Author Interviews, CDC, Diabetes, Social Issues / 30.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Yu Chen, Ph.D. Prevention Effectiveness Fellow Division of Diabetes Translation CDC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Overall prevalence of diabetes has increased over the past two decades in the US, disproportionately affecting populations with low-income. The age-adjusted prevalence of diagnosed diabetes among adults aged 18 years or older increased from 6.4% in 1999−2002 to 9.4% in 2013−2016. Between 2011 and 2014, compared with persons with high income, the relative percentage increase in diabetes prevalence was 40.0%, 74.1%, and 100.4% for those classified as middle income, near poor and poor, respectively. However, recent changes in income-related inequalities in diabetes prevalence are unknown. (more…)
Author Interviews, Opiods / 25.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: John Boyle, BS Department of Medical Education Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response:  Meperidine is an opioid analgesic which has been approved for use since the 1940s for moderate to severe pain. During the 1990s, concerns about adverse effects (e.g., serotonin syndrome) and CYP450 drug interactions (e.g., 3A4 inhibition of other metabolism of other common medications) were raised and by 2003 it was removed from the WHO’s List of Essential Medicines. Despite increased awareness of adverse effects, meperidine is still used in the United States. It was the goal of this study1 to uncover pharmaepidemiological trends in its use. (more…)
Addiction, Author Interviews, Opiods / 24.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? http://www.indivior.com/Response: Adults with moderate or severe opioid use disorder (OUD) were randomized to SUBLOCADE monthly injections or placebo and studied for 24 weeks. Participants receiving SUBLOCADE were given 2 monthly injections of 300 mg, followed by 4 monthly maintenance doses of 100 mg or 300 mg over the course of the study. (more…)
Author Interviews / 24.06.2021

http://www.indivior.com/ Background: To identify individual-level factors associated with COVID-19-related impacts on recovery in 216 participants originally enrolled in the SUBLOCADE® (buprenorphine extended-release) clinical program.  Within the fifteen-month study 216 participants, during the period of September 2021 through January 2021, were asked how the COVID-19 crisis affected their recovery from substance use, utilizing self-reported measures. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Chocolate, Weight Research / 24.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Frank A. J. L. Scheer, PhD, MSc, Neuroscientist and Marta Garaulet, PhD, Visiting Scientist Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders Departments of Medicine and Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We and others have shown that not only “what” but also “when” we eat relates to obesity and weight loss
  • Meal timing can influence circadian rhythms and eating a high energy and high sugar food, such as chocolate, either at night or in the morning may have a different effect on the circadian system, and consequently on body weight and metabolism.
  • Milk chocolate has a name for contributing to weight gain due to its high fat, sugar and caloric content. Chocolate eating habit has been associated with long-term weight gain especially in postmenopausal females who are particularly vulnerable to weight gain.
