Tag Archives: disease

Behavioral Science, disease, Health, mental health, Public health

How do muscle contractions and the chemical signals they release contribute to the development of brain networks?

Leave a comment

The discovery that muscle contractions release chemical signals that promote brain network development provides valuable insights into the intricate link between physical activity and cognitive function. It sheds light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the observed cognitive benefits of regular physical exercise, especially in the context of age-related cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. The brain is a highly dynamic organ, and these findings suggest that physical activity may support its plasticity and resilience through these muscle-derived signals, thus playing a key role in preserving cognitive function as we age.

This newfound understanding of the role of muscle contractions in brain development has substantial implications for therapeutic strategies and exercise recommendations. Conditions where brain network development is compromised or slowed, such as in certain developmental disorders or following brain injuries, could potentially benefit from tailored physical activity programs designed to stimulate muscle contraction and hence, release of these beneficial chemical signals. This approach may contribute to neural repair and reorganization, aiding recovery and supporting cognitive function in these individuals.

This research not only expands our biological understanding but also underscores the potential value of physical exercise in clinical settings. It provides a strong rationale for the integration of regular physical activity into therapeutic regimes, not just for its well-known cardiovascular benefits, but also for its potential neuroprotective effects. Further research is needed to identify the most effective types and intensities of exercise for different patient groups, but the existing findings clearly highlight the role of physical activity in brain health and development.

Resource

Rodríguez‐Valentín, Rocío, Ignacio López‐González, Ramón Jorquera, Pedro Labarca, Mario Zurita, and Enrique Reynaud. “Oviduct contraction in Drosophila is modulated by a neural network that is both, octopaminergic and glutamatergic.” Journal of cellular physiology 209, no. 1 (2006): 183-198.

Fagerlund, M. J., and L. I. Eriksson. “Current concepts in neuromuscular transmission.” British journal of anaesthesia 103, no. 1 (2009): 108-114.

Woolf, Nancy J., and Larry L. Butcher. “Cholinergic systems mediate action from movement to higher consciousness.” Behavioural brain research 221, no. 2 (2011): 488-498.

disease, drugs, Health, Public health

What You Should Know Regarding Monkeypox?

Leave a comment

Thousands of people have contracted monkeypox throughout the United States. The spread has been designated as an epidemic, which naturally arouses public concern. Discover who is at danger and how we can protect ourselves, our community, and our loved ones.

How does monkeypox spread?

It is essential to realize that viruses are not selective. They want just a host. The same holds true for monkeypox as for any other virus. To help reduce the spread of monkeypox, we must first eliminate its stigma. Anyone, regardless of age, gender, race, or sexual orientation, is vulnerable.

It is evident that monkeypox is transmitted by direct skin-to-skin contact. Identifying and reducing high-risk behaviors and settings is the most effective method of disease prevention.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the following behaviors enhance the likelihood of acquiring monkeypox:

  • Close contact with a person or individuals who have been diagnosed with monkeypox or with a person or persons who have a rash that resembles monkeypox.
  • Close or close personal contact with people infected with monkeypox in a social network. Social networks might include individuals met at pubs, parties, on websites or via apps.
  • Sexual contact or intimate behavior with several partners in places where monkeypox is known to occur.
  • Within 21 days after sickness start, travel outside the United States to a nation with confirmed cases of monkeypox or where monkeypox is endemic.
  • Occupational exposure to monkeypox or other orthopoxviruses, such as testing laboratory personnel or some public health personnel. In these situations, the right use of personal protective equipment will aid in reducing danger.

How can I reduce my infection risk?

As with any infectious illness, the pillars of infection prevention and control may be applied: When you are unwell, you should wash your hands, avoid touching your eyes, lips, and face, and avoid contact with others. Avoid prolonged physical contact, contact with respiratory secretions, and contact with products or textiles used by someone with monkeypox to reduce your chance of developing the disease.

Is a monkeypox vaccination available?

Kansas City has provided the University of Kansas Health System with a restricted amount of vaccination doses. The health care system administers vaccinations to people who fulfill the qualifying requirements. Currently, the CDC advises immunization against:

People who are aware that a sexual partner has been diagnosed with monkeypox during the preceding 14 days.

Individuals who have had several sexual partners in the preceding 14 days in an area where monkeypox is known to exist.

