FRIDAY, Sept. 22, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- While the start of the school year can give kids and teens the chance to reconnect with friends and enjoy school sports and activities, it can also trigger stressors that send many to the emergency room for mental health woes, a new report shows.

Among children aged 5 to 17, emergency department visits for depression, suicidal t...

Helping undocumented immigrants in the United States connect with primary care doctors could be a money-saver, substantially reducing emergency department use and lowering health costs, a new study finds.

The findings are from a New York City program that helped arrange medical appointments from May 2016 to June 2017 for undocumented immigrants with limited incomes.

The data showed ...

When an earthquake struck the center of Morocco earlier this month, killing nearly 3,000 and injuring thousands more, no one was expecting it.

That sudden rapid shaking of ground as the rocks underneath the earth shift can happen anywhere, but higher-risk areas in the United States include Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Washington and the entire Mississippi River Valley....

Emergency medicine doctors someday might rely on consultation from artificial intelligence (AI) programs like ChatGPT to help them quickly and accurately diagnose patients’ ailments.

A new study found that ChatGPT performed about as well as human doctors in diagnosing patients, when both are given the same set of clinical information.

“In the end, they were pretty comparable,”...

CPR could save your life if you suffer cardiac arrest in a public place, but you're less likely to receive it if you're a woman, a new study finds.

The findings were presented Monday at the European Emergency Medicine Congress, in Barcelona.

“In an emergency when someone is unconscious and not breathing properly, in addition to calling an ambulance, bystanders should give CPR. Thi...

The American Stroke Association is promoting the acronym R.Á.P.I.D.O. as a way to raise awareness among Hispanic Americans about stroke symptoms and the need for quick action.

Every second counts when someone has had a stroke, the association (ASA) points out. Calling 911 immediately can be the difference between life, death or long-term disability.

A survey showed that only 39% of...

When some U.S. states made abortion illegal after the Supreme Court overturned the longstanding Roe v Wade in June 2022, women in those areas increased their searches for self-managed abortions.

To come to that conclusion, researchers from the University of California, Irvine (UCI) analyzed Google search results regarding self-abortion.

“We found an increased number of searches in...

The American Red Cross said Monday that it urgently needs blood donations because the national blood supply has dropped nearly 25% since early August.

Back-to-back climate-related disasters have hampered blood collection efforts, and a summer shortfall has made the shortage worse.

Patients in need of transfusions as part of cancer and sickle cell disease treatments face the potentia...

Emergency room visits for injuries related to driving under the influence of cannabis skyrocketed in Canada after the drug was legalized there, a new study reports.

In October 2018, Canada became the second country to nationally legalize recreational or nonmedical cannabis for adult use.

While known cannabis-involved emergency department (ED) visits for traffic injuries were still ...

Narcan, a lifesaving medication that reverses opioid overdose, will be available on U.S. drugstore shelves and online starting next week.

People who want to carry Narcan, the nasal spray version of naloxone, will be able to find it at Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart and CVS for a suggested retail price of $44.99 for a box of two doses, the drug maker reported Wednesday.

T...

If you need quick directions on performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in an emergency, don’t rely on Alexa, Siri or another voice assistant.

A new study finds the directions provided by these AI (artificial intelligence) helpers are inconsistent and lack relevance.

“Our findings suggest that bystanders should call emergency services rather than relying on a voice a...

Brightly colored "edibles" can be tempting for young kids and are more widely available now that many U.S. states have legalized cannabis for recreational and medical use.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t take much of an edible to make a small child very sick, new research finds, which may explain an uptick in hospitalizations of kids poisoned by cannabis.

“There are many studies ...

Smoke from Canadian wildfires sent high numbers of people suffering from asthma attacks to America's emergency rooms this spring and summer, according to two new reports.

From April 30 to August 4, 2023, smoke from out-of-control wildfires in Canada increased emergency room visits for asthma by 17% over average, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ...

Alice Tapper felt deathly ill, suffering from severe abdominal pain, a 102-degree fever and vomiting.

Emergency room doctors found that Alice -- the daughter of CNN anchor Jake Tapper -- had a rapid pulse of 135 beats per minute and a very high white blood cell count, indicating her body was fighting off a...

Bystander aid using CPR and a defibrillator can be critically important for saving lives when someone has a cardiac arrest -- even when an ambulance arrives quickly, say researchers.

A new study finds that when a bystander uses a defibrillator, on top of CPR, on someone who has had a cardiac arrest, that patient’s 30-day survival improves, even when an ambulance takes just two minutes t...

When people suffering a stroke need a transfer to another hospital, time is of the essence. But a new study finds that most Americans in that situation face delays.

The study, published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association, looked at the issue of "door-in, door-out"...