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Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Vaccine Studies / 22.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Boby Varkey Maramattom MD,DM, FRCP, FRCPE Fellow in Critical care neurology (Mayo Clinic) Lead Consultant Neurologist Aster Medcity, Kochi, Kerala Associate Director- Clinical Research Centre, Aster Medcity. Convener, Neurocritical care subsection Indian academy of Neurology  (IAN) MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response:  Approximately 2-3 months after the vaccination programme commenced in India, we began to notice an uptick in the incidence of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) in our community. All the cases that presented to us during this period had almost the same clinical presentation. They presented within a few days ( usually within 1-2 weeks) of the first dose of the ChAdOx1-S/nCoV-19 vaccine. Most of the patients were women and it seemed to involve the middle aged to elderly age groups. As a result of this observation, we started to compile the clinical findings of these patients and collate them. (more…)
Author Interviews, Infections / 22.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Rafael Kroon Campos PhD Department of Microbiology and Immunology University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, TX MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting millions of people. COVID-19 is a disease that primarily affects the lungs, but it also affects other organs and tissues, including heart and olfactory receptors. There is a growing body of evidence showing that COVID-19 can affect reproductive health by reducing androgen hormones, sperm counts and causing pain and discomfort in the testes. The virus that causes this disease is named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is unknown whether these symptoms are caused by direct virus testes infection or a byproduct of the immune system fighting the virus. (more…)
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, UCSF / 21.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Yerem Yeghiazarians, MD Professor of Medicine Leone-Perkins Family Endowed Chair in Cardiology San Francisco Board Past-President, American Heart Association Co-Director, Adult Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory Director, Peripheral Interventional Cardiology Program Director, Translational Cardiac Stem Cell Program Cardiovascular Research Institute Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research Associate Member in Experimental Therapeutics, UCSF Helen Diller Cancer Center University of California, San Francisco MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Obstructive sleep apnea is very common, undiagnosed and undertreated. The AHA Scientific Statement was prepared to increase awareness amongst physicians and patients about this condition and to encourage more screening and therapy as appropriate. Obesity is certainly one of the significant risk factors for sleep apnea and we highlight this in the Scientific Statement: “The risk of OSA correlates with body mass index, and obesity remains the one major modifiable risk factor for OSA. In a population-based cohort study of 690 subjects, a 10% weight gain was associated with nearly 32% increase in the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), and even modest weight control was effective in reducing the new occurrence of sleep-disordered breathing. An even stronger correlation exists between OSA and increased waist circumference and neck size. Neck sizes predisposing to OSA are usually >17 and 16 in for men and women, respectively.” (more…)
Author Interviews, Education, Pediatrics / 19.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lisa Forbes, Ph.D, LPC, NCC Clinical Assistant Professor Counseling Program University of Colorado Denver MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: The most common mode of learning in tertiary education is lecture-based learning despite the knowledge that more active, engaged, and flexible approaches to teaching may better support the learning process. This study aimed to understand graduate students’ experiences with a playful pedagogy as an alternative approach to learning. (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Biomarkers, Breast Cancer / 18.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Frank Vicini, MD, FACR, FASTRO Principal Investigator Radiation Oncologist at GenesisCare Member of NRG Oncology MedicalResearch.com: Would you briefly explain what is meant by DCIS? Response: DCIS stands for ductal carcinoma in situ and indicates the presence of abnormal cells inside a milk duct in one or both breasts. Sometimes referred to as Stage 0 (zero), it is considered the earliest form of breast cancer and is noninvasive. The tumor has not yet left the duct-- a passageway that transports milk from the breast lobules to the nipple-- and begun to invade the healthy tissue surrounding it. Standard treatment options for DCIS include surgery, radiation therapy and hormonal therapy. (more…)
Author Interviews, CDC, COVID -19 Coronavirus, JAMA, Pediatrics / 11.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Angela P. Campbell, MD, MPH Medical Officer Epidemiology and Prevention Branch in the Influenza Division MIS-C Incidence Authorship Group CDC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
  • Response: Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a serious condition associated with COVID-19 where different body parts can become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, and gastrointestinal organs. Children with MIS-C may have a fever and various symptoms, including abdominal (gut) pain, vomiting, diarrhea, neck pain, rash, bloodshot eyes, or feeling extra tired. Not all children with MIS-C have the same symptoms.
  • It is still not known exactly how MIS-C may be linked to prior COVID-19 infection. However, 99% of cases in the CDC national surveillance system tested positive for COVID-19. The remaining 1% were around someone with COVID-19.
  • MIS-C incidence might vary by certain patient characteristics, such as such as race, ethnicity, age, sex and geographic location.
  • In this study we estimated the rate of MIS-C cases overall in the general population as well as the rate of MIS-C cases among those with COVID-19.
