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Squats and lunges aren’t the most fun exercises, but a new study says they’ll help save your knees. Folks with strong quads building up their thighs appear to be less likely to require a total knee replacement, according to a presentation scheduled for Monday at a meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago. Stronger muscles are generally associated with a lower rate of total knee replacement, researchers said in background notes. However, it’s been unclear whether people benefit more from stronger extensor muscles like the quadriceps, which extend the leg, or stronger flexor muscles like hamstrings that bend the leg. “Our study shows that in addition to strong muscles individually, larger extensor muscle groups — relative to hamstring muscle groups — are significantly associated with lower odds of total knee replacement surgery in two to four years,” said Dr. Upasana Upadhyay Bharadwaj, a research fellow in radiology at the University of California-San Francisco School of Medicine. About 14 million U.S. adults have knee arthritis, and more than half will eventually require knee replacement surgery, researchers said. The quads and the hamstrings are of particular interest because they’re the two most important muscle groups to the knee. The quads are located on the front of the thigh. They are the strongest muscle group in the body and are essential to a person’s… read on > read on >

People with long COVID exhibit brain changes that are different from the brains of fully recovered COVID-19 patients, a new brain scan study reports. COVID-19 induced a specific pattern of microscopic structural changes in various brain regions of people with long COVID, researchers will report at the upcoming annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study comparing patients with long COVID to both a group without history of COVID-19 and a group that went through a COVID-19 infection but is subjectively unimpaired,” lead researcher Dr. Alexander Rau, a neuroradiology resident at University Hospital Freiburg in Freiburg, Germany, said in an RSNA news release. Between 10% and 25% of patients with a COVID infection wind up developing long COVID, researchers estimate. Long COVID involves a collection of different symptoms that can last for weeks, months or even years after a person gets over their initial illness, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Symptoms can include “brain fog,” fatigue, joint or muscle pain, shortness of breath, GI disturbances, heart palpitations, and changes in sense of smell or taste. For this study, researchers scanned participants’ brains using a novel MRI technique that analyzes the movement of water molecules in tissues. This method can provide detailed information on the brain’s microstructure, and can detect even very small… read on > read on >

Robert Fleetwood, 73, needed joint replacements in both knees, both to relieve his arthritis pain and to continue competing in athletic activities. And thanks to medical advances, Fleetwood was able to go home the same he had each knee replaced, in procedures spaced several months apart. A knee replacement “changes your perspective on life. It makes you feel so much more alive and dynamic when you’re not living with chronic pain that becomes debilitating,” Fleetwood, of Stuart, Fla., said in a news release. “I’m very happy now.” People used to have to spend a night in the hospital following a knee replacement, but improvements in technology, surgery and pain management have made it possible to undergo the procedure in the morning and be back home by the evening, Dr. Martin Roche, director of joint replacement at Hospital for Special Surgery Florida in West Palm Beach, said in a hospital news release. “We’ve come a long way in terms of being able to get people up and out of the hospital quickly, and that motivates them mentally, as well,” Roche said. Advances over the past five years that have led to outpatient knee replacements include: 3D CT scans that allow surgeons to plan highly personalized procedures beforehand. Surgical robotics and sensors that allow a high degree of precision and accuracy. Less invasive surgery that spares muscles… read on > read on >

THURSDAY, Nov. 23, 2023 (Healthday News) — Thanksgiving marks the start of the holiday eating season, when everyone is constantly tempted by sweet treats, rich foods and fancy, high-calorie drinks. But before diving into decadent eating, consider trying to make healthy food choices during the festivities, one expert suggests. “The holidays are a time for celebration and social gatherings, delicious meals and an abundance of sweet treats. It’s a time when people look forward to indulging in their favorite dishes, but also take the time to enjoy the company of treasured friends and family,” said Dr. Luis Rustveld, an assistant professor of family and community medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “Spending quality time with family and friends are integral to overall well-being and mental health. Starting these [healthier eating] habits during the holiday can lay the foundation for a healthier new year.” Any time of year can be a good time to adjust your diet, Rustveld noted, but the holidays may encourage more mindful eating because you can practice strategies like portion control, moderation and appreciating textures, flavors and smells of food. Taking your time while eating to focus on these details is one way to enjoy your meal and prevent overeating, he said. People should not deprive or limit the amount of food they eat in the days leading up to… read on > read on >

Four of every 10 American seniors who suffer a fall and end up in the ER with head trauma get no follow-up care once they go home, a new study finds. “Only 59 percent of our study subjects had follow-up with their [health care] provider,” study senior author Dr. Richard Shih said. He’s professor of emergency medicine at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. Even if patients do manage to see a doctor after their ER discharge, they often get no guidance on how to prevent another fall, Shih and his colleagues said. “Of the patients in our study that had primary care physician follow-up, 28 percent reported that there was no fall-risk assessment and 44 percent did not receive fall prevention interventions,” he said in a university news release. Falls can be highly injurious and often fatal for older Americans. According to data supplied by the university, in a given year 1 in every 4 Americans aged 65 or older will suffer a fall, resulting in 8 million emergency department visits annually, 800,000 hospitalizations and more than 27,000 deaths. Seeing your family doctor after you’ve recovered from a serious fall is crucial to helping prevent subsequent falls, the Florida team said. Unfortunately, that kind of follow-up often doesn’t happen. In their study, Shih’s team tracked levels of follow-up care for more than 1,500 seniors… read on > read on >

