Nearly half of patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) participating in a prospective, pilot study overused their as-needed short-acting beta-agonist (SABA) bronchodilators. During 3 months of observation, close to one in five (19%) study participants with moderate to severe, but stable, COPD overused their albuterol SABA inhalers more than half of the days….
Author: Karen Bastille
Long-Dreaded Superbug Found in Human and Animal in U.S.
The antibiotic resistance factor MCR, which protects bacteria against the final remaining drugs of last resort, has been found in the United States for the first time—in a person, and separately, in a stored sample taken from a slaughtered pig. Department of Defense researchers disclosed Thursday in a report placed online by the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy that…
Low salt diets not beneficial: Global study finds
McMaster University news release Salt reduction only important in some people with high blood pressure A large worldwide study has found that, contrary to popular thought, low-salt diets may not be beneficial and may actually increase the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death compared to average salt consumption. In fact, the study suggests that…
Care for COPD: Could More Be Done?
University of Michigan – Michigan Health Lab news It’s the third-leading cause of death in the United States, but compared to other chronic diseases, COPD research funding is low and patients’ access to care is poor. Fifteen million: That’s the number of adults in the United States affected by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD….
Nearly half of all heart attacks may be ‘silent’
American Heart Association Rapid Access Journal Report Study Highlights Nearly half of all heart attacks may be silent — occurring without any symptoms. Like heart attacks with symptoms, silent heart attacks increase the risk of death. Because people do not realize they had a silent heart attack, they may not get the care they need…
Lowering Blood Pressure Reduces Risk of Heart Disease in Older Adults Without Increasing Risk of Falls
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center press release Intensive therapies to reduce high blood pressure can cut the risk of heart disease in older adults without increasing the risk for falls, according to doctors at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. In the United States, 75 percent of people over age 75 have hypertension, which can lead…
Lupus Therapies Continue to Evolve
FDA Consumer Update 5/18/16 It can be a difficult disease to diagnose and a difficult disease to treat. It’s called lupus, and as many as 24,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with the disease each year. May is National Lupus Awareness month, a time to think about lupus and the challenges it presents…
What foods can help fight the risk of chronic inflammation?
University of Liverpool’s Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease news release A new study by the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease has identified food stuffs that can help prevent chronic inflammation that contributes to many leading causes of death. Inflammation occurs naturally in the body but when it goes wrong or…
Surprising mechanism of acid reflux damage identified by UT Southwestern/Dallas VA researchers
UT Southwestern Medical Center news release The “acid” in “acid reflux” may not be the direct cause of damage to the esophagus as previously suspected, according to researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center and Dallas VA Medical Center. For more than 80 years, it has been assumed that stomach acid backing up through the esophagus damaged…
Exacerbations in COPD patients hasten lung function loss
ATS Conference 2016 press release In patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), exacerbations accelerated lung function loss, according to a new study presented at the ATS 2016 International Conference. The effect was particularly prominent in those with mild disease. The investigators embarked on their research because previous studies failed to adequately examine if exacerbations…
Survey: Common Asthma Warnings Overlooked
National Jewish Health news release Lack of awareness prevents patients with adult-onset asthma from seeking treatment A new national asthma survey commissioned by National Jewish Health shows that many adults are unaware of common symptoms of asthma in adults. Doctors say that the findings explain why many adults with asthma may not realize that they…
Two home exercises to treat vertigo – Video
University of Colorado School of Medicine news release School of Medicine researcher devises new exercise that allows the patient to “self apply” A University of Colorado School of Medicine researcher who suffers from benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) and had to “fix it” before she could go to work one day was using a maneuver…
New Way to Predict COPD Progression; New Treatment May Be on the Horizon
ATS 2016 International Conference press release New research has found that a process initiated in white blood cells known as neutrophils may lead to worse outcomes for some patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The discovery may help identify patients at higher risk for COPD progression, who might also show little benefit from standard…
Persistent Childhood Asthma Linked to COPD
Brigham and Women’s Hospital press release The development of persistent childhood asthma – characterized by having trouble breathing on an almost daily basis – is not well understood. In most cases, childhood asthma resolves with time, but as many as 20 percent of children with asthma will go on to have potentially severe symptoms in…
Two-Minute Video Boosts Pneumonia Vaccinations
Northwestern University research news Many older adults don’t get pneumococcal vaccination A simple two-minute video about pneumococcal vaccination sent to patients before a primary care visit tripled the likelihood they would get the vaccine, reports new Northwestern Medicine research. The vaccination can prevent severe disease from the bacteria that most commonly causes pneumonia and meningitis….
Calcium supplements can increase risk of heart attack, stroke
Norwegian University of Science and Technology news release Taking calcium and vitamin D can help prevent broken bones in older women. However, this benefit may be cancelled out by an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Norway has the highest reported risk of hip fractures in the whole world. Too little calcium and vitamin…
May – Focusing on Asthma Awareness and Control
News from the American Lung Association Did you know that in the United States, it’s estimated that approximately 24 million people—including more than 6 million children—are living with asthma? May is Asthma Awareness Month and today, May 3 is World Asthma Day. The 2016 theme for World Asthma Day is “You Can Control Your Asthma”…
From genes to latrines: Vikings and their worms provide clues to emphysema
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine news release In a paper published in Nature: Scientific Reports a group of researchers led by LSTM have found that the key to an inherited deficiency, predisposing people to emphysema and other lung conditions, could lie in their Viking roots. Archaeological excavations of Viking latrine pits in Denmark have revealed…
Depression worsens COPD symptoms – Patients face breathlessness and lower exercise tolerance
Manchester Metropolitan University news Debilitating symptoms from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can worsen in patients who also experience depression, research suggests. A new study, published in CHEST Journal, demonstrates a link between an exacerbation of COPD in patients and depression. Patients who had pre-existing depression or developed depression after COPD diagnosis were more likely…
The importance of maintaining muscle mass, rather than focusing on weight loss, in order to prolong life
UCLA Health news Higher muscle mass associated with lower mortality risk in people with heart disease FINDINGS Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA found that cardiovascular disease patients who have high muscle mass and low fat mass have a lower mortality risk than those with other body compositions. The findings also…