News

17/03/2023

France has ranked third in a list of the world’s best smart hospitals, compiled by a leading US magazine and an online platform specializing in market and consumer data. According to Newsweek and Statista’s World’s Best Smart Hospitals 2023 – the second iteration of its kind – France is home to more than 6% of the most state-of-the-art hospitals in the world. In fact, only the United States (28%) and Germany (7.6%) have more. Furthermore, the AP-HP - Hôpital Universitaire Pitié Salpêtrière in Paris was ranked third overall among all the European hospitals that made the top 300 list. As outlined in the survey’s methodology, “Smart Hospitals use state-of-the art technology to fundamentally rethink how care is delivered within the health system. Taking advantage of these new technologies can not only improve care delivery outcomes and efficiencies within the hospital but can help to drive health goals around prevention, population health and quality of life outcomes.” The final list of 300 facilities in 28 countries represents institutions that lead in their use of AI, digital imaging, telemedicine, robotics and electronic functionalities. More than 4,000 votes were collected in the month the survey was open (June-July 2022) and a score was calculated for each hospital based on the number of recommendations. The survey itself was developed by a global board of renowned experts. Contact us now to find out more about our services. Photo by Pixabay

06/12/2022

In our last blog, we explained why regular health check ups are a must. But if you haven’t had one for some time, you might not know what to expect. Don’t worry; we’re here to provide you with some of the common aspects of a physical examination (exam) so you know what to expect. Still not sure about the importance of regular medical check ups? According to one published in the American Journal of Medicine, inadequate physical examination is a significant source of medical errors and subsequent adverse effects. So what can you expect from a physical exam? Updated health history First and foremost, any good doctor will ask you about your health history. This will include any past problems, as well as new developments and changes. This is your opportunity to explain any concerns you may have and provide your physician with as much information as possible so they have as clear a picture as possible of your overall health. During this part of the physical exam, be prepared to answer questions relating to your lifestyle, like whether you smoke, how much alcohol you drink, the amount of exercise you get and possibly dietary habits. It’s important to be honest, as it’s only yourself you’re doing an injustice to if you’re not. Vital sign checks Another important part of any physical exam are the vital sign checks. These standard tests provide a benchmark of your health based on a set of recommended guidelines. Vital sign checks will involve taking your blood pressure (anything less than 120/90 is considered “normal”), measuring your heart rate (between 60 and 100 is considered “normal”), checking your respiratory rate (12 to 16 breaths per minute is “normal” for a healthy adult) and taking your temperature (“normal” body temperature can range between 97 F (36.1 C) and 99 F (37.2 C)). Visual and physical exams The final aspect of your physical exam will comprise a series of visual and physical tests, designed to look for signs of any potential problems or medical conditions. The visual exam will include examination of the following: - Head - Eyes - Ears - Nose - Chest - Abdomen - Musculoskeletal system, such as your hands and wrists - Nervous system/neurological functions, such as reflexes, balance and speech and walking The physical exam will comprise: - Touching, or “palpating,” parts of your body (like your abdomen) to feel for anything unusual - Checking your skin, hair, and nails - Checking your organ size and shape - A possible examination of your genitalia and rectum When was the last time you had a physical exam? If it’s been a while, maybe it’s time you considered having one. Look out for our blog next week on the additional laboratory and screening tests you can expect during a physical exam.

01/12/2022

In our last blog, we explained why regular health check ups are a must. But if you haven’t had one for some time, you might not know what to expect. Don’t worry; we’re here to provide you with some of the common aspects of a physical examination (exam) so you know what to expect. Still not sure about the importance of regular medical check ups? According to one published in the American Journal of Medicine, inadequate physical examination is a significant source of medical errors and subsequent adverse effects. So what can you expect from a physical exam? Updated health history First and foremost, any good doctor will ask you about your health history. This will include any past problems, as well as new developments and changes. This is your opportunity to explain any concerns you may have and provide your physician with as much information as possible so they have as clear a picture as possible of your overall health. During this part of the physical exam, be prepared to answer questions relating to your lifestyle, like whether you smoke, how much alcohol you drink, the amount of exercise you get and possibly dietary habits. It’s important to be honest, as it’s only yourself you’re doing an injustice to if you’re not. Vital sign checks Another important part of any physical exam are the vital sign checks. These standard tests provide a benchmark of your health based on a set of recommended guidelines. Vital sign checks will involve taking your blood pressure (anything less than 120/90 is considered “normal”), measuring your heart rate (between 60 and 100 is considered “normal”), checking your respiratory rate (12 to 16 breaths per minute is “normal” for a healthy adult) and taking your temperature (“normal” body temperature can range between 97 F (36.1 C) and 99 F (37.2 C)). Visual and physical exams The final aspect of your physical exam will comprise a series of visual and physical tests, designed to look for signs of any potential problems or medical conditions. The visual exam will include examination of the following: Head Eyes Ears Nose Chest Abdomen Musculoskeletal system, such as your hands and wrists Nervous system/neurological functions, such as reflexes, balance and speech and walking The physical exam will comprise: Touching, or “palpating,” parts of your body (like your abdomen) to feel for anything unusual Checking your skin, hair, and nails Checking your organ size and shape A possible examination of your genitalia and rectum When was the last time you had a physical exam? If it’s been a while, maybe it’s time you considered having one. Look out for our blog next week on the additional laboratory and screening tests you can expect during a physical exam.

