All posts tagged: treat

Inflammation drug could be repurposed to treat toxic snake bites

Inflammation drug could be repurposed to treat toxic snake bites

A drug used to treat inflammation could be repurposed to treat toxic snake bites from African spitting cobras, a team at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine have discovered.  Indigenous to sub-Saharan Africa, spitting cobras release a potent venom in their bites, resulting in rapid destruction of skin, muscle, and bone – a condition clinically known as dermo-necrosis.  The researchers found that, when applied to the site of a spitting cobra bite, the small molecule drug – clinically known as varespladib – was highly effective in blocking one of the most damaging toxins released by the snakes’ venom, almost completely stopping the onset of symptoms.  Current antivenom treatments are designed to prevent death but do little to address the local effects of snakebites, which often result in permanent disability, said Dr Steven Hall, a lecturer in pharmacology at the University of Lancaster and a co-author of the study.  “The bite of an African spitting cobra is incredibly toxic, causing a huge amount of tissue damage, a lot of pain, and very rapidly that damage creeps …

Orangutan seen using medicinal plant to treat wound in first for wild animals | World News

Orangutan seen using medicinal plant to treat wound in first for wild animals | World News

An orangutan has been observed using a plant with healing properties to treat a wound on its face, in what scientists say is a first for wild animals. Biologists witnessed the male Sumatran orangutan – named Rakus – chewing the leaves of a climbing plant known as Akar Kuning. He applied the juicy mixture that was produced on to a wound on his right cheek for more than 30 minutes, until the injury was completely covered. Scientists said he selectively ripped off leaves and chewed on them, before applying the resulting mixture precisely on to the injured area, just below his right eye. Image: Two months after his self-treatment, the wound is barely visible anymore. Pic: Reuters There was no sign of infection in the following days, and in less than five days the wound was closed before healing completely inside a month, the researchers added. The Akar Kuning plant, which is found in tropical forests of South East Asia, is known for its pain relieving and anti-inflammatory effects and is often used in traditional …

Orangutan observed using a plant to treat an open wound

Orangutan observed using a plant to treat an open wound

Observers have documented multiple animal species using plants for self-medicinal purposes, such as great apes eating plants that treat parasitic infections or rubbing vegetation on sore muscles. But a wild orangutan recently displayed something never observed before—he treated his own open wound by activating a plant’s medical properties using his own spit. As detailed in a study published May 2 in Scientific Reports, evolutionary biologists believe the behavior could point toward a common ancestor shared with humans. The discovery occurred within a protected Indonesian rainforest at the Suaq Balimbing research site. This region, currently home to roughly 150 critically endangered Sumatran orangutans, is utilized by an international team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior to monitor the apes’ behavior and wellbeing. During their daily observations, cognitive and evolutionary biologists noticed a sizable injury on the face of one of the local males named Rakus. Such wounds are unsurprising among the primates, since they frequently spar with one another—but then Rakus did something three days later that the team didn’t expect. After …

What Fitness Exercises Treat Depression the Best?

What Fitness Exercises Treat Depression the Best?

Tom Wang/Adobe Stock Chances are that someone you love has experienced depression. Approximately 8 percent of U.S. adults – some 21 million people – have a major depressive disorder each year. For people under age 18, depression is the most common cause of hospitalization. For decades, researchers have been exploring interventions to prevent and treat depression, including medications, talk therapy, and exercise — which many studies have found is equally as effective in treating depression as medications and psychotherapy. A new systematic review compiled by a team of global researchers adds more evidence to how exercise helps treat depression. The review was published in the British Medical Journal and includes 218 studies with more than 14,000 participants. The review examined specific types and intensities of exercise to determine the best treatments for individuals. Here are some of its findings: Dance, exercise combined with medication, and walking or jogging were most effective for relieving symptoms of depression. Yoga, strength training, mixed aerobic exercises, and tai chi or qigong were moderately effective when performed regularly. Although light …

Medics in Sudan taught to treat gunshot wounds on smartphones

Medics in Sudan taught to treat gunshot wounds on smartphones

Hadeel, along with hundreds of other Sudanese healthcare workers, uses an international platform called Project ECHO to connect with medical experts worldwide and get quick, real-time advice on how to treat her patients, via a messaging app on her phone.  In Sudan, doctors are not taught trauma medicine, meaning many were left scrambling to deal with the sudden influx of injuries and diseases brought on by the civil war.  ECHO employs specialised consultants from around the world and connects them with those who need their expertise. The concept is simple, yet effective – move knowledge, not patients.  The non-profit was founded in New Mexico in 2003, by US-based doctor Dr Sanjeev Arora. At the time, Dr Arora was one of the few doctors in the state trained to treat complex hepatitis-C infections.  When one of his distant patients died of the disease – purely because she lived too far away to regularly visit his clinic in Albuquerque – he set up a programme to share his specialised training with other doctors remotely, using teleconferencing. Fast …

