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☆ Australia’s having an intense flu season, and it could be a signal of what’s to come in the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —It’s only June, but scientists in the US are already thinking about flu season. As always at this time of year, they’re keeping a close eye on Australia, which saw an early start to its flu season. “We closely monitor what happens in countries throughout the Southern Hemisphere this time of year, just to see what’s happening during their flu season. If many people opt out of the flu vaccine, cases could rise. So while Reed and her colleagues will be watching Australia’s flu numbers and running their calculations, it’s still not totally clear what 2023’s flu season will bring for the US.

Persons: CNN — It’s, don’t, Care, It’s, ”, Carrie Reed, Reed, “ We’ve, Thomas McAndrew, “, Taylor Swift, ” McAndrew, William Schaffner, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, –, it’s, ” Reed Organizations: CNN, Australian Department of Health, US Centers for Disease Control, CDC, Department of Community, Population Health, Lehigh University . “, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, CNN Health, World Health Organization, agency’s Department of Health, Care Locations: Australia, Southern, Chicago, agency’s

☆ For kids exploring social media, here are three steps the surgeon general wants parents to take
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Dr. Sanjay Gupta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —As a father of three teenage girls, one of my biggest parenting challenges has been navigating smartphones and social media. Would smartphones and social media be given that same level of dire warning? I often think about social media less like tobacco and more like junk food. And you can also help them understand what’s a safe and unsafe interaction or engagement on social media. How to talk about screen timeNot sure how to start a conversation with your kids about internet and social media use?

Persons: Vivek Murthy, –, “, ”, That’s, ” Murthy, we’ve, Murthy, they’re, you’re, can’t, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s Andrea Kane Organizations: CNN, Pew Research Center, YouTube, Big Tech, CNN Health

☆ ChatGPT’s responses to suicide, addiction, sexual assault crises raise questions in new study
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

And regulators could help monitor that such responses offer accurate and reliable information and resources. They’re underutilized already,” said John Ayers, an author of the study and a behavioral scientist at the University of California, San Diego. He said that now, while ChatGPT is still in development, is the time for public health experts and regulators to join forces with the chatbot’s developers to help curate responses to medical questions. The chatbot provided resources in two responses to a question about addiction, two responses for questions related to interpersonal violence and one response to a mental health-related question. “ChatGPT consistently provided evidence-based answers to public health questions, although it primarily offered advice rather than referrals,” the researchers wrote in their study.

Persons: They’re underutilized, ”, John Ayers, ChatGPT, “, –, ” Ayers, ” ChatGPT, “ ChatGPT, Ayers, Dr, Mike Hogarth, Sanjay Gupta, David Asch, Asch, ” Asch, he’d, Deidre McPhillips Organizations: CNN, JAMA, University of California, UC San Diego, Anonymous, Mental Health Services Administration National, Prevention, UC San Diego School of Medicine, Eating Disorders Association, CNN Health, University of Pennsylvania, Penn Medicine Center, Health Care Innovation Locations: San Diego, United States

☆ Drug cuts risk of breast cancer recurrence for some early-stage patients, trial shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A drug used in people in the early stage of the most common kind of breast cancer – HR+/HER2- breast cancer – significantly reduced the risk of the cancer returning after treatment, according to a new study. HR+/HER2- breast cancer has tested positive for progesterone and estrogen receptors and negative for HER2. Endocrine therapy generally works well, but for patients with HR+ or HER- breast cancer, there’s still a 10% to 40% chance that the cancer will come back, some studies show. The new trial found that when Kisqali is added to endocrine therapy, it reduces the risk of recurrence by 25% across a broad population of patients with early breast cancer. About 90% of patients who have breast cancer are diagnosed in the early stages.

Persons: there’s, Kisqali, ”, Dennis J, Slamon, Sara Tolaney, ” Tolaney, Anupama Goel, Goel, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, Alberto Montero, ” Montero, Montero Organizations: CNN, US Food and Drug Administration, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Novartis, UCLA, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Oncology, Dana, Farber Cancer Institute, Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center, CNN Health, UH Seidman Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Locations: Chicago, Ohio, –

☆ Simpler hysterectomy may improve quality of life for some women with cervical cancer, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Thanks to more effective screening, more women have been presenting with cervical cancer at a younger age and an earlier stage of the disease. “Simple hysterectomy can now be considered as a new standard of care for patients with low-risk early-stage cervical cancer,” Plante said. “This is a really big deal for women with cervical cancer,” said Moore, who wasn’t involved with the study. If the findings lead to a change in practice for surgeons, it could “change the trajectory of cervical cancer globally,” she said. Cervical cancer is not common in the US or Canada, Moore said, but it is endemic in low- and middle-income countries.