01/12/2022

In our last blog, we explained why regular health check ups are a must. But if you haven’t had one for some time, you might not know what to expect. Don’t worry; we’re here to provide you with some of the common aspects of a physical examination (exam) so you know what to expect. Still not sure about the importance of regular medical check ups? According to one published in the American Journal of Medicine, inadequate physical examination is a significant source of medical errors and subsequent adverse effects. So what can you expect from a physical exam? Updated health history First and foremost, any good doctor will ask you about your health history. This will include any past problems, as well as new developments and changes. This is your opportunity to explain any concerns you may have and provide your physician with as much information as possible so they have as clear a picture as possible of your overall health. During this part of the physical exam, be prepared to answer questions relating to your lifestyle, like whether you smoke, how much alcohol you drink, the amount of exercise you get and possibly dietary habits. It’s important to be honest, as it’s only yourself you’re doing an injustice to if you’re not. Vital sign checks Another important part of any physical exam are the vital sign checks. These standard tests provide a benchmark of your health based on a set of recommended guidelines. Vital sign checks will involve taking your blood pressure (anything less than 120/90 is considered “normal”), measuring your heart rate (between 60 and 100 is considered “normal”), checking your respiratory rate (12 to 16 breaths per minute is “normal” for a healthy adult) and taking your temperature (“normal” body temperature can range between 97 F (36.1 C) and 99 F (37.2 C)). Visual and physical exams The final aspect of your physical exam will comprise a series of visual and physical tests, designed to look for signs of any potential problems or medical conditions. The visual exam will include examination of the following: Head Eyes Ears Nose Chest Abdomen Musculoskeletal system, such as your hands and wrists Nervous system/neurological functions, such as reflexes, balance and speech and walking The physical exam will comprise: Touching, or “palpating,” parts of your body (like your abdomen) to feel for anything unusual Checking your skin, hair, and nails Checking your organ size and shape A possible examination of your genitalia and rectum When was the last time you had a physical exam? If it’s been a while, maybe it’s time you considered having one. Look out for our blog next week on the additional laboratory and screening tests you can expect during a physical exam. *Image by Hamilton Viana Viana from Pixabay 

03/11/2022

In our modern age where smartphones and apps are ubiquitous, so-called brain training games are all the rage. But people of a certain age will be much more familiar with the good old-fashioned crossword. Which is better for your brain when it comes to slowing cognitive decline? New research has provided some insights. According to the study, led by Davangere Devanand, MD, a professor and director of geriatric psychiatry at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City, the humble crossword puzzle may actually be better for aging brains than new-fangled video games. “This is the first study to document both short-term and longer-term benefits for home-based crossword puzzles training compared to another intervention,” said Devanand. For the study, the researchers followed 107 adults aged 55 and over with mild cognitive impairment for 78 weeks. The participants were randomly given either crossword puzzles or brain-training games, and asked to do four 30-minute sessions weekly over three months. The participants were also asked to do a number of booster sessions up until the end of the study period. The researchers found that the people in the crossword group showed a small improvement in tests of memory and other mental skills. The results of the study are published in the New England Journal of Medicine. *Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

27/10/2022

Over 400 million people worldwide are living with type 2 diabetes, according to the World Health Organization. Yet a new study suggests the condition could be controlled and even prevented through diet alone. Publishing their findings in the journal JAMA Network Open, researchers from Tulane University in Louisiana in the United States revealed how following a diet that is low in carbohydrates can help people with unmedicated diabetes and those at risk for diabetes lower their blood sugar. For the study, the researchers recruited 150 participants and separated them into two groups: one which followed a low carb diet (less than 40 net grams of carbohydrates a day for the first 3 months and less than 60 net grams during months 3 to 6) and one which followed their usual diet. The researchers found that not only did the low carb diet group see their hemoglobin A1c, a marker for blood sugar levels, drop, they also lost weight and had lower fasting glucose levels. “The key message is that a low-carbohydrate diet, if maintained, might be a useful approach for preventing and treating Type 2 diabetes, though more research is needed,” said lead author Kirsten Dorans, assistant professor of epidemiology at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. *Image by Nemanja_us from Pixabay

06/10/2022

We recently wrote about how 10,000 steps a day may halve dementia risk. Now, separate research has revealed how lifting weights can help people live longer. According to the study by researchers from the National Cancer Institute in Maryland, US, regularly lifting weights was linked to a lower risk of death from any cause, with the exception of cancer. “Older adults who participated in weight lifting exercise had significantly lower mortality before and after factoring in aerobic exercise participation, and importantly, those who did both types of exercise had the lowest risk,” said lead author Jessica Gorzelitz, PhD, researcher in the division of cancer epidemiology and genetics at the National Cancer Institute. Publishing their findings in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the researchers said individuals who met recommended amounts of both muscle-strengthening exercises and aerobic moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), appeared to gain additional benefit. The findings provide strong support for the current Physical Activity Guidelines for U.S. adults, added Gorzelitz. Current guidelines in the United States on physical activity recommend all adults do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity per week, or a minimum of 75 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic activity, or an equal combination of the two. In addition, the guidelines also advocate two or more days of strengthening activities that incorporate all major muscle groups, including the legs, hips, back, abdomen chest, shoulders, and arms. *Image by Fabiano Silva from Pixabay 

10/08/2022

Taking a short walk after eating can help lower the risk of type-2 diabetes and heart problems, a new study suggests. According to the study, published in Sports Medicine, just 2 to 5 minutes of light walking after a meal can reduce blood sugar and insulin levels. Blood glucose levels spike after eating, triggering the pancreas to release insulin to control the increase and promote the storage of glucose in fat, muscle, liver and other body tissues. Over time, some people's cells develop a resistance to insulin, which can lead to blood glucose levels remaining elevated. If this persists, complications, including cardiovascular disease and nerve damage, can occur. “With standing and walking, there are contractions of your muscles” that use glucose and lower blood sugar levels, Aidan Buffey, the lead study author and a PhD student in physical education and sport sciences at the University of Limerick, told The Times. “If you can do physical activity before the glucose peak, typically 60 to 90 minutes [after eating], that is when you’re going to have the benefit of not having the glucose spike,” he said. *Image by