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Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Primary Care, Surgical Research, Weight Research / 10.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Alexander Turchin, MD, MS Director of Informatics Research Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Hypertension Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There is an epidemic of obesity in the U.S.: over 40% of adults are obese. Obesity causes numerous complications, ranging from heart attacks to cancer. Bariatric surgery is one of the most effective ways to treat obesity, but very few patients utilize it; it is unclear why.  (more…)
ASCO, Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Journal Clinical Oncology, Metabolic Syndrome, Race/Ethnic Diversity, Social Issues / 08.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Giampaolo Greco PhD MPH Assistant Professor Department of Population Health Science and Policy Icahn School of Medicine  at Mount Sinai MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The motivation for our study was to understand why mortality rate from breast cancer is much higher in African American women than in White women, despite the fact that these groups have similar incidence rate of breast cancer. Metabolic syndrome, a cluster of metabolic abnormalities that includes abdominal obesity, hypertension, hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia, is more prevalent among African American women and may be a risk factor for breast cancer. Subjective social status (SSS) is the perception of individuals of their own ranking in the social hierarchy and complements other parameters of socioeconomic status, such as income and education, that are considered more objective. Socioeconomic status is associated with cardiovascular and mental health. Although objective measures of social status are associated with worse breast cancer outcomes, the relationship of SSS to breast cancer is uncertain. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Journal Clinical Oncology, Prostate Cancer, Radiation Therapy / 04.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Anthony D'Amico, MD, PhD Professor and Chief of Genitourinary Radiation Oncology Brigham and Women's Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: 3 randomized trials published in Sept, 2020 in the Lancet and Lancet Oncology concluded that delivering radiation therapy (RT) after surgery for prostate cancer   when the PSA rises signaling recurrence (i.e. early salvage RT) as opposed to when the PSA is undetectable (i.e. adjuvant RT) did not compromise subsequent cancer progression. However these trials may have missed the benefit of adjuvant RT because a minority of men (9 to 17% of the study cohorts) were found to have adverse factors at prostatectomy which are associated with cancer progression and death from prostate cancer. Specifically, men with adverse pathology at prostatectomy comprise the vast majority of men who go on to die from prostate cancer and therefore have the most to gain from adjuvant RT. Yet, given the results of the 3 randomized trials many physicians are no longer offering adjuvant RT, even in men with adverse pathology at surgery. (more…)
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Sleep Disorders, Technology / 03.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Michele Ferrara, PhD. Professor of Psychobiology and Physiological Psychology Chair of the Psychology Didactic Council Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences University of L'Aquila MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: During the current period of social distancing, the pervasive increase in the use of electronic devices (smartphones, computers, tablets and televisions) is an indisputable fact. Especially during the long lockdown period of Spring 2020, technologies played a pivotal role in coping with the unprecedented and stressful isolation phase. However, exposure to backlit screens in the hours before falling asleep can have serious repercussions on sleep health: on the one hand, by mimicking the effects of exposure to sunlight, and thus interfering with the circadian rhythm of the hormone melatonin, and on the other hand, counteracting the evening sleepiness due to the emotionally and psycho-physiologically activating contents. In light of this assumption, we decided to test longitudinally during the third and the seventh week of lockdown a large Italian sample (2123 subjects) through a web-based survey. We assessed sleep disturbances/habits and the occurring changes of electronic device usage in the 2 hours before the sleep onset. (more…)
Author Interviews, Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Radiation Therapy / 03.06.2021