Persons: Dr, Marie Plante, Plante, ” Plante, ”, Kathleen Moore, Virginia Kerley Cade, Moore, Sanjay Gupta, ” Moore, Stephanie V, Blank, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, American Society of Clinical Oncology, National Cancer Institute, Obstetrics, Gynecology, Universite Laval, Studies, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canadian Cancer Society, Virginia, Developmental Therapeutics, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, World Health Organization, Get CNN, CNN Health, Mount Sinai Health Locations: Chicago, Quebec, Canada

☆ Weight-loss surgery is becoming more common among children and teens, new research shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Millions of children and teens live with obesity in the United States, and weight-loss surgery is becoming a more common way to treat it, new research shows. The trend held strong in the first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic, even as the number of weight-loss surgeries among adults dipped. Between 2020 and 2021, the number of weight-loss surgeries among youth jumped 19%. Childhood obesity is more prevalent among certain populations, including Black and Hispanic youth, according to the CDC. The new data shows that weight-loss surgery increased more than twice as much as average among these populations, up 42% among Back youth and 53% among Hispanic youth between 2020 and 2021.

☆ Human metapneumovirus: Doctors say this is the most important virus you’ve never heard of
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Cases of human metapneumovirus, or HMPV, spiked this spring, according to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s respiratory virus surveillance systems. An underestimated threatStudies show that HMPV causes as much misery in the US each year as the flu and a closely related virus, RSV. Like those infections, HMPV can lead to intensive care and fatal cases of pneumonia in older adults. Leigh Davidson caught human metapneumovirus during a family celebration in early April. The new virus was dubbed human metapneumovirus.

☆ Strong leg muscles may be linked with better outcomes after heart attack, study suggests
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Growing evidence shows that building muscle strength can have benefits for your heart, even leading to better outcomes after a heart attack. Kamiya said that after a heart attack, medically known as a myocardial infarction, the heart can go through a process called myocardial remodeling or cardiac remodeling, in which fibrous tissue accumulates, causing an enlargement of the heart. But emerging evidence suggests that exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation can alter the course of such remodeling in a way that improves heart function. “Cardiac remodeling is the main cause of the onset of heart failure after myocardial infarction,” Kamiya said. But more can be learned about why some people may be more affected after a heart attack than others, said Dr. Shaline Rao, director of heart failure services at NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island, who was not involved in the new study.

☆ HPV vaccine: Some studies say one and done might be better
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The HPV vaccine protects against the strains that cause most HPV-related cancers. But not every country has the same vaccination options, which is part of the reason WHO has been pushing to change the way doctors give the HPV vaccine. A one-and-done approach to the HPV vaccine could be a huge help around the world, experts say. But she’d also like more people to get the HPV vaccine. So I think that’s really, really important,” Abraham said.

☆ Dr. Sanjay Gupta: Parenting in the era of ubiquitous screens and social media
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Dr. Sanjay Gupta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Other moves include laws that aim to tighten regulations on social media platforms in general, like those recently enacted by Arkansas and Utah. They are more likely to lie on their beds and scroll through endless social media feeds. Nowadays, she tells me, many teenagers feel an obligation to be on social media, or they will feel left behind. Lembke, who had her own struggles with problematic media use, told me, “Ten years from now, social media will not be what it is today. How to talk about screentimeNot sure how to start a conversation with your kids about internet and social media use?

☆ Deadly suspected fungal infections in Texas residents linked to surgeries in Matamoros, Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Jamie Gumbrecht | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Five Texas residents became ill with suspected cases of fungal meningitis after traveling to Matamoros, Mexico, for surgery, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. In a travel advisory, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged patients to cancel certain procedures in Matamoros, Mexico. Health officials are investigating whether the cases are linked and whether there are more infections. In this aerial photo, a border fence divides the cities of Brownsville, Texas, and Matamoros, Mexico. “It is very important that people who have recently had medical procedures in Mexico monitor themselves for symptoms of meningitis,” said DSHS Commissioner Dr. Jennifer Shuford.