Individuals who have reported any of the following during the preceding 14 days:

  • Sex with numerous partners or multiple partners.
  • Sex at a commercial sex venue or in conjunction with an event, location, or specified geographic region where transmission of monkeypox has been recorded.
  • We are devoted to providing everyone with high-quality care. If you are a current patient of the health system and feel you fulfill any of the eligibility requirements, contact your primary care physician or provider (by phone, text message, or MyChart message) for further information.
  • We must collaborate to eliminate the stigma associated with this condition and prioritize wellness. We highly urge persons at high risk or who are worried to communicate honestly with their healthcare professionals.
disease, Health, Public health

Did you know that unvaccinated are 14 times more likely to get monkeypox, data from eligible shot recipients shows?

Leave a comment

Those who have not had the vaccine for monkeypox are 14 times more likely to get the illness than those who have, according to fresh, but limited, statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday morning.

The sampled population consists of males who engage in sexual behavior with other men or persons with several sexual partners. The figures provide our first glimpse at how effectively the JYNNEOS vaccine, the most effective method of protection against monkeypox, functions in the real world.

At a briefing on monkeypox held at the White House on Wednesday, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said, “These new data give us cautious comfort that the immunization is functioning as planned.”

Dr. Demetre Daskalaskis, the White House’s deputy response coordinator for monkeypox, requested that individuals disseminate the “early good news.”

He said that “information is power” and that it empowers people to make health-related decisions with more knowledge and confidence.

What caused the dramatic reduction in monkeypox cases in the United States?

Since the beginning of the current outbreak, there has been little information on the effectiveness of the JYNNEOS vaccine, which was initially designed to combat smallpox.

Since the outbreak began in May, the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health have conducted many studies into the safety and effectiveness of the JYNNEOS vaccine, mostly at the request of LGBTQ community activists.

Walensky also observed that the new data is only a glimpse, while being optimistic. Concerning the extent of JYNNEOS’s protection, several questions remain unresolved.

For instance, the new vaccination efficacy rate was not predicated on two doses given 28 days apart. Instead, it relied on information gathered two weeks after the first shot.

Even though the majority of federal public health experts advocate two doses, the CDC has not yet provided information on the effectiveness of the vaccine after all doses have been administered.

“These early results, together with similar findings from studies undertaken in other countries, suggest that even a single dose of the monkeypox vaccine gives at least some initial protection against disease. In spite of this, laboratory studies have shown that immune protection reaches its peak two weeks following the second vaccination dose, or “Wednesday,” as Walensky said.

She said, “Because of this, we continue to recommend that individuals get two doses of the JYNNEOS vaccine, 28 days apart, in order to provide robust, long-lasting protection against monkeypox.”

According to Walensky, further study is being conducted on the efficacy of two dosages.

The CDC has not yet separated the efficacy data for various injection techniques to see whether there are any differences between the current approach, in which a lower dosage is injected just beneath the skin, and the earlier way, in which a deeper injection is administered.

Also unclear is the extent to which changes in behavior might influence the effectiveness of the vaccination results.

If vaccinated individuals have fewer sexual partners and possibilities for skin-to-skin contact, they may be less likely to get monkeypox.

Eliminating monkeypox is feasible, according to experts, but containing the disease remains challenging.

According to Walensky, a key lesson from COVID-19 is that the CDC intends to make all of its existing data accessible in real time as soon as it becomes available, even while additional data are on the way.

“Through a portfolio of vaccine effectiveness programs, [the] CDC will continue to analyze how well these immunizations are functioning in the continuing outbreak. These endeavors will assist us in determining the extent and duration of the protection provided. “We’ll continue to provide you with further details as they become available,” Walensky added.

Even though the JYNNEOS vaccine is not yet approved for use by the general public, the CDC is expanding the number of at-risk Americans who are eligible to get vaccination against monkeypox.

The inclusion now includes gay or bisexual men who have had one recent romantic relationship or who have just received a new diagnosis of one or more STDs. It also includes sex workers.

Although many states and jurisdictions have already expanded eligibility, the CDC’s latest step puts it more in line with regional guidelines.

disease, Health, Public health

What do you think of a meningococcal disease epidemic in the US that has claimed the lives of 25% of those affected this year?

Leave a comment

According to the director of the Florida Department of Health, 48 instances of meningococcal disease were reported in Florida in 2022, and 12 of those cases resulted in fatalities. Neisseria meningitidis, a bacteria that can infect the brain and spinal cord lining, is the culprit behind the sickness.

As opposed to the flu or common cold, it is less communicable. The monkeypox outbreak, which primarily harms gay males but is not a “gay disease,” is coinciding. The general populace in America needs to prepare for an impending new wave of illnesses.

disease, drugs, Health, Public health

Did you know that women are more likely to suffer from long-term COVID, highlighting the crucial need for sex-specific research?

