Sleep Apnea Patients Prone to Higher Long COVID Risk
Preexisting obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) was associated with up to a 75% increased risk of long COVID in adults, an analysis from the NIH RECOVER collaboration found. Unadjusted odds of post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC) were significantly higher for adult and pediatric patients with a prepandemic OSA diagnosis, according to electronic health record (EHR) data […]
Probiotic Use in NICUs Shows Some Benefits in Newborns With Very Low Birth Weight
Routine use of probiotics among newborns with very low birth weight in U.S. neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) was associated with a lower risk of necrotizing enterocolitis, but not sepsis or mortality, according to a cohort study. Among over 300,000 newborns, the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis was reduced by 18% at NICUs that adopted use […]
FDA Relaxes Blood Donation Rules for Gay and Bisexual Men
After decades of rejecting or discouraging men who have sex with men (MSM) from donating blood for fear of HIV transmission, the FDA issued final guidance on Thursday relaxing donor eligibility rules. Under the new recommendations, the FDA scrapped time-based deferrals and screening questions targeting MSM and instead call for individual risk-based questions to be […]
Racial, Ethnic Disparities Persist in OUD Treatment
Black and Hispanic patients with a disability had a tougher time getting medication to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) despite frequent contact with healthcare providers, Medicare claims data showed. Within 180 days of an index OUD-related event, Black patients received a prescription for buprenorphine 12.7% of the time, Hispanic patients 18.7% of the time, and […]
AI Poses Serious Threats to Health and Human Existence, Researchers Say
Despite the potential for negative health outcomes with the use of artificial intelligence (AI), most research is biased toward its benefits, without sufficient consideration of effective regulations that would be needed to avoid those harms, according to an expert analysis. There are three key threats the technology poses to human health and well-being, including upending […]
Daytime Sleepiness Drugs of Varying Performance in Obstructive Sleep Apnea
One drug stood out for reducing excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in a meta-analysis, researchers reported. Compared with placebo, users of solriamfetol (Sunosi) showed improvement on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS; mean difference -3.8, 95% CI -5.24 to -2.50) after 4 weeks, as did groups taking armodafinil/modafinil (mean difference […]
Scoliosis Cramps Heart Function in Adulthood
Scoliosis was associated with altered cardiac function and an increase in cardiac events among adults in the U.K. Biobank, researchers found. Compared with peers without scoliosis, those with such sideways spinal curvature exhibited a greater lifetime risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE; HR 1.45, P<0.001), driven by heart failure (HR 1.58, P<0.001) and atrial […]
‘Ghost’ Provider Networks a Big Problem for Patients, Especially in Mental Health
WASHINGTON — Nine years ago, Keris Jän Myrick had a problem: she got a new job in a new state, and with it, new health insurance, and she needed to change her mental health provider. “Navigating the Blue Cross Blue Shield for federal employees provider directory to find a psychiatrist in the D.C. or Maryland […]
Upfront Systemic Therapy, Deferred Surgery Pass Muster in Advanced Kidney Cancer
CHICAGO — Perioperative immunotherapy for advanced kidney cancer did not adversely affect outcomes with cytoreductive nephrectomy and appeared to have several beneficial effects, a small multicenter study showed. Primary immunotherapy significantly reduced median tumor size and thrombus length and improved tumor thrombus level and mean RENAL score. Immunotherapy led to pathologic downstaging in 25 of […]
Higher BMI Tied to Other Severe Respiratory Infections Too
A higher body mass index (BMI) was associated with increased risks for hospitalization and death due to COVID-19 and other respiratory infections as well, according to a study using data from the U.K. Biobank. After a mean follow-up of 11.8 years, the hazard ratios per 10-unit higher BMI was 2.26 (95% CI 2.05-2.49) for severe […]