Environmental contaminants may be driving higher rates of breast cancer in urban areas compared to rural locales, a new North Carolina study finds. “Our analyses indicate significant associations between environmental quality and breast cancer incidence,” said lead author Larisa Gearhart-Serna, who led the research as a Ph.D. candidate at the Duke Cancer Institute in Durham, N.C. The findings, published Nov. 20 in Scientific Reports, were based on data from the Environmental Quality Index (EQI) for North Carolina residents. The EQI is “a county-by-county assessment of air, water, land, built environment, as well as the sociodemographic environment,” study senior author Gayathri Devi explained in a Duke news release. She’s a professor of surgery and pathology and director of the Duke Consortium for Inflammatory Breast Cancer at the institute. Devi and Gearhart-Serna compared EQI data against information on breast cancer case incidence (and cancer stage upon diagnosis) across North Carolina. The team believe the state is a good model for disparities in breast cancer risk, with 10 million people spread across 100 rural and urban counties. Some counties have better “environmental quality” than others, and the Duke team found that folks living in counties with poor environmental quality had about 11 more cases of breast cancer per 100,000 residents, compared to counties with good environmental quality. That was especially true for cases of early (localized) breast cancer,… read on > read on >

Abandoned animals, kids with cancer, disabled veterans: These and other pitches for charity can move your emotions and have you reaching for your credit card. But beware: Especially around the holidays, fake charity scammers are hard at work trying to part you from your hard-earned cash. Katalin Parti is an assistant professor of sociology at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. She specializes in the study of cybercrime and says there are easy ways to sort out real charity appeals from false ones. But scammers also know how to build trust, she warned. “They may call you using a local phone number,” Parti said in a Virginia Tech news release. “That tactic can give you a false sense of security.” You then start listening to their pitch, expertly designed to play on your emotions and often confusingly misleading. “It will be a good one. It will tug at your heart-strings,” Parti said. “But listen closely because they will never actually specify how they will help. They may even claim that you’ve donated before and ask you to do it again.” Is this a real charity or a scammer? To quickly find out, check databases like the search tool for tax-exempt organizations at the Internal Revenue Service or watchdog groups such as Charity Watch to see if the group being pitched is legit, Parti said. And… read on > read on >

TUESDAY, Nov. 21, 2023 (HealthDay News) —Traffic, crowds and unforeseen delays and disruptions can turn holiday travel from celebratory to chaos in a flash — especially if you’re prone to anxiety. Being aware of your triggers can help you be ready for any glitches that arise. “Triggers might include uncertainty of traffic, flight delays, being in public places, or seeing friends and family for the holidays,” said Dr. Asim Shah, a professor and executive vice chair of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “Based on your triggers, you can make a plan.” A good plan starts with getting plenty of rest the night before your trip, eating healthy, and avoiding alcohol and drugs, which can make anxiety worse, Shah said in a Baylor news release. He suggests working out before you head out the door, because the endorphins released during exercise help ease anxiety and nervous energy. “Have a plan, distract yourself and reassure yourself that you are safe,” he said. If flying makes you anxious and time permits, take the car instead of a plane, but try to stay off the road during rush hour, Shah suggested. If you are traveling by air, consider booking your trip so you can arrive a day early. Shah also recommends leaving in the morning and having a backup plan in case your… read on > read on >

If you belong to one of the 46 million American households with a cat, you already know how stressful a trip to the vet can be for your feline — and you. Rescue might be on the way: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved a new medicine to help calm cat anxiety. The pill is called Bonqat, and it’s designed “for the alleviation of acute anxiety and fear associated with transportation and veterinary visits in cats,” the FDA said in a news release announcing the approval. “The drug is administered orally approximately 1.5 hours before the start of the transportation or veterinary visit and can be given on two consecutive days,” the agency added. Bonqat contains pregabalin, a drug that calms overactive nerves. Bonqat is the first FDA-approved drug to contain pregabalin. According to information from the VCA Animal Hospitals, some cats can develop severe anxiety and motion sickness being transported to the vet’s office (or anywhere). Symptoms can range from lots of meowing, lip smacking and drooling, to stress-induced motion sickness that can trigger urination and defecation in anxious cats. Medications given before a vet trip might help. The FDA approval of Bonqat was based on real-world trials conducted by the drug’s Finnish maker, Orion Corp. People whose cats had a history of fear and anxiety during veterinary visits were asked… read on > read on >

A year after suffering a concussion, teens, especially boys, are more likely than their peers to think about, plan and even attempt suicide, new research finds. With more concussions, the risk grows. Teen boys who reported two or more concussions in the past year were two times more likely to report a suicide attempt than those who had one concussion. Girls’ odds for suicidal behaviors were similar regardless of concussion history. “This type of research is never easy to discuss, but it is vitally important to understand who is at risk and why,” study co-author Steve Broglio, director of the University of Michigan Concussion Center, said in a university news release. The findings were published Nov.16 in the Journal of Athletic Training. Researchers believe it to be the first study to look at the relationship between concussion frequency and suicidal behaviors in a representative sample of U.S. high schoolers. Lead author Jacob Kay, a research affiliate at the University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health, said it was already known that brain injuries can touch off or worsen mental health challenges. “Our study further highlights the importance of evaluating mental health among both male and female youth that have sustained a concussion,” he said in the news release. “This is particularly true for those who have sustained multiple concussions in a short time.”… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Want to Avoid Knee Replacement? Build Up Your Thighs

Scans Show Brain Changes in People With Long COVID

New Advances Mean Many Patients Go Home Same Day After Knee Replacement

Give Thanks for Healthy Diet Changes During the Holidays

Too Few Seniors Get Follow-up Care After a Serious Fall

Breast Cancer Rates Higher in Urban vs. Rural Areas

Charity Scams Get Active Over the Holidays: Expert Tips to Avoid Them

Holiday Travel Sends Stress Levels Sky High: Here’s Tips to Cope

Hate Driving Your Cat to the Vet? FDA Just Approved a Drug for That

Teens With Multiple Concussions Face Higher Risk of Suicidal Thoughts