Leave a comment

A recent study published today in the journal Current Medical Research and Opinion finds that girls are “significantly” more likely than men to suffer from protracted COVID and will exhibit dramatically distinct symptoms.


Long COVID is a condition in which problems continue for more than four weeks after the initial COVID-19 infection, and in some cases for many months.


Researchers from the Johnson & Johnson Office of the Chief Medical Officer Health of Women Team analyzed data from approximately 1.3 million patients and found that females with long COVID exhibit a variety of symptoms, including ear, nose, and throat issues; mood, neurological, skin, gastrointestinal, and rheumatological disorders; and fatigue.


However, male patients were more prone to developing endocrine problems, including diabetes and renal disease.


The authors explain that understanding the fundamental sex differences underlying the clinical manifestations, disease progression, and health outcomes of COVID-19 is essential for the identification and rational design of effective therapies and public health interventions that are inclusive of and sensitive to the potential differential treatment needs of both sexes.


Differences in immune system function between men and females may be a significant factor in determining sex differences in extended COVID syndrome. Females generate more rapid and potent innate and adaptive immune responses, which may shield them from the severity of acute illness. This difference, however, may make females more vulnerable to autoimmunity-related disorders that last longer.


As part of the review, researchers limited their search for scholarly articles to those published between December 2019 and August 2020 for COVID-19 and between January 2020 and June 2021 for long-term COVID syndrome. The overall sample size for all publications evaluated was 1,393,355 distinct people.


Even though there were a lot of participants, only 35 of the 640,634 articles gave enough information about the symptoms and effects of COVID-19 illness by gender to understand how girls and boys experience the illness differently.


Findings indicate that female patients were significantly more likely to have mental problems such as sadness, ear, nose, and throat symptoms, musculoskeletal discomfort, and respiratory symptoms at the outset of COVID-19. On the other hand, men were more likely to have kidney diseases called renal diseases.


The authors remark that this literature review is one of the few that breaks down by sex the particular health issues associated with COVID-related disease. Numerous studies have investigated gender disparities in hospitalization, ICU admission, respiratory support, and death. When it comes to sex, however, studies on the exact diseases induced by the virus and its long-term harm to the body have been inadequate.


The authors note that during earlier coronavirus epidemics, sex variations in outcomes have been recorded. Therefore, disparities in SARS-CoV-2 infection outcomes between men and women may have been predicted. Unfortunately, the vast majority of studies did not examine or report granular data by sex, limiting sex-specific clinical insights that may influence therapy. ” Even if it wasn’t the main goal of the researcher, sex-disaggregated data should be made public so that other researchers can use it to look into differences between the sexes that are important.


The research also identifies complicated aspects deserving of further investigation. Notably, women are more likely to be exposed to the virus in particular occupations, such as nursing and teaching. There may also be differences in who can get care based on gender, which could change how the disease naturally progresses and cause more problems and side effects.


The latter acts as a rallying cry: availability of sex-disaggregated data and deliberate analysis are necessary if we are to guarantee that unequal disease course outcomes are addressed. No study is complete until the data is made accessible to anyone who wants to answer the question, “Do sex and gender matter?”

disease, drugs, Health, Public health

What role did Kansas, Missouri, and prairie dogs play in the first outbreak of monkeypox in the United States?

Leave a comment

The symptoms of monkeypox are comparable to but less severe than those of smallpox.

he first outbreak of monkeypox in the United States in 2003 hit the Midwest and was caused by prairie dogs sold as pets that caught the virus from infected animals from Africa. The outbreak included three cases in Kansas and Missouri. CHARLIE RIEDEL Associated Press file
Read more at: https://www.kansascity.com/news/business/health-care/article262585992.html#storylink=cpy

Contrary to the name, rodents, not monkeys, are the primary transmission vector. The initial outbreak in the United States hit six states in the Midwest, including Kansas and Missouri. The last occurrences have been connected to foreign travel and African animal imports. In 1958, monkeypox was first detected in a Danish laboratory.

In 1970, a youngster in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was diagnosed with the first human case. In 2003, there were 70 documented cases of monkeypox in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Contact with sores and rashes caused by the infection spreads monkeypox. It is also transmissible by large respiratory droplets, though not nearly as quickly as COVID-19. In addition, in the 2003 outbreak, no one contracted the virus through person-to-person contact, unlike the current situation.

The CDC provided updated recommendations based on what physicians have observed in patients thus far. Monkeypox typically causes fever, swollen lymph nodes, muscle aches, and headaches. In addition, some individuals exhibited dispersed or localized lesions outside the face, hands, and feet.

