Winter Brings Rise in Carbon Monoxide Danger: Stay Safe

Winter weather brings with it plenty of hazards, including risks from carbon monoxide poisoning, and fires.

But the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) offers suggestions for staying safe on those cold winter nights.

When storms knock out power, a portable generator can be a go-to tool, but it does raise the risk of carb...

Wind Power Is Bringing Americans Real Health Benefits

With wind power picking up as a viable energy source, new research shows U.S. air quality is getting better, benefiting all Americans' health.

There was one caveat to the findings, however: Only about a third of the potentially enormous health benefit is being seen in low-income areas and those with a concentration of minority residen...

Scientists May Be Closer to Effective HIV Vaccine

It's thought that for an HIV vaccine to be widely effective, it will have to spur the body to make special antibodies that can neutralize a broad range of HIV strains. Now scientists say they have taken an essential step in that direction.

In an early study, researchers found that an experimental HIV vaccine was able to induce an immu...

AHA News: After Cardiac Arrest at College Basketball Game, He's Ready to Cheer Again

For more than 50 years, Stan Goldstein has donned his red, black, white and gold – the colors of the University of Maryland's Terrapins – to cheer for his alma mater's men's basketball team at home games.

In the 1990s, the team invited him to travel on their charter plane with other donors, so he became a fixture at road games, too.

988 Mental Health Hotline Back in Business After Daylong Outage

A national hotline that people can call in a mental health emergency went down for a day before it was restored late Thursday.

Those in crisis could still reach counselors by texting 988 or visiting 988lifeline.org during the outage. The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Disaster Distress Helpline was also...

Cost of Epilepsy Meds Continues to Soar

Costs for epilepsy medications in the United States are skyrocketing, outpacing inflation and straining federal insurers Medicare and Medicaid, according to new research.

Spending on antiseizure medications more than doubled in eight years for the government insurers, largely because of third-generation and brand-name drugs, the study foun...

Seizures Seem Tied to Faster Decline in People With Dementia

Dementia patients who suffer from seizures tend to decline faster and die younger, according to a new study that urges caregivers to watch for these sudden brain changes.

"Our hope is that controlling seizures by prescribing antiseizure medications to these patients will slow down the progression of cognitive impairment," said Dr. Ifrah Za...

'Tumor Progressing,' 'Positive Findings': Patients Often Confused by Medical Jargon

If you've ever left a medical appointment confused, it's probably not you: A new study finds that the medical jargon doctors use can be completely misunderstood by patients.

Common medical lingo that makes perfect sense to doctors often gets lost in translation when conveyed to laypeople, the new research found. It turns out that many...

Few Americans Understand Alcohol's Impact on Cancer Risk: Survey

Alcohol increases the risk of cancer, but some Americans think it does the opposite, a new study shows.

Researchers set out to understand people's awareness of the links between alcohol and cancer, finding that many would benefit from further education on the issue.

“All types of alcoholic beverages, including wine, increase canc...

Cases of Meth-Linked Heart Failure Are Spreading Worldwide

Methamphetamine wreaks havoc on the heart, warns new research that shows heart failure rates linked to the illicit drug are on the rise around the world.

Not only are these cases increasing, but they are more severe than traditional heart failure cases and they are striking all racial and socioeconomic groups.

“The increasing pre...

Winter Holidays Are High Time for Heart Attacks: Protect Yourself

The winter holidays are a time of celebrating and sharing precious time with family and friends, but they can also be deadly: More people die of heart attacks on Christmas Day than on any other day of the year.

Experts aren’t certain what’s behind that troubling fact, but they offer some suggestions to help ensure that you and your lo...

Frozen Stuffed Chicken Products & Microwave Ovens: A Recipe for Salmonella

After repeat U.S. outbreaks of salmonella tied to frozen, breaded and stuffed chicken products, researchers are now pointing to microwave cooking as a key driver of illness.

Because they’re breaded, the popular products — for example, chicken stuffed with broccoli and cheese, chicken cordon bleu, or chicken Kiev — can lo...

On World AIDS Day, White House Announces Plan to End Epidemic by 2030

The United States will renew its focus on ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030, with new funding and a five-year strategy, the White House said Thursday.

The Biden administration announced its ambitious plans on World AIDS Day.

Among the plan's components are requesting $850 million in the 2023 budget for HIV prevention and care pr...

Signs That COVID Infection Might Harm the Liver

COVID-19 may harm the liver, a small study suggests.

The virus appears to increase liver stiffness, a sign of potential long-term injury, but it's too early to tell if that portends serious liver disease, the researchers said.

"COVID infections have been observed to cause inflammation and damage to a number of different organ sy...

Paxlovid OK for Use in Pregnant Women Infected With COVID

Moms-to-be can safely take Paxlovid to help keep their COVID infection from turning serious, a new study shows.

Nearly everyone in a group of 47 pregnant women prescribed Paxlovid did well on the drug, which did not appear to interfere with their pregnancy in any significant way, researchers report in the Nov. 29 issue of the journal .

First FDA-Approved Fecal-Based Treatment Helps Fight a Tough Superbug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved the first fecal microbiota treatment, aimed at helping adults battling tough-to-treat Clostridium difficile (C. diff) infections.

"Today's approval of Rebyota is an advance in caring for patients who have recurrent C. difficile infection [CDI],"...

AHA News: What's New With the Flu? Here Are 7 Things to Know

Don't call it a comeback if it was never really gone, but the flu is poised for a breakout year.

Like the killer in a horror movie franchise, this season's flu is bringing fresh twists to a familiar theme. Here are seven things you should know to stay safe.

Early season

Several factors make this flu season uniq...

The 'Great Resignation' Is Taking a Toll on U.S. Health Care

The nationwide shortage of health care professionals -- a so-called "Great Resignation" of providers -- is impacting patient care in ways large and small, a new HealthDay/Harris Poll shows.

One in four Americans (25%) have noticed or personally experienced the impact of staffing shortages in health care, second only to staff short...

FDA Moves to Ease Restrictions on Gay Men Giving Blood

THURSDAY, Dec. 1, 2022 (HealthDay News) – U.S. Food & Drug Administration policies that have limited blood donations from men who have sex with men may soon ease.

At the moment, FDA policy does not allow blood donation from men who have had sex with other men in the past three months. That's already a shorter timeframe than in the past, ...

Two Veterinary Meds Show Promise Against a Tough Foe: Bed Bugs

Two common drugs that veterinarians use to kill parasites on pets could be the solution to getting rid of bed bugs.

Both fluralaner and ivermectin, which are used to kill fleas and ticks on household pets, could also kill bed bugs. The newer, longer-lasting fluralaner showed especially strong potential.

This new research comes from a...