Health category, Page 117
Health Happenings: Week of Nov. 25
Blood drives • American Red Cross will host these blood drives: — 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Friday, Indiana Mall, 2334 Oakland Ave. — 1-4:30 p.m. Friday, Donegal Community Center, Donegal Event Center, 113 Community Center Lane, Jones Mills — Noon-5:30 p.m. Dec. 2, Christ United Methodist Church, 201 Market St., Scottdale...
UPMC eyes major expansion in cancer, cardiac care in North Hills
From a robotic surgery tool that helps detect lung cancer sooner, to new alternatives to open-heart surgery, UPMC executives announced Monday a slew of major investments into expanding the health care system’s services, equipment and doctors available in the North Hills. The Downtown Pittsburgh-headquartered nonprofit behemoth is expanding its reach...
Artificial intelligence moves into health care
The next time you get sick, your care may involve a form of the technology people use to navigate road trips or pick the right vacuum cleaner online. Artificial intelligence is spreading into health care, often as software or a computer program capable of learning from large amounts of data...
Glitch in Medicare drug plan finder could cost consumers
WASHINGTON — A glitch in Medicare’s revamped prescription plan finder can steer unwitting seniors to coverage that costs much more than they need to pay, according to people who help with sign-ups as well as program experts. Serving some 60 million Medicare recipients, the plan finder is the most commonly...
Monroeville family launches nonprofit after daughter’s recovery
A Monroeville family has established a nonprofit to help families dealing with extended hospital stays. That’s exactly where Regan and Ritchie Reeder found themselves months into their new daughter’s life in 2015. Myka Joy Reeder, at six months old, was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease that affects her liver....
Duquesne University names leader of planned medical schoolVideo
Duquesne University officials chose a doctor already familiar with building a medical school from the ground up to head the university’s planned college of osteopathic medicine. Dr. John Kauffman helped found Campbell University’s medical school, the Jerry M. Wallace School of Osteopathic Medicine, in 2011. He’s been with Campbell, located...
New flu antiviral drug may lessen length, symptoms of illness
For those who become ill with the flu, a new antiviral medication may help. “This is really kind of a blockbuster,” says Dr. Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group. “We have not had a new influenza antiviral drug in a couple of decades.” “New in this...
Hiatal hernia repair options include laparoscopic, robotic surgery
Dear Mayo Clinic: After a recent CT scan, endoscopy and colonoscopy, I learned that I have a hiatal hernia containing both stomach and colon and extrinsic stenosis at the splenic flexure. My understanding is that this is rare and that I will need surgery. Will I need to find a...
Hospital fall prevention rules can harm patients by keeping them in bed
Dorothy Twigg was living on her own, cooking and walking without help until a dizzy spell landed her in the emergency room. She spent three days confined to a hospital bed, allowed to get up only to use a bedside commode. Twigg, who was in her 80s, was livid about...
Planned Parenthood awarded $2.3 million for secret videos
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal jury found Friday that an anti-abortion activist illegally secretly recorded workers at Planned Parenthood clinics and is liable for violating federal and state laws. The jury ordered him, the Center for Medical Progress and other parties to pay nearly $2.3 million in damages. The jury...
Old dogs, new tricks: 10,000 pets needed for scienceVideo
SEATTLE — Can old dogs teach us new tricks? Scientists are looking for 10,000 pets for the largest-ever study of aging in canines. They hope to shed light on human longevity too. The project will collect a pile of pooch data: vet records, DNA samples, gut microbes and information on...
Michigan teen who vaped received double lung transplantVideo
DETROIT — A Michigan teenager was the recipient of what could be the first double lung transplant on a person whose lungs were severely damaged from vaping, health officials said Tuesday. Doctors at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit described to reporters Tuesday the procedure that saved the 17-year-old’s life and...
Why moms-to-be need vaccines during pregnancy
Vaccines are a part of many well-child visits. But they also should be part of the care moms-to-be receive to protect their unborn children. “When we take care of pregnant patients, we’re really taking care of two patients: mom and baby. We know that pregnant women are more susceptible to,...
