Racial bias among health care providers limits black Americans’ odds of receiving a heart transplant, a new study finds. Researchers asked 422 U.S. physicians, nurses and other hospital decision-makers to review the hypothetical cases of black men and white men with heart failure and to decide if the patients should be referred for a heart transplant. The hypothetical cases had identical medical and social history. Race was the only difference among them. Individually, there were few racial differences in participants’ transplant recommendations. But when a subgroup of 44 discussed the cases together — more closely simulating how such decisions are actually made — there was racial bias, according to the University of Arizona researchers. In the group discussion, black patients were considered less healthy, less likely to comply with follow-up care recommendations and less trustworthy than white patients. This meant that black patients were more likely to be recommended for mechanical pump devices instead of heart transplants, especially if the healthcare provider was older than 40.
by fromfbergwithlovedesigned.site For the first time in the United States, the gene editing tool known as CRISPR has been employed to fight cancer, doctors reported Wednesday. So far, CRISPR has only been tried in three patients, two with multiple myeloma and one with a sarcoma. All had tried standard treatments, to no avail. With CRISPR, doctors extracted immune system cells from each patient and altered those cells genetically to help them spot and battle cancer cells. Side effects were minimal, the Associated Press reported. “It’s the most complicated genetic, cellular engineering that’s been attempted so far,” Dr. Edward Stadtmauer, Two to three months later, one patient’s cancer has progressed and one is stable. The third patient was treated recently, so it is too soon to tell if it worked. Fifteen more patients will get the treatment, to test safety and efficacy, the wire service reported.
by fromfbergwithlovedesigned.site Getting more exercise could help ward off depression, even if you have a genetic risk for it, new research shows. For the study, researchers analyzed data from nearly 8,000 people and found that those with a genetic predisposition were more likely to be diagnosed with depression over the next two years. But that was less likely for people who were more active at the study’s start, even if they had an inherited risk. Higher levels of physical activity helped protect even those with the highest genetic risk for depression, the investigators found. Our findings strongly suggest that, when it comes to depression, genes are not destiny and that being physically active has the potential to neutralize the added risk of future episodes in individuals who are genetically vulnerable. Karmel Choi Both high-intensity exercise (such as aerobics, dance and exercise machines) and lower-intensity activities (such as yoga and stretching) were associated with a reduced risk of depression, the findings showed. Adding four hours of exercise a week could lower the risk of a new episode of depression by 17%, according to the study published Nov. 5 in the journal Depression and Anxiety.
by fromfbergwithlovedesigned.site Millions of Americans take an ACE inhibitor to help curb their high blood pressure — in fact, these drugs are the most widely used antihypertensives in America. However, a new international study of nearly 5 million patients is casting doubt on the notion that the drugs are as effective as another class of blood pressure medicines. Common ACE inhibitors include drugs such as benazepril, captopril, enalapril, fosinopril and lisinopril, among others. The new study should “help guide physicians in their clinical decision-making,” said study author Dr. George Hripcsak. He’s chair of biomedical informatics at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, in New York City. American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association guidelines recommend starting blood pressure treatment with any drug from five different classes of medications. Those classes include: thiazide diuretics; ACE inhibitors; angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs); dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers and non-dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers. To find out how often these medicines are prescribed, Hripcsak’s team tracked data on nearly 5 million patients across four countries — Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United States.
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