularly treated with beta-blocker drugs such as metoprolol and bisoprolol. Now new research shows that about half of them do not benefit from the treatment and should not receive it at all. These are the patients who have suffered a small heart attack and have retained heart function afterward. The study began in September 2017 and patients were followed up until November 2023....
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Findings from researchers show high blood levels of TMAO (trimethylamine N-oxide) predict future risk of developing chronic kidney disease over time. The findings build on more than a decade of research related to the gut microbiome's role in cardiovascular health and disease, including the adverse effects of TMAO, a byproduct formed by the gut bacteria from nutrients abundant in red meat, eggs and other animal source foods. The large-scale study measured blood levels of TMAO over time in two large NIH populations and followed the kidney function of more than 10,000 U.S. adults with normal kidney function at baseline over...
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Scientists have successfully grown 'mini kidneys' in the lab and grafted them into live mice, revealing new insights into the metabolic defects and a potential therapy for polycystic kidney disease. "Mini kidneys," or kidney organoids, are kidney-like structures grown in the lab using stem cells. In the study, researchers grew the organoids using skin cells derived from patients with polycystic kidney disease (PKD). People with PKD often progress to end-stage kidney disease between their 50s and 60s, with the standard treatment options available being dialysis or a kidney transplant. One other option is the drug Tolvaptan, which is very costly...
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A new meta-analysis shows sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in patients with either diabetes at high risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), heart failure, or chronic kidney disease (CKD). SGLT2 inhibitors, also called gliflozins, are a class of drug that lower blood glucose by increasing its excretion in the urine. While late-stage trials of these medicines have demonstrated reductions in heart failure and adverse kidney outcomes, the effects on major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), including cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and stroke, were less clear. Researchers analyzed data across 11 trials involving...
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People with hypertension and obstructive sleep apnea were no less likely to see their blood pressure drop over six months if they used a mandibular advancement device (MAD), which is inserted onto the teeth similar to a bite guard, compared to a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device, according to research. Obstructive sleep apnea can cause or worsen hypertension. Medical guidelines recommend the use of a CPAP machine to help keep airways open by delivering pressurized air through the mouth and nose. MADs help keep the airway open by repositioning the lower jaw. 321 people with uncontrolled hypertension and high...
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Researchers have found a mechanism responsible for increasing the risk of developing cancer among patients with heart disease: Small extracellular bubbles, or vesicles (sEVs), secreted from the sick heart to heal itself, are released into the bloodstream and promote the growth of cancer cells throughout the body. "Our research revealed that the diseased heart secretes cancer-promoting factors, which we identified as small extracellular vesicles (EVs). These are tiny particles wrapped in a simple membrane, which all cells secrete, but because of heart damage, these vesicles are released in greater quantities and contain factors related to inflammation, healing, growth, creation of...
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