Study links increased physical activity to reducing symptoms of depression
It’s estimated that more than 17 million adults in the United States have at least one major depressive episode in any given year, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. And while depression, and treatment options, look different for everyone, a new study found that increased levels of physical...
Some common youth sports injuries are avoidable, experts say
As fall sports wind down and winter sports begin in earnest, youth athletics will see a rise in injuries. Tens of millions of children and teens participate in organized sports, and more than 3.5 million sports injuries occur every year. Fortunately, most injuries that occur with children are not serious...
Mayo Clinic Q&A: Address habits that may interfere with child’s sleep
Dear Mayo Clinic: For the past few weeks, my 13-year-old daughter has had trouble falling asleep at night. She’s in bed at a reasonable time, but can’t seem to fall asleep until after midnight. What could cause insomnia in someone so young? Should I make an appointment for her see...
Health Happenings: Week of Nov. 11
Blood drives • American Red Cross will host a blood drive 12:30-5 p.m. Thursday at Ascension Church, 621 Division St., Jeannette. Appointments: 800-733-2767 or redcross blood.org; walk-ins welcome Classes/programs • WCCC is partnering with APPRISE, the Pennsylvania Health Insurance Assistance Program, to sponsor a free Medicare presentation about the basics of...
10 hospitalized from Oklahoma facility after flu shot mix-up
BARTLESVILLE, Okla. — Ten people at an Oklahoma care facility for people with intellectual disabilities were hospitalized after they were apparently accidentally injected with what’s believed to be insulin rather than flu shots, authorities said. Emergency responders were called Wednesday afternoon to the Jacquelyn House in Bartlesville, about 40 miles...
Hempfield facility highlights micro-hospital trend in Western Pa.Video
Touting fast health care in the heart of the community, Pennsylvania’s first “micro-hospital” will soon open in Hempfield as part of an industry trend to fill the middle ground between traditional hospitals and urgent care centers. Located along Route 30, the 120,000-square-foot Allegheny Health Network building dubbed AHN Hempfield Neighborhood...
Trump to pursue higher sales age for e-cigarettes
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday his administration will pursue raising the age to purchase electronic cigarettes from 18 to 21 in its upcoming plans to combat youth vaping. Trump told reporters his administration will release its final plans for restricting e-cigarettes next week but provided few other details....
Highmark gives $35 million to Carnegie Mellon University wellness center
Carnegie Mellon University announced Thursday that it will build a new student health, wellness and athletics center on its Oakland campus, thanks to a $35 million grant from Highmark Inc. The 160,000-square-foot building will, for the first time, unite student well-being services under one roof, according to a Highmark press...
Job burnout: The causes, symptoms and remediesVideo
Remember the good old days when you clocked out of work, went home and forgot about it until the next day? Baby boomers might have dim memories of such jobs, but for Millennials, Gen X and Gen Z, it’s a world that never was. Nowadays, our electronic devices connect us...
For ‘Generation Juul,’ nicotine addiction is swift, hard to shake
When Will tried his first vape during his sophomore year, he didn’t know what to expect. It was just something he had vaguely heard about at his high school. “I just sort of remember using it a bunch of times, like in a row,” he said. “And there’s this huge...
Health Happenings: Week of Nov. 4
Blood drives • American Red Cross will host these blood drives: — Noon-5 p.m. today , St. Michael’s of the Valley, Route 381, Rector — Noon-6:30 p.m. Monday, 6:30 p.m., Charter Oak Church, 449 Frye Farm Road, Unity — 2 p.m-6:30 p.m. Monday , Laurel Valley Elementary School, 137 Education...
5 things to know about Affordable Care Act’s 2020 enrollment period
Western Pennsylvanians shopping for 2020 insurance coverage through the federal health care marketplace can expect to see a small uptick in prices over last year and more plans to choose from. Costs for 2020 individual plans increased statewide by an average of about 4%, state data show. “It’s a slight...
