Children’s “Psychotic-Like Experiences”
Children and young adolescents may experience perceptual distortions or strange thoughts, but if they become frequent and disruptive, they can be an early tip-off to serious future mental health distress.
Medical Notes: January 9, 2022
The Omicron variant may flame out as quickly as it rose. Then, a new study shows that traditional books are making a come-back. And finally, your microwave could be making your dog really anxious.
Hoarding Disorder: More Than Just Too Much Junk
Hoarding disorder affects at least five percent of Americans, and despite TV programs showing its effects, it is still widely misunderstood.
Dealing With Lifelong Disease
Life-threatening, lifelong chronic diseases from infancy are at the top of the list of medical challenges. A woman who has dealt with cystic fibrosis her entire life discusses how mindset is often the biggest factor in living a full life with such a disease, and sets out her recipe for shoring up one’s approach.
Medical Notes: January 2, 2022
A new finds that patients showing up at rural hospital ERs have extremely similar outcomes compared to patients in urban-area ERs. Then, new research sheds light on why more girls don't go into STEM. Plus, pandemic depression linked to sitting and lack of activity. And finally, Alexa and Siri aren't very helpful when it comes to health.
Advances That May Eliminate Scarring
Scars are a public health as well as aesthetic threat, as internal scars can compromise the function of organs and tissues. Scientists are now devising medications that promote healing without producing scars. One of the scientists on the front lines discusses how these medicines work and their possible uses.
Saving Preschool Education
Preschool teachers have left the profession in huge numbers, closing some schools and threatening others. With nowhere to safely leave their children, millions of people are unable to return to work, sabotaging economic recovery. An expert discusses the low wages behind the 10% (or more) drop in early educators and how current legislation may finally turn the industry around.
Medical Notes: December 26, 2021
Some theories claim that Covid-19 was created in a laboratory in Wuhan, China, but a study now has turned up more evidence confirming the wet market theory. Plus, what restaurants and supermarkets you have in your neighbor can predict your health. And finally, if transmission of Covid is more likely inside than outside, does that mean the wind is protecting you outdoors? The answer, apparently, is …
Easing the Opioid Epidemic: How to Respond
Drug overdoses killed more than 100,000 Americans in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, as pressures built and users sometimes had to get their fix from unfamiliar sources. Experts discuss how the pandemic cost lives beyond Covid, and how surgical painkiller drug substitutions are beginning to keep some people from going down the opioid path.
New Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Category
Many people who need hearing aids never get them, in part because they currently require a prescription and expensive treatment. An expert discusses the FDA’s new proposed category of over-the-counter hearing aids.
Medical Notes: December 19, 2021
Johns Hopkins says we're a lot better off than we were last year at this time. Plus, you may be getting a lot of gift cards as presents for the holidays due to supply chain issues. And finally, a study finds that you can decontaminate used face masks by popping them in the oven.
The Damage of Too Little Sleep
Getting less than six hours of sleep per night has long been known to be hazardous to health, but the discovery of the mechanisms behind those hazards is leading scientists to strengthen their warnings.
Building the Covid Vaccine
The vaccine for Covid-19 was developed with record speed while still following required safety protocols. A noted investigative reporter discusses the development process he uncovered for his exhaustive book and explains why the hundreds of interviews he did have reassured him that the vaccine is safe.
Medical Notes: December 12, 2021
An antidepressant called Fluvoxamine significantly reduces the chance someone getting Covid would need hospitalization. Match.com dating survey finds singles today are seeking emotional maturity rather than looks. STING drug shown to be an effective glioblastoma treatment in some dogs. And finally, OSU Wexner survey finds Americans are planning to remain cautious during the holidays.
When TBI’s Change Personality
Traumatic brain injury can profoundly change the injured in personality and temperament, as well as physically and cognitively. Spouses bear the brunt of these changes to the point many feel like they’re living with a stranger. Two experts and the spouse of a TBI victim discuss the many ways life changes after an injury and what can help to get them through the ordeal.
Addressing Post Intensive Care Syndrome – Humanizing the ICU
Medicine in intensive care units has become so technically focused that many doctors believe they’ve lost their connection with the humanity of patients, and a high degree of patients are experiencing post intensive care syndrome.
Medical Notes: December 5, 2021
Research shows Black women have a higher risk of triple-negative breast cancers than previously known—nearly triple the risk of white women. Plus, online dating violence begins as early as age 12. And finally, science proves that when you’re nice to others, they’re more likely to be nice to you.
Kids’ Covid Vaccines: Fact and Fiction
Covid-19 vaccines are now approved for children as young as 5, but while people are afraid of getting the vaccine themselves, they’re even more nervous about getting it for their children. Misinformation is accelerating against use of the vaccine in kids. Experts discuss and correct the most prevalent myths.
Improving Vaccine Communication
The White House and many health officials have taken an aggressive approach to communicating the need for Covid-19 vaccines. Most people are prompted to get vaccinated by mandates and words that generate fear, but it’s clear that they backfire with a sizable minority of others. A communications expert discusses how certain words motivate some groups and repel others.
Medical Notes: November 28, 2021
There are now two new pills that can prevent people from getting severely ill after contracting Covid-19. Then, a new type of magnetic brain stimulation is showing promise as a treatment for depression. And finally, if you crave one type of food over another blame your genes.
Homeless Americans: Myth vs. Reality
Around a half million people are homeless in the US on any given night, but the street homeless who are most visible often incorrectly influence our assumptions about the homeless. A noted researcher discusses myths and truths about their addictions, employment, residences, and more, and why people often become homeless.
Older Dads, Younger Kids
A National Book Award-winning author discusses his experience as a first-time dad at 56, and now as a 73-year old father with teenagers.
Medical Notes: November 21, 2021
A new analysis in the journal JAMA Network Open finds that most insurance companies are no longer waiving co-pays and deductibles for Covid hospitalization. Plus, a study finds depression rates are even higher now than they were in 2020. 17% of four and five year-olds get put on medication when diagnosed with ADHD. And finally, teenage girls have been especially stressed during the pandemic …
Staffing Struggles Threaten Survival of Rural Hospitals
Rural hospitals have long struggled to maintain staffing levels of nurses and other professionals that are adequate for good care. The pandemic has made it much worse, as staffers have quit and patient loads have increased. Experts discuss the roots of the staff shortage, the effects on care safety, the extreme cost of efforts to attract and retain staff, and the threat to hospital survival posed …
