DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Drowning Is No. 1 Killer of Young Children. U.S. Efforts to Fix It Are Lagging.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Emily Baumgaertner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

said it planned to do an in-depth analysis of childhood drownings in several states to better understand the contributing factors. (Research shows that drownings rise with every degree on a thermometer.) There are still over 4,000 of them in the United States annually, and about a quarter of the deaths are of children. shows that Black children between ages 5 and 9 are 2.6 times more likely to drown in swimming pools than white children, and those between ages 10 and 14 are 3.6 times more likely to drown. Disparities are also present in most age groups for Asian and Pacific Islander, Hispanic, and Native American and Alaska Native children.

Persons: drownings, Deborah Girasek Organizations: National Institutes of Health, Uniformed Services University of, Health Sciences Locations: Florida, Wisconsin, Yosemite, United States, Pacific, American, Alaska

☆ Overuse of marijuana linked to surgery complications and death, study says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Clinical overuse of marijuana is linked to a variety of complications after major elective surgery, including blood clots, stroke, breathing difficulties, kidney issues and even death, a new study found. Compared with people who were not overly dependent or addicted to marijuana, those with cannabis use disorder were more likely to suffer complications from those surgeries. The most significant associations were for blockages of coronary arteries, stroke, injury to the kidneys, blood clots, breathing complications, infection and in-hospital death, the study found. People with cannabis use disorder also stayed in the hospital longer and had higher hospital bills than people without the disorder. “In the context of increasing cannabis use rates, our findings support preoperative screening for cannabis use disorder,” the authors wrote.

Persons: Hannes P, Albert Organizations: CNN, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center, National Institute on Drug Abuse Locations: Houston

☆ ‘Forever chemicals’ in water: Nearly half of the tap water in the US is contaminated with PFAS, government study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Almost half of the tap water in the United States is contaminated with chemicals known as “forever chemicals,” according to a study from the US Geological Survey. Experts say it’s important for people to understand their risk of exposure through tap water. Water filters may help somewhat if tap water is contaminated, and there are moves to regulate some PFAS chemicals in US drinking water. This US Geological Survey map shows the number of PFAS detected in tap water samples from select sites across the nation. In August 2023, the EPA said it is conducting the “most comprehensive monitoring effort for PFAS ever” at large and midsize public water systems and hundreds of small water systems.

Persons: Jamie DeWitt, There’s, ”, DeWitt, They’re, Graham Peaslee, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, “, Peaslee, ” Peaslee Organizations: CNN, Geological Survey, National Institutes of Health, US Environmental Protection Agency, Survey, Eastern Seaboard, Environmental Health Sciences, Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences, Utilities, EPA, of Physics, University of Notre Dame, CNN Health Locations: United States, Great, Central, Southern California

☆ Air quality alert apps see spike in usage as Canada wildfires burn
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Some apps run on data crowdsourced from relatively affordable air quality sensors sold by companies such as PurpleAir and IQAir. Air quality apps and mapsOutdoor air quality-monitoring apps like AirNow, AirCare and AirVisual have been among the nation's most used apps in past years when wildfires raged in Oregon and California. Like most air pollution trackers, it uses a color-coded visual system to indicate whether air pollution levels are good to hazardous, or whether there is not enough data to issue a rating. These include a Fire and Smoke Map, which provides information on fire locations, smoke plumes and air quality, and the AirNow Interactive Map shows ozone and particulate matter from air quality monitors across the country. Indoor air matters, tooWhile outdoor air quality is important, society doesn't talk or do enough about indoor air quality, said Richard Corsi, University of California, Davis' incoming dean of the college of engineering, currently a professor and dean at Portland State University.

