A new study published in the Lancet discovery science  journal eClinicalMedicine has confirmed that a novel natural supplement—invented, researched, developed and commercialized at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)—prevents postpartum blues, and reduces symptoms of postpartum depression over the following six months after giving birth. Up to 8 out of ten new mothers experience postpartum, or ‘baby,’ blues, characterized by mood swings, crying spells, anxiety and difficulty sleeping. The condition usually begins within the first few days after delivery and may last for up to two weeks. Postpartum ...

Embargoed until 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, 10 April, 2024 Central European Summer Time (GMT +2) 10 April, 2024, Prague, Czech Republic—The same technology that enables a bullet train to travel at speeds up to 200 mph without touching its rails now keeps a failing heart pumping—and in the near future, it will do so via a wireless power connection. Mandeep R. Mehra, MD, FRCP described the cutting-edge heart pump and other advances in mechanical circulatory support (MCS) today at the Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) in ...

Embargoed until 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, 10 April, 2024 Central European Summer Time (GMT +2) 10 April 2024, Prague, Czech Republic—Artificial intelligence will significantly impact the heart transplantation process by helping physicians better assess the complex factors impacting patient outcomes, according to researchers at today’s Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions of the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) in Prague.   “Until now, we’ve assessed the likelihood of transplant success based on individual risk factors,” said Eileen Hsich, medical director of the Heart Transplant Program at the Cleveland ...

Sunlight has a major influence on chemical processes. Its high-energy UV radiation in particular is strongly absorbed by all materials and triggers photochemical reactions of the substances present in the air. A well-known example is the formation of ground-level ozone when UV light hits nitrogen oxides. A research team led by Birgitta Schultze-Bernhardt from the Institute of Experimental Physics at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) is now utilising this high reaction potential for a new method of environmental monitoring. ...

Embargoed until 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, 10 April, 2024, Central European Summer Time  10 April, 2024, Prague, Czech Republic—Amid the persistent threat of missiles from the air and an array of hazardous terrestrial obstacles, the Heart Institute of the Ministry of Health in Kyiv has continued to provide heart transplants to Ukraine’s citizens, performing 40 of the life-saving procedures since Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in 2022. The Heart Institute’s Director Borys Todurov, MD, PhD, reported on his team’s extraordinary efforts today at the Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation ...

Investigators have applied artificial intelligence techniques to gait analyses and medical records data to provide insights about individuals with leg fractures and aspects of their recovery. The study, which is published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Research, uncovered a significant association between the rates of hospital readmission after fracture surgery and the presence of underlying medical conditions. Correlations were also found between underlying medical conditions and orthopedic complications, although these links were not significant. It was also ...

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 study. The MoCA ...

Chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes progressive liver problems, and eradication of the virus remains a formidable challenge. New research in FEBS Letters indicates that treatment that boosts the effects of immune cells called stem cell memory T cells (TSCMs) may be a promising strategy for combating HBV. In the study, investigators identified TSCMs in patients with chronic HBV infection and analyzed their effects in a mouse model of HBV. After introducing TSCMs from patients ...

CLEVELAND, Ohio (April 10, 2024)—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. Results of the study are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society. Despite the conflicting results of a follow-up WHI study in 2004 and dozens of other studies since that time, a percentage of healthcare professionals and their middle-aged female patients continue to believe that ...

Adolescence is an important period of life for healthy growth. Malnutrition during this seminal period may have long-term adverse effects on health and development. In sub-Saharan Africa, there is a lack of nutrition programming for adolescents. Adolescent malnutrition represents an urgent issue in sub-Saharan Africa, which has a long history of undernutrition and a rising issue of overweight and obesity.  Findings from a new study suggest that a four-component school-based nutritional intervention package improved ...

Compared with Cd-based QDs, InP-based QDs have lower photoluminescence quantum yields (PL QYs) and broader full-width at half-maximum (FWHM). In particular, bare InP core has extremely low PL QY (＜1%) due to the ease of oxidation of their highly reactive surface even in insert reaction chambers. It has been reported that the defects from oxidative species are probably the reasons for the non-radiative recombination and poor PL QY of these materials. Over the last decade, extensive studies have been conducted to improve the optoelectronic properties of InP-based QDs for display and lighting applications, ...

Undertaking the majority of daily physical activity in the evening is linked to the greatest health benefits for people living with obesity, according to researchers from the University of Sydney, Australia who followed the trajectory of 30,000 people over almost 8 years. Using wearable device data to categorise participant’s physical activity by morning, afternoon or evening, the researchers uncovered that those who did the majority of their aerobic moderate to vigorous physical activity– the kind that raises our heartrate and gets us out of breath– between 6pm and midnight had the lowest risk of premature ...

Against the backdrop of global challenges such as climate change, diminishing natural resources, and the need to feed a growing population, the imperative for fostering worldwide agricultural sustainability has reached unprecedented levels. China’s Agricultural Green Development (AGD) serves as an important model for global sustainable agricultural development. What advantages does this model offer in terms of concept and implementation path compared to other international sustainable agriculture initiatives? What ...

