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Increasing Number Of Pregnancies Affected By Heart Complications

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Heart-related health problems might affect as many as 1 in 7 pregnancies, even among women without any prior heart disease, a new study says. Researchers found a steady increase in heart-related health problems among more than 56,000 pregnancies between 2001 and 2019 in New England. Heart attack, stroke, heart failure, blood clots, high blood pressure and heart-related maternal death affected about 15% of pregnancies during that time, researchers reported Oct. 6 in the journal Circulation. “Our findings showcase an alarming trend of rising real-world burden of pregnancy-related cardiovascular complications and highlights pregnancy from preconception to the postpartum period as a crucial window of opportunity to implement primary prevention strategies and optimize cardiovascular health,” concluded a team led by Dr. Emily Lau, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Heart complications account for more than a third of maternal deaths, and are among the leading causes of disease among pregnant women, researchers said in background notes. For the study, researchers tracked pregnancies treated within the Mass General Brigham health care system in New England. Results showed that the increase in heart-related complications was greatest among women with pre-existing heart problems. However, the increase was observed across all age groups and even among those without prior heart health issues. Researchers noted a rise in heart-related health risk factors present before and during pregnancy: Obesity increased from…  read on >  read on >

Increasing Number Of Pregnancies Affected By Heart Complications

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Heart-related health problems might affect as many as 1 in 7 pregnancies, even among women without any prior heart disease, a new study says. Researchers found a steady increase in heart-related health problems among more than 56,000 pregnancies between 2001 and 2019 in New England. Heart attack, stroke, heart failure, blood clots, high blood pressure and heart-related maternal death affected about 15% of pregnancies during that time, researchers reported Oct. 6 in the journal Circulation. “Our findings showcase an alarming trend of rising real-world burden of pregnancy-related cardiovascular complications and highlights pregnancy from preconception to the postpartum period as a crucial window of opportunity to implement primary prevention strategies and optimize cardiovascular health,” concluded a team led by Dr. Emily Lau, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Heart complications account for more than a third of maternal deaths, and are among the leading causes of disease among pregnant women, researchers said in background notes. For the study, researchers tracked pregnancies treated within the Mass General Brigham health care system in New England. Results showed that the increase in heart-related complications was greatest among women with pre-existing heart problems. However, the increase was observed across all age groups and even among those without prior heart health issues. Researchers noted a rise in heart-related health risk factors present before and during pregnancy: Obesity increased from…  read on >  read on >

‘Fun-Sized’ Exercise Snacks Can Boost Fitness, Review Says

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“Fun-sized” bits of exercise sprinkled throughout the day might help boost the fitness of inactive folks, a new evidence review says. These exercise “snacks” — intentional short bursts of physical activity — significantly improved heart and lung fitness among adults, researchers reported Oct. 7 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. People also found it easy to pick up the habit of bite-sized workout breaks, results showed. “The time efficient nature of exercise snacks may help overcome common barriers to physical activity, such as perceived lack of time and low motivation,” wrote a team led by Hugo Olmedillas, an assistant professor of physical education and sport at the University of Oviedo in Spain. “Exercise snacks may enhance adherence to regular physical activity by providing short, flexible exercise bouts that are easier to integrate into daily routines,” the team concluded. About a third of adults and 4 in 5 teens fail to meet minimum recommended physical activity levels, researchers said in background notes. People are encouraged to get at least 300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous exercise each week. Exercise snacks, like stair climbing or weightlifting, might help fill this gap by getting people off their feet for brief spells, researchers theorized. For their review, researchers pooled data from 11 clinical trials in Australia, Canada, China and the U.K., involving…  read on >  read on >