07/07/2022

The American Heart Association (AHA) has added sleep to its cardiovascular health checklist for the first time. Sleep now joins diet, exercise, tobacco use, weight, cholesterol, blood sugar levels and blood pressure on the association's list of factors people can modify to stay healthy. The AHA published its new checklist, called “Life’s Essential 8,” in the journal Circulation on June 29. The old checklist, created in 2010, was known as “Life’s Simple 7.” “Not only is sleep health related to the other things that play a role in heart health, it seems to also be directly related to cardiovascular health itself,” says Michael Grandner, PhD, the director of the sleep and health research program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson, who helped compile the new AHA checklist. “Sleep is changeable, and studies show that you can improve aspects of heart health just by improving sleep,” Dr. Grandner says. People who get less than six hours of good quality sleep a night are at increased risk of obesity, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, as well as worse mental and cognitive health, Grandner says. Likewise, those who get more than nine hours of sleep a night are also less likely to be healthy and more likely to die prematurely, he added. *Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay

29/06/2022

Kids who are physically active stand a greater chance of remaining mentally sharp for decades, new research suggests. The finding adds to the weight of evidence in favour of kids being physically active, such as the associated bone and muscle development benefits and reduced risk of diabetes and heart attack. The study by researchers in Australia followed 1,200 people for 30 years. It uncovered a link between childhood fitness and mental performance in middle age. Commencing in 1985, the study assessed the heart and lung fitness, power, and endurance, and measured for waist-to-hip ratio of children between the ages of 7 and 15 at the time. More than 30 years later, those with the highest fitness scores and lower waist-to-hip ratios as kids tended to score better in tests of their thinking skills. Interestingly, while physical exercise was associated with higher scores in things like processing speed and attention, it had no impact on memory. Michele Callisaya, PhD, a study co-author and associate professor from the National Centre for Healthy Ageing at Peninsula Health and Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, said: “This might be because the cognitive functions of processing speed and attention start to decline in midlife. Memory generally starts to decline later.” The results of the study are published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. *Image by Tri Le from Pixabay

14/06/2022

As counterintuitive as it sounds, walking may actually help with knee pain associated with osteoarthritis, new research shows. The most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis is a condition that affects more than 32 million American adults. It occurs when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones wears down over time. The study, the results of which are published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, found that walking regularly helped stave off knee pain in osteoarthritis sufferers. “In individuals > 50 years old with knee osteoarthritis, walking for exercise was associated with less development of frequent knee pain,” the authors wrote. “These findings support that walking for exercise should be encouraged for people with knee osteoarthritis.” For the study, more than 1,000 people aged 50 and over with osteoarthritis were asked to report on their levels of exercise, osteoarthritis symptoms, and pain levels. After four years, more than a third (37%) who didn’t walk for exercise experienced frequent pain, while just 26% of those who walked experienced the same pain. “Everyone’s always looking for some kind of drug. This highlights the importance and likelihood that interventions for osteoarthritis might be something different, including good old exercise,” Grace Hsiao-Wei Lo, MD, an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and the lead author on the study, told The New York Times. *Image by Susanne Pälmer from Pixabay

18/05/2022

They are known to be able to sniff out illegal drugs and even cancer, but now a new study suggests sniffer dogs can also detect COVID-19 among airline passengers. Perhaps even more remarkable is the study, conducted by researchers in Finland, also found that once trained, dogs are as acuurate at sniffing out COVID-19 as a PCR nose and throat swab test. "Our preliminary observations suggest that dogs primed with one virus type can in a few hours be retrained to detect its variants," added Anu Kantele, a professor of infectious diseases at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Helsinki, Finland, and colleagues. For the study, the researchers took four dogs previously trained to detect illegal drugs, dangerous goods and cancers, and trained them to recognise SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19. To do so, the study team used swab samples from 114 people who had tested positive for the virus on a PCR swab test, including 28 with no symptoms, and from 306 negative tests. Remarkably, the dogs were able to successfully detect 92% of infected people and 91% of uninfected people. The dogs' noses were then put to the test in a live environment at Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport in Finland between September 2020 and April 2021. The dogs correctly identified 296 (99%) of 300 passengers with negative PCR results. Read the full release at BMJ Global Health. *Image: Sniffer dogs at Melbourne Airport doing a demonstration, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.

26/04/2022

If you're trying to lose weight, focusing on what you eat instead of when you eat could be the key to success, new research suggests. According to the Chinese study, the results of which are published in The New England Journal of Medicine, the number of calories you consume has a greater impact on your weight than when you eat. For the study, 139 obese individuals were put on a calorie-restricted diet. Men were told to consume between 1,500 and 1,800 calories per day, while women were limited to 1,200 to 1,500 calories per day. Half of the study participants were then also told to follow a time-restricted eating pattern, which saw them only able to consume their daily food allocation between 8am and 4pm each day. The results show the group using just calorie restrictions lost an average of 6.3kg while the group that was also under time restrictions lost an average of 8kg during the 12-month study period. The researchers say the difference between the two groups is so negligible that it suggests adding time restrictions is no more beneficial with regard to reducing body weight, body fat, or metabolic risk factors than just daily calorie restriction alone. *Image by hectordarismendi from Pixabay

19/04/2022

Millions of people around the world suffer with migraines on a regular basis. These debilitating headaches can last for days at a time and, in severe cases, prevent people from going about their daily lives, including working and studying. While there are drugs to treat migraine headaches and others to prevent their onset, the cause of migraines remains unknown. The leading theory is that migraines are a neurovascular condition that involves an interaction between the blood vessels in the head and the brain itself. Now, the largest study of migraines to date has uncovered 123 genetic regions, or loci, that are associated with the condition — 86 of which were previously unknown. The research, which involved analyzing the genomes of 102,084 people with migraine and those of 771,257 controls who do not have the condition, has trebled the known genetic risk factors for the condition. “In addition to implicating tens of new regions of the genome for more targeted investigation, our study provides the first meaningful opportunity to evaluate shared and distinct genetic components in the two main migraine subtypes,” says first author Heidi Hautakangas, Ph.D., from the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland at the University of Helsinki. The study is published in Nature Genetics. *Image by StockSnap from Pixabay    

