Category: news-perspectives

Researchers say they have found a way to predict the risk of dementia for older adults with diabetes. The risk score was developed using information about nearly 30,000 people. All of them were age 60 or older and had type 2 diabetes. During a 10-year period, about 17% developed dementia. Researchers found that age, education level and six health problems were the strongest predictors of dementia. The problems included diabetic foot or eye disease and events of dangerously high or low blood sugar. These are all directly caused by diabetes. Most of the other conditions also are more common among diabetics. They included heart disease, depression, and stroke or related problems with circulation in the brain. Each risk factor was assigned a point total. Then researchers created a scoring system.

A study involving mice has led to a new theory about the cause of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers compared autopsy brain tissue from mice of various ages, a human baby and an older person. They focused on an immune system protein called C1q, which builds up even in healthy brains as they age. Levels of C1q were 300 times as high in older brains as in younger ones. C1q built up mostly at synapses, the junctions between nerve cells. This possibly could get in the way of signals between cells that allow the brain to function. C1q plays a role in the brain in childhood, when some synapses are “pruned” away to allow others to develop. In the immune system, C1q clings to foreign bodies, such as bacteria, or to pieces of dying cells. This sets off a chain reaction. Other proteins build up on top of the C1q. Then other immune system cells gulp down the object.

Avoiding some tests and practices often done in hospitals can save money, without affecting quality of care, an expert group says. The Journal of Hospital Medicine published the recommendations online August 19. The advice comes from the Choosing Wisely campaign, an alliance of doctors. The group recommends ways to reduce waste in medicine. It has focused on releasing lists of tests, procedures and treatments that often are not needed. The list just published comes from the Society of Hospital Medicine and the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation. It lists five items that often are not needed for children in the hospital. For example, the group says not to order chest X-rays for most children with asthma or bronchiolitis. Drugs to suppress acid in babies with reflux also don’t work, the group says. Five more items are listed for adult patients.

Cutting off blood supply to the arm, briefly, before heart surgery may improve survival by reducing injury to the heart. That’s the conclusion of the first study to look at results of the technique after a year. The study included more than 300 people who were scheduled to have heart bypass surgery. They were randomly divided into 2 groups. People in the first group received remote ischemic preconditioning. Right after they received anesthesia for surgery, a blood pressure cuff was applied to one upper arm. The cuff was inflated and kept in place for 5 minutes to restrict blood supply to the arm. Then it was removed for 5 minutes. This was done 3 times in a row before surgery. The other group did not have preconditioning. Three days after surgery, researchers measured troponin, a protein that indicates heart muscle damage.

A drug used to treat an enlarged prostate also reduces prostate cancer cases by nearly one-third and does not affect the risk of death, a new study finds. The research is an 18-year follow-up on an earlier study. Nearly 19,000 men were randomly assigned to receive either finasteride (Proscar) or placebo (fake) pills. The first phase of the study showed fewer prostate cancers for men who took finasteride. But they had a higher rate of high-grade cancers, which are more likely to spread. The new study looked at what happened to these men over time. Prostate cancer diagnosis was reduced by about 30% for those who got the real drug. About 3.5% of the cancers in this group were high-grade, compared with 3% in the placebo group. But death rates were the same whether men received the real drug or not. The drug also did not change death rates for men with high-grade cancers.

People with diabetes may be less likely to develop kidney disease if they eat a healthy diet and drink moderately, new research suggests. The study included more than 6,200 diabetes patients. Researchers kept track of them for more than 5 years. In that time, about 32% developed chronic (long-lasting) kidney disease. About 8% died. People who scored highest on a scale measuring the health of their diets were 39% less likely to die than those with the least healthy diets. They were 26% less likely to develop kidney disease. About one-third of those in the study drank alcohol regularly. People who had about 5 drinks per week were 25% less likely to develop kidney disease. They also were 31% less likely to die during the study. The journal JAMA Internal Medicine published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it August 12.

Children who have long-lasting stomach pain may have a higher risk of anxiety or depression as adults, a new study finds. The study included 332 school-age children. All had been having belly pain that lasted at least 3 months and had no clear medical cause. Doctors call this functional abdominal pain. They were compared with 147 children who did not have long-lasting belly pain. By the time they were young adults, 51% of the children with belly pain and 20% of the other group had developed an anxiety disorder at some point. About 40% developed depression, compared with 16% of the other group. These conditions occurred even though many no longer had stomach pain. Doctors say it’s important for children with this type of pain to keep up their regular activities as much as possible. Avoiding them can increase anxiety and make the pain worse.

A prominent TV doctor says he was wrong about medical marijuana. Sanjay Gupta, M.D., will explain his views in a documentary Sunday on CNN. He wrote about them in an article published August 8 on CNN.com. Dr. Gupta, a neurosurgeon, is the network’s chief medical correspondent. In the past, he has opposed medical marijuana, now legal in 20 states. But he recently changed his mind after looking more closely at the evidence. Dr. Gupta cited specific people he has learned about for whom marijuana is the only drug that helps to stop seizures or pain. Marijuana is a Schedule I drug under U.S law. This means it is likely to be abused and has no medical use. Dr. Gupta disputed both of those statements. He said about 10% of marijuana users become addicted. Those are less than half the rates for other illegal drugs or tobacco.

A new study suggests that higher blood sugar may increase people’s risk of developing dementia. In the study, the risk increased along with blood sugar levels. Even people without diabetes had a slightly higher risk of dementia if their blood sugar was above ideal levels. The study included 2,067 people. All were 65 and older. In the 5 years before the study began, all of them had their blood sugar measured at least 5 times. Researchers used a formula to produce an average blood sugar figure for each person. When the study began, about 10% of the total group had diabetes. Nobody had dementia. The study lasted 7 years. Researchers gave people regular tests of memory and thinking skills. By the end of the study, about 25% of the total group had dementia.

Would you want to live to 120? Most Americans say no, according to a new poll. The Pew Research Center did the survey. About 2,000 adults were interviewed. The group was balanced to reflect the U.S. population. People were asked if they would want a treatment that let them live to age 120. About 56% said no. But 65% thought that most people would want such a treatment. So what’s the ideal life span? Ninety was the median age chosen by poll respondents. Just over half thought living to 120 would be bad for society. They thought it might strain natural resources. Some also said the treatment most likely would be available only to the rich. The average life expectancy of a baby born in the United States today is 78.7. It’s about 81 years for a girl, 76.2 for a boy. Research has found ways to extend the life span for some lab animals.