A whole host of epilepsy organizations and several members of Congress have come together to call for more governmental help to treat and educate those with epilepsy. The groups, which include the Epilepsy Foundation, the Epilepsies Action Network, CURE Epilepsy, the Rare Epilepsy Network and DEE-P Connections, along with Reps. Greg Murphy, M.D., R-North Carolina, and Jim Costa, D-California, took to Capitol Hill this month to speak about their personal connections to epilepsy. “My son developed epilepsy when he was 14, and it took us months to get the right treatment for him,” said Murphy in a press release. “While he is now 28 and his seizures are controlled, there are still millions of Americans who continue to struggle with seizures. “My sister is one of those people,” he added. “I am committed to elevating the community’s voice in Washington to bring much-needed education and awareness about this very common ...
It is estimated that every eighth child suffers from a mental health disorder. Several predictors of children’s mental problems have been identified, but much remains uncharted. Previous research suggests that low vitamin D levels in early childhood may be one factor increasing the risk of mental health problems in later life. A recent Finnish study, now published in JAMA Network Open, presents new information on the association between vitamin D intake and mental health. A new study by a team of Finnish researchers has investigated whether a daily vitamin D3 supplement higher than the recommended dose in early childhood reduces the risk of psychiatric symptoms at school age. The study is part of the Vitamin D Intervention in Infants (VIDI) clinical trial, which investigates how early vitamin D3 intervention affects children’s growth and development. In the research, children were randomized as two groups, one receiving the daily standard dose of ...
Treatment concerns up to 150,000 patients in England with chronic heart failure The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has issued final draft guidance recommending AstraZeneca’s dapagliflozin. The therapy, also known as Forxiga, is as an option among adults with symptomatic chronic heart failure with mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction. Currently, there are no disease-modifying treatments for this specific condition and, thus, dapagliflozin becomes the first NICE-recommended treatment for this population. Meanwhile, evidence from a clinical trial demonstrated that adding dapagliflozin to standard care with diuretics effectively decreases the combined risk of dying from cardiovascular causes or the need attend hospital with heart failure. This was compared during the study with placebo in addition to standard care. Helen Knight, director of medicines evaluation at NICE, reflected: “Until now there have been no treatments available to delay or slow the progression of this type of heart failure. “The ...
Although employers are facing a difficult economic climate, nine in 10 said it will not lead to them reducing their investment in wellbeing programs for their employees, according to a new survey. Another three in 10 employers plan to increase their investment into wellbeing programs. The survey was published Wednesday by Fidelity Investments and Business Group on Health. It was conducted between December 2022 and January 2023 and received responses from 184 employers. Most of the employers have a global presence. Despite employers looking to maintain their wellbeing investments in the next three to five years, some areas of wellbeing will be emphasized more than others, the survey found. About 74% of respondents said they will expand mental health, 53% said they will expand financial wellness, 52% said they will expand work/life balance and 50% said they will expand physical health. Mental health, physical health and financial health are all ...
With scarce clinical resources unable to keep pace with elevated rates of mental illness, technological solutions could help decrease waitlists and disparities in access to therapy. Recent advances in artificial intelligence have fueled interest in the use of chatbots and virtual assistants for mental health treatment. A new study led by researchers from University of Illinois Chicago, with collaborators at Washington University and Pennsylvania State University, finds that an AI voice assistant app delivering a form of psychotherapy can help patients with mild depression and anxiety. The article, published in Translational Psychiatry, reports changes in brain activity along with improved depression and anxiety symptoms after using the AI voice assistant, called Lumen, for eight sessions of problem-solving therapy. The results of this pilot study, the first to test an AI voice-based virtual coach for behavioral therapy, offer encouraging evidence that virtual therapy can play a role in filling the gaps ...
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBS Massachusetts) is expanding members’ access to primary care by adding Eden Health, On Belay Health Solutions and VillageMD to its network, the insurer announced Tuesday. New York City-based Eden Health offers primary care, telemedicine and insurance navigation. On Belay Health Solutions, based in Boston, works with independent primary care physicians and helps them engage in value-based contracts. Chicago-based VillageMD is a primary care provider that is majority owned by Walgreens Boots Alliance. These primary care physician groups will provide both virtual and in-person care for BCBS Massachusetts members. “Research shows that patients who have an established primary care physician achieve better health outcomes than those who don’t,” said Dr. Ashley Yeats, vice president of medication operations at BCBS Massachusetts. “These additional physician groups each offer a wide-range of services — including care navigation support, chronic disease care, mental health support — both in-person ...
Anabolic steroids not only can cause serious side effects during use, such as heart failure and depression, but can continue being harmful years after stopping, according to two studies presented at the 25th European Congress of Endocrinology in Istanbul. These studies were carried out by researchers from the Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet who investigated the impact of anabolic steroids in former users. Anabolic steroids—synthetic hormones that mimic the naturally-occurring sex hormone testosterone—are used to increase muscle mass and boost athletic performance. These performance-enhancing drugs have harmful side effects, for instance in men these include breast growth, hair loss, lower testosterone levels, erectile dysfunction, and an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and liver or kidney failure. However, not much is known about the effects years after stopping their use. In one study, the researchers examined 64 healthy men, between the ages of 18 and 50, who did recreational strength training ...
New research has identified the month when people have the strongest suicidal thoughts, and that these thoughts occur a few months before the peak of suicide behaviors in spring/early summer. It also showed the daily peak in suicidal thought is between 4-5 a.m. Most people assume suicide rates will be highest in winter, yet spring/early summer is when suicidal behaviors peak and this finding has baffled researchers since first identified. Research from the University of Nottingham’s School of Psychology, led in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam and Harvard University, has examined the seasonal paths of suicidal thoughts and identified when suicidal thoughts peak during the year and also what time of day these thoughts are the worst. The findings have been published in Translational Psychiatry. Over a period of six years, responses were collected from over 10,000 people in the UK, US and Canada who completed questionnaires and tasks ...
Some types of epilepsy medicine taken during pregnancy are associated with an increased risk of severe psychiatric disorders in children. This is the conclusion of a comprehensive study of 38,000 children of mothers with epilepsy by researchers from Aarhus University. The research is published in the journal JAMA Neurology. While it has long been known that some forms of epilepsy medicine used during pregnancy are associated with a risk of birth defects, this new study is the most comprehensive study of children’s mental health so far. Among other things, the researchers found a worrying link between the antiseizure medication valproat and the child’s risk of developing a number of different psychiatric disorders. “Our study shows that four out of ten children born to mothers with epilepsy who had used valproat during pregnancy were diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder before the age of 18, and that the drug was particularly associated with an ...
French fries — they’re greasy, starchy and a comfort food for many. But reaching for fried foods may have a negative impact on mental health. A research team in Hangzhou, China, found that frequent consumption of fried foods, especially fried potatoes, was linked with a 12% higher risk of anxiety and 7% higher risk of depression than in people who didn’t eat fried foods. The link was more pronounced among young men and younger consumers. Fried foods are known risk factors for obesity, high blood pressure and other health effects. These results “open an avenue in the significance of reducing fried food consumption for mental health,” according to the paper published Monday in the journal PNAS. However, experts who study nutrition said the results are preliminary, and it’s not necessarily clear whether the fried foods were driving mental health issues, or people experiencing symptoms of ...
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