‘Fun-Sized’ Exercise Snacks Can Boost Fitness, Review Says

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“Fun-sized” bits of exercise sprinkled throughout the day might help boost the fitness of inactive folks, a new evidence review says. These exercise “snacks” — intentional short bursts of physical activity — significantly improved heart and lung fitness among adults, researchers reported Oct. 7 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. People also found it easy to pick up the habit of bite-sized workout breaks, results showed. “The time efficient nature of exercise snacks may help overcome common barriers to physical activity, such as perceived lack of time and low motivation,” wrote a team led by Hugo Olmedillas, an assistant professor of physical education and sport at the University of Oviedo in Spain. “Exercise snacks may enhance adherence to regular physical activity by providing short, flexible exercise bouts that are easier to integrate into daily routines,” the team concluded. About a third of adults and 4 in 5 teens fail to meet minimum recommended physical activity levels, researchers said in background notes. People are encouraged to get at least 300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous exercise each week. Exercise snacks, like stair climbing or weightlifting, might help fill this gap by getting people off their feet for brief spells, researchers theorized. For their review, researchers pooled data from 11 clinical trials in Australia, Canada, China and the U.K., involving…  read on >  read on >

Deaths From Accidents Related To Drug Use Rose 60% In Five Years

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More people are dying from accidents that occur while they’re using drugs, a new study says. The death rate from unintentional injuries related to drug use rose nearly 60% between 2018 and 2023, researchers reported Tuesday at a meeting of the American College of Surgeons in Chicago. “Drug use is now contributing to more accidental injury deaths, especially in middle-aged adults,” said researcher Dr. Krista Haines, an assistant professor of trauma, critical care and acute care surgery at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. “As a result, it is reshaping the way we need to think about trauma and trauma prevention,” she said in a news release. The research team said they intended their study to broaden the scope of drug-related deaths beyond the focus on overdoses. For the new study, researchers analyzed death certificate data compiled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) between 2018 and 2023. A total 534,000 deaths from unintentional injuries occurred during that period. The team then looked at accidental deaths that occurred among people using opioids, recreational drugs or prescription medications. Injury deaths involving drug use rose from just under 20% to nearly 31% over the five-year period, researchers found. About half of the deaths (51%) occurred among 35- to 44-year-olds, and men died at twice the rate of women (38% versus 16%), results showed.…  read on >  read on >

Deaths From Accidents Related To Drug Use Rose 60% In Five Years

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More people are dying from accidents that occur while they’re using drugs, a new study says. The death rate from unintentional injuries related to drug use rose nearly 60% between 2018 and 2023, researchers reported Tuesday at a meeting of the American College of Surgeons in Chicago. “Drug use is now contributing to more accidental injury deaths, especially in middle-aged adults,” said researcher Dr. Krista Haines, an assistant professor of trauma, critical care and acute care surgery at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. “As a result, it is reshaping the way we need to think about trauma and trauma prevention,” she said in a news release. The research team said they intended their study to broaden the scope of drug-related deaths beyond the focus on overdoses. For the new study, researchers analyzed death certificate data compiled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) between 2018 and 2023. A total 534,000 deaths from unintentional injuries occurred during that period. The team then looked at accidental deaths that occurred among people using opioids, recreational drugs or prescription medications. Injury deaths involving drug use rose from just under 20% to nearly 31% over the five-year period, researchers found. About half of the deaths (51%) occurred among 35- to 44-year-olds, and men died at twice the rate of women (38% versus 16%), results showed.…  read on >  read on >

Concussions Might Be Early Warning Sign For ALS, Study Argues

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Concussions and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) have been considered a potential cause of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. But a new study argues the association might be the other way around, with concussions providing an early warning sign among folks already in the early stages of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). The loss of muscle control that comes with early ALS might increase people’s risk for a concussion-causing fall or accident, researchers write in JAMA Network Open. If that’s so, then “TBI in some individuals perhaps (reflects) a consequence of early, subclinical ALS,” concluded the research team led by Dr. William Stewart, a neuropathologist at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, U.K. For the study, researchers compared around 85,700 patients who’d had a traumatic brain injury with more than 257,000 matched people with no history of TBI. During nearly six years of follow up, 150 cases of ALS occurred among all the study’s participants. Traumatic brain injures were associated with a more than doubled risk of ALS, results showed. However, that higher risk only lasts for two years following the concussion, researchers found. In addition, there was no difference in age at diagnosis or death for ALS patients who’d sustained a concussion, compared to those who hadn’t. “In this context, it seems plausible that the high ALS risk we observe in the years immediately…  read on >  read on >

Concussions Might Be Early Warning Sign For ALS, Study Argues

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Concussions and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) have been considered a potential cause of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. But a new study argues the association might be the other way around, with concussions providing an early warning sign among folks already in the early stages of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). The loss of muscle control that comes with early ALS might increase people’s risk for a concussion-causing fall or accident, researchers write in JAMA Network Open. If that’s so, then “TBI in some individuals perhaps (reflects) a consequence of early, subclinical ALS,” concluded the research team led by Dr. William Stewart, a neuropathologist at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, U.K. For the study, researchers compared around 85,700 patients who’d had a traumatic brain injury with more than 257,000 matched people with no history of TBI. During nearly six years of follow up, 150 cases of ALS occurred among all the study’s participants. Traumatic brain injures were associated with a more than doubled risk of ALS, results showed. However, that higher risk only lasts for two years following the concussion, researchers found. In addition, there was no difference in age at diagnosis or death for ALS patients who’d sustained a concussion, compared to those who hadn’t. “In this context, it seems plausible that the high ALS risk we observe in the years immediately…  read on >  read on >

Training, Support Empowers Pediatricians In Peanut Allergy Prevention

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Pediatricians can better help parents prevent peanut allergies if they are provided support that helps them follow national guidelines, a new study says. Doctors were more likely to recommend early introduction of peanut-containing foods into the diets of infants if they had educational and clinical support, researchers reported Oct. 6 in the journal Pediatrics. These docs were three times more likely to follow the guidelines for kids at high risk for peanut allergy and 14 times more likely for low-risk kids, the study found. “We found that supporting pediatricians with training, electronic health record prompts, and educational materials for parents significantly improved their ability to counsel families on early peanut introduction,” said lead researcher Dr. Ruchi Gupta, a pediatrician and researcher at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. “Because pediatric visits at four and six months are so busy, this support is critical to ensure families receive clear guidance,” Gupta added in a news release. “Our hope is that these conversations will help parents feel confident introducing peanut products early. We want to reverse the trend of increasing food allergies in the U.S. through prevention.” Guidelines recommend early introduction of peanut-containing foods for all infants, but a 2022 survey found that only 26% of pediatricians are following these recommendations, researchers said in background notes. To improve allergy care, researchers developed the Intervention…  read on >  read on >

Training, Support Empowers Pediatricians In Peanut Allergy Prevention

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Pediatricians can better help parents prevent peanut allergies if they are provided support that helps them follow national guidelines, a new study says. Doctors were more likely to recommend early introduction of peanut-containing foods into the diets of infants if they had educational and clinical support, researchers reported Oct. 6 in the journal Pediatrics. These docs were three times more likely to follow the guidelines for kids at high risk for peanut allergy and 14 times more likely for low-risk kids, the study found. “We found that supporting pediatricians with training, electronic health record prompts, and educational materials for parents significantly improved their ability to counsel families on early peanut introduction,” said lead researcher Dr. Ruchi Gupta, a pediatrician and researcher at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. “Because pediatric visits at four and six months are so busy, this support is critical to ensure families receive clear guidance,” Gupta added in a news release. “Our hope is that these conversations will help parents feel confident introducing peanut products early. We want to reverse the trend of increasing food allergies in the U.S. through prevention.” Guidelines recommend early introduction of peanut-containing foods for all infants, but a 2022 survey found that only 26% of pediatricians are following these recommendations, researchers said in background notes. To improve allergy care, researchers developed the Intervention…  read on >  read on >