Non-drug therapies as good as or better than drugs for treating depression in people with dementia Doctors should consider more “social” prescribing of non-drug approaches for depression and loneliness, say researchers Non-drug therapies, such as exercise, appear to be as, or more, effective than drugs for reducing symptoms of depression in people with dementia, suggests […]
PET and CT scans provide keen views of lungs with active TB, and are better assessment tools than sputum tests
In clinical trials, a time-honored but old-school way to determine if TB is being knocked out by antibiotics involves having study participants cough up phlegm for a sputum culture, a test that can gauge whether the bacteria are succumbing to—or resisting—treatment. Sputum cultures are widely used to determine the amount of active bacteria among trial […]
How reminiscing in the right way can make you feel better in lockdown
Having been ‘fun-starved’ for so long, it’s only natural to want to look back on good times. During the first lockdown, lots of people were posting throwback photos as a way of coping with the loss of their independence. Now, almost a year later, life has become pretty mundane and most of us feel like […]
Fitter, better rested, more appreciative: Research reveals the positive changes experienced by some during lockdown
National lockdowns have been the most profound and significant public health interventions within living memory. They have been difficult socially and economically, and have negatively affected people’s health in many different ways. But for some people lockdowns have provided an unexpected opportunity to make positive changes to their lives, running counter to prevailing narratives of […]
Increased exercise in midlife linked with better brain health in later life
Scientists in the US have found that the more physical activity people do in midlife the better their brain health in later life. The scientific publication, Neurology, has reported the results today. The researchers looked at 1,604 volunteers taking part in an existing study, to see if there was a link between activity levels and […]
Unexpected discovery leads to better understanding of migraine
Massive “plumes” of glutamate, a key neurotransmitter, surging in the brain could help explain the onset of migraine with aura—and potentially a broad swath of neurologic disease, including stroke and traumatic brain injury—according to an international study led by University of Utah Health scientists. The study, which was conducted in laboratory mice, found that an […]
New type of immunotherapy may pave the way for better cancer treatments
Immunotherapy for cancer has made great advances and many patients can now receive effective treatments that were not available 10 years ago. However, there are certain types of cancer that do not respond to existing immunotherapy. A study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) reports on […]
Doctors may be better equipped to handle latest virus surge
The latest surge in U.S. coronavirus cases appears to be much larger than the two previous ones, and it is all but certain to get worse—a lot worse. But experts say there are also reasons to think the nation is better able to deal with the virus this time. “We’re definitely in a better place” […]
Blood test predicts ovarian cancer better than previously thought
A blood test already available to GPs in the UK is more predictive of ovarian cancer than previously thought and could also help pick up other forms of cancer, according to new research published in PLOS Medicine today (Wednesday) and funded by Cancer Research UK and NIHR. This study involving the University of Exeter was […]
Avoid spicy foods before bed to promote a good night’s sleep research suggests
We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Please see our Privacy Notice for details of your data protection rights. Sleep deprivation can be attributed to a host of causes, some of which can seem insurmountable. For many sufferers, constantly changing work patterns fall squarely into this camp. Evidence also suggests sleep […]