CDC Drops COVID Travel Advisories as Countries Stop Tracking Cases

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 5, 2022 (HealthDay News) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is dropping its foreign travel advisories for COVID. The agency explained that because so many countries have stopped tracking their COVID cases, it can no longer accurately calculate health risks to travelers.

Going forward, the CDC will only ...

Half of Cases of Childhood Blindness in U.S. Didn't Have to Happen

More than half of sightless children in the United States did not have to lose their vision, according to a new study.

The findings suggest the need to prioritize addressing preventable vision loss in all children in America, said study co-author Dr. Scott Lambert, a professor of ophthalmology at Stanford University in California.

H...

No Rise in Guillain-Barre Syndrome Cases After COVID Shots: Study

A new study has found no evidence that COVID-19 shots increase the incidence of Guillain-Barré syndrome, according to researchers.

"This is important because we can say that there is no significant increased risk of Guillain-Barré syndrome in the population," said study first author Mustafa Jaffry, a medical student at Rutgers New Jerse...

Suicide Risk Rises Sharply in People Diagnosed With Early-Onset Dementia

Thoughts of suicide are often a first reaction to a diagnosis of dementia before age 65, a new study suggests.

Suicide risk is highest in the first three months after the dementia diagnosis and if the patient already has a psychiatric disorder, British researchers found. For those younger than 65, suicide risk was nearly seven times higher...

Gut Microbes Could Play Role in HIV Infection

Could key differences in the trillions of bacteria found in the human gut actually affect the risk of becoming infected with HIV? A small, new study suggests the answer may be yes.

The intriguing possibility stems from a detailed analysis of the gut bacteria ("microbiomes") of 55 men, all of whom indicated they have sex with other men.

Babies Might Trigger Brain Changes in New Dads

When men become parents, a lot changes in their lives -- less sleep and more time devoted to taking care of their children come to mind -- but new research now suggests that distinct changes also unfold in a new father's brain.

Researchers scanned the brains of new fathers to discover and study those changes after suspecting this would be ...

AHA News: Heart Risk Factors, Not Heart Disease Itself, May Increase Odds of COVID-19 Death

Seeking to clarify connections between pre-existing heart disease and COVID-19, a study of critically ill patients has found their risk of dying from COVID-19 may stem not directly from heart disease, but from the factors that contribute to it.

People with heart disease have been, and continue to be, at higher risk of developing severe COV...

'I'm Not the Doctor for You': Disabled Americans Face Discrimination Seeking Care

Over 30 years since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), some doctors harbor biases toward people with disabilities, and even actively avoid accepting them as patients, a new study finds.

In focus group discussions with about two dozen U.S. doctors, researchers found that many said they lacked the knowledge and skill t...

U.S. Breast Cancer Death Rates Continue to Fall

Breast cancer researchers and clinicians have made tremendous progress in reducing death rates in the past three decades, yet a racial gap persists in the United States.

Even with the lower numbers of actual disease compared to white patients, Black women are still much more likely to die from the disease.

The American Cancer Societ...

Football Great Terry Bradshaw Describes Battle Against Two Kinds of Cancer

Football Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw revealed Sunday that he has been treated for two different types of cancer in the past year.

Bradshaw talked about his health while co-hosting Fox NFL Sunday.

“Last week on this show, I ran out of breath and Howie helped me up and a lot of people are asking what’s wrong with me,” Bradshaw ...

New Window Blinds? Go Cordless to Save a Child's Life

How can you make your home safer for your young children? You might want to start by removing window coverings with cords that could strangle a toddler.

"Young children can quickly and silently become strangled on pull cords, continuous loop cords, inner cords or any other accessible cords on window coverings," said Alex Hoehn-Saric, chair...

Minority Patients Less Likely to Get Newer Alzheimer's Meds

While certain minority groups are more likely to be diagnosed with dementia than their white counterparts, they may also be less likely to be eligible for new disease-slowing treatments, a new study finds.

Cognitive, or mental, impairment in Black, Hispanic and Asian patients is more likely to be caused by forms of dementia unrelated to t...

Dangerous Virus Found in Monkeys Could Jump to Humans

The global public health community should be on the alert for a family of viruses in African monkeys that have the potential to spill over to humans, researchers warn.

In their new study, the scientists noted that while it's not certain what impact these viruses might have on humans, there are troubling parallels to HIV.

"This animal...

Brain Secrets of the Super-Sharp 'Super-Agers'

Researchers have discovered another clue as to how some older people stay sharp as a tack into their 80s and beyond: Their brain cells are really big.

The study focused on what scientists have dubbed "super-agers" — a select group of elderly adults who have the memory skills of people decades younger.

The researchers found that in ...

Evolution Research Garners Swedish Scientist Nobel Prize in Medicine

Swedish scientist Svante Paabo received the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday.

The 67-year-old researcher made important discoveries about human evolution and the immune system while comparing modern humans and early hominins. After developing new techniques, Paabo and his team made it possible to compare the genome of modern humans with t...

Not All Kids With Autism Will Benefit From Therapy Dogs

For many kids with autism, Rhett, a black Labrador retriever, has been a calming and comforting influence in his seven years as a therapy dog.

But parents shouldn't assume that a service pooch is the solution for every child on the autism spectrum, a new study finds. Not all kids with autism enjoy interacting with Rhett, a resident therapy...

Thousands of U.S. Cancer Patients Died From COVID Complications, Study Finds

New research confirms that COVID-19 can be life-threatening for certain cancer patients: More than 16,500 Americans with cancer died from complications related to coronavirus infection during the first 10 months of the pandemic.

"People with cancer, especially blood cancers, who may be immunocompromised, and prostate cancer, who tend to be...

AHA News: At 21, Her College Graduation and a Stroke Happened on the Same Day

Marissa Fattore's graduation from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania took place on a warm spring day. For the occasion, Marissa had her nails done and wore a new dress and high heels.

Despite her excitement, she felt crummy. She had a headache and her brain was fuzzy. It was probably just nerves, she thought.

More than 500 people we...

Alzheimer's Meds Are Mostly Tested in Whites. That Worries Black Patients, Caregivers

Larry Griner resigned from his job in California and moved back to his childhood home in Baltimore nearly five years ago so he could care for his mother, Norma.

She had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease almost 12 years earlier, which took away her short-term memory and completely changed the life she used to have. When the 63-year...

More Evidence COVID Boosters Improve Seniors' Immunity

For older adults, getting vaccinated provides protection against COVID-19, but getting a booster is a key part of maintaining that immunity, a new study confirms.

"The data support the CDC guidelines for COVID-19 vaccination and affirm that the vaccine is initially able to mount a good antibody response," said study co-author Dr. Sean Leng...