Zika virus Archives - Among Doctors

Picks of the Week: Pokemon, the ice bucket challenge, and other frontiers in medicine

Posted on August 19, 2016 by

From the employment of Pokémon GO! in public health to new advancements in tackling ALS and inducing partial recovery in paraplegic patients, there have been plenty of noteworthy news and evidence updates shared on the Among Doctors network. Let’s have a look at some of them:

Pokemon GO! Pandemic or Prescription? The Public Health Perspective
Pokémon GO! shows how an alternative way of thinking & and a new era of solutions are need to tackle old (or not-so-old) problems.
NEK1 variants confer susceptibility to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Two summers after the Ice Bucket Challenge, new research is crediting part of the $115 million raised to helping to identify NEK1 as a new ALS-related gene.
Long-Term Training with a Brain-Machine Interface-Based Gait Protocol Induces Partial Neurological Recovery in Paraplegic Patients
Following 12 months of training with this paradigm, all eight patients experienced neurological improvements in somatic sensation and regained voluntary motor control in key muscles.
Guideline Update on Duration of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy for CAD
This guideline-focused update on dual antiplatelet therapy for patients with coronary artery disease.
Pioglitazone Prevents Diabetes in Insulin-Resistant Patients With Cerebrovascular Disease
Pioglitazone is the first medication shown to prevent both progression to diabetes and major cardiovascular events as prespecified outcomes in a single trial.
Florida investigation links four recent Zika cases to local mosquito-borne virus transmission
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been informed by the State of Florida that Zika virus infections in four people were likely caused by bites of local Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
Physical activity and risk of breast cancer, colon cancer, diabetes, ischemic heart disease, and ischemic stroke events: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis
People who achieve total physical activity levels several times higher than the current recommended minimum level of 600 METs/week (as recommended by the WHO) have a significant reduction in the risk of the five diseases studied.
Reasons for Trying E-cigarettes and Risk of Continued Use
Regulatory strategies such as increasing cost or prohibiting e-cigarette use in certain places may be important for preventing continued use in youth.

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Posted in Picks of the week ALS, breast cancer, cancer, coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, ice bucket challenge, ischemic heart disease, pokemon, public health, smoking, Zika, Zika virus

Picks of the Week: Chronic insomnia, NSAIDs, opioids for low back pain and more!

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

Besides the 69th World Health Assembly in Geneva that saw the release of many reports and news, this was a week of a plethora of other articles and evidence published worldwide. Fellow physicians selected the most important ones and shared them on the Among Doctors network:

Management of Chronic Insomnia Disorder in Adults: A Clinical Practice Guideline
The American College of Physicians recommends that all adult patients receive cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) as the initial treatment for chronic insomnia disorder. (Grade: strong recommendation, moderate-quality evidence)
Comparative effectiveness and safety of strategies for preventing NSAID-associated gastrointestinal toxicity: Systematic Review & Metanalysis
The combination of selective COX-2 inhibitors plus PPIs provides the best gastrointestinal protection, followed by selective COX-2 inhibitors, and thirdly by nonselective NSAIDs plus PPIs.
Efficacy, Tolerability, and Dose-Dependent Effects of Opioid Analgesics for Low Back Pain: Systematic Review & Meta-analysis
For people with chronic low back pain who tolerate the medicine, opioid analgesics provide modest short-term pain relief but the effect is not likely to be clinically important within guideline recommended doses.
A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis of Dual Bronchodilation With LAMA/LABA for the Treatment of Stable COPD
Dual bronchodilation is better than a LAMA or a LABA alone, regardless of the drugs used.
Blood-Pressure Lowering in Intermediate-Risk Persons without Cardiovascular Disease
Therapy with candesartan at a dose of 16 mg per day plus hydrochlorothiazide at a dose of 12.5 mg per day was not associated with a lower rate of major cardiovascular events than placebo among persons at intermediate risk who did not have cardiovascular disease.
World No Tobacco Day 2016
For this year’s World No Tobacco Day, the WHO are calling on countries to get ready for plain (standardized) packaging of tobacco products.
WHO releases report on Attacks on Health Care
Over the two-year period from January 2014 to December 2015, there were 594 reported attacks on health care that resulted in 959 deaths and 1561 injuries in 19 countries with emergencies.
Prevention of sexual transmission of Zika virus
An updated guide to inform the general public, and to be used by health care workers and policy makers to provide guidance on appropriate sexual practices in the context of Zika virus.

