[Embargoed until 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday, Nov. 12] WASHINGTON – Hormonal contraceptives taken by adolescents may influence development of the brain in a way that alters the recognition of risks, a new study in rats suggests. Scientists at The Ohio State University are exploring how common synthetic hormones used for birth control affect the prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain that continues to develop throughout adolescence. The researchers found that myelination, the formation of protective coating on axons projecting from the main body of brain cells, increased in rats given hormonal birth control compared to untreated rats, while the number ...

WASHINGTON – A surprising thing happened when researchers began exploring whether early-life stress compounds the effects of a childhood head injury on health and behavior later in life: In an animal study, stress changed the activation level of many more genes in the brain than were changed by a bump to the head. It’s already known that head injuries are common in young kids, especially from falling, and can be linked to mood disorders and social difficulties that emerge later in life. Adverse childhood experiences are also very ...

Short-term increases in air pollution can cause problems for a lot of people, but especially to those with diagnosed or undiagnosed heart disease. But it’s not just a potential issue for pollution coming from cars and industrial processes. New research from Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City shows that pollutants trapped in lower, colder layers of air in mountain-region communities present sometimes higher risk for this population, while wildfire smoke from often distant locales may also impact risk. “We’re finding that air pollution is affecting ...

Low levels of Vitamin D have been shown to be associated with a higher risk of having a cardiac event, like a heart attack or stroke. For this reason, treatment by Vitamin D pills or injections are being investigated as a possible preventative method in these patients. However, two new studies from Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City have found that current dosing recommendations are not helping patients achieve optimal Vitamin D levels, suggesting that trials looking into the effectiveness of Vitamin D treatment to prevent cardiac events were not using appropriately sufficient doses, leading to inaccurate results. In their studies, Intermountain ...

The ventilation technique, also known as rescue breathing, commonly used during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for people with cardiac arrest is often performed poorly by professional emergency responders, and this ineffective strategy is linked to significantly worse patient survival rates, according to a study supported by the National Institutes of Health. Ventilation involves administering breaths to a patient to provide life-sustaining oxygen and inflate the lungs when they stop breathing or during cardiac arrest, when the heart suddenly stops pumping blood. Among the nearly 2,000 ...

The widely available blood thinner apixaban substantially reduced stroke in at-risk patients with a type of atrial fibrillation only detectable by a pacemaker or other implanted cardiac electronic device, a global study has found.  The oral anticoagulant medication, which helps to prevent dangerous blood clots by thinning the blood, reduced the risk of stroke and blood clotting by 37% and reduced fatal or disabling stroke by 49% in individuals with device-detected atrial fibrillation, also known as sub-clinical atrial ...

Familial hypercholesteremia (FH) is an inherited condition that affects about 1 in 250 people, and often shows no signs until they have a heart attack. For individuals with FH the lowering of “bad” cholesterol levels can’t be done by dietary or behavioral changes, the problem is in their genes, and targeted medications therapy is needed. Now, new research from the Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City has found that genetic screening can identify these patients and make them candidates for treatment that could prevent heart attack, stroke, and death. “Most of these patients already had tests that ...

New research from Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City finds that genetic screening is effective in identifying patients who have a heart condition known as cardiomyopathy to improve their quality of life and reduce deaths. By undergoing genetic screening to identity those with the potentially-fatal heart condition, clinicians can more closely monitor them and use medical interventions, when necessary, that could improve the quality of these patients’ lives, and potentially save them, researchers say in a new study of more than 30,000 heart patients. “Our findings show that we’re ...

SAN DIEGO, CA, NOVEMBER 12, 2023 — A recent study from Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) and others has found a correlation between obesity and more severe disease flare symptoms that negatively affect quality of life in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a systemic, autoimmune, inflammatory disorder affecting multiple joints in the body. The study will be presented at ACR Convergence 2023, the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology. RA is usually treated with a combination of medications to relieve swelling and pain while regulating the immune ...

About The Study: Self-monitoring and physician-guided titration of antihypertensive medications was associated with lower blood pressure during the first nine months postpartum than usual postnatal outpatient care in this randomized clinical trial involving 220 participants in the United Kingdom.  Authors: Paul Leeson, Ph.D., of the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2023.21523) Editor’s ...

  ·  High blood pressure is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality ·  Losing one teaspoon of salt a day results in systolic blood pressure decline comparable to effect achieved with drugs ·  First study to show people already on blood pressure medication could further lower their blood pressure by reducing sodium Chicago --- Nearly everyone can lower their blood pressure, even people currently on blood pressure-reducing drugs, by lowering their sodium intake, reports a new study from Northwestern Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “In the study, ...

About The Study: Dietary sodium reduction significantly lowered blood pressure in the majority of middle-aged to elderly adults in this study including 213 participants. The decline in blood pressure from a high- to low-sodium diet was independent of hypertension status and antihypertensive medication use, was generally consistent across subgroups, and did not result in excess adverse events.  Authors: Deepak K. Gupta, M.D., M.S.C.I., of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2023.23651) Editor’s ...