07/04/2022

People who suffer with stress and anxiety could realise heart health benefits through regular exercise, new research has found. According to the study by res earchers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, regular physical activity among individuals with depression or anxiety had nearly double the cardiovascular benefit than in people without such diagnoses. The study found that, people who accomplished the recommended amount of physical activity per week – 150 minutes, according to he American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association – were 17 per cent less likely to suffer a major adverse cardiovascular event than those who exercised less. However, of those who achieved the recommended amount of physical activity per week, individuals with anxiety or depression had a 22 per cent risk reduction versus a 10 per cent among those without either condition. The analysis included more than 50,000 patients in the Massachusetts General Brigham Biobank database. Just over 4,000 of the patients analyzed had suffered a major cardiovascular event, like a heart attack, chest pain caused by a blocked artery, or underwent a procedure to open a blocked artery in the heart. Commenting on the study's findings, Michael Emery, MD, who is the co-director of the Sports Cardiology Center at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, and was not involved in the study, said: “Exercise is medicine both physically and psychologically, and these factors interplay such that when you are more physically healthy your psychological state is more robust, and when you are mentally more healthy your physical state is improved.” *Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

06/04/2022

Staying "well hydrated" in middle age may lower a person's risk of heart failure in later life, new research suggests. According to the study by researchers at the Laboratory of Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), individuals with lower blood sodium levels (serum sodium) has a 39% lower risk of having heart failure in their later years. Serum sodium increases as a person's fluid levels decrease i.e. people who are dehydrated usually have more sodium in their blood. The normal range for serum sodium is 135 to 146 millimoles per liter (mmol/L). The researchers found that study participants with levels of serum sodium on the high end of the normal range — above 143 mmol/L — had a 39% increased risk of developing heart failure. For the study, the researchers analyzed information from more than 11,000 adults aged 45 to 66 over a 25-year period. It is worth noting that the study did not include individuals with diabetes, obesity or heart failure. The results of the study are published in the European Heart Journal. *Image by Engin Akyurt from Pixabay

17/03/2022

Sleeping with even a small amount of light may disrupt your blood sugar and cardiovascular control, new research suggests. According to the study by scientists at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, leaving a TV or bedside lamp on overnight is enough to the raise blood sugar and heart rates of healthy people. For the study – the results of which are published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences – 20 healthy volunteers were asked to spend two nights in the university's sleep lab. On the first night, all participants slept in a very dark room. On the second, half slept with a lighting level of 100 lux, equivalent to a TV or bedside light. Each morning, the research team investigated all the volunteers’ blood sugar control. They found that people who slept in the dimly lit room on their second night had slightly worse blood sugar control than on their first night. “They thought they slept well, but your brain knows that the lights are on,” said Senior study author Dr Phyllis Zee, chief of sleep medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. People who had two nights under dark conditions had little difference in their blood sugar control. Zee added: “The results from this study demonstrate that just a single night of exposure to moderate room lighting during sleep can impair glucose and cardiovascular regulation, which are risk factors for heart disease, diabetes and metabolic syndrome.” *Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

15/03/2022

A new malaria drug that can cure a certain type of the disease has been approved in Australia for kids and teens. Announcing the approval on Monday 14 March, the non-profit organization Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) said a single dose of tafenoquine (Kozenis) for use in combination with the traditional malaria drug chloroquine. This is the first time the drug has been authorized for use in children and will likely lead to more such approvals worldwide. Tafenoquine, which was developed by MMV and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), can cure a type of malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax, most common in South and Southeast Asia, South America and the Horn of Africa. It is estimated that P. vivax causes up to 5 million malaria infections every year, with children aged 2 to 6 four times more likely than adults to contract it, according to MMV. "We are proud to have worked with GSK to develop this child-friendly treatment and are thrilled by today's announcement. P. vivax malaria is particularly dangerous for young children for whom repeated relapses can lead to cumulative severe anemia and, in some cases, be fatal. Today, we have a tool to put a stop to the relentless relapse both for adults and children – we are one step closer to defeating this disease," Dr. David Reddy, CEO of MMV, said in a statement. The drug will be submitted for approval in nine countries, as well as to the World Health Organization, George Jagoe, an executive vice president with MMV, told The New York Times. *Image by Welcome to all and thank you for your visit ! ツ from Pixabay

01/03/2022

More is being discovered all the time about the significant role of the bacteria, fungi and other microbes that live in our stomachs and intestines when it comes to our health. Now, the largest study of its kind to date has confirmed the link between the gut microbiome and the response to cancer immunotherapy therapy for melanoma. The study, the findings of which are published in the journal Nature Medicine, was co-ordinated by King's College London, CIBIO Department of the University of Trento and European Institute of Oncology in Italy, University of Groningen in the Netherlands and funded by the Seerave Foundation. Dr Karla Lee, clinical researcher at King's College London and first author of the study, said: "Preliminary studies on a limited number of patients have suggested that the gut microbiome, as an immune system regulator, plays a role in the response of each patient to cancer immunotherapy, and particularly in the case of melanoma. This new study could have a major impact on oncology and medicine in general." It's known that dietary changes can alter the microbiome, as can next generation probiotics and faecal transplantation. This change is in turn modifying the microbiome's action on the immune system. With this new understanding of the microbiome's impact on cancer therapy effectiveness, clinicians can potentially look to alter a patient's microbiome before beginning treatment. This is potentially important because less than 50% of immunotherapy patients respond positively to treatment for melanoma. *image licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license

