Author Archives: Karely Vega, MD

Night Sweats Reveal the Severity of Sleep Apnea

A collaborative effort between the University of Córdoba and IMIBIC uses, for the first time, changes in sweat metabolism to diagnose the severity of sleep apnea In Greek, apnea (ἄπνοια) denotes the “absence of breathing.” Hence, obstructive sleep apnea is a disease defined by interruptions in breathing, which recurs while the person suffering from it […]

Toothbrushing Tied to Lower Rates of Pneumonia

Researchers have found an inexpensive tool that may help reduce rates of pneumonia for hospitalized patients — and it comes with bristles on one end.  A new study by investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute examined whether daily toothbrushing […]

Reducing Inflammation in the Brain

One limitation in drug development is that many drugs only travel through the bloodstream, meaning it is difficult to get them to the brain, due to the blood-brain barrier. This can make treating neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, difficult. While beta-amyloid remains the primary target for many researchers, there are other potential drug targets that […]

Revolutionary Seaweed and Carbonated Water-Based Hydrogel for Treating Skin Wounds

The skin is the largest and most important organ of the human body. It is frequently exposed to many types of physical injuries or wounds, including cuts, scrapes, scratches, infections, and ulcers. Unfortunately, as one ages, the skin becomes more frail and less capable of healing itself without help. With many countries experiencing a rapid […]

‘Long Flu’: Consequence Similar to Long COVID

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, extensive research has emerged detailing the virus’s ability to attack multiple organ systems, potentially resulting in a set of enduring and often disabling health problems known as long COVID.  Now, new research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System […]

Poor Diet Quality During Adolescence Is Linked to Serious Health Risks

Diet quality among adolescents in the United States is among the worst across all age groups, putting young people at risk for heart attack, stroke, and diabetes, among other cardiometabolic diseases later in life. The research brief shared in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. This study examined data from the Translational Investigation of […]

Increased Risk of Heart Rhythm Disruption After COVID-19

Individuals infected with COVID-19 are also at an increased risk of suffering from heart rhythm disturbances, such as atrial fibrillation. This is shown in a new study at Umeå University, Sweden, which is one of the largest studies of its kind in the world. The researchers were able to show that those who had been […]

Infection with Stomach Bacteria May Increase Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease

Infection with the stomach bacterium Helicobacter pylori could increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease: In people over the age of 50, the risk following a symptomatic infection can be an average of 11 percent higher, and even more about ten years after the infection, at 24 percent greater risk.  These are the findings of […]

Cholesterol-Lowering Therapy May Hinder Aggressive Type of Colorectal Tumor

Hard-to-detect colorectal pre-cancerous lesions known as serrated polyps, and the aggressive tumors that develop from them, depend heavily on the ramped-up production of cholesterol, according to a preclinical study from researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine. The finding points to the possibility of using cholesterol-lowering drugs to prevent or treat such tumors. In the study, published […]

How Stress Activates Neurons That Disrupt Sleep

New research reveals that neurons in the preoptic hypothalamus — the region of the brain that regulates sleep and body temperature — are rhythmically activated during non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM). Stress activates these brain cells out of turn, causing “microarousals,” that interrupt sleep cycles and decrease the duration of sleep episodes, according to research […]