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Awake prone positioning does not offer benefit in reducing intubation for COVID-19 induced acute respiratory failure

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A large multicenter, randomized clinical trial revealed no difference in the risk of endotracheal intubation requirements at 30 days between awake positioning and standard positioning for patients with COVID-19 suffering from acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, according to research published in JAMA by researchers at UTHealth Houston. Given the concern about limited resources during the covid-19 … Read more

Morning digest: June 29, 2022

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A selected list of stories to read before you start the day. A selected list of stories to read before you start the day. Two beheaded man for posts on social media in Rajasthan Two people beheaded a 40-year-old man in broad daylight in his tailoring at a market in Rajasthan’s city of Udaipur on … Read more

Patients treated with monoclonal antibodies during COVID-19 delta surge had low rates of severe disease, study finds

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A study of 10,775 adult high-risk patients during the increase in the covid-19 delta variant at the end of 2021 shows that treatment with one of three anti-spike-neutralizing monoclonal antibodies for mild to moderate symptoms led to low rates of serious illness, hospitalization, intensive care and mortality, according to Mayo Clinic researchers. Among patients treated … Read more

Doctors prescribe fewer painkillers during nightshifts than during the day, study finds: Researchers attribute discrepancy in pain med prescriptions at emergency rooms to reduced empathy

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Pain management is one of the biggest challenges in the modern healthcare system. Nearly 60% of American adults report that they have experienced pain in the past three months and pain is one of the main reasons why adults seek care. Adequate pain management is crucial to the patient’s health and well-being. A new study … Read more

Surgeons develop new technique to reduce Adam’s apple without neck scar: Gender-affirming procedure could help reduce stigma faced by transgender and nonbinary patients

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Doctors at the UCLA Gender Health Program have developed a technique to reduce a Adam’s apple bump without leaving a scar on the patient’s neck. Progress can be important and welcome for transgender people and non-binary people, for whom a scar on the neck can be a sign of their operation – which often exposes … Read more

Researchers develop a comprehensive atlas of disease mortality

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A detailed collection of mortality estimates for diseases, disorders and external factors will be published on June 16 in the open access journal PLOS Medicine. The study provides a resource for estimating reductions in life expectancy for a wide range of diseases. The atlas will be a useful tool for clinicians, academics and decision makers … Read more

The lasting symptoms among COVID-19 long haulers: Brain fog and neuropsychological effects vary in duration and cause

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More than two years after the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic, researchers have become increasingly aware of a group of patients – so-called “long-distance carriers” – who remain plagued by a combination of symptoms long after the infection has passed. In a study published in Journal of Clinical NeuroscienceMassachusetts General Hospital (MGH) specialists describe their … Read more

Opioid analgesic fentanyl may cause autism-like behavior in young mice, study finds

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Fentanyl, a mu-opioid receptor agonist, is one of the most common analgesics used in hospitals and can induce long-term behavioral and somatosensory impairment in rodents. However, it is not known whether the use of fentanyl is associated with the development of autism. An animal study led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Shanghai 10th … Read more

Growing ‘mortality gap’ detected between Democratic and Republican counties

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A new study shows how closely linked policies and health outcomes have grown over time. Investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital examined mortality rates and federal and state election data for all counties in the United States from 2001 to 2019. The team found what they call a “mortality gap” – an increasing difference between … Read more

Pressures within supply chains paved the way to an oversupply of prescription opioids, experts say

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In today’s post-pandemic world, strained global supply chains have emerged as a new norm. However, in the case of prescription opioids, namely oxycodone and hydrocodone in the early 2000s, that supply chain flowed freely without any folds. This is due in part to the impact of the supplier pool’s pressure on pharmacies’ oversupply, according to … Read more