Oct 24th, 2021 - If pushed through, the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act would expand access to obesity treatment, using Medicare Part D to cover anti-obesity medication and behavioral therapy. (The Hill) One way to potentially help thwart excess weight in infants: a good night's sleep. "In this study, we found that not only shorter nighttime sleep, but more sleep awakenings, were associated with a higher likelihoo...

Oct 17th, 2021 - Higher levels of fasting ghrelin helped induce abdominal visceral fat loss and improved insulin sensitivity in people who followed the green-Mediterranean diet. "The findings suggest fasting ghrelin levels may serve as a valuable indicator of cardiometabolic health following weight loss," said senior study author Iris Shai, PhD, of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, in a state...

Oct 15th, 2021 - An 8-month high-intensity resistance and impact training program (HiRIT, Onero) led to greater gains in lumbar spine bone mineral density (BMD) and leg/back strength than a low-intensity Pilates-based program (Buff Bones). These findings are from the Medication and Exercise for Osteoporosis (MEDEX-OP) trial, which included 115 postmenopausal women with low bone mass. Patients were randomly assi...

Oct 14th, 2021 - Certain oral contraceptives were associated with a lower risk for type 2 diabetes and prediabetes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), according to a retrospective, population-based study. An analysis of 64,051 women with PCOS found an approximately twofold higher risk for type 2 diabetes (adjusted HR 2.04, 95% CI 1.89-2.20, P<0.001) and dysglycemia (aHR 1.87, 95% CI 1.78-1.97, P<0.0...

Oct 14th, 2021 - Dr Carolyn Seib Older people treated for Graves disease with total thyroidectomy in the United States are at low risk of developing hypoparathyroidism, according to results from a large population-based cohort study. "The risk of permanent hypoparathyroidism among older adults with Graves disease treated with thyroidectomy is low and, therefore, concerns about this complication should not deter...

Oct 12th, 2021 - New insulin products were the go-to choice for U.S. adults with type 2 diabetes in the last half decade, researchers reported. According to a serial cross-sectional study of ambulatory insulin use over the past 5 years, newer insulin products FDA approved after 2010 were much more frequently used, accounting for 18.1% of total treatment visits in 2016 (1.1 million visits, 95% CI 0.8-1.4 million...

Oct 12th, 2021 - Despite the extensive recent focus on its cost, insulin use in the United States remains dominated by insulin glargine and other analogs, as well as pen devices for delivery, new research shows. The findings come from a nationally representative audit of outpatient care with input from nearly 5000 physicians who prescribed insulin to patients with type 2 diabetes in 2016-2020. The dramatic rise...

Oct 12th, 2021 - Dr James Lim As radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in the treatment of benign thyroid nodules gains favor as a noninvasive alternative to surgery in the United States, clinicians are increasingly reporting their experiences in hospital as well as outpatient settings. And in one case, a hospital has taken the unique step of forming a multidisciplinary thyroid nodule RFA tumor board, which helps in th...

Oct 12th, 2021 - Daily exposure to phthalates, which are synthetic chemicals founds in many consumer products, may lead to hundreds of thousands of early deaths each year among older adults in the U.S., according to a new study published Tuesday in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Pollution. The chemicals are found in hundreds of types of products, including children's toys, food storage containers, make...

Oct 11th, 2021 - Adolescents and young adults using a hybrid closed-loop system not only had better glycemic control, but overall better quality of life, a new trial found. Over 6 months, individuals ages 12 to 25 with type 1 diabetes who used a hybrid closed-loop system saw a significant jump in time in target glucose range of 70 to 180 mg/dL -- from 53.1% at baseline to 62.5% at study end -- reported Timothy ...

Oct 11th, 2021 - An investigational oral form of parathyroid hormone (PTH 1-34), EB 613 (Entera Bio Ltd) met its primary efficacy outcome in a phase 2 dosing study involving postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density (BMD). The adverse effect profile of the drug was similar to that of the injectable PTH 1-34 teriparatide (Forteo), which is approved for osteoporosis. Arthur C. Santora, MD, chief medical ...

Oct 11th, 2021 - Belgium's efforts to prioritize care at its diabetic foot ulcer clinics during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown minimized both delays in care and adverse outcomes, new data suggest. The country has had a national diabetic foot care program in place since 2005, with 34 multidisciplinary clinics recognized by the Belgium Ministry of Health for the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). The syste...

Oct 10th, 2021 - Babies born via cesarean delivery had significantly higher measures of lean mass, fat mass, and central adiposity compared with those born by vaginal delivery -- but this was likely related to the mother's prepregnancy weight. (JAMA Network Open) In a pre-specified analysis from the DAPA-CKD trial, dapagliflozin (Farxiga) significantly reduced albuminuria in chronic kidney disease patients both...

Oct 8th, 2021 - A high proportion of patients treated with the thyroid eye disease drug teprotumumab (Tepezza) report signs of hearing dysfunction after three to four infusions, with nearly half having symptoms that appear persistent, according to a single-center analysis. "Hearing loss is a concerning adverse event [of teprotumumab] and its mechanism, and reversibility should be further studied," the authors ...

Oct 7th, 2021 - Editor's note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape's Coronavirus Resource Center. Dr David Lui Treatment of COVID-19 with interferon beta-1b — even for just a few days, a much shorter period than is commonly used for maintenance in multiple sclerosis (MS), for example — is associated with potentially important adverse effects on thyroid function, according to research present...

Oct 6th, 2021 - GNAS mutations in kids with severe obesity may go undetected, researchers suggested. In a study of 2,548 children with severe obesity in whom genetic causes of obesity were not suspected, a total of 22 were found to have heterozygous GNAS mutations -- the gene responsible for encoding Gαs (stimulatory G-protein alpha subunit), according to I. Sadaf Farooqi, MB, ChB, PhD, of Addenbrooke's Hospit...

Oct 6th, 2021 - Bariatric surgery patients who opted for sleeve gastrectomy saw a lower risk of death, a new study found. In a retrospective cohort study of nearly 100,000 Medicare patients with severe obesity, those who underwent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy had a lower cumulative mortality incidence over 5 years compared with patients who underwent laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (4.27% vs 5.67%), r...

Oct 6th, 2021 - The FDA announced that Medtronic expanded two recalls relating to the MiniMed 600 series of insulin pumps and MiniMed 508 remote controllers. Both were designated by the agency as Class I, the most serious type of recall, due to the risk of death or serious injury. Clear Retainer Ring in 600 Series For the 600 series, the recall now includes models 630G and 670G, which contain a clear retainer ...

Oct 6th, 2021 - "Postmenopausal women with low bone mass should obtain adequate calcium and vitamin D and participate in bone-loading exercises," researchers summarize in a recent study published in Osteoporosis International. "Additional use of bisphosphonates will increase bone mineral density (BMD), especially at the spine," Nancy Waltman, PhD, College of Nursing, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omah...

Oct 6th, 2021 - Any pause in taking the osteoporosis drug risedronate (Actonel) should last no longer than 2 years rather than the 2 to 3 years currently recommended for bisphosphonates, new research suggests. In a cohort of patients aged 66 and older in Ontario, Canada, those who had been taking risedronate had a 34% greater risk of a hip fracture during year 2 to year 3 of a pause in taking the drug — a drug...