Largest ever study into cannabis use investigates risk of paranoia, poor mental health in the general population

The backpack is as much a part of school life as homework, pencils and recess. Kids use backpacks to carry everything they need during the day and make a fashion statement. Unfortunately, the excess weight of supplies stuffed into an improperly worn backpack may lead to sore joints and muscles.

University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center researchers have identified a cellular pathway that fuels the progression of aggressive, drug-resistant prostate cancer. The findings of the study, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, could lead to new treatment approaches for patients whose cancers no longer respond to hormone therapy.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, local, state and national agencies were continually updating infection information to educate the public and leaders tasked with balancing public health and economic growth. At the time, different communities and countries reacted differently to this information: Some locales kept schools open while entire countries were placed under mandatory lockdowns.

Jonnell Wieder earned too much money at her job to keep her Medicaid coverage when the COVID-19 public health emergency ended in 2023 and states resumed checking whether people were eligible for the program. But she was reassured by the knowledge that Medicaid would provide postpartum coverage for her and her daughter, Oakleigh McDonald, who was born in July of that year.

To assess and study human memory, psychologists have so far primarily used tasks that require people to verbally recall objects they previously saw in images, past life events or other types of information. While these tasks are widely employed by researchers, they are not applicable to individuals with a reduced verbal ability or those who cannot communicate at all, such as young children, some people diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and patients who have lost the ability to speak following brain injuries.

A newly designed backpack, incorporating aerospace technology, shows promise as a balance aid for patients with the movement disorder ataxia. Research conducted by Radboud university medical center, in collaboration with Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) and Erasmus MC, reveals that the backpack helps individuals with ataxia stand and walk more steadily, reducing their reliance on mobility aids like walkers.

A relatively new class of insecticide that can be disseminated on something the size of a sheet of paper offers protection for up to a year against mosquitoes that spread malaria, as well as dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, and Zika, UC San Francisco researchers have found.

Across a spectrum of diseases from cancer to heart failure, older patients face systemic bias in their treatment. Individuals in the 70s, 80s, and 90s are less likely to be offered the same options for care as younger patients. In the case of heart failure, patients of advanced age are often considered to be poor candidates for heart transplants.

There may be a major change in national drug policy coming soon.

New research has found that the use of GLP-1 receptor agonists, a class of medications commonly prescribed for patients with obesity and diabetes, reduces the environmental footprint of health care and clinical outcomes when used to treat heart failure.

New research has revealed that older age and low aerobic fitness levels are strong and independent risk factors for a high burden of heartbeat irregularities, known as arrhythmias, that indicate future cardiovascular risk. The research was conducted in healthy participants between the ages of 40 and 60 years old with no heart symptoms.

A novel study investigating how physical activity and diet quality interact with different levels and patterns of alcohol consumption shows that healthy eating and increased levels of physical activity significantly lower the risk of alcohol-attributable liver-related mortality. The findings from this comprehensive study in the Journal of Hepatology, use data from a large multi-ethnic US cohort and highlight the importance of considering other lifestyle behaviors when estimating the risk of death from alcohol-related liver disease at a population level.

Psychotherapy leads to measurable changes in brain structure. Researchers at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) and the University of Münster have demonstrated this for the first time in a study in Translational Psychiatry by using cognitive behavioral therapy.

Nearly 80% of U.S. neurologists prescribing drugs for multiple sclerosis (MS) have received at least one pharma industry payment, with higher-volume prescribers more likely to be beneficiaries, finds a five-year analysis of Medicare database payments, published in the journal BMJ Open.

Making a smoothie, going for an evening walk, or having empathy for a loved one are all examples of executive functions that are controlled by the brain's frontal cortex. This area of the brain goes through profound change throughout adolescence, and it is during this time that abnormalities in maturing circuits can set the stage for neurodevelopmental disorders, such as schizophrenia and ADHD.

Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) is a major cause of liver transplantation and death worldwide, and its impact is only growing. In 2022, the annual cost of ALD in the United States was $31 billion. By 2040, this number could be as high as $66 billion. ALD has limited therapeutic options, so scientists are looking for new ways to target the molecular biology of ALD to help prevent its occurrence or reduce its severity.

Does insurance play a role in which critically ill patients live or die? The unfortunate answer may be yes, due in part to a difference in the rate of inter-hospital transfer, according to new research from the University of Michigan. The work is published in the journal JAMA Network Open.

COVID-19 is once again climbing to troubling levels in California—a worrying trend as health officials attempt to navigate a vaccine landscape thrown into uncertainty by delays and decisions from the Trump administration.