16/02/2022

Initially, when the COVID-19 outbreak first happened, many thought the SARS-CoV-2 virus caused mainly respiratory problems. And while that assumption still holds true, new research shows that the disease can actually impact multiple organs in a person's body.   The new study, the results of which appear in the BMJ, sought to discover whether adults develop other health conditions after a SARS-CoV-2 infection.   For the research, a team led by Dr. Ken Cohen, executive director of translational research at Optum Labs, studied the health insurance records of 133,366 adults aged 65+ in the United States who had received a COVID-19 diagnosis before April 1, 2020.   The researchers compared the records to individuals who did not have COVID-19 in 2019 or 2020 and individuals who had a lower respiratory tract infection but not COVID-19.   The team then identified new conditions occurring 3 weeks or more after each participant’s COVID-19 diagnosis.   Of those individuals who had a SARS-CoV-2 infection in 2020, 32% sought medical attention for a new or persistent condition. This was 11% higher than the comparison group from 2020.   Among the new or persistent conditions were respiratory failure, fatigue, high blood pressure, memory issues, kidney injury, mental health-related diagnoses, hypercoagulability and cardiac rhythm disorders.   Dr. Alicia Arbaje, director of Transitional Care Research at Johns Hopkins Medicine and a clinician at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore, said: “I think this work is significant. First, because it focuses on older adults, and this is the population that’s most likely to demonstrate long-term effects from this infection, and so I think it’s important and timely given the phase of the pandemic that we’re in.”   [Related reading: Long Covid may hinder women's response, recovery from exercise]   *Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

10/02/2022

The earlier lung cancer is diagnosed, the greater a patient's chances of survival. Now, a new test has could help with the detection of lung cancer in is early stages. Developed by researchers at Peking University People’s Hospital in China, the novel non-invasive blood test assess levels of lipid biomarkers in patients' plasma samples. While lung cancer screening techniques already exist, they often produce low accuracy results. And considering better treatment options and survival rates are associated with earlier detection, accuracy is key. In contrast, the new test, named Lung Cancer Artificial Intelligence Detector (LCAID), has high accuracy. The study’s lead author, Jun Wang, chief of the Department of Thoracic Surgery at Peking University Peoples Hospital, explained: “The accuracy and high specificity of LCAID might help improve the detection and screening of lung cancer and consequently reduce unnecessary exposure to radiation and invasive diagnostic procedures. Notably, most patients with lung cancer included in this study were at Stage I, and over 90% of them were correctly classified by LCAID.” More information about the LCAID research can be found in Science Translational Medicine. *Image courtesy of Belova59 from Pixabay 

08/02/2022

More sleep each night could help with weight loss, according to a new study published yesterday.   Published in JAMA Internal Medicine, the study by researchers from the University of Chicago and University of Wisconsin adds to the growing evidence that sufficient sleep plays a crucial part to overall health and wellbeing.   By getting just over an hour of extra sleep a night, study participants reduced their caloric intake by an average of 270 kilocalories (kcal) a day. The researchers say this amount could translate to a 26-pound loss over 3 years.   Prior research has found that sleep restriction causes people to eat more and increases the chances of weight gain over time.   Speaking about the study, researcher Dr. Estra Tasali, director of the UChicago Sleep Center at the University of Chicago Medicine, said: “Prior research showed that sleep loss leads to increases [in] food intake in the laboratory setting and weight gain. In our study, we showed for the first time that in [a] real-word setting, objectively tracked caloric intake is decreased when sleep is extended in individuals who habitually sleep less than 6.5 hours.”   For the study, the researchers recruited 80 obese adult participants, aged 21 to 40, who habitually slept fewer than 6.5 hours a night. Both caloric intake and daily energy stores were measured via a simple urine-based test.   *image courtesy of Katniss12 from Pixabay

01/02/2022

Just 10 minutes of exercise a day could prolong your life, as well as save hundreds of thousands of deaths every year, new research suggests. According to the study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, if adults over 40 added 10 minutes of moderate to physical exercise to their daily routines, more than 110,000 deaths in the US alone could be prevented annually. But the benefits of exercise don't stop there. If the amount of physical activity was increased by 30 minutes, even more lives – as many as 272,297 – could be saved each year. “We have known that regular exercise is essential and has tremendous health benefits,” said Dr. Vanita Rahman, clinic director of the Barnard Medical Center at the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a non-profit organization that promotes preventive medicine. The good news is that almost anyone can benefit because your 10 minutes of exercise could be as simple as a walk around the block or dancing to a few of your favorite songs in your kitchen. Dana Santas, a mind-body coach for professional athletes, said: “Fitting in ten minutes of exercise every day is so much easier than people think. Consider how fast ten minutes goes by when you're mindlessly scrolling social media or watching your favorite TV show. It's not a big time investment, but it can deliver big health benefits.” *Image by Mabel Amber, who will one day from Pixabay

18/01/2022

The impact of space travel on the human body has always been thought to be significant. But now a new study reveals just how hard it hits an astronaut's red blood cells.  On Earth, our bodies make and destroy around 2 million red blood cells every second. However, in space, the number of red blood cells destroyed rises to 3 million per second, according to a new study, resulting in a loss of 54% more cells than people on Earth experience. This lower red blood cell phenomenon is known as space anemia and it was previously only thought to last for the first 10 days in space. But the University of Ottawa research shows that space anemia actually lasts for the full duration of the astronaut's mission and their red blood cell levels only return to normal between three to four months after their return to Earth. "Space anemia has consistently been reported when astronauts returned to Earth since the first space missions, but we didn't know why," said study author Dr. Guy Trudel, a rehabilitation physician and researcher at The Ottawa Hospital and professor at the University of Ottawa, in a statement. The findings of the study are published in the journal Nature Medicine. Image by WikiImages from Pixabay

