More Pets May Be Getting COVID-19 Than Realized

There are "substantial" rates of coronavirus infection in dogs and cats whose owners have COVID-19, new research shows.

The researchers also found that, in several cases, infected pets had COVID-like respiratory symptoms at the time their owners were infected.

SARS-CoV-2 has been reported to infect a number of animals, but th...

Rising Obesity Levels Put Americans at Risk During Pandemic: CDC

Adult obesity in the United States continues to rise, and being obese increases the risk of severe illness in people with COVID-19, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns.

Agency data also show that racial and ethnic disparities in obesity rates persist.

New CDC maps for 2019 put adult obesity rates in 12 s...

COVID-19 Prevention Might Translate Into Record Low Flu Rates: CDC

The final statistics are in for America's last flu season, and the news is good: Record low rates of influenza were reported as cases plummeted during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic.

Why? Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believe the social distancing measures put into place across the c...

A Good Workout Could Boost Your Thinking for Up to 2 Hours

A few minutes of moderate- to high-intensity aerobic activity -- like running or biking -- can boost young adults' memory and concentration for up to two hours, a new research review shows.

That's the takeaway from 13 studies published between 2009 and 2019. All looked at the short-term impact of bicycling, walking and/or running on th...

Coffee May Slow Spread of Colon Cancer

Just a few cups of coffee a day may help slow down the deadly progression of advanced colon cancer, new research finds.

Of the nearly 1,200 patients in the study, those who drank four or more cups of java on a daily basis had 36% higher odds of surviving during the 13-year study period.

Metastatic colon cancer, which has ...

Mother and Son Draw Hope, Healing From Shared Cancer Treatment

Families bond over lots of shared experiences -- but one Leslie Seigel and her adult son, Josh, never expected to share was battling cancer.

Soon after Leslie finished chemotherapy for an aggressive form of breast cancer, however, Josh found himself waging his own battle with testicular cancer.

The mother and son soon learned...

Wildfire Smoke Poses Special Threat to People With Asthma

People with asthma and other respiratory illnesses need to be aware of the threat that wildfire smoke poses to their breathing and take steps to protect themselves, an allergy expert warns.

Wildfires are raging across western U.S. states, and the smoke is spreading across much of the country.

It's important for everyone -- es...

AHA News: A Stroke at 37 Meant Relearning Everything

On most Fridays, Angela Crenshaw worked from home.

But the day before, Crenshaw had joined colleagues on a work outing to a horse racetrack to celebrate their manager's 10-year anniversary on the job. She'd even squeezed in a session of hot yoga afterward.

So, to catch up on things, she headed into the office that Friday, making ...

PTSD May Be Tied to Greater Dementia Risk

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)may significantly increase the risk of dementia later in life, according to a new study.

The researchers found that people with a history of PTSD were up to two times more likely to develop dementia than those who never had PTSD.

"Our study provides important new evidence of how traumatic ...

Coronavirus Vaccine Plan for Americans Announced

THURSDAY, Sept. 17, 2020 (Healthday News) -- The details of a plan to rapidly deliver a future coronavirus vaccine to Americans were unveiled by federal officials on Wednesday.

Two of the key parts of the plan are to begin distributing a vaccine with 24 hours of any approval or emergency authorization and offering the vaccine for free...

COVID Conflicts Are Putting Big Strains on Relationships

As the coronavirus pandemic wears on, it's clear that not everyone's on the same page when it comes to preventing the risk of infection.

Lots of people wear masks, try to maintain social distancing and avoid large gatherings. But plenty of others forgo a mask or wear it on their chin, go to busy bars and attend social gatherings, like ...

Smoking Ups Your Risk of a Fatal Brain Bleed

Smokers have a significantly raised risk of dying from a bleeding stroke, a new study warns.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from over 16,000 same-sex twin pairs in Finland. The twins were born before 1958 and followed for about 42 years (between 1976 and 2018).

During the follow-up, there were 120 deaths from subara...

COVID-19 Has Taken a Toll on Organ Donation

Transplants of organs from dead donors haven't slowed during the coronavirus pandemic, but living donor transplants remain suspended in many places, an expert says.

Dr. Fauzia Butt, a transplant surgeon at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in Hershey, Pa., also said that organ donation and transplant surgery are safe d...

For Stroke Survivors, Timely Rehab Has Been Jeopardized During Pandemic

Timely rehabilitation is crucial for stroke survivors, but some may not be receiving it due to the coronavirus pandemic, experts say.

Rehabilitation can help the 795,000 stroke survivors in the United States achieve the best possible recovery, according to the American Stroke Association (ASA).

That's why it's critical to beg...

Could Drones Delivering Defibrillators Save Lives?

The answer to saving lives from cardiac arrest someday could include sending drones to the rescue.

A recent randomized trial tested whether delivering an automated external defibrillator (AED) by drone would be faster than an ambulance and more accessible for bystanders than looking for AEDs in nearby buildings.

About 350,000...

Companion Drug Might Help Prevent Kidney Complications of Lupus

Adding a newer drug to standard therapy might help control kidney complications caused by the autoimmune disease lupus, a new clinical trial suggests.

The researchers found that adding the drug, called belimumab, improved patients' likelihood of responding to treatment. That meant a reduction in protein in the urine -- a tell-tale sign...

Pregnant Women With COVID-19 at High Risk for Complications

COVID-19 may hit pregnant women especially hard, U.S. health officials warned in two reports.

In one report, scientists from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urge pregnant women and health care providers to be aware of the risks for severe COVID-19, which include serious birth outcomes.

Diagnosing COVID-1...

Parkinson's Ups the Odds for Dangerous Falls, But Prevention Is Key

A major cause of falls in older people is more common among Parkinson's patients, and monitoring for the condition might lower patients' risks, new research shows.

Ever feel dizzy and lightheaded when you suddenly stand up? It's caused by a sudden drop in blood pressure -- a condition doctors call orthostatic hypotension and it can le...

New Research Links Another Gene to Alzheimer's Risk

A genetic variant in some people may be associated with mental decline that can't be explained by deposits of two proteins linked with Alzheimer's disease, researchers say.

They said their findings could lead to new treatments for Alzheimer's.

The two proteins are amyloid β and tau. Amyloid forms into plaques and tau for...

Do Ordinary Eyeglasses Offer Protection Against COVID-19?

Eyeglasses keep you from tripping over footstools and walking into walls, but they also might have a side benefit to spark envy among those with 20/20 vision.

People who wear glasses every day might be less susceptible to COVID-19 infection, a Chinese study reports.

Only about 6% of 276 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 ...