Persons: AirNow, Yanelli Nunez, Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Nunez, Richard Corsi, Davis, Corsi Organizations: CNBC, U.S . Environmental Protection Agency, ZIP, Apple Watch, Huawei, Columbia University's Mailman, of Public Health, University of California, Portland State University Locations: North America, Europe, Quebec, Ontario, U.S, New York City, Oregon, California, Mexico, Canada, Macedonia, Australia, Swiss, Greater Los Angeles

☆ Explainer: What are the health risks from wildfire smoke?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Nancy Lapid | Thomson Reuters | Nancy Has Been A Health News Editor At Reuters For More Than A Decade. Previously She Was A Writer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

More toxic than normal air pollution, wildfire smoke can linger in the air for weeks and travel hundreds of miles. Along with particles of soil and biological materials, wildfire smoke often contains traces of chemicals, metals, plastics and other synthetic materials. New data from California also show an increase in fungal infections in the months following wildfire smoke exposure, likely due to fungal spores in the smoke. But the health effects of wildfire smoke exposure over multiple seasons are not yet clear. Doug Brugge, who chairs the Department of Public Health Sciences at UConn School of Medicine, said wildfire smoke can be deadly.

Persons: Kent Pinkerton, Davis, Keith Bein, Doug Brugge, Nancy Lapid, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Center for Health, University of California, UC, Davis . Studies, Environment, UC Davis, U.S . Environmental Protection Agency, of Public Health Sciences, UConn School of Medicine, Thomson Locations: United States, Canada, New York City, California, U.S

☆ 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

☆ Red light therapy: How it affects sleep
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Red light therapy has been found to be helpful for skin health, wound healing, hair growth among people with alopecia and pain management. “That’s why when we talk about blue light or red light, we’re not talking about a red-colored light bulb. A 2019 study led by Figueiro looked into whether delivering red light to closed eyes during sleep — using a red light mask — and to open eyes upon waking — via red light goggles — reduced sleep inertia among 30 adults. In other words, it might be that any benefits come from replacing the light you’re exposed to before sleep with red light, rather than adding the latter during sleep. The bottom line is that when it comes to sleep, “what’s better than red light is no light,” Dasgupta said.

Persons: ”, Raj Dasgupta, “, ” Dasgupta, ‘, Dasgupta, Joshua Tal, Mariana Figueiro, Figueiro, who’s, ” Figueiro Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, Mount Sinai, Health Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine Locations: China, New York City, Mount Sinai

☆ 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.

☆ Rice. Half of Humanity Eats It. And Climate Change Is Wrecking It.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Somini Sengupta | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +12 min

Sometimes there’s not enough rain when seedlings need water, or too much when the plants need to keep their heads above water. Rice farmers are shifting their planting calendars. On top of that, there’s climate change: It has upended the rhythm of sunshine and rain that rice depends on. That’s a fraction of the emissions from coal, oil and gas, which together account for 35 percent of methane emissions. His experiment, carried out over seven years, concluded that by not flooding the fields continuously, farmers can reduce rice methane emissions by more than 60 percent.

Federal worker safety inspections have alleged poor maintenance or a lack of safety training at some Tyson plants where ammonia leaks injured workers. CNN interviewed eleven current or former Tyson workers across three different plants who experienced ammonia leaks. !”A safety sign hangs on a fence at a Tyson plant in Hope, Arkansas, in March 2023. Still, some Tyson workers who lived through ammonia leaks said they wished more had been done to protect them. That means that the data doesn’t necessarily cover Tyson plants or other meat facilities that hold smaller amounts of ammonia.

☆ Researchers Identify Possible New Risk for Breast Cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Roni Caryn Rabin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Now, a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer could “be updated every time she gets a new mammogram.”Background: Breast Density MattersBreast density is now an acknowledged risk factor for breast cancer, albeit one of many. Dozens of states have started requiring mammography centers to notify women if they have dense breast tissue. In March, the Food and Drug Administration recommended that providers tell women about their breast density. But this is the first study to measure changes in density over time and to report a link to breast cancer. One next step may to be examine breast density over time in women taking medication to prevent breast cancer to see if the density decreases, Dr. Knudsen suggested.