More information may be found by visiting the following website: https://www.kansascity.com/news/business/health-care/article262585992.html#storylink=cpy

Diet, disease, Fitness, Health, Healthy eating, Public health

Would you like to hear that a new study links coffee consumption to a lower risk of death?

Leave a comment

During the trial period, individuals who had moderate quantities of coffee, even with a little sugar, were 30 percent less likely to die than those who did not consume coffee.

Aileen Son for The New York Times

Researchers analyzed coffee consumption data obtained from the U.K. Biobank, a vast medical database including health information on the whole nation’s population. Three to five cups of unsweetened coffee per day was associated with the lowest mortality risk. Inconclusive were the data for persons who consumed coffee with artificial sweeteners. Other lifestyle factors, such as a healthy diet and frequent exercise, may also contribute to a reduced risk of death.

Coffee users may pick cold brew or drip coffee over less healthy caffeine sources, such as energy drinks or soda. Coffee beans have high quantities of antioxidants, which may help neutralize cell-damaging free radicals. Over time, an accumulation of free radicals may induce inflammation in the body, which can contribute to the formation of plaque associated with heart disease. Those who drank more than 4.5 cups of coffee each day had diminishing benefits.

disease, Health, Public health

What is the unusual virus known as monkeypox that has now been verified in the United States and Europe?

Leave a comment

Primarily prevalent in Central and West Africa, monkeypox may be transmitted to both animals and humans.

Symptoms of the monkeypox virus are shown on a patient’s hand, from a 2003 case in the United States. In most instances, the disease causes fever and painful, pus-filled blisters. New cases in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal are spreading possibly through sexual contact, which had not previously been linked to monkeypox transmission.
CDC/Getty Images

Some illnesses confirmed in the United Kingdom have “no travel ties” to locations where monkeypox is present. An expert finds it remarkable that instances are surfacing simultaneously in many nations. The monkeypox virus is distinct from the coronavirus that shook the globe. Existing smallpox vaccines might protect the population in the event of an outbreak.

Katzourakis states: “We do not have the capability for anything to spread throughout the world at anywhere like the pace seen with covid.” The first documented monkeypox case in the United Kingdom moved to Nigeria, according to the World Health Organization. The CDC reports that six Americans are being screened for monkeypox after sitting near a British patient on an airplane. There are no evident connections between the most recent two cases and previous ones, suggesting the potential of community transmission. According to an expert, most Americans will never encounter a case of monkeypox in their lives.

Obtaining the genetic sequence of the virus responsible for recent instances will enable scientists to determine whether they are dealing with a novel strain. The 1980 elimination of smallpox has allowed residual poxviruses to circumvent dwindling defenses.

disease, Health, Pharmaceuticals, Public health

Did you know that there have been one million fatalities in the United States due to COVID?

Leave a comment

More people in the United States have been killed by the COVID-19 virus than have been killed in vehicle accidents over the last two decades or in all of the country’s conflicts combined.

A white flag with a memorial written on it is one of the thousands of white flags representing Americans who have died of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) placed over 20 acres of the National Mall in Washington, September 26, 2021.
Joshua Roberts | Reuters

Because of errors in counting, the actual number is likely definitely more than what was reported. A considerable number of the country’s oldest citizens passed away, accounting for around three quarters of the overall number of fatalities. The death rates of persons of African and Hispanic descent were much higher than those of white people. What was initially a problem in urban areas quickly moved to rural regions and then back again, and this cycle continued until the course of the virus tracked the whole topography of the nation.

At its height, the Covid epidemic was responsible for the deaths of about one New Yorker every two minutes. This equated to over 800 individuals per day, which was five times as high as the city’s average rate of mortality. According to the findings of a research, the almost complete shutdown of public spaces in New York was most likely responsible for a drop in viral transmission of more than 50 percent. The death rate in New York City would never again reach the catastrophic levels it reached during the first wave. Still, the first wave was responsible for a significant amount of damage in a number of places, including Albany, Georgia, Detroit, and New Orleans. She recalls her father pleading with her and urging her not to receive the injection by saying, “Please, kitty.” You have no idea what components make up this item. Epidemiologists believe that the refusal to vaccinate led to the deaths of tens of hundreds of thousands of people.