06/01/2022

New research has found that being infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that can cause COVID-19, can trigger an immune response which lasts well after the initial infection and recovery, even if the person experiences mild symptoms or is asymptomatic. Infection with a virus causes our bodies to unleash proteins called antibodies which are designed to protect our cells from the foreign invaders (the virus). In some circumstances, however, these antibodies can attack the body's own organs and tissues. According to the research conducted by Cedars-Sinai, people who have had a prior SARS-CoV-2 infection, have a wide variety of autoantibodies up to six months after they have fully recovered, including some which can cause injury to organs and tissues. The study is the first to report not only the presence of elevated autoantibodies after mild or asymptomatic infection but their persistence over time. "These findings help to explain what makes COVID-19 an especially unique disease," said Justyna Fert-Bober, Justyna Fert-Bober, PhD, research scientist in the Department of Cardiology at the Smidt Heart Institute and co-senior author of the study. "These patterns of immune dysregulation could be underlying the different types of persistent symptoms we see in people who go on to develop the condition now referred to as long COVID-19," Fert-Bober added. The research has been published in the Journal of Translational Medicine. *Image by leo2014 from Pixabay 

14/12/2021

To aid in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, researchers have developed an experimental chewing gum that neutralizes SARS-CoV-2 - the virus that causes COVID-19 – in the mouth. Symptomatic and asymptomatic people with COVID-19 carry a high SARS-CoV-2 viral load in their saliva. This viral load is one of the main ways that the SARS-CoV-2 spreads from person to person. Therefore, neutralizing this viral load while it's still in the mouth could be a formidable way to curb the spread of the disease. That's why researchers, led by Penn Dental Medicine in Philadelphia, PA, created a chewing gum from plant-based materials that could reduce the SARS-CoV-2 viral load in saliva. Speaking to Medical News Today, Henry Daniell, Ph.D., vice-chair and W.D. Miller Professor in the Department of Basic & Translational Sciences at Penn Dental Medicine in Philadelphia, PA, lead author of the study, said: “SARS-CoV-2 replicates in the salivary glands, therefore, debulking viruses in the oral cavity should decrease reinfection of [people with a SARS-CoV-2 infection], in addition to prevention of transmission.” “So,” Dr. Daniell continued, “[Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)] chewing gum should provide people with COVID-19 time to build immunity and help reduce disease severity, which depends on viral load.” The current study appears in Molecular Therapy. Image by davidgaigg from Pixabay 

30/11/2021

A new study has, worryingly, revealed that one in five people who have hypertension (high blood pressure) take medication that actually increases blood pressure. This revelation is particularly pertinent considering that nearly half of US adults have high blood pressure, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Medical advice says people's blood presasure should, ideally, be under 120/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Now, researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, United States, a Harvard-affiliated teaching hospital, have discovered that a significant proportion of people with hypertension are actually taking medication that may raise blood pressure. Indeed, according to the team's research, which looked at data relating to some 27,599 US adults, nearly one in five with hypertension were on medication that could raise their blood pressure. In fact, the authors found that a total of 15% of all adults were on these medications. While it was expected that some of the individuals would be taking prescription medications that could raise blood pressure, the researchers were surprised to find that there were so many. Speaking to Medical News Today, letter co-author, Dr. Timothy Anderson, said: “In some cases, these medications are appropriate, as they are treating an important issue without a better alternative. However, in many cases, I think the risk of raising blood pressure is simply overlooked, particularly for patients using these medications for many years.” The results of the study cited in this article appear in a research letter in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. *image courtesy of Image by Gerald Oswald from Pixabay 

14/10/2021

A large French study involving 22 million people has shown that COVID vaccines dramatically reduce a person’s risk of being severely impacted by the disease. While being vaccinated doesn’t guarantee you won’t catch COVID or indeed become ill, it does, however, reduce your risk of being hospitalised or dying by as much as 90 per cent. The study, published Monday, also found two-dose vaccines, such as Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford-AstraZeneca, protect against the worst effects of the so-called Delta variant. For people aged 75 and older, such vaccines offered 84 per cent protection. This figure rose to 92 per cent for people 50 to 75. The results were the same for each vaccine manufacturer. “The vaccine was never really intended to stop the disease,” says Dr. Ulysses Wu, Hartford HealthCare’s System Director of Infection Disease and Chief Epidemiologist. “It was a very nice side effect that we were preventing disease, but it’s main purpose is to prevent the morbidity and mortality should we get the disease. It was really to take a deadly disease and turn it into the common cold.” The study was conducted by a scientific group set up by France’s health system (Epi-Share), its national insurance fund (l’Assurance Maladie) and its medicine agency (ANSM). N.B. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine (Janssen) was not included in the research due to an insufficient number of patients for comparison. * Image by Surprising_Shots from Pixabay

05/10/2021

Pain medicines produced from cannabis oil have the potential to significantly improve the lives of patients, a French study has found. According to the initial results from a trial that began in a French hospital back in March, using medical cannabis for pain relief is effective. Psychiatrist Dr Nicolas Authier, Chair of the Scientific Committee on Medical Cannabis, is in charge of the experiment being conducted at the University Hospital of Clermont-Ferrand in central France. Dr Authier picked 20 suitable patients for participation in the trial. One patient, Mounir, 47, who suffered a stroke aged 21 and consequently struggled with painkiller addiction in an attempt to manage his neuropathic pain, told France 3: “I'm not yet completely relieved of the pain. There is some still, but it is nothing like what I felt before.” The trial is part of a two-year nationwide experiment in France that is primarily designed to evaluate the best conditions of access to medical cannabis. Depending on the patient and their condition, medical cannabis can deliver mild to significant relief. However, some patients have experienced no improvement, while others experienced more undesirable effects than therapeutic ones. Dr Authier hopes that medical cannabis can be legalized for patients whose suffering is poorly relieved by conventional treatments. Image by Julia Teichmann from Pixabay