☆ County with high rate of overdose deaths doesn’t use opioid settlement funds for addiction program
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Aneri Pattani | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Greene County, Tenn., resident Nancy Schneck wants opioid settlement funds to be used for addiction and mental health treatment. In Tennessee, 15% of the state’s opioid settlement funds are controlled by the legislature and another 15% by local governments. Greene County, Tenn., is directing some of its opioid settlement money into the county's capital projects fund. Pack, from East Tennessee State, urges them to increase access to medications that have proven effective in treating opioid addiction. Some Greene County residents want to see opioid settlement funds go to local initiatives that are already operating on the ground.

☆ Don’t use sugar substitutes for weight loss, World Health Organization advises
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Don’t use sugar substitutes if you are trying to lose weight, according to a new guideline from the World Health Organization. “Replacing free sugars with NSS does not help with weight control in the long term. People need to consider other ways to reduce free sugars intake, such as consuming food with naturally occurring sugars, like fruit, or unsweetened food and beverages,” Francesco Branca, WHO director for nutrition and food safety, said in a news release. WHO issued guidelines on sugar intake in 2015, recommending that adults and children reduce their daily intake of free sugars to less than 10% of their total energy intake. Following that recommendation, interest in sugar alternatives had intensified, the review said.

☆ Face masks are still a good idea at the doctor’s office, study says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But they remain in many medical offices, and a study published Monday says they might still be a good idea. The study, published in the journal the Annals of Internal Medicine, also found that there wasn’t a significant difference in protection between surgical masks and N95 respirators in a health care setting. Because gold standard evidence about their protectiveness is not available, they say, masks for patients and health care personnel should be considered a good safety measure. Lab studies show that surgical masks and respirators are good at limiting the spread of aerosols and droplets from people who are sick with the flu, coronaviruses and other respiratory viruses. “We all realize the importance and utility of a mask,” Madad said.

☆ A man destined for Alzheimer's defied that fate. Now scientists want to know how
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

He seems to have been protected by a rare gene change that enhanced the function of a protein that helps nerve cells communicate. Scientists say that understanding how this gene change defended his brain may help prevent Alzheimer’s in other people. “Another big insight from this case is, it seems like maybe you don’t need this everywhere in the brain,” Arboleda-Velasquez said. This is the pathway that is important for extreme protection against Alzheimer’s,’ ” Arboleda-Velasquez said. The sister of the man in the new study also shared the rare protective gene change, and it helped her, but not as much.

☆ US government is testing avian flu vaccines for birds, but ending the historic outbreak isn’t that simple
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Eradication and vaccinationAs of April 26, the CDC says, nearly 58.8 million poultry have been affected by avian flu since January 2022. The virus has been detected in at least 6,737 wild birds, and the number is likely to be much higher. Vaccinated birds would be protected, but with this highly infectious disease, they still could shed some virus that could infect unprotected birds. Partial protection means more birds will be spreading the virus,” Gallardo said. The US has the largest poultry industry in the world, with 294,000 poultry farms.

CNN —Covid-19 is no longer a global health emergency, the World Health Organization said on Friday. WHO’s International Health Regulations Emergency Committee discussed the pandemic on Thursday at its 15th meeting on Covid-19, and WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus concurred that the public health emergency of international concern, or PHEIC, declaration should end. “Yesterday, the emergency committee met for the 15th time and recommended to me that I declare an end to the public health emergency of international concern. Each country, in turn, declares its own public health emergency – declarations that carry legal weight. The United States is set to let its Covid-19 public health emergency end on May 11.

☆ Regular internet use may be linked to lower dementia risk in older adults, study says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

A study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society suggested that older people who regularly used the internet were less likely to develop dementia. Scientists still don’t know what causes dementia, so the new research can’t pinpoint the exact connection between internet usage and brain health. A 2020 study found an association between cognitively stimulating jobs and a lower risk of dementia, for example. Research also suggests that most older adults most frequently use the internet for basic tasks like email, news or online banking. And learning new skills may be protective against dementia, studies suggest.

☆ CDC eases certain Covid-19 vaccine requirements for international travelers to US
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is still requiring international visitors boarding flights to the United States to be vaccinated against Covid-19, but it’s easing vaccine requirements for those travelers. International travelers boarding flights to the United States will now be considered fully vaccinated two weeks after getting a single dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccine any time after August 16, 2022, when bivalent formulations first became available. Previously, foreign travelers entering the United States were considered fully vaccinated two weeks after the second dose of a vaccine that required two primary doses, or two weeks after a vaccine that only required a single shot, such as the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. A number of older, monovalent vaccine regimens also qualify a foreign visitor as fully vaccinated. As part of the update, the older monovalent mRNA Covid-19 vaccines are no longer recommended in the United States, and updated vaccines are recommended for everyone age 6 months and older.

