Our weekly roundup of the latest news in the world of health. This week we learn that medication may be as effective as stents at relieving non-emergency chest pain, and we look at the effects of gender and activity on recovery after a concussion. We also learn that weight may not correlate directly to heart health.
Stay well.
This Issue:
Drugs vs. Stents Activity, Gender and Concussion Overweight and Heart Healthy In the News:
Drugs vs. Stents Drugs may be as good an option as angioplasty with stent placement for people with stable angina -– chest pain with exertion that goes away promptly with rest. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated that adding angioplasty to state-of-the-art medical therapy was no better than medical therapy alone at preventing future heart attacks and extending life. Although angioplasty offers an initial small advantage over medication at relieving pain early on, that advantage starts to shrink within six months and disappears in three years, according to researchers. The study was based on close to 2,300 people's reports of how they felt after treatment. At the start of the study, 78 percent of patients had chest pain; hree months after treatment, 53 percent of patients who had angioplasties plus drug treatment and 42 percent of the patients just taking medication were free of chest pain. After three years, their scores on tests to assess quality of life were about the same for both groups, the Associated Press reports.
Activity, Gender and Concussion
Your gender and your activity level on and off the field could affect your recovery time after a concussion. Two new studies find that girls' brains take longer to heal than boys' to heal after a mild injury, and that schoolwork and household activities also affect recovery. One study of 95 high school athletes looked at memory, reaction time and other cognitive tests up to one month after the concussion. Students with moderate activity had the best recovery, according to the study in the Journal of Athletic Training. The most active patients did the worst. A second study of 234 soccer players found that female players fared worse on brain-function tests compared to men with similar injuries. The researchers say the studies suggest that parents, players and coaches should be informed about the symptoms of concussion; that injured athletes not be returned to the field without clearance from a health care professional, who should be on the scene site to assess concussion right away, the Associated Press reports.
Overweight and Heart Healthy
Weight may not be the best indicator of heart health, according to a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The study found that about half of overweight people and a third of obese people had normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Meanwhile, about a quarter of thin people had high blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides and blood sugar -- problems usually associated with excess body weight. In the study, researchers analyzed results of government surveys involving 5,440 people age 20 and over from 1999 to 2004. The researchers found that cardiovascular risk factors were more common in older people, smokers and sedentary people. They say the findings underscore the importance of regular exercise and waist size on heart risks, the Associated Press reports.
Used with the permission of the copyright owner. All rights reserved. The above summaries are not intended to provide advice on personal medical matters, nor are they intended to be a substitute for consultation with a physician.