  Professor Jayant S Vaidya MBBS MS DNB FRCS PhD Professor of Surgery and Oncology University College London MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What type of single dose radiation is used? Response: The new paper published in the British Journal of Cancer (go.nature.com/3yN0mzu) expands on the previously published results of the large international randomised trial (TARGIT-A trial)(BMJ 2020;370:m2836), that confirmed the long-term effectiveness of Targeted Intraoperative Radiotherapy (TARGIT-IORT): a breast cancer treatment which is increasingly available throughout the world. The TARGIT-A trial found that a single dose of targeted radiotherapy during surgery (TARGIT-IORT) is just as effective as conventional radiotherapy, which requires several visits to hospital after surgery. From the perspective of patients, it is so much better for them and also allows prompt completion of cancer treatment during the COVID pandemic. Conventional external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) is delivered from outside the body via a radiotherapy machine (linear accelerator), and consists of a daily treatment session (known as fractions) to the whole breast, over a period between three to six weeks. Each of these treatments is given over a few minutes, but requires up to 30 hospital visits, which could be a significant distance from where the patient lives. TARGIT-IORT is delivered immediately after lumpectomy (tumour removal), via a small ball-shaped device placed inside the breast, directly where the cancer had been. The single-dose treatment lasts for around 20 to 30 minutes and replaces the need for extra hospital visits, benefiting both patient safety and well-being. The device used is called INTRABEAM. The new results are described on the Nature.com and UCL webpages https://go.nature.com/3ymrplc blog https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2021/may/pioneering-single-dose-radiotherapy-breast-cancer-treatment and explained in a short video https://youtu.be/w0OMjVfJ5pY  (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, OBGYNE, USPSTF, Weight Research / 03.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Chien-Wen Tseng, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.E.E. The Hawaii Medical Service Association Endowed Chair Health Services and Quality Research Professor, and Associate Research Director Department of Family Medicine and Community Health University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Gaining weight during pregnancy is natural but gaining too little or too much weight can be harmful for pregnant people and their babies. For the first time, the Task Force reviewed the evidence and found that counseling pregnant people on healthy weight gain during pregnancy can lower their risk for diabetes during pregnancy, emergency cesarean deliveries, and babies born with a birth weight that is too high. Pregnant people may not know what amount of weight gain is healthy during pregnancy, or how weight gain can affect their pregnancy and baby. We recommend that clinicians offer all pregnant people counseling on healthy weight gain throughout their pregnancy for healthier, safer pregnancies. (more…)
Author Interviews, Lipids, Prostate Cancer / 03.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Michelle Hill, PhD Head, Precision & Systems Biomedicine Group QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The role of cholesterol and cholesterol lowering drug therapy in prostate cancer has been previously investigated with mixed results. Our previous laboratory studies indicate that high cholesterol diet accelerates the spreading of advanced prostate cancer. We also observed a change of the cellular location of cholesterol, from the cell periphery (plasma membrane) to inside the cell. This study investigates the how the change in cholesterol location promotes prostate cancer spread. (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Dermatology, Melanoma / 02.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com interview with: Professor Marie-Aleth Richard EADV Communications Committee Chair Professor, University Hospital of La Timone Marseille, France MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this Roundtable event? Would you describe the mission of the European Commission’s Beating Cancer Plan? Response: Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan is the first, comprehensive EU strategy on cancer, aimed at tackling the disease through all key stages: prevention; early detection; diagnosis and treatment; and quality of life of cancer patients and survivors. The Plan also aims to create opportunities to improve cancer care through research and innovative projects, such as artificial intelligence, and to promote equal access to knowledge and treatments in cancer care across Europe. The EADV seeks to create a bridge between the EU health policy agenda and scientific research, by engaging with policymakers, patient organisations and other stakeholders to support a patient centric-approach; tackling melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC) at all stages of the pathway, from prevention to follow-up care. Through our Roundtable event, the EADV brought together these key stakeholders to evaluate the effectiveness of the EBCP on preventing both melanoma and NMSC, as well as identify joint recommendations that step-up measures towards this goal. (more…)