☆ A drug company abandoned a treatment for ‘bubble boy disease.’ After a 5-year fight, this little girl is about to get it
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Elizabeth Cohen Lauren Mascarenhas | Elizabeth Cohen | Lauren Mascarenhas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +29 min

The Sulacks weighed their options: Have a transplant with a match that was less than ideal – far less – or wait for gene therapy to become available. The news release didn’t say anything else about the SCID gene therapy. Or was the company abandoning its plans for SCID gene therapy altogether? In February, 2021, the parents of more than 20 children who were waiting for the gene therapy treatment, including the Sulacks, wrote a letter to Gaspar. Insurance companies have sometimes balked at paying for gene therapy, which is typically given in one treatment.

☆ Workplace discrimination linked to increased risk of high blood pressure, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Kyla Russell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

High blood pressure damages arteries and makes them less elastic, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Each participant said they did not have high blood pressure at the start of the study, and most said they were not smokers and consumed little or no alcohol. According to the analysis, 319 of the participants reported developing high blood pressure by the end of the eight years. People who experienced intermediate levels of workplace discrimination at the beginning of the study were 22% more likely than those who reported low levels of workplace discrimination to report high blood pressure after eight years. Compared with participants who experienced low workplace discrimination at the beginning of the study, people with high levels of workplace discrimination were 54% more likely to report high blood pressure after eight years.

☆ Menopause-related symptoms linked to billions of dollars in medical expenses and lost days of work, study suggests
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Carma Hassan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Symptoms linked to menopause such as hot flashes, night sweats and sleep disturbances can add up to billions of dollars in medical expenses and lost productivity in the workplace, according to a study published Wednesday in journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Researchers surveyed about 5,000 women ages 45 to 60 who are primary care patients at the Mayo Clinic; 4,440 of the women were employed at the time of the study. The survey, given in 2021, assessed the women’s symptoms using the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS). Researchers found that the mean total MRS score was 12.1, which indicates a “moderate menopause symptom burden.”“Menopause symptoms pose workplace challenges that may manifest as higher levels of lost work productivity (presenteeism), lost days of work (absenteeism), and greater numbers of outpatient medical visits,” the researchers wrote in the study. “Clinicians need to ask women about menopause symptoms and offer guidance and treatment, and employers need to create and implement workplace strategies and policies to help women navigate this universal life transition,” Faubion said.

☆ Arcturus: WHO watching XBB.1.16 as a coronavirus variant of interest
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The World Health Organization has elevated the fast-growing Omicron sublineage XBB.1.16 as a new variant of interest, and says it is outcompeting the previously dominant XBB.1.5 in many regions. XBB.1.16 is a descendant of the recombinant XBB, which is a mashup of two BA.2 sublineages. On social media, the variant has been nicknamed Arcturus, like the brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere. Currently, it is the dominant variant in India, where it is causing a wave of mostly mild illnesses. The XBB.1.5 variant continues to be the dominant cause of new infections in the United States, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

☆ Covid-sniffing dogs can help detect infections in K-12 schools, new study suggests
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Months prior, Glaser and her team were implementing the school’s Covid-19 testing program, using antigen nasal swab tests. It’s not as simple as just handing those things out at school and having the kids do them,” said Glaser, who oversaw antigen testing programs at some California public schools. For now, Glaser and her colleagues described in a new study the lessons they learned from the Covid-19 dog screening pilot program that they launched in some California K-12 public schools. In comparison, Covid-19 BinaxNOW antigen tests have been shown in one real-world study to demonstrate 93.3% sensitivity and 99.9% specificity. The pilot program within California public schools also has left Edwards with hope for future opportunities in which canines can help detect disease in humans.

☆ New study suggests Black women should be screened earlier for breast cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —A new study on breast cancer deaths raises questions around whether Black women should screen at earlier ages. Even though Black women have a 4% lower incidence rate of breast cancer than White women, they have a 40% higher breast cancer death rate. “When the breast cancer mortality rate for Black women in their 40s is 27 deaths per 100,000 person-years, this means 27 out of every 100,000 Black women aged 40-49 in the US die of breast cancer during one year of follow-up. They also wrote that health policy makers should pursue equity, not just equality, when it comes to breast cancer screening as a tool to help reduce breast cancer death rates. Having dense tissue in the breast can make it more difficult for radiologists to identify breast cancer on a mammogram, and women with dense breast tissue have a higher risk of breast cancer.

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