In recent years, the legalization of both medical and recreational marijuana has become the new normal across much of North America.

The problem: New research finds that as legalization has spread, so have cases of cannabis poisoning.

“We did a systematic review of published studies reporting on what happened to the rates of poisoning after legalization or decriminalization,�...

Emergency rooms can be a frightening place for people suffering from dementia, yet each year 1.4 million Americans with Alzheimer's or other dementias wind up in crowded, noisy ERs, a new study finds.

Dementia is responsible for nearly 7% of all ER visits for those older than 65, often because of accidents or mental health crises, researchers determined.

"While dementia is thought o...

Less than half of all children treated by emergency medical services receive the right amount of medication during out-of-hospital emergencies, a new study found.

In some cases, these incorrect doses can have serious consequences.

“If you don't give the appropriate dose of the anti-seizure medication for a patient with an ongoing seizure, the seizure will not stop,” said study c...

More than 7,500 people were killed last year after being struck by vehicles while walking along or across U.S. roadways — the most pedestrian deaths in more than four decades, according to a new report.

This sobering trend was not surprising to experts who track the numbers. But they were dismayed by the consistent increase — up 77% since 2010.

“This is unacceptable. It's real...

Kids get a lot of tummy aches.

How a parent responds to it can vary, just as the causes can, according to the University of Michigan Health's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health, which looked more closely at the issue.

About 1 in 6 parents said their child has tummy pain at least monthly, according to the poll, but many don't call the doctor. One-third...

Heat illness can be deadly, so it's essential to recognize the warning signs and know what to do as the summer season gets into gear.

“Heat illness tends to happen when the body is unable to regulate its temperature due to overexertion or extended periods of time in high temperatures,” said Dr. Maria Carmenz...

When parents rush their kids to an emergency room in the dead of night for an asthma attack or high fever, they are often discharged with a prescription. The problem is, there may be nowhere to fill it promptly.

Now, a new report fro...

Emergency departments aren't perceived as safe for professionals or their patients, according to an international survey from the European Society of Emergency Medicine (EUSEM).

More than 90% of emergency professionals surveyed said they felt at times the number of patients exceeded the capacity the emergency department (ED) had to provide safe care. Overcrowding was a problem, they said...

Surviving a trip to the emergency room for an opioid overdose dramatically increases a patient's odds of dying in the year after, U.S. health officials reported Tuesday.

Of nearly 287,000 emergency room visits in 2016, more than 8,300 were for opioid overdoses. Of these, nearly 500 patients were dead from a drug overdose in the following year and 400 died from other causes, according to a...

A new study finds that while hydrocortisone on its own may not prevent death from sepsis, it can improve survival when combined with other steroids while eliminating the need for vasopressor drugs.

Vasopressor medications help raise blood pressure when it's so low that you can't get enough blood to your organs. Doctor often deliver these drugs via an IV.

“For the first time, the e...

If you're old enough to dial 911, you're old enough to be a lifesaver.

Building lifesaving skills can start as young as age 4 and be expanded over the years, the American Heart Association and others advise in a new scientific statement.

Children can be adept at t...

There's a glimmer of good news when it comes to the mental health of America's adolescents: Visits to U.S. emergency departments for psychiatric troubles declined among kids aged 12 to 17 by the fall of 2022, compared to a year prior.

Overall, mean weekly adolescent emergency department (ED) visits for mental health conditions fell by 11% last fall, compared to higher levels in the fall o...

In the spring and summer, everyone races outside with their dogs to enjoy the warmer weather, but a new study suggests there is a downside to that.

More children are bitten by dogs in those months, according to researchers at Nemours Children's Health.

But a dog bite isn't inevitable: It's possible to keep both dogs and children safer, and to provide proper care if the unfortunate d...

Children are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of climate change, a new report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shows.

Climate change can affect learning, physical health and housing security, which can last throughout the child's life, according to the report.

“Understanding health risks to children is critical for developing effective and equitable strategie...

New research suggests that gender and money matter when it comes to getting a last-resort treatment after mechanical ventilation.

Funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, the study found that certain groups are more likely to receive advanced pulmonary support through ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation).

Who is more likely to get it? Men, those with higher incomes an...

Tornadoes bring with them many dangers, but perhaps not so evident are the risks from colorless and odorless carbon monoxide (CO) from generators used to temporarily restore power.

With parts of the United States expecting another round of severe weather, the Consumer Product Safety Commission offers tips to avoid CO poisoning or fires in the aftermath of a major storm or tornado.

C...

You just had a baby and you want to be ready for any infant emergency that might arise.

Wondering what items should be in your baby's first aid kit? Here are 15 essentials that you should have on hand once you bring your baby home, recommended by the experts at