Lesbian, Bisexual Women More Likely to Die Early Than Straight Peers

MONDAY, May 13, 2024 (HealthDay news) -- Could being a lesbian or bisexual shorten your life? New research that analyzed decades of data on women suggests it might.

What's driving the trend? Researchers point to discrimination as the primary culprit.

While there is a large body of research looking at how LGBTQ people experience menta...

Wegovy Can Help Heart Failure Patients Reduce Meds: Study

People with heart failure are often prescribed what are known as loop diuretic medications to help reduce the fluid buildup that's a hallmark of the disease.

Now, research suggests that taking the blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy (semaglutide) can help patients reduce their need for diuretics.

After a year taking Wegovy, "there wa...

Cancer & COVID Drove Him to Double-Lung Transplant

Chicago resident Arthur “Art” Gillespie fell ill in early March 2020 with COVID, after he and his father went to visit an uncle in a nursing facility.

“I was hospitalized for 12 days with a high fever and cough, and during that time, they were taking scans of my lungs, which showed stage 1 lung cancer on my right lung,” Gillespie, ...

First Pig Kidney Recipient Dies Almost Two Months After Transplant

Rick Slayman, the first person to receive a kidney transplant from a genetically modified pig, has died nearly two months after having the historic surgery.

In a statement released Saturday, Slayman's family said they were "deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick but take great comfort knowing he inspired so many. Mill...

Police Seizures of Pills With Fentanyl Have Skyrocketed

Police seizures of illicit fentanyl pills have soared in recent years, a new study has found.

The number of pills containing fentanyl seized by law enforcement was 2,300 times greater in 2023 than in 2017 – more than 115 million pills, compared to just under 50,000.

What’s more, pills represented 49% of illicit fentanyl seizures ...

Microneedle Patches Might Reverse a Form of Hair Loss

Early research in mice suggests a new path forward to restoring hair growth in people affected by a form of alopecia. 

Alopecia areata is an autommune disorder that affects an estimated 6 million Americans and has no cure, according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston. 

The condition ...

Could Having 'Skinny' Fat Cells Encourage Weight Gain?

“Skinny” fat cells might actually make it harder to lose weight and easier to pack on extra pounds, a new study says.

Researchers say it’s possible to predict if someone’s going to gain weight based solely on the size of their fat cells.

People with large fat cells tend to lose weight over time, and those with small fat cells...

Test Might Predict Which Kids Will Outgrow Peanut Allergy

About a third of young children who are allergic to peanuts will outgrow the allergy by the age of 10, and an antibody test might predict who those kids might be.

Fluctuations in two immune system antibodies in the blood, called sIgG4 and sIgE, could point to a probable end to peanut allergy by about age 6, said a team from the Murdoch Chi...

Yoga Can Help Heart Failure Patients Stay Strong

Yoga can help improve the long-term health of people with heart failure, a new study has found.

“Patients who practiced yoga on top of taking their medications felt better, were able to do more, and had stronger hearts than those who only took drugs for their heart failure,” lead researcher Dr. Ajit Singh of the Indian Council of Medic...

Avoid Overheating Dangers When Recharging Medical Devices

SUNDAY, May 12, 2024 (HealthDay News) — If you use a medical device such as a blood glucose monitor or insulin pump, keeping it charged is a must. 

But devices that rely on a USB charger can overheat, which may cause minor injuries, serious burns or fires. That's why it's important to read, understand and follow the manufacturer's u...

Tips to Celebrating Mom on Her Day, Even When Dementia Intervenes

Women account for two-thirds of all Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease, which means this Mother’s Day will be bittersweet for many families across the nation.

“Mother’s Day is all about honoring the mother figures in our lives who loved, nurtured, and supported us,” Jennifer Reeder, director of educational and social servi...

Feds Announce New Measures to Monitor, Prevent Bird Flu

H5N1 avian flu is now infecting U.S. dairy cows and the federal government on Friday announced a myriad of initiatives aimed at preventing the virus' mutation and spread in humans.

The illness is typically not fatal in bovines, but monitoring and prevention on the nation's farms is costly, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture said the ai...

His Cancer Journey Shows Health Dangers Firefighters Face

For 14 years, David Perez fought fires in South Florida, thinking he was in peak physical shape. Then a routine physical turned up anomalies in his blood work that turned his life upside down.

"The labs came back irregular. Everything was off," Perez, 44, recalled. “I went to a hematologist and it wasn’t until I saw the word cancer on ...

Baby Girl Born Deaf Gains Hearing After Gene Therapy

Opal Sandy was born into a world she could not hear. 

The British baby girl, now 18 months old, had a rare genetic condition called auditory neuropathy that interrupted nerve impulses that travel from the inner ear to the brain. She'd been fitted with a cochlear implant, but it could only help so much.

Then came a breakthrough g...

Cyberattack Cripples Major U.S. Health Care Network

Ascension, a major U.S. health care system with 140 hospitals in 19 states, announced late Thursday that a cyberattack has caused disruptions at some of its hospitals.

"Systems that are currently unavailable include our electronic health records system, MyChart (which enables patients to view their medical records and communicate with thei...

Cancer Patients Often Face Medical Debt, Even With Insurance

When cancer strikes, you could easily go into debt, even with health insurance in place, according to a new survey from the American Cancer Society.

The survey, based on responses from nearly 1,300 cancer patients and survivors from March 18 through April 14, found that 47% had medical debt. Half of those respondents said that debt exceede...

One in 8 U.S. Adults Have Now Used Blockbuster Meds Like Ozempic

About 1 in 8 U.S. adults (12%) have tried a weight-loss drug like Wegovy, Ozempic, Zepbound or Mounjaro, a new KFF Health Tracking Poll says.

About 6% are taking one right now, the poll found.

Most patients say they use the drugs (61%) to treat a chronic condition like diabetes or heart disease, which can make it easier to obtain a p...

Pushing the Body in 'Extreme' Sports Won't Shorten Life Span

Athletes who push themselves to maximum performance don’t appear to pay a price when it comes to their longevity, a new study says.

The first 200 athletes to run a mile in under four minutes actually outlived the general population by nearly five years on average, according to results published in the British Journal of Sports Medici...