The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Annovera (segesterone acetate and ethinyl estradiol vaginal system), a combined hormonal contraceptive for women of reproductive age. It will be used to prevent pregnancy and is the first vaginal ring contraceptive that can be used for an entire year. Annovera is a reusable donut-shaped (ring), non-biodegradable, flexible… Continue reading FDA Approves New Hormonal Contraceptive
Author: Jane Farrell
Repetition and Your Brain
Researchers report that a computerized study of 36 healthy adult volunteers asked to repeat the same movement over and over became significantly faster when asked to repeat that movement on demand–a result that occurred not because they anticipated the movement, but because of an as yet unknown mechanism that prepared their brains to replicate the… Continue reading Repetition and Your Brain
Three Tips for Making Better Ethical Decisions Every Day
Today’s reports bring us plenty of examples of poor professional ethics being practiced in business, entertainment, and government. But in terms of personal ethics as applied to everyday choices that we don’t read about, what percentage of people lie, cheat, steal, cut corners, or take advantage of others? Some studies show over 50 percent would… Continue reading Three Tips for Making Better Ethical Decisions Every Day
Many Cosmetic Surgery Videos Are Misleading
Most YouTube videos on plastic surgery are simply misleading marketing campaigns posted by non-qualified medical professionals, according to a new study. The millions of people who turn to YouTube as a source for education on facial plastic surgery receive a false understanding that does not include the risks or alternative options, said lead author Boris… Continue reading Many Cosmetic Surgery Videos Are Misleading
Healthy graps
A Medical Solution to A Neighborhood Problem
Researchers from Nationwide Children’s Hospital have been trying a unique experiment: treating a neighborhood as a patient. The findings were reported in the journal Pediatrics. Neighborhood effect syndrome, characterized by symptoms of extreme poverty including blight, housing insecurity, racial segregation, trauma, violence, poorly performing schools, low social cohesion and support and environmental toxins, has debilitating… Continue reading A Medical Solution to A Neighborhood Problem
FDA Approves Generic Epi Pen
The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first generic competitor to the EpiPen and EpiPen Jr., the auto-injector for the emergency treatment of life-threatening allergies. Mylan, the original manufacturers of the device, had been sharply criticized for raising the cost more than 400 percent over a decade, according to CNBC. The Israeli… Continue reading FDA Approves Generic Epi Pen
The Pregnancy App
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has permitted marketing of the first mobile medical application (app) that can be used as a method of contraception to prevent pregnancy. The app, called Natural Cycles, contains an algorithm that calculates the days of the month a woman is likely to be fertile based on daily body temperature… Continue reading The Pregnancy App
Easier Passwords
Although passphrases, or phrase-based passwords, have been found to be more secure than traditional passwords, human factors issues such as typographical errors and memory have slowed their wider adoption. Kevin Juang and Joel Greenstein, in their recently published Human Factors article developed and tested two new passphrase systems that seek to address these shortcomings and… Continue reading Easier Passwords
Five Ways Neglecting Your Teeth Could Cost You – In Money and In Health
Here’s a hard fact to chew on: Adults between the ages of 20 and 64 average losing about seven permanent teeth, according to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). Lost teeth are just one of the many costs that can be incurred by neglecting your oral health. Dental professionals say a lack… Continue reading Five Ways Neglecting Your Teeth Could Cost You – In Money and In Health
Heads or Tails: ALS or Lyme Disease?
Flip a coin to decide what incurable disease you might have? I wish it was as easy as that. In my experience, it took much more time, research, testing and hoping for a diagnosis that we could literally live with. My husband was diagnosed with Lyme Disease and three years later he died from ALS… Continue reading Heads or Tails: ALS or Lyme Disease?
Dry Eye and Immune Cells
Immune cells that normally rush in to protect the eyes from infection might actually be disrupting moisturizing glands and causing dry eye, researchers say. Dry eye is a disease that afflicts more than 30 million people in the United States. This finding from a research team led by Duke Eye Center could lead to more… Continue reading Dry Eye and Immune Cells
What You Need to Know about Psoriasis
Unlike beauty, psoriasis is more than skin deep. In fact, recent research links the inflammatory skin disorder, in its more serious forms, to greater incidence of early death. Authors of that research report that patients with 10 percent or more of their body covered by psoriasis are at double risk of dying. That finding is… Continue reading What You Need to Know about Psoriasis
End-of-Life Conversations with Non-Clinical Workers Bring Patient Satisfaction
Patients with advanced cancer who spoke with a trained nonclinical worker about personal care goals were more likely to subsequently talk with doctors about their preferences, report higher satisfaction with their care and incur lower health costs in their final month of life, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers report. The findings, from a pilot… Continue reading End-of-Life Conversations with Non-Clinical Workers Bring Patient Satisfaction
Back-to-School Healthy Habits for Families
The end of summer means the resumption of routines for most families. This can be a great time to build new healthy habits or to get on track again after a few months’ break. Here are a few areas that can benefit everyone in the household. Eating Breakfast Starting the day off as a family… Continue reading Back-to-School Healthy Habits for Families
“Portfolio Diet” Lowers Many Risk Factors for Heart Disease
Researchers have discovered that the portfolio diet, an eating plan shown to lower cholesterol levels, also reduces other cardiovascular-disease risk factors including blood pressure, triglycerides and inflammation. In addition to reducing LDL (or “bad”) cholesterol by about 30 per cent when accompanied by a low-saturated fat diet — a level comparable to medications — the… Continue reading “Portfolio Diet” Lowers Many Risk Factors for Heart Disease
Is Your Partner Wrecking Your Financial Literacy?
As couples mature together, they often grow apart in their level of interest and skill in handling their finances. A disparity in financial literacy that may be small or even nonexistent at first can increase over time depending on how much responsibility one partner undertakes, according to researchers at The University of Texas at Austin… Continue reading Is Your Partner Wrecking Your Financial Literacy?
When Doctors Get “Nudged,” Lifesaving Prescription Rates Go Up
Doctors who were “nudged” by an online patient dashboard to think about prescribing lifesaving statins tripled their prescription rates, according to a clinical trial led by Penn Medicine researchers. Cholesterol-lowering statins such as atorvastatin and simvastatin are known to prevent heart attacks, strokes, and associated deaths, and are relatively inexpensive with minor side effects. Yet… Continue reading When Doctors Get “Nudged,” Lifesaving Prescription Rates Go Up