Author Interviews, Dermatology, PNAS / 01.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Haley Steele Graduate Student Researcher Georgia Institute of Technology  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Chronic itch is a debilitating symptom that arises from a broad range of etiologies including skin disease, systemic disease, and as a common side-effect of medication. While in the last few decades significant advances in our understanding of the mechanisms underlying chronic itch have been made, a large majority of those advancements were restricted to studies in hairy skin. Conditions such as plantar and palmar psoriasis, dyshidrosis, and cholestasis, however, are known to exhibit chronic itch restricted primarily to glabrous skin (found on the palms of hands and soles of feet). This is an area that is considered to be particularly debilitating. Therefore, in this study we investigated the role three previously identified pruriceptive neurons (MrgprA3+, MrgprD+, and MrgprC11+) play in mediating acute and chronic glabrous skin itch. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Nutrition / 01.06.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Elina Hypponen Professor in Nutritional and Genetic Epidemiology Director: Australian Centre for Precision Health University of South Australia MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Diet is an important determinant of cardiovascular disease, and several studies have shown an association between high dairy and milk consumption with cardio-metabolic risk factors. Especially high fat dairy products can increase the risk of high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease by increasing the intakes of saturated fat and dietary cholesterol. However, milk is also a rich source of calcium and other nutrients, and evidence from randomized controlled trials has been inconsistent with respect to the role milk may have in cardiovascular health  (more…)
Author Interviews, Technology / 28.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dani Clode Designer & Senior Research Technician Plasticity Laboratory Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience University College London   MedicalResearch.com: What was the inspiration behind creating the Third Thumb? Response: From a design perspective, augmentation is about designing a new relationship with technology, creating something that is no longer just a tool for the hand, but instead an extension of the hand. I created the Third Thumb during my Design Product Masters project at the Royal College of Art (London). The Third Thumb is a flexible 3D-printed thumb extension for your hand, controlled by your toes. It is operated wirelessly with pressure sensors and affords proportional control over two degrees of freedom. The project began as a way to better understand what it was like to control something extra attached to my body. As an upper-limb prosthetics designer, I wanted to understand the unique relationship between a person and a prosthetic, it’s a relationship unlike any other product, and I wanted to explore that. The Plasticity Lab then got in contact with me after seeing the Third Thumb online, as they were already exploring augmentation in the brain. We started collaborating on this research shortly after, and I now work as an in-house designer for the Plasticity Lab, collaborating on neuroscience research. (more…)
Author Interviews, Autism, Cannabis, JAMA, Pediatrics / 28.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Daimei Sasayama, M.D., Ph.D. Department of Psychiatry Shinshu University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is increasing worldwide. A 2016 US survey reported a prevalence of 1.85% in 8-year-olds, and a birth cohort study in Denmark reported that the future cumulative incidence of ASD could exceed 2.8%. Our recent regional cohort study in Japan reported an even higher cumulative incidence of 3.1%. So we examined whether the cumulative incidence in our regional cohort represents the nationwide incidence in Japan.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Colon Cancer, JAMA, USPSTF / 26.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Martha Kubik, Ph.D., R.N. Professor and Director School of Nursing College of Health and Human Services George Mason University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, yet about a quarter of people ages 50 to 75 have never been screened for this devastating disease. Fortunately, we know that screening for colorectal cancer is effective and saves lives. New science about colorectal cancer in people younger than 50 years old has enabled us to expand our previous guidelines to recommend that all adults ages 45 to 75 be screened for colorectal cancer to reduce their risk of dying from this disease.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Gastrointestinal Disease, Opiods / 24.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Frank Peacock, MD, FACEP, FACC Professor of Emergency Medicine, Associate Chair Research Director, Department of Emergency Medicine Baylor College of Medicine Houston, Texas MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?  Response: Emergency medicine (EM) physicians, like myself, are always looking for ways to improve the patient experience. Often times, we will encounter a patient in the emergency department (ED) who is presenting with one of the most common side effects of opioids, which is opioid-induced constipation (OIC). OIC impacts 40-80% of patients on long-term opioid therapy[i],[ii] and may lead to emergency room visits which are associated with a significant burden on patients and the healthcare system. We wanted to compare the impact of treating OIC patients with FDA-approved prescription medications for OIC versus the impact of not treating OIC patients with an FDA-approved prescription medication for OIC in the ED setting to better understand the impact to overall ED costs and the length of stay for a hospitalized patient. (more…)