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Posted in Picks of the week COPD, emergencies, insomnia, low back pain, opioid, WHO, World No Tobacco Day, Zika, Zika virus

Picks of the Week: Primary care, mental health and more!

Posted on March 15, 2016 by

A plethora of news were shared on the Among Doctors network last week by fellow physicians; a result of a community which starts to grow with members wishing to share what they have appraised. Primary care and mental health, asthma over diagnosis, updates on the Zika virus and a new report on eHealth from the European office of the WHO. Let’s see the latest top news:

Getting Primary Care at the Psychiatrist’s Office
People with severe mental illnesses are more likely to die prematurely than those without, and it’s often from treatable chronic diseases—in part because many, don’t receive regular medical care.
Overdiagnosis of asthma in children in primary care: a retrospective analysis
Overdiagnosis of childhood asthma is common in primary care, leading to unnecessary treatment, disease burden, and impact on quality of life. However, only in a small percentage of children is a diagnosis of asthma confirmed by lung function tests.
From innovation to implementation – eHealth in the WHO European Region
A new report on e-Health in the WHO European Region reveals that tangible progress has been made, with clear benefits for many countries. In most Member States, it has become commonplace for technology to be used to deliver health services and public health improvements, such as electronic health records.
Effects of Long-Term Low-Molecular-Weight Heparin on Fractures and Bone Density in Non-Pregnant Adults
Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) for 3–6 months may not increase the risk of fractures, but longer exposure for up to 24 months may adversely affect bone mineral density (BMD). Clinicians should consider monitoring BMD in adults on long-term LMWH who are at increased risk of bone loss or fracture.

Posted in Picks of the week asthma, diabetes mellitus, eHealth, guillain-barré, heparin, mHealth, primary health care, type 2 diabetes, Zika virus

Picks of the Week: Dementia risk, corticosteroids for CAP, and much more!

Posted on February 23, 2016 by

The last days were quite busy for our fellow colleagues of the Among Doctors network! Many shared selected opinion papers and blogs, systematic reviews, and new evidence regarding a wide range of conditions. Let’s have a look at the top picks of these news:

Association of Proton Pump Inhibitors With Risk of Dementia
The avoidance of PPI medication may prevent the development of dementia. This finding is supported by recent pharmacoepidemiological analyses on primary data and is in line with mouse models in which the use of PPIs increased the levels of β-amyloid in the brains of mice.
Efficacy and Safety of Corticosteroids for Community-Acquired Pneumonia
Short-term treatment with corticosteroids is safe and may reduce the risk of ARDS, shortening the length of the disease in patients with community-acquired pneumonia.
Zika Outbreak Signals the Urgent Need for Strong Primary Health Care Systems
Despite the wide-ranging functions of primary health care -immunizations, family planning, diagnostics, antenatal care, maternity services, rehabilitation, counseling, and referrals- it is often underfunded and deprioritized, forcing people to use whatever cash they have for low-quality private services. The volatile Zika outbreak should remind health advocates and policymakers alike that investments in strong comprehensive primary health care systems is the very best precaution for such emergencies.

Posted in Picks of the week antidepressants, chlamydia, community-acquired pneumonia, corticosteroids, diabetes mellitus, mediterranean diet, metformin, PPI, pregnancy, primary health care, type 2 diabetes, Zika virus

Picks of the Week: Zika virus updates

Posted on February 8, 2016 by

This week many of the shared updates focused on the presently ongoing, large outbreak of the Zika virus. Let’s have a look at the top news that were shared on the Among Doctors network:

Zika virus: all the updates
All the latest evidence on DynaMed Plus, a map of the outbreak and the European Medicines Agency to provide support to global response on the emerging epidemic of the Zika virus.
WHO joins the world in marking the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation
More than 125 million girls and women alive today have undergone some form of Female Genital Mutilation in the 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East where the harmful practice is most concentrated.
Recommendations for screening for depression in adults
Although major depressive disorder is one of the world’s great public health problems, the morbidity and increased mortality associated with this common illness can be attenuated by the large number of effective treatments that are now widely available. It is therefore important to ensure that efficient methods for population screening are in place and directly linked to health care systems so depressed patients receive appropriate treatment.

Posted in Picks of the week antibiotics, antidepressants, depression, fertility, respiratory tract infections, WHO, Zika virus