☆ Kirin investors find vitamin deal hard to swallow
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The $15 billion Japanese company is best known as a brewer, but sources more than half its top line from other businesses. Kirin, led by CEO Yoshinori Isozaki, also reckons the deal will be accretive to earnings per share in the first year. Yet investors immediately wiped some $450 million off the purchaser’s market value on Thursday, almost double the premium it agreed to pay Blackmores’ shareholders. Blackmores may yet show Kirin has adopted a better dealmaking regimen, but investors aren’t holding their breath. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Kirin has offered A$95 cash per Blackmores share, a 23.7% premium to the stock's last close, and a tad higher than its 22.4% jump in morning trade. Before the Kirin deal, its shares had been trading at one-third of their value at the height of the daigou craze in 2016. The board of Blackmores has unanimously recommended shareholders support the deal, with top shareholder and former chairman Marcus Blackmore also agreeing to vote in favour. Blackmores' share price rose as much as 22.4% to A$94, its highest since December 2021. Blackmores shareholders will be able to vote on the offer at a shareholder meeting in July and the companies expect the deal to close in early August.

About half of the new gun owners were female, 20% were Black, and 20% were Hispanic. Overall, gun owners were 63% male and 73% White. “The face of gun ownership is changing somewhat and the people who are becoming new gun owners today are less likely to be male and more likely to be non-White, more likely to be somewhat younger than existing and long-standing gun owners,” Miller said. “Most people are coming in as new gun owners looking for something for personal defense or we spend a lot of time with inquisitive people. “I have a Ruger and a Rossi – both rifles,” Shelby said.

☆ Risks of Tupperware and other plastic containers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Figuring out the answer to that question for any type of reusable plastic food storage products — not just Tupperware — often comes down to understanding what they’re made of. Risks of container wear and tearPutting stress on plastic food containers by washing them in the dishwasher or with rough scrub brushes “increase the ability of that plastic to leach whatever it was made out of,” Vandenburg said. The “microwave safe” label on some plastic containers doesn’t mean the product is totally safe from a health standpoint, she added. “Some of the plasticizers and chemicals can transfer from the plastic containers into the food during heating,” Rogers said. “If you can’t afford to replace everything all at once, replace them one at a time.”Glass food storage containers are a safer option.

☆ The next big thing in Big Tech career path is an AI-based 'bilingual' job skillset
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Microsoft unveiled new versions of its Bing internet-search engine and Edge browser powered by the newest technology from ChatGPT maker OpenAI. But the biggest one of all may be next, he says, through the combination of artificial intelligence and branches of science involved in medicine. But the opportunity won't translate into achievement without a new form of collaboration between the classic big tech talent and the medical field. One of her portfolio companies, Insitro, was founded by Stanford AI researcher Daphne Koller (Koller co-founder edtech company Coursera). "There is lots of exciting big talent opportunities coming from big tech and big cap pharma," she said.

☆ Pharmacy startups are losing their battle with giants like CVS and Walgreens
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Pharmacy startups like Capsule and Truepill are crumbling in the fight against pharmacy giants. But in the past year, the pharmacy startups have begun to crumble. Plus, each chain has thousands of stores across the country, providing the convenience that the pharmacy startups seek to replicate with tech. The digital-pharmacy shakeoutAnalysts suggested that healthcare startups with pharmacy components, rather than pure-play pharmacy startups, are best positioned to succeed. Truepill CEO Sid Viswanathan TruepillBut the pharmacy startups that have attempted to offer additional services have largely shelved those efforts in recent months.

Reuters reported in March 2020 that Syneos was working with investment bank Centerview Partners LLC to explore a sale. Syneos, which has a market capitalization of $3.9 billion and carries a $2.9 billion debt pile, was not immediately available for comment. Based in Morrisville, North Carolina, Syneos helps pharmaceutical companies with clinical trials and to market their drugs. There has been a wave of consolidation among contract research organizations in a bid to lower costs, amass more clinical trial data and win customers. Labcorp (LH.N), for example, said earlier this month that it will complete the spinoff of its contract research organization, called Fortrea, by the middle of this year.