Author Interviews, Gastrointestinal Disease, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 23.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Edward L. Barnes, MD, MPH Assistant Professor of Medicine Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology UNCHealth Care and a medical advisor to the Global Healthy Living Foundation MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Although historically inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) have been considered diseases of non-Hispanic whites, the current burden of Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) in minority populations is largely unknown. I n our study, we evaluated the relative prevalence of CD and UC across racial and ethnic groups within the National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network (PCORnet) and compared the racial/ethnic distribution of IBD in PCORnet to that of the United States (US) census data, the overall PCORnet population, and PCORnet patients with selected immune-mediated conditions. (more…)
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Vaccine Studies / 23.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jonathan Baktari, MD CEO of e7health.com Dr. Baktari dicusses COVID-19 vaccinations as well as the nine vaccinated New York Yankees have now tested positive for COVID-19.  They all received the J&J vaccine. MedicalResearch.com:  There are nine known COVID positive results among members of the Yankees, previously immunized with the J&J vaccine.  Do you know if the players have become ill or just tested positive on routine testing? Response: Only 1 out of the 9 was mildly symptomatic and were all picked up as part of MLB testing protocol. MedicalResearch.com: Do you know how long after they were vaccinated that they tested positive?  Do you know of other incidences of positive reactions after vaccinations?  Response: According to MLB, all players tested positive after receiving the J&J vaccine.  All were at least 14 days after the vaccine was administered.  The 14 days post vaccination is when J&J is supposed to be effective in preventing serious illness and death. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Clots - Coagulation, Hematology, Neurological Disorders, Pain Research / 22.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Daniel Chasman, PhD Pamela Rist, ScD, Yanjun Guo, MD, PhD Division of Preventative Medicine Brigham and Women’s Hospital  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There has been speculation in the field about relationships between coagulation and migraine susceptibility for some time, but previous research has been largely inconclusive. In this study, we leveraged Mendelian randomization, a mode of genetic analysis that can support or refute potential causal effects on a health outcome, to examine whether hemostatic factors may contribute to risk of MA. (more…)
Anesthesiology, Author Interviews, Cognitive Issues, Heart Disease, JAMA, Surgical Research, UCSF / 22.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elizabeth L. Whitlock, MD, MSc John W. Severinghaus Assistant Professor In Residence Anesthesia & Perioperative Care UCSF Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We have known for a while that, rarely, some older adults suffer substantial, durable cognitive decline after surgery, particularly after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery; a larger proportion experience a decline in cognitive test performance which doesn't necessarily affect function, but which has caused concern among researchers.  This cognitive decline was attributed, in part, to the cardiac bypass pump. ​Many of the studies had methodological limitations which made it difficult to be sure that the cognitive change was due to surgery and not due more generally to heart problems or atherosclerotic disease, which may also imply cerebrovascular atherosclerosis. Using a large database of older adults who undergo regular cognitive testing, we identified individuals who underwent CABG and compared them to those who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), a minimally invasive, non-surgical method of opening blocked coronary arteries.  This allowed us to model the rate of memory decline before surgery - which hadn't been done in previous studies - and compare it to the rate of memory decline after surgery in older adults who had serious heart disease (some of whom were treated with CABG, and some treated with PCI). (more…)
Author Interviews, Lancet, Nutrition, OBGYNE / 22.05.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Susan E. Carlson Ph.D. Associate Dean for Research Program Director,, AJ Rice Professor Department of Dietetics and Nutrition University of Kansas Medical Center Kansas City, KS MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are its benefits? Response: DHA is an omega-3 fatty acid. Good food sources include some types of seafood (e.g., salmon, tuna, trout) and chicken eggs. Persons in the USA and in much of the developing world consume little dietary DHA. DHA supplements in pregnancy have been linked to lower risk of preterm birth for 20 years, especially early preterm births (<34 weeks gestation). For about 10 years, prenatal supplements with about 200 mg DHA have been readily available in the USA, however, no study has asked if this amount of DHA is optimal to reduce early preterm birth. Participants were given a supplement of 1000 mg or 200 mg DHA beginning before 20 weeks gestation using an adaptive randomization that periodically assigned more participants to the group with the fewest early preterm births. (more…)