Parents and youth sport coaches need to have positive relationships to foster positive sporting experiences and enable young people to reach their sporting potential – but there’s currently no clear direction about the best way for them to come together.   Flinders University researchers examining youth sport say that developing better coach-parent relationships that create an environment conducive to positive youth sport experiences and outcomes will require a fresh approach and a more interactive perspective.  Improving interactions and communication between parents and coaches needs ...

Engineered bacteria can produce a plastic modifier that makes renewably sourced plastic more processable, more fracture resistant and highly biodegradable even in sea water. The Kobe University development provides a platform for the industrial-scale, tunable production of a material that holds great potential for turning the plastic industry green. Plastic is a hallmark of our civilization. It is a family of highly formable (hence the name), versatile and durable materials, most of which are also persistent in nature and therefore a significant source of pollution. Moreover, many plastics are produced from crude oil, a non-renewable resource. Engineers and researchers ...

Swapping red meat for ‘forage fish’, such as herring, sardines, and anchovies, could save up to 750,000 lives a year in 2050 and significantly reduce the prevalence of disability as a result of diet-related disease, suggests a data analysis published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.    Adopting this type of diet would be especially helpful for low and middle income countries, where these fish are cheap and plentiful, and where the toll taken by heart disease, in particular, is high, say the researchers. Mounting ...

Experiencing the sort of job insecurity in early adulthood that is often linked to the gig economy, is linked to a heightened risk of a serious alcohol-related illness in later life, suggest the findings of a long term study published online in Occupational & Environmental Medicine.   And men who find themselves in this position as young adults seem to be more at risk than young women, the findings indicate.  The prevalence of ‘precarious employment’, which describes non-standard or temporary work that is often poorly paid, insecure, and unprotected, has increased in recent years, explain the researchers. ...

Xylazine, a powerful animal tranquiliser linked to horrific side effects, is now widespread in the UK illicit drug market. In most cases xylazine is mixed with strong opioids, such as heroin or fentanyl, which is a common combination in the United States. However, xylazine was also detected in the absence of strong opioids alongside stimulant drugs such as cocaine, and found in items sold as counterfeit codeine and diazepam (Valium) tablets and even THC vapes. Researchers warn the wider population of people who use drugs beyond heroin users will ...

Drugs known as GLP-1 analogues have become increasingly popular to treat diabetes and obesity, but there have been concerns that they might increase the risk of thyroid cancer. Now an extensive Scandinavian study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet has found no evidence of such a link. The study is published in The BMJ. GLP-1 receptor agonists, also known as GLP-1 analogues, reduce blood sugar levels and appetite. They are widely used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity, with their clinical use steadily increasing. Earlier studies and adverse event data have suggested that these drugs could be associated with an increased risk of thyroid ...

The evidence on the use of puberty blockers and hormones for children and young people experiencing gender related distress is wholly inadequate, making it impossible to gauge their effectiveness or their impact on mental and physical health, find two systematic reviews of the available research, published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood. Of the 50 studies included in the review looking at the effectiveness of puberty blockers for gender questioning teens, only one was of high quality, leading the authors to conclude that although most of the studies suggested that treatment might affect bone health and height: “No conclusions can be drawn about the impact ...

You have your mother’s eyes and your father’s smile, but genetics is much more than just what’s on the surface. In a study that spans more than a decade, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine have looked at generations of families in a specific population to reveal the role newly inherited DNA variants play on recessive disease traits, and in the process, they have created a population specific database revealing unique DNA information unseen in larger cohorts. The findings, now published in Genetics in Medicine OPEN, revealed a correlation between occurrences of complex genetic ...

Baylor College of Medicine is the champion of the 2024 STAT Madness competition! Similar to the March Madness bracket-style basketball competition, but focused on science, this national event pits research institutions against each other for the top innovation spot in science and medicine published in the previous year. This year, 50 institutions across the U.S. sent their candidate studies to STAT Madness, which selected 64 for the competition. The winner is elected by popular vote. After five weeks of voting that gathered nearly 270,000 votes, the Baylor team outdid the Stanford University competitor with 64.8% of the vote ...

ABSTRACTS CT037, CT038, CT042 SAN DIEGO – Three early-phase clinical studies presented by researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024 show promising initial data for patients with lymphoma, gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancers, and specific molecularly selected tumors. The studies were featured in a clinical trials minisymposium highlighting novel agents and emerging therapeutic strategies. Information on all MD Anderson AACR Annual Meeting content can be found at MDAnderson.org/AACR. Novel combination with evorpacept demonstrates promising results for ...

As millions of Americans approach age 66, they face the inevitable question, is it time to retire? The physician population is aging alongside the general population – more than 40% of physicians in the U.S. will be 65 years or older within the next decade. In the case of surgeons, there is little guidance on how to best ensure their competency throughout their career and at the same time maintain patient safety while preserving physician dignity. In a current study published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) ...

A new article in JBMR Plus, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that patient survival rates after hip or other bone fractures can be very poor. While patients and their families may dismiss a fracture as a minor injury, survival rates can be lower than those for many types of cancer. Scientists have gathered a body of evidence about mortality outcomes in patients over 50, but survival rates following bone fractures are not often included in the statistics available to patients or caregivers. The aim of this ...