☆ FTC Alleges Supplement Company ‘Hijacked’ Amazon Reviews to Boost Sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Megan Graham | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Nutritional supplement company Bountiful Co. will pay $600,000 following Federal Trade Commission allegations that it made products on Amazon look like they had more reviews and higher average ratings than they really did. The FTC said the case marks its first enforcement action against a practice called “review hijacking,” in which a marketer makes reviews for one product appear to apply to another. Products considered variations share the same product page on Amazon as alternate choices, such as a T-shirt offered in multiple colors. The FTC said the decision to accept the proposed consent agreement was unanimous, with the commission voting 4-0 in favor of doing so. Though Amazon has been active in pursuit of fake review sellers, Mr. Freund said problems remain.

☆ Zaps to the Spinal Cord Improved Patients’ Paralysis After Stroke
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Nidhi Subbaraman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Stroke survivor Heather Rendulic, right, said she was able to open and close her hand for the first time in nine years while taking part in the trial. Photo: Tim Betler, UPMC and University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences

China’s official count 0 2.5 million 83,150 deaths Model based on Shanghai outbreak 1.6 million deaths LOW ESTIMATE HIGH ESTIMATE Estimate using travel patterns 970,000 deaths Estimate using recent testing data 1.5 million deaths Estimate based on U.S. death rates 1.1 million deaths China’s official count 0 2.5 million 83,150 deaths Model based on Shanghai outbreak 1.6 million deaths LOW EST. But China’s official Covid death toll for the entire pandemic remains strikingly low: 83,150 people as of Feb. 9. Four separate academic teams have converged on broadly similar estimates: China’s Covid wave may have killed between a million and 1.5 million people. Why official data underrepresents China’s outbreak83,150 deaths China’s official count on Feb. 9 0 2.5M 83,150 deaths China’s official count on Feb. 9 0 2.5 millionChina has a narrow definition of what counts as a Covid-19 death. But the work was unwavering in its ultimate conclusion: Ending the “zero Covid” policy was likely to overwhelm the health care system, producing an estimated 1.6 million deaths.

October 2022 Wang Linfang,92, molecular biologist Four members of China’s two most prestigious academic institutions died in October – in line with the average in recent years. October 2022 Wang Linfang,92, molecular biologist Four members of China’s two most prestigious academic institutions died in October – in line with the average in recent years. Zhang Guocheng, 91 Zhao Zisen, 90, developed China’s first practical optical fiber Tang Hongxiao, 91 The obituaries began accumulating. October 2022 Wang Linfang,92, molecular biologist Four members of China’s two most prestigious academic institutions died in October – in line with the average in recent years. October 2022 Wang Linfang,92, molecular biologist Four members of China’s two most prestigious academic institutions died in October – in line with the average in recent years.

☆ Alphabet set to report fourth-quarter results after the close
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Jennifer Elias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Google parent Alphabet will report fourth-quarter earnings Thursday after the close of regular trading. Revenue: $76.53 billion, according to Refinitiv estimates. $76.53 billion, according to Refinitiv estimates. $8.25 billion, according to StreetAccount estimates. $7.43 billion, according to StreetAccount estimates.

☆ I'm a leg-lengthening surgeon. Most of my clients are men with confidence issues — here's what the procedure's like
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Natalie Rahhal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Shahab Mahboubian performs 30 to 40 cosmetic limb-lengthening surgeries a year. The only field in medicine that uses all of these tools is orthopedic surgery, so it seemed like the right fit. I specialized in limb-lengthening surgery specifically because I wanted to do something that was different from everybody else. People that undergo limb-lengthening surgery are from all walks of life, and many used COVID lockdowns to recover post-surgery. I would say 80% to 85% of my cosmetic limb-lengthening patients are men, and 15% to 20% are women.

☆ How AI is detecting heart attack risk and aiming to outsmart America’s No. 1 killer
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Kerima Greene | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Cleerly founder and CEO James Min, a cardiologist, started the company to find a better way to assess heart health, by applying AI to the problem. Heart disease is the nation's No. CNBC: What are indirect markers of heart disease? Min: Many emergency department visits for heart attacks are preventable if risk factors for heart disease are identified in advance. Using millions of annotated CCTA images, Cleerly algorithms quantify and characterize atherosclerosis and its features.

Search resuls for: "Health Science"

25 mentions found