News

The government designated cannabis dispensaries as essential businesses in eight of the 11 states where adult-use is legal during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales have been increasing but health experts warned people should control their intake of the drug because of its unwanted effects on the heart.  Estimates show that weekly sales of marijuana products reached

Arrow International is recalling its AutoCat 2 and AC3 Optimus intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) series because of the potential for motor connector wires to break down. Both devices contain an MForce motor driver that may break, char, and discolor the motor connector wires, according to the company. This may lead to pump alarms for “System Error 3”

All of us love the creamy and nutty taste of cheese nowadays. Be it eaten by its lonesome as a snack or appetizer or an accompaniment to foods such as burgers, pastries or salads, this fermented, milk-based dairy product delights people of all ages.  The question is, is cheese healthy and should consumption of it

Tirofiban is far superior to cangrelor at achieving rapid and potent inhibition of platelet aggregation in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention for ST-elevation MI. And cangrelor, in turn, is superior to oral prasugrel, according to the randomized FABOLUS FASTER trial, Marco Valgimigli, MD, PhD, reported at the virtual annual meeting of the European Association of

The Skeptical Cardiologist has been pointing out for some time that dietary advice to universally restrict consumption of saturated fats is not scientifically based. Different foods present different types of saturated fats in different matrices and it is not reasonable to assume the overall effect of these foods can be predicted by measuring only saturated

It is important to detect COVID-19 early to prevent serious complications and avoid exposing other people to the coronavirus. However, there have been challenges in getting tested, from shortage of testing kits, strict guidelines to confusing symptoms.  There are several factors to consider before you seek a coronavirus testing. The first one is to observe

Reductions in tricuspid regurgitation (TR) with the TriClip system (Abbott) were maintained and no new safety signals identified with continued follow-up in the multicenter TRILUMINATE study. The percentage of patients with moderate or less TR increased from 60% at 30 days to up to 70% at 1 year. TR reduction was also associated with “sustained

Getting a common childhood vaccine may help adult patients avoid severe complications from COVID-19. That is according to a new study that found live attenuated vaccines, like the one for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), could boost the immune system to protect the lungs and manage blood problems. The paper, published online on mBio, shows

The root causes of recurrent kidney stones can help physicians determine whether dietary changes or medication will be more helpful for at-risk patients, according to Glenn Preminger, MD, professor of urologic surgery at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. For many patients, diet therapy is exceedingly reasonable and enough to correct the underlying problems. However,

The 24-hour news cycle is just as important to medicine as it is to politics, finance, or sports. At MedPage Today, new information is posted daily, but keeping up can be a challenge. As an aid for our readers and for a little amusement, here is a 10-question quiz based on the news of the

Women who do moderate exercise during pregnancy may help their babies avoid diabetes, obesity and heart disease. That is because physical activity before giving birth could help increase an important compound that boosts the protective effects of breast milk.  The new study, published in the journal Nature Metabolism, analyzed how breast milk helps transfer health

After 6 months of therapy with the combination drug sacubitril/valsartan (S/V; Entresto, Novartis), one quarter of primary prevention patients with left heart failure and an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) had a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) > 35% with no arrhythmic events, an observational study shows. S/V treatment was already known to be associated with

COVID-19 cases continue to surge in the United States and it appears that the surge is not solely because mass testing efforts are going on. Some feel that the spike in coronavirus cases is truly another surge, something most refer to as the second wave. However, several factors need to be considered. Business reopenings are

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. People living with HIV who are admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 are no more likely to die than those without HIV, an analysis conducted in New York City shows. This is despite the fact that comorbidities associated with worse COVID-19

Heavily treatment-experienced HIV patients who failed on other antiretrovirals have a new option, as the FDA approved fostemsavir (Rukobia), a new type of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for patients who have previously tried multiple other therapies, the agency announced on Thursday. The approval of fostemsavir (ViiV Healthcare) is specifically for adults living with HIV whose infection

Travis Martin, creator of the Shibboleth diet, was overweight, depressed, had high cholesterol and blood pressure at 29. As a father of two children, he decided to set a better example. He coupled healthy nutrition with his faith to make positive changes in his life.  By disciplining himself, he managed to lose 44 pounds in a

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. Leaders of Operation Warp Speed (OWS), the White House’s team tasked with developing a vaccine for COVID-19 by the end of this year, today told a US Senate Appropriations subcommittee it is on track to meet its goal. OWS brings together

Some sleep patterns in infancy were associated with psychotic experiences and borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms in adolescence, a cohort study from England found. Among 7,155 mother-child pairs, children whose mothers reported that they had irregular sleep routines in childhood, and frequent night awakenings at 18 months, were significantly more likely to have psychotic symptoms

Public health officials recommend that people wear non-medical, fabric masks in public places to help reduce the risk of COVID-19. That could help prevent an infected person from releasing droplets into the air and exposing others to the coronavirus. Now, researchers found the material that offers the best protection and can be easily used for

AMA: Federal Help Needed With PPE for Physician Practices The American Medical Association is asking the Trump administration to use the Defense Production Act to generate an adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) for physicians in all settings, including ambulatory care offices. The “ongoing shortages of PPE, especially N95 masks and gowns,” is the

Intermittent fasting is all the rage these days as more and more celebrities have sworn by this diet. It also helps that some research has already established its health benefits and its positive effect on weight management. However, diet alone is not the secret to fitness. It should always be coupled with regular exercise. Interestingly,

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. Anthony Fauci, MD, told a Senate committee today that the United States could soon see as many as 100,000 cases of COVID-19 a day if the nation does not figure out how to stem the current rising tide of new infections.

A high percentage of postmenopausal women experience depression, and the risk is increased by factors including physical disabilities and having many children, scientists said. In a cross-sectional study of 485 postmenopausal women surveyed with questionnaires, 199 (41%) were found to have depression, reported Kevser Ozdemir, PhD, of Sakarya University in Turkey, and colleagues. Their study,

Scientists have been moving closer to developing an effective vaccine for COVID-19. But even if it becomes available, the U.S. is “unlikely” to achieve herd immunity if the country fails to do one thing, according to the White House’s top infectious disease expert.  That important step is to encourage the majority of citizens to get

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. Here are the coronavirus stories Medscape’s editors around the globe think you need to know about today: Fauci Warns of 100K Cases a Day Anthony Fauci, MD, head of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned US senators in

Actively pursuing weight loss, especially without a nutritionist or dietitian to assist you, requires tracking everything, from the food you eat to the calories and pounds lost over time to even tracking how much of certain nutrients you have consumed daily. Of course, it is a given that doing these manually is a Herculean task.

Ten patients smiled and waved out on the computer monitor, as Jacob Mirsky, MD, greeted each one, asked them to introduce themselves, and inquired as to how each was doing with their stress reduction tactics. The attendees of the online session had been patients at in-person group visits at the Massachusetts General Hospital Revere HealthCare

Carson Daly, host of “The Voice” and co-host of “Today,” recently told People that he and his wife, Siri, “began sleep divorcing last fall — and the happy couple continues to be consciously uncoupled in separate bedrooms.” The couple began to sleep in separate bedrooms last September, when Siri was pregnant with their fourth child: