Public Health

Suffering from a sore throat or runny nose? For some people, that many mean opting to use antibiotics without seeing a doctor, a practice that health experts say may not help cure the disease and could help aggravate the problem of antibiotic-resistant germs. A study published Monday in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy concluded […]

Mike O’Meara’s life runs on a tight schedule. Every morning, after a glass of juice and breakfast, the 70-year-old picks up his medication from a blue labeled tray his wife Beth prepared and gulps down 12 and a half pills. At noon, he swallows three more. Around dinner time, three more. And before bed, he […]

Every day there are headlines about the Zika virus. The number of travel-related cases is growing, and public health officials — especially in states such as Florida, which could be among the hardest hit — predict it is only a matter of time until the first locally transmitted case is confirmed. They are scrambling to […]

Surgery can make anyone anxious, but it is especially hard for young children. Kids going into surgery may be separated from their parents for the first time in a frightening new environment, and they may not understand what’s happening. “For many families and kids, this is one of the most stressful events in their entire […]

After a raucous debate lasting nearly a year, the Democrats are united on health care. But that unity does not include a call for a single-payer “Medicare for all” health system. “This campaign is about moving the United States toward universal health care and reducing the number of people who are uninsured or under-insured,” Sen. […]

At Edgewood Summit retirement community in Charleston, W.Va., 93-year-old Mary Mullens is waxing eloquent about her geriatrician, Dr. Todd Goldberg. “He’s sure got a lot to do,” she said, “and does it so well.” West Virginia has the third oldest population in the nation, right behind Maine and Florida. But Goldberg is one of only […]

The word “immunization” has long evoked images of nervous children wincing as they get injections to protect them from measles, mumps and other diseases. Now California’s doctors are turning their attention to adults, who haven’t been as diligent about getting their own shots. The California Medical Association Foundation, the charitable arm of the Sacramento-based physicians’ […]

Palliative-care counseling from trained specialists is not routinely needed for all families of patients with chronic critical illnesses and sometimes it might worsen their emotional distress, cautions a recent study. Habitually providing scarce palliative care services to cases indiscriminately may be ineffective when the meetings are limited to just one or two sessions, reported researchers […]

It’s a common scenario: Someone checks into a hospital for surgery or an illness and leaves with a prescription for an opioid painkiller, opening the door to long-term use and dependence. A recent study examined this pattern and found the prescriptions are used and renewed more often than you might imagine. Researchers analyzed the pharmacy claims of […]