Posts in category: Uncategorized

As many as one in 3,000 people could be carrying a faulty gene that significantly increases their risk of a punctured lung, according to new estimates from Cambridge researchers. Previous estimates had put this risk closer to one in 200,000 people.

The Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index (GNRI) is a reliable predictive marker for overactive bladder (OAB) in the elderly, according to a study published online Feb. 10 in Frontiers in Nutrition.

Researchers have discovered that increased blood flow leads to stiffness in the hippocampus, a region of the brain that plays important roles in learning and memory. The hippocampus is one of the first areas in the brain affected by Alzheimer’s disease, a brain disorder that erodes memory and thinking skills, as well as the ability to do daily tasks.

Years ago, as a neurology resident, Chinfei Chen, MD, Ph.D., cared for a 20-year-old woman who had experienced a very small stroke, affecting only the thalamus.

The burden of alcohol-related cirrhosis (AC) among women has decreased but is disproportionately high in lower Sociodemographic Index (SDI) regions, according to a study published online March 31 in Scientific Reports.

Drug-resistant infections—especially from deadly bacteria like tuberculosis and staph—are a growing global health crisis. These infections are harder to treat, often require more expensive or toxic medications and are responsible for longer hospital stays and higher mortality rates. In 2021 alone, 450,000 people developed multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, with treatment success rates dropping to just 57%, according to the World Health Organization.

For patients with head and neck cancer (HNC), the incidence of radiotherapy-induced otitis media with effusion (RTOME) is associated with cancer type and radiation exposure to specific regions, according to a study published online March 29 in the Ear, Nose & Throat Journal.

Recent decades have seen a lot of progress in diabetes treatment. In a new study, Per-Ola Carlsson, Professor of Medical Cell Biology, has obtained promising results. “This is the first time anyone has succeeded in transplanting insulin-producing cells into another individual without immunosuppressive drugs,” he says.

The U.S. government has shut down or paused several major anti-smoking efforts.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed critical deficiencies in the global health system and provides important lessons to improve preparedness for future emergencies. A case in point is Latin America, where access to testing was constrained by affordability and poor infrastructure.