19/08/2021

For stroke patients, receiving treatment as soon as possible is vital. The shorter time between the stroke and treatment, the less chance there is of serious damage to the patient’s brain. That’s why fast diagnosis of a stroke is so important for the patient’s overall prognosis. But vascular neurologists, the clinicians most called upon to check stroke patients, are often in short supply and high demand. As a result, they cannot always see every suspected stroke patient as quickly as perhaps liked. The answer has been to utilise telemedicine and this is something neurologists have been doing for more than three decades. By taking advantage of audio-visual platforms, neurologists can assess suspected stroke patients quickly. If the patient is displaying signs of a stroke, they can be given life-saving treatment, consisting of administering tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), a clot-dissolving drug first developed for treating heart attacks, which was then fine-tuned for strokes in the early 1990s. The success of tPA, however, lies in administering it as quickly as possible, to counter the effect of blood loss to the brain. A 2016 study highlights the impact of telehealth for stroke patients. According to Kaiser Permanente’s study, involving more than 2,500 patients treated for stroke symptoms between 2013 and 2015 in its 14-hospital network in southern California, a 75% increase was witnessed in the timely use of tPA after a telehealth consult. Patients receiving a telehealth consult were given a diagnostic imaging test 12 minutes sooner than those who didn’t, and tPA was administered 11 minutes sooner. Overall, the door-to-needle time was reduced to less than an hour. *Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay 

13/07/2021

France’s healthcare system is to benefit from €7bn worth of investment, which is designed to drive innovation in the sector. Speaking at the end of June, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that public funding would be made available in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. Part of France’s Health Innovation Plan 2030, €2bn will be invested by the state-owned Banque Publique d'Investissement (BPI) in start-ups and small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) in the healthcare industry. France will also invest €2bn in research for emerging and infectious diseases, biotherapies and digital health. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the plan will allocate almost €750 million for emerging infectious diseases and CBRN (nuclear, radiological, biological and chemical) threats. Another €800m will be dedicated to biotherapies and the bioproduction of innovative therapies that represent 50% of the clinical trials currently underway. These technologies enable the development of so-called personalised medicine by providing therapeutic solutions in oncology, immunology, virology and for rare diseases, for example. President Macron wants to make France the leading European country in healthcare innovation by 2030. He has committed to lift administrative hurdles to speed up organisational changes in the healthcare system. *Image by Parentingupstream from Pixabay

22/06/2021

Telemedicine, also known as telehealth, is something many people have experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is something that has really come into its own, helping patients connect with their clinicians at a time when just leaving the house presented a challenge. Now, another form of virtual healthcare, teledentistry, is emerging as another potential disruptor in the healthcare space. Predicted to witness spectacular growth of 16.6% from 2020-2027 to reach US$ 920.83million in 2027 from US$ 242.51million in 2019, the European teledentistry market looks set to achieve spectacular results. But it’s not just in Europe where teledentistry is taking off. According to a report in the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently signed a bill into law formally ending a ban on teledentistry in the state. The new law comes months after a lawsuit was filed by the Pacific Legal Foundation and after bipartisan calls for reform were made. Under the new law, the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners will not be allowed to ban teledentistry, bringing it in line with other telemedicine practices. Abbott previously signed a bill into law expanding and making some telemedicine services permanent. “This is great news for Texas citizens who will continue to have access to quality dental care from the comfort of their homes,” Joshua Polk, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, said. The foundation represented teledentistry providers who challenged the Texas Board of Dental Examiners’ ban. “There is a crisis in dental care access in Texas, and this legislation will go a long way in addressing that crisis,” he added. “It will also allow our clients to continue operations in the state.” *Image by Rafael Juárez from Pixabay

03/06/2021

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine has published an update in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine stating that, during the pandemic, telemedicine has been an effective tool for the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders. Since the academy’s last update in 2015, the use of telemedicine services has increased exponentially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The academy’s latest update adds that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted telemedicine’s ‘importance in improving access to sleep care and advocating for sleep health.’ Furthermore, a growing body of published research has found telemedicine to be effective in the management of patients with sleep disorders, such as apnea, and for the delivery of cognitive behavioral therapy for the treatment of insomnia. The update authors also outlined how a shortage of trained behavioral sleep therapists has led to the development of online application-based CBT-I programs and a recent systematic review and meta-analysis found that internet-delivered CBT-I is effective in improving sleep. Telemedicine, the academy says, is also effective for helping to treat sleep disorders among children: ‘Telehealth follow-up visits, primarily via telephone, have been used for chronic management of obstructive sleep apnea and internet delivered CBT-I has been shown to be effective in adolescents with insomnia.’ *Image by Claudio_Scott from Pixabay

11/05/2021

Telemedicine will save the healthcare industry a staggering $21 billion in costs by 2025, new research suggests. This represents an increase of over 80% in the next four years, rising from $11 billion in 2021. According to the study by Juniper Research, teleconsultations, a service that enables patients and physicians to interact remotely with patients, will play a key role in enabling these significant savings. However, Juniper cautioned that such savings would be restricted to developed countries where people have access to required devices and suitable Internet connectivity. Indeed, Juniper predicts that North America and Europe will realise over 80% of savings by 2025. The Jupiter report also reveals how telemedicine usage has soared as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with remote consultations rising from over 280 million in 2019, to 348 million in 2020. By taking advantage of telehealth solutions, doctor’s offices have been able to significantly reduce the number of face-to-face appointments they’ve needed to accommodate, cutting the risk of waiting room Covid-19 infections. However, the report did warn that the significant investment required and obligation to abide by data protection laws, such as the US’s Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), could discourage telemedicine adoption among smaller healthcare providers. “Any deregulation must ensure that patient confidentiality is not undermined,” said research author Adam Wears. “Additionally, we recommend that innovative and emerging teleconsultation services are integrated into existing healthcare technologies, such as electronic health records, to maximise their benefits to healthcare providers.” Jupiter Research’s report, Telemedicine: Emerging Technologies, Regional Readiness & Market Forecasts 2021‑2025, is available here: https://www.juniperresearch.com/researchstore/key-vertical-markets/telemedicine-research-report *Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

