A small wildfire in San Diego County in 2017 resulted in a big uptick in children visiting the emergency room for breathing problems, according to new research published online in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. In “Increase in Pediatric Respiratory Visits Associated with Santa Ana Wind-driven Wildfire Smoke and PM2.5 levels in San Diego County,” Sydney...
Health
A New Link Between Fear, Imitation, and Antisocial Behavior in Children
Why do some children have more difficulties understanding others’ emotions or feeling sorry after misbehaving? Why do some act out in certain situations and behave in others? How should adults respond in these circumstances? For parents, such puzzles can seem unsolvable yet having insight into the inner workings of these situations becomes increasingly important when...
Unattainable Standards of Beauty for Today’s Woman
While the average American woman’s waist circumference and dress size has increased over the past 20 years, Victoria’s Secret fashion models have become more slender, with a decrease in bust, waist, hips and dress size, though their waist to hip ratio (WHR) has remained constant. These findings represent an ideal of beauty that continuously moves...
Yale Study Urges Lifesaving Drug Treatment to Combat Ukraine’s HIV Epidemic
A new study led by Yale University researchers finds that scaling up use of methadone and buprenorphine — medications for treating opioid use disorder known as opioid agonist therapies (OATs) — could greatly reduce HIV transmission rates and prevent deaths in Ukraine, where the disease is epidemic among people who inject drugs. The study was...
Number of Youth Who Start Vaping at 14 or Before Has Tripled
The number of e-cigarette users who began vaping at age 14 or younger has more than tripled in the last five years, say University of Michigan researchers. Last year, 28% of e-cigarette users said they started no later than age 14, compared to about 9% in 2014. The findings appear online in the American Journal...
Extending Medicare Part D Rebates to Beneficiaries Would Save Seniors $29 Billion Over 7 Years
A new assessment of the Medicare Part D program based on a proposal from the West Health Policy Center finds that Medicare beneficiaries would save $29 billion if drug manufacturer rebates were used to reduce their out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy counter through the Part D benefit – as long as these rebate savings are not also used to...
Socioeconomic Inequalities Are Decisive in the Health of the Elderly
The Social Determinants of Health and Demographic Change (OPIK) research group of the UPV/EHU is a multidisciplinary team in the field of social and health sciences and is devoted, among other things, to research into the social factors influencing health and disease in the population, social inequalities in health and the policies having the potential...
Accessing Medical Records Improve Patients Care — but Only 10% of Patients Do So
Despite the numerous benefits associated with patients accessing their medical records, a study by a Portland State University (PSU) professor found only 10% of patients utilize the resource. Researchers expected to find inequities in use and access — in theory driven by existing digital disparities, those who don’t use English as a first-language or communities...
New Drugs More Likely to Be Approved If Backed Up by Genetics
A new drug candidate is more likely to be approved for use if it targets a gene known to be linked to the disease; a finding that can help pharmaceutical companies to focus their drug development efforts. Emily King and colleagues from AbbVie report these findings in a new study published last week in PLOS...
How Does Political News Affect Moods? New Study in Young Doctors Shows Real-Time Effects
They work in a bubble of 80-hour work weeks, and 24-hour shifts. They’re caring for patients for the first time, while still learning the ropes of the medical profession. The constant stress wears on their mental health. But for first-year doctors who started their careers in the past few years, a new study shows that...