Cataract surgery is one of the most foolproof procedures in medicine, with a success rate as high as 95%. Nevertheless, many seniors don’t get cataract surgery because they fear losing their sight, researchers reported recently in The Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. More than a third (36%) of a small group of patients said they fear cataract surgery, and more than half of those specifically cited concerns the procedure would lead to vision loss. These fears weren’t based on a lack of knowledge, but something more primal, researchers said. “We found patients who would benefit from surgery reasonably understood the procedure after we educated them,” senior researcher Dr. Lisa Kelly said in a news release. “But even with clear explanations, sometimes their fear persisted.” She’s director of medical student education at the University of Cincinnati Department of Ophthalmology. Cataracts develop when proteins in the eye’s lens break down and clump together, clouding the lens and causing blurry or dimmed vision, researchers said in background notes. It’s an age-related condition, typically. About half of all people who live into their 90s will need cataract surgery at some point, the Cleveland Clinic says. Cataract surgery involves replacing a clouded natural lens with a clear artificial one. The procedure is quick and painless, the Cleveland Clinic says. Each year surgeons perform more than 3 million a year in the…  read on >  read on >

Cataract surgery is one of the most foolproof procedures in medicine, with a success rate as high as 95%. Nevertheless, many seniors don’t get cataract surgery because they fear losing their sight, researchers reported recently in The Journal of Clinical Ophthalmology. More than a third (36%) of a small group of patients said they fear cataract surgery, and more than half of those specifically cited concerns the procedure would lead to vision loss. These fears weren’t based on a lack of knowledge, but something more primal, researchers said. “We found patients who would benefit from surgery reasonably understood the procedure after we educated them,” senior researcher Dr. Lisa Kelly said in a news release. “But even with clear explanations, sometimes their fear persisted.” She’s director of medical student education at the University of Cincinnati Department of Ophthalmology. Cataracts develop when proteins in the eye’s lens break down and clump together, clouding the lens and causing blurry or dimmed vision, researchers said in background notes. It’s an age-related condition, typically. About half of all people who live into their 90s will need cataract surgery at some point, the Cleveland Clinic says. Cataract surgery involves replacing a clouded natural lens with a clear artificial one. The procedure is quick and painless, the Cleveland Clinic says. Each year surgeons perform more than 3 million a year in the…  read on >  read on >

Bodybuilders spend countless hours in the gym to create a heart-stopping physique. But their efforts place their own hearts at risk of stopping, a new study says. Sudden cardiac death is responsible for an unusually high proportion of deaths in male bodybuilders, researchers reported today in the European Heart Journal. Further, professional bodybuilders are five times more likely to fall dead from cardiac arrest than amateurs, results show. “The risk of death among male bodybuilders is considerably high,” lead researcher Dr. Marco Vecchiato, a sports medicine specialist at the University of Padova in Italy, said in a news release. “Professional athletes had a markedly higher incidence of sudden cardiac death, suggesting that the level of competition might contribute to this increased risk.” The research was prompted by “a growing number of reports of premature deaths among people involved in bodybuilding and fitness,” including many reports of cardiac arrest, Vecchiato said. In a recent case, retired bodybuilder José Mateus Correia Silva went into cardiac arrest while working out at a gym in Aguas Claras, Brazil in November 2024, according to the New York Post. Friends rushed Silva to a local fire station, but more than an hour of CPR failed to resuscitate the 28-year-old, according to NDTV. “I want to thank the entire team that tried to save his life,” his brother, Tiago, said in a…  read on >  read on >

Bodybuilders spend countless hours in the gym to create a heart-stopping physique. But their efforts place their own hearts at risk of stopping, a new study says. Sudden cardiac death is responsible for an unusually high proportion of deaths in male bodybuilders, researchers reported today in the European Heart Journal. Further, professional bodybuilders are five times more likely to fall dead from cardiac arrest than amateurs, results show. “The risk of death among male bodybuilders is considerably high,” lead researcher Dr. Marco Vecchiato, a sports medicine specialist at the University of Padova in Italy, said in a news release. “Professional athletes had a markedly higher incidence of sudden cardiac death, suggesting that the level of competition might contribute to this increased risk.” The research was prompted by “a growing number of reports of premature deaths among people involved in bodybuilding and fitness,” including many reports of cardiac arrest, Vecchiato said. In a recent case, retired bodybuilder José Mateus Correia Silva went into cardiac arrest while working out at a gym in Aguas Claras, Brazil in November 2024, according to the New York Post. Friends rushed Silva to a local fire station, but more than an hour of CPR failed to resuscitate the 28-year-old, according to NDTV. “I want to thank the entire team that tried to save his life,” his brother, Tiago, said in a…  read on >  read on >