15/04/2021

As we highlighted in a previous blog post, telehealth/telemedicine services have come into their own during the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing patients to connect with their clinicians in a way that’s fast, convenient and safe. However, remote consultations often have their limitations, including how to perform diagnostic tests and take medical measurements. But now researchers from the University of Washington have devised a way to measure patients' pulse and breathing rates via a smartphone's camera. The researchers say the advancement will make telehealth more accurate and useful. According to UW News, the system, called MetaPhys, can detect a patient’s pulse or respiration rate using in real-time using video of their face. "Machine learning is pretty good at classifying images. If you give it a series of photos of cats and then tell it to find cats in other images, it can do it," Xin Liu, the study's lead author and a student in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering doctoral student, told UW News. "But for machine learning to be helpful in remote health sensing, we need a system that can identify the region of interest in a video that holds the strongest source of physiological information — pulse, for example — and then measure that over time." The team's original iteration of MetaPhys was presented last December at the Neural Information Processing Systems conference. However, the first iteration had some pitfalls, most notably that it struggled with certain lights, backgrounds and skin colors. The second version, the researchers say, improves upon the first and overcomes these limitations. *Image courtesy of tookapic from Pixabay

13/04/2021

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, telehealth/telemedicine services were more of a convenience than a necessity for most patients. They offered (and still do offer) a way for a patient to consult with their clinician without having to make a trip to the doctor’s office. But it was when the Covid-19 pandemic struck that telehealth really came into its own, with more patients than ever taking advantage of such services to receive non-emergency healthcare from the safety of their own homes. Now, new research from Sykes reveals that most consumers – having experienced telehealth services during the pandemic -- want them to remain post-Covid. According to the Sykes survey, which polled 2,000 Americans in March on how their opinions on virtual care have changed within the past year, more than 61% had undergone a telehealth visit come March this year. In comparison, less than 20% had utilized telehealth by March 2020. Furthermore, in March 2020, around 65% of Americans felt hesitant or doubtful about the quality of telehealth services, while 56% did not believe they could afford the same level of care compared to in-person appointments. However, now, almost 88% want to continue using telehealth for non-urgent consultations after the COVID-19 pandemic has ended. Moreover, almost 80% agree it's possible to receive quality care via telehealth services. *Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

31/03/2021

Telehealth services have really come into their own during the coronavirus pandemic, offering a way for patients and clinicians to have consultations without the need for a face-to-face meeting. Now, a group of inventors at the University of Cincinnati (UC) want to take telehealth consultations to another level by facilitating them to be performed via drone. The technology aims to fill the gap in telehealth delivery among those who do not own or have access to the devices, such as smartphones, computers and internet connectivity, that are required for telehealth consultations. Inventors Victoria Wangia-Anderson, Manish Kumar, Seung-Yeon Lee and Debi Sampsel from three colleges at UC collaborated to develop a semi-autonomous prototype that can be dispatched right to people’s homes. The drones are capable of carrying certain medical equipment and supplies, but remain agile enough to navigate the tight spaces found in homes. A variety of health assessments can be conducted using the telehealth drones, including taking temperatures and measuring oxygen levels. The drone kits also include patient-friendly devices, and the clinician will be able to instruct patients on how to use them. Patients who require assistance can also seek help from family or other caregivers during the drone sessions. Speaking about the telehealth drones, Debi Sampsel, director of telehealth at UC’s College of Nursing, said: “We can perform all kinds of functions: chronic disease management, post-operative care monitoring, health coaching and consultations,” she said. “And in the health care arena, there is no age limit. Telehealth services are useful from birth to death.” Find out more via the University of Cincinnati website. *Image courtesy of Joseph Fuqua II/UC Creative + Brand for the University of Cincinnati

25/02/2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused telehealth to become a bigger economic development concern among local areas. That’s one of the key findings of new research by broadband industry analyst Craig Settles. According to Settles’ Broadband, Local Economies, & the Age of Covid survey -- which polled 200 professionals from economic development departments within local and state governments and economic development agencies across the United States – 40% of respondents indicated that telehealth can have a “measurable impact” on their local economy in terms of attracting medical professionals and reducing unnecessary ER visits. When the same survey was conducted two years ago (in 2019), only about 25% of respondents said the same about telehealth’s potential impact on the medical workforce and ER visits. Moreover, more respondents this year said telehealth can help more mental health services remain local, as well as keep senior citizens living at home longer. Settles says these findings suggest there is money to be made and saved by boosting telehealth capabilities. Specifically, he sees a lot of potential value in local telehealth radiology programs, citing the $1.8 million saved over 10 years by a radiology practice in Chattanooga, Tennessee. “There are serious dollars and cents to be had if you can do this locally, because people don’t have to go all the way to China to get their X-rays, all the various MRIs and so forth,” Settles said. “The forward-thinking communities, especially if they’re a rural area, I would look at starting a radiology practice because there’s money to be made there locally. Obviously, you can’t do this without broadband, but if you’re one of these cities building the network, that should be a main consideration for revenue.”  

18/02/2021

A baby has been born in France following a uterus transplant for the first time, the hospital treating the mother and baby announced on Wednesday. While such births are not unprecedented, they are extremely rare, happening after a woman whose own uterus is damaged or missing has had a cutting-edge procedure to have a healthy one transplanted. The baby, a girl weighing 1.845kg, was born last Friday, according to the team at the Foch Hospital outside Paris. "Mother and baby are doing well," said Dr Jean-Marc Ayoubi, head of gynaecology, obstetrics and reproductive medicine at the hospital. The 36-year-old mother, who reports are naming only as ‘Deborah’, was born without a uterus because of a rare condition known as Rokitansky Syndrome, which affects about one in 4,500 women. Deborah received a uterus transplant in March 2019 from her own mother, then aged 57. The transplant was performed by the same team at the Foch Hospital that delivered the new baby. The first ever birth after a uterus transplant was in Sweden in 2014 and there have been other such births in the United States and Brazil to date. However, they remain rare. Nevertheless, this new birth, as well as those before it, will give hope to women who suffer similar reproductive problems that they maybe have alternatives to adoption or surrogacy.