About The Study: This randomized clinical trial found that in patients with advanced heart failure treated with a fully magnetically levitated left ventricular assist device, avoidance of aspirin as part of an antithrombotic regimen, which includes a vitamin K antagonist, is not inferior to a regimen containing aspirin, does not increase thromboembolism risk, and is associated with a reduction in bleeding events.  Authors: Mandeep R. Mehra, M.D., M.Sc., of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link ...

According to the American Medical Association, approximately 25% of all patients used telehealth services during the last year, exceeding the 5% who accessed their care this way before the pandemic.[1] The American Heart Association (AHA) Center for Telehealth, unveiled today, recognizes the critical role telehealth can play as a solution to close gaps in health care access, particularly in rural and underserved areas, and deliver quality care to populations that have little to no access to traditional ...

While high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes and smoking are well known heart disease risks, not everyone who has a heart attack has them. In fact, previous research has shown that 14% to 27% of heart attack patients have none of these risk factors. Now, a new study from researchers at Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City finds that these patients had one thing in common: they all tended to have high levels of coronary calcium. Results of the new Intermountain study show that scans that detect this kind of plaque buildup should be considered as ...

WASHINGTON — Advanced brain imaging techniques reveal how adolescent brain development influences, and is influenced by, factors including chronic stress and mood disorders. The findings will be presented on Monday, November 13, 11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. EST at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Adolescence is a time of social, biological, and emotional changes, as well as continued brain development. Mental health among teenagers was already declining before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control ...

WASHINGTON — Changes in a person’s environment can have long-term, significant effects on the brain, whether it’s the inhalation of wildfire smoke or the experience of childhood trauma. The findings will be presented on Tuesday, November 14, 11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. The environment plays an important role in a person’s brain health and cognitive function. Previous research has established that both one’s physical and social environment effect the brain and nervous system. Next, researchers ...

WASHINGTON — Using machine learning, researchers are able to use data from the brain to glean deeper insights and apply this new knowledge in clinical settings. The findings will be presented on Monday, November 13, 2–3 p.m. EST at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) that centers on enabling computers to analyze data in increasingly complex ...

WASHINGTON — Researchers are making strides toward understanding and detecting Alzheimer’s disease in its earliest stages, when interventions may be most effective at slowing the progress of the disease. The findings will be presented on Sunday, November 12, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. EST at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative ...

WASHINGTON — In studies that examine the depressed brain, researchers were able to identify specific genes, molecules, brain regions, and cognitive features that are associated with the disorder. The findings will be presented on Monday, November 13, 10–11 a.m. EST at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. More than 8% of adults in the United States suffer from severe depression, and the percentage is higher ...

WASHINGTON — Innovative experimental approaches with human participants and animal models point to the effects of fear and stress on the brain — and suggest ways to ameliorate these impacts. The findings will be presented on Monday, November 13, 12:45–1:45 p.m. at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Fear and anxiety are normal, healthy emotional responses to some stimuli; however, there ...

WASHINGTON — Psychedelic compounds such as psilocybin, a substance found in various mushroom species, are garnering more research support as novel treatments for psychiatric disorders, but questions remain concerning who they may help the most. The findings will be presented on Tuesday, November 14, 1–2 p.m. at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Psychiatric disorders, including phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and substance use disorder, represent a major public health issue. Current behavioral and pharmacological ...

Research which considers the diversity of normal and diseased human populations is contributing to more resilient hypotheses regarding complex neuroscience processes, such as human brain development, autism spectrum disorders, and Alzheimer's disease. Several interwoven examples will be discussed on Sunday, November 12, 2–3 p.m. at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Considering the full spectrum of human variability — including gender, sex, race, ethnicity, and neurodiversity — is benefiting neuroscience at both the basic and translational ...

WASHINGTON — Researchers have a better understanding of sleep disruption — particularly in the realm of sex-specific differences and cellular dysfunction — and are developing new research to study the interplay between sleep and memory. The findings will be presented on Tuesday, November 14, 10–11 a.m. EST at Neuroscience 2023, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s largest source of emerging news about brain science and health. Approximately one out of every three adults in the United States report not getting enough sleep. Despite years of research into sleep and memory, neuroscientists still do not ...

For immediate release on Nov. 11, 2023 at 10:10 a.m. E.T. A National Institutes of Health-supported study found that the type of transfusion approach used to support adults who developed anemia after a heart attack did not make a significant difference in their likelihood of having another heart attack or dying within 30 days. Participants in the trial were randomized to receive a red blood cell transfusion when their red blood cell counts were in a prespecified range of moderate anemia, which is considered a liberal approach, or when it was more severe, ...