In the sleep disorder called sleep apnea, sleep is interrupted many times a night. Sleep apnea appears to increase the risk of developing or dying from heart disease. Several treatments are available to halt sleep apnea and restore better sleep.
Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, past or current smoking, and high cholesterol are the four factors most closely associated with the development of peripheral artery disease-blockages in the arteries of the legs or arms.
In people at risk for heart disease, the stress of losing a loved one greatly increases the risk of suffering a fatal or nonfatal heart attack. In healthy people, the stress can cause a serious but reversible condition that imitates a heart attack.
Cataracts, dry eyes, and presbyopia are common eye conditions among older women. Having regular eye exams can detect serious problems early and help avoid vision loss.
Older women who are being treated with trastuzumab (Herceptin), alone or with a class of chemotherapy drugs called anthracyclines, may be at increased risk for heart failure and heart muscle damage.
After a negative colonoscopy at age 50, less invasive screening tests may be just as accurate, but carry less expense and risk for complications, than repeating the colonoscopy every 10 years.
Alzheimer’s disease research has started to focus on prevention. Investigators are looking at targets such as beta-amyloid and tau tangles in the brain, as well as inflammation and blood vessel damage.
More than one-third of heart attacks produce no symptoms, yet these so-called silent heart attacks are as dangerous as heart attacks that do cause symptoms.
Women who quit smoking can dramatically increase their life span, according to a study of more than one million women conducted in Britain.
New Pap test guidelines have prompted some health experts to question the value of annual gynecological exams.