Women who don’t brush and floss frequently are more likely to suffer from migraines and fibromyalgia, a new study says. Women with the worst oral health have a 60% higher risk of moderate to severe body pain, and a 49% greater risk of migraine headaches, researchers reported in the journal Frontiers in Pain Research. Mouth microbes that flourish with a lack of brushing and flossing are likely responsible for this link, researchers said. “This is the first study to investigate oral health, oral microbiota and pain commonly experienced in women with fibromyalgia, with our study showing a clear and significant association between poor oral health and pain,” senior researcher Joanna Harnett said in a news release. She is an associate professor of complementary medicines at the University of Sydney in Australia. For the study, researchers analyzed data on 158 New Zealand women who had dental exams to check their oral health. Saliva samples were collected to see which microbes were present in the women’s mouths. The team then compared those results to women’s self-reported levels of pain, migraine and abdominal pain. “Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain, and headaches including headaches, as well as fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive problems,” lead researcher Sharon Erdrich, a doctoral student at the University of Sydney, said in a news release. Results showed that women…  read on >  read on >

Women who don’t brush and floss frequently are more likely to suffer from migraines and fibromyalgia, a new study says. Women with the worst oral health have a 60% higher risk of moderate to severe body pain, and a 49% greater risk of migraine headaches, researchers reported in the journal Frontiers in Pain Research. Mouth microbes that flourish with a lack of brushing and flossing are likely responsible for this link, researchers said. “This is the first study to investigate oral health, oral microbiota and pain commonly experienced in women with fibromyalgia, with our study showing a clear and significant association between poor oral health and pain,” senior researcher Joanna Harnett said in a news release. She is an associate professor of complementary medicines at the University of Sydney in Australia. For the study, researchers analyzed data on 158 New Zealand women who had dental exams to check their oral health. Saliva samples were collected to see which microbes were present in the women’s mouths. The team then compared those results to women’s self-reported levels of pain, migraine and abdominal pain. “Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain, and headaches including headaches, as well as fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive problems,” lead researcher Sharon Erdrich, a doctoral student at the University of Sydney, said in a news release. Results showed that women…  read on >  read on >

Think you can simply shake off a concussion without any professional help? Think again, a recent study says. People who forego concussion treatment can have lingering aftereffects that make them slow, sluggish and off-kilter, researchers reported recently in the Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Journal. “We have people who come in and say they’re fine,” senior researcher Laurie King, a professor of neurology at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, said in a news release. “Then when we challenge them to turn their head while looking at a fixed point, they’re like, ‘Whoa, that makes me feel sick.’ ” Earlier physical therapy seems to enable the brain to return to a more normal state of balance following a concussion, clinical trial results show. Without it, people have lingering problems related to their reaction time for balance and moving their bodies, researchers found. “It means they’re balanced-challenged and don’t react as quickly as someone with normal reaction times,” King said. That’s because when physical therapy is delayed, the brain might adapt to the injury by relying more on their vision than their inner ear to help maintain their balance, researchers said. Those patients had sloppier balance control because using their vision in that way caused delayed reaction time, King added. “There seems to be a window of opportunity within two months,” King said. “After that point,…  read on >  read on >

Think you can simply shake off a concussion without any professional help? Think again, a recent study says. People who forego concussion treatment can have lingering aftereffects that make them slow, sluggish and off-kilter, researchers reported recently in the Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Journal. “We have people who come in and say they’re fine,” senior researcher Laurie King, a professor of neurology at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, said in a news release. “Then when we challenge them to turn their head while looking at a fixed point, they’re like, ‘Whoa, that makes me feel sick.’ ” Earlier physical therapy seems to enable the brain to return to a more normal state of balance following a concussion, clinical trial results show. Without it, people have lingering problems related to their reaction time for balance and moving their bodies, researchers found. “It means they’re balanced-challenged and don’t react as quickly as someone with normal reaction times,” King said. That’s because when physical therapy is delayed, the brain might adapt to the injury by relying more on their vision than their inner ear to help maintain their balance, researchers said. Those patients had sloppier balance control because using their vision in that way caused delayed reaction time, King added. “There seems to be a window of opportunity within two months,” King said. “After that point,…  read on >  read on >