Today, around one third of individuals living in the United States have not received all of their recommended vaccinations. Since vaccinations were readily accessible, at least 50,000 vaccinated persons have been documented as having died as a result of the disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has only received data on mortality broken down by vaccination status from roughly half of the states. However, the mortality rate among vaccinated persons has been much lower, but the death rate among unvaccinated people has been at least nine times as probable. She claims that she had started to feel marginalized due to her age and the fact that some of the younger neighbors have refused to wear masks or abstain from huge gatherings. She also attributes this to the fact that she is becoming older.

The Covid-19 epidemic has resulted in a mortality rate that is much greater among persons of advanced age than among younger people. In those under the age of 25, the virus has shown to be less deadly than automobile accidents. In the two years leading up to the pandemic, there was an annual death toll of around 877,000 persons aged 85 and older on average. In the same age group, there were 100,000 additional fatalities per year in the years 2020 and 2021. In every age category, the death rate for persons of African and Hispanic descent has been greater than that of white people.

The racial discrepancy in mortality was most severe in the early stages of the epidemic; nonetheless, disparities still exist today. Rates for Native Americans and Pacific Islanders were less trustworthy as a result of low total numbers, and as a result, they are not displayed. According to the findings of the study, around 79.7 percent of employees in the age range of 20 to 64 who passed away from COVID in 2020 worked in sectors recognized as important. Workers in 11 industries that were not required to remain home due to the COVID outbreak had an approximately twofold increased risk of dying from the disease. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco carried out the investigation for the paper.

According to the findings of research conducted in the United States, people who do not possess a college degree and those who reside in more impoverished communities have a greater risk of passing away from COVID. In general, the areas with the greatest incomes have reported the fewest fatalities caused by covids, while the areas with the lowest incomes have reported the most. There is a correlation between poorer earnings and a reduced chance of immunization, which in turn is connected with mortality caused by COVID. In the beginning, a startling 43 percent of all deaths attributed to Covid were among people who were either residents or staff members in nursing homes. Leaders in the industry have requested that the federal government make a significant investment to ensure the safety of nursing homes.

The chief medical officer for the American Health Care Association, Dr. David Gifford, expresses pessimism about the industry’s future. What have we done to prevent the next virus from causing the lives of 200,000 people in nursing homes? The fatality rate in the United States caused by the coronavirus, often known as Covid, decreased overall except in the South, where it increased by around 4 percent. Epidemiologists have pointed to responses that were not as harsh, such as lockdowns that were lifted more quickly and masking restrictions that were not enforced as tightly. The state of Mississippi has one of the lowest immunization rates, while having the greatest number of COVID-related deaths of any state.

disease, Health, Pharmaceuticals, Public health

Here are the symptoms to for in BA.2.12.1 COVID variant

Leave a comment

According to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the BA.2.12.1 variation of COVID-19 accounts for around 37% of all new coronavirus cases nationwide.

FILE – Syringes and a vial of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are displayed at a mass COVID-19 vaccination site in Batavia, Ill., on March 19, 2021.

Health experts predict that the number of people infected with BA.2.12.1 and related strains will continue to rise. CoV-19, the virus that infects people with SARS-CoV-2, is continually evolving and acquiring new mutations as it multiplies. SARS-CoV-2 is predicted to continue evolving in the future. The CDC predicts that some varieties will exist and then vanish, while others will originate, spread, and eventually supplant earlier forms.

An ancestor of BA.2.12.1 is a subvariant of COVID’s omicron strain known as BA.2. Experts predict that BA.2.12.1 will overtake its predecessors as the main strain of COVID-19 over the next few weeks due to its improved capacity to spread. Who knows when the next COVID spike will occur? For Alabama and the South as a whole, this is what one expert thinks will happen. Because of the COVID problems in China, Alabama hospitals are forced to limit medical supplies. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) monitored phone calls to check whether people complied with COVID lockdowns.

In what ways does BA.2.12.1 manifest itself?

BA.2.12.1, like the preceding BA.2 variation, is more likely to cause flu-like symptoms in the upper respiratory tract. Initial COVID-19 symptoms include:

  • Smell and taste are lost
  • Feeling hot or cold
  • Cough
  • Sneezing
  • Shortness of breath or breathing issues
  • Fatigue
  • a sore or aching bodily part
  • Headache
  • A bad case of the hiccups
  • Is your nose running or stuffed up?
  • nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea

Sneezing, coughing, and a runny nose are the most common symptoms of the omicron variety. Fatigue and dizziness are some side effects of BA.2. COVID and its variations may be reduced by immunization, according to experts. People who have been immunized may have outbreaks of infection, but this is to be anticipated, and staying up to date on recommended vaccinations may help avoid serious disease, hospitalization, and even death. An Omicron variation has emerged that underscores the need of vaccines, the CDC stated.