Treat Yourself to a Healthier You With These 12 Daily Habits

Treat Yourself to a Healthier You With These 12 Daily Habits

No matter how big or small your wellness goals are, sometimes it can be difficult to know where to start. The good news is that small changes to your daily habits can make a surprisingly big difference to your overall health, especially as the effects accumulate over time. We have a dozen healthy habits that can help you enjoy better physical and mental health, all backed by science. It doesn’t have to stop here. See which foods you should eat for a happiness boost, hacks to handle stress and six tips to reboot your sleep habits.  12 daily habits to improve your health Here, we’re talking about small adjustments that benefit every human. With these minor modifications to your daily routine, you can start working toward better health without having to give up a ton of time, money or enjoyment. 1. Prioritize sleep  Going without sleep is a lot like expecting your phone to run all day on a 12% battery. Your body needs time to not just rest and recharge, but also to do …

Dog Eats Chocolate Bar as Final Treat Before Being Put to Sleep

Dog Eats Chocolate Bar as Final Treat Before Being Put to Sleep

A man gave his dying dog a chocolate bar – a treat dogs love but that is toxic to them – as a final gesture of love before she was put to sleep on April 23. Footage recorded by Miller Hurtado Toro shows his dog Sharon enjoying the tasty sweet before she was injected with euthanizing drugs Toro told Storyful that Sharon was 12 years old and had been fighting the tick-borne canine disease ehrlichiosis for two years. “We tried to take her to find more treatments, but they saw that she had lung cancer, with metastases in her lungs and liver that were making her weak from just lying down,” Toro said. “The day before yesterday, she could not get up again, and that is when I made the decision,” he explained. Toro said he had often denied Sharon a taste of chocolate as the candy is notably bad for dogs’ health, but that he thought she should try it as her final treat. “No dog should leave without first trying chocolate,” Toro said. …

ERs refused to treat pregnant people; 1 woman miscarried in lobby restroom

ERs refused to treat pregnant people; 1 woman miscarried in lobby restroom

WASHINGTON —  One woman miscarried in the lobby restroom of a Texas emergency room as front desk staff refused to admit her. Another learned at a Florida hospital that her fetus had no heartbeat, the day after a security guard turned her away from the facility. And in North Carolina, a woman gave birth in a car after an emergency room couldn’t offer an ultrasound. The baby died. Complaints that pregnant women were turned away from U.S. emergency rooms spiked in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, federal documents obtained by the Associated Press reveal. The cases raise alarms about the state of emergency pregnancy care in the U.S., especially in states that enacted strict abortion laws, and sparked confusion around the treatment doctors can provide. “It is shocking, it’s absolutely shocking,” said Amelia Huntsberger, an OB-GYN in Oregon. “It is appalling that someone would show up to an emergency room and not receive care — this is inconceivable.” Federal law requires emergency rooms to treat or stabilize patients who are in …

Can cannabis treat the side effects of chemotherapy?

Can cannabis treat the side effects of chemotherapy?

What should you do if your pot-smoking neighbor is stinking up your yard? Why aren’t there any legally licensed consumption lounges in the city of Los Angeles but somehow four in West Hollywood? And what do I need to know about using cannabis to combat the side effects of chemotherapy? Those are a few of the burning weed questions that have landed in my inbox lately. And just in time for the 4/20 high holiday on the horizon, I’ve got answers to these canna-conundrums — and more — from the pros who know. I live in the hills on a large lot. My neighbor’s tenant sometimes smokes weed outside his abode, and the smell drifts into my yard. The back of my neighbor’s house is next to my front yard. When I walk my dogs around my yard, it smells terrible, and I have to go inside. Can I do anything? Tell the landlord or any other recourse? I’m also concerned that when I put the house up for sale in the next two years, …

Revolutionary eye implants can be used to treat diabetes

Revolutionary eye implants can be used to treat diabetes

Researchers have developed a tiny device designed for implantation into the eye to treat diseases like diabetes through cell-based therapies. (CREDIT: David Callahan) A new breakthrough in medical technology has emerged from Sweden, where researchers have developed a tiny device designed for implantation into the eye. This innovation opens up fresh avenues for treating diseases like diabetes through cell-based therapies. The collaboration between these two prestigious institutions has led to the creation of a device capable of precisely positioning micro-organs, particularly pancreatic islets or islets of Langerhans, within the eye without the need for sutures. This breakthrough offers promising prospects for cell-based therapies, including the treatment of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, utilizing the eye as a natural platform. Foreign body reaction characterization of microstructure explants retrieved after 10 months (cylinder) and 20 weeks (wedge) of transplantation. (CREDIT: Advanced Materials) Anna Herland, a senior lecturer involved in the project, explains the choice of the eye as an ideal location for this technology. She notes that the eye lacks immune cells that might react …