Rates of newly diagnosed HIV increasing in over-50s
Conclusion
This was a well-conducted study and the results are likely to be reliable, though there are some limitations, including missing data.
For example, the researchers had no information on the migration status or CD4 count (an indicator for stage of the disease) for a quarter of cases.
This study found that although the overall rate of infection is higher in younger people, this has remained stable over the last 12 years while the rate of infection in older people has increased.
Some of the media stories focused on the finding that older people are most likely to have become infected through heterosexual sex.
Wh...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 27, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Older people Source Type: news
High-precision radiotherapy for prostate cancer 'shows promise'
Conclusion
This study shows some promising results for targeted pelvic lymph node radiotherapy for men with advanced localised prostate cancer.
However, these results can only be treated as preliminary findings for now. This was an early-stage trial that aimed to investigate whether the treatment approach is safe and to get an idea of what doses may be suitable for assessment in further trials. Although it can give an indication of effectiveness, this was not the main aim of the study.
Men were not randomised to a treatment group, which means there may have been some differences in the cancers or patient characteristics of...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 26, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Cancer Source Type: news
Sexual harassment in the workplace linked to depression
Conclusions
This study in general supports the understanding that sexual harassment can have harmful effects on mental health – regardless of whether it comes from clients or colleagues.
It's also perhaps unsurprising that health or care workers were more likely to report sexual harassment from clients or customers, as they generally have more close interaction with members of the public than many other professions.
The researchers also pointed out that sexual harassment by clients or customers should not be normalised or ignored by employers.
This study has advantages in its large sample size and thorough assessments, ...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 25, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Mental health Source Type: news
Any type of physical exercise is good for the heart
Conclusion
This study shows that all physical activity, in any form, is good for us. This includes both recreational and non-recreational activities.
Don't be misled by some of the media: non-recreational activities like housework are not "better" than recreational activities like playing sports or going to the gym.
The fact that reduced risk was seen with non-recreational activity across all countries, but only seen with recreational activity in high-income countries was probably just because fewer people in lower-income countries play sports or go to the gym.
The researchers estimate that 8% of all deaths and...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 22, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Source Type: news
Lightning Process 'could help children with chronic fatigue syndrome', study claims
Conclusion
The results from this very small randomised controlled trial showed that people having LP therapy in addition to usual CFS/ME care had improved physical function, fatigue and anxiety symptoms at six months, and improved school attendance and depressive symptoms at 12 months.
However, there are a number of limitations to this research that need to be considered:
Participants in both groups improved, so both treatments were effective to some extent.
This was a very small trial, and the results analysis involved fewer than the 100 people recruited. It would need to be repeated in a much larger group to demons...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 21, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Source Type: news
Many teenagers reporting symptoms of depression
Conclusion
This large cohort study highlights high levels of depressive symptoms in children and adolescents.
It is however important to note that these are symptoms – we don't know how many of the children would be diagnosed with depression.
When parents complete the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, it is estimated that it will accurately identify 75% of children with depression and 73% of children without depression. But it is less accurate when children complete it. Recent research suggests that it can identify 60% of children with depression and 61% of children without depression.
Despite these limitations, ...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 20, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Mental health Source Type: news
Single-injection vaccine device still a long way off
Conclusion
Injection of a microstructure device that can give time-delayed release of a vaccine or drug could have great potential in medicine.
As the researchers noted, the structures are tiny and fully biodegradable, so they shouldn't cause a foreign-body reaction.
But they also mentioned the size – the lightweight device could only hold a small amount of solution. However, the researchers suggested that varying the wall thickness to create larger cores could greatly increase the device's capacity.
At this stage, the device has only been tested in a single experiment in mice. Further research in mice would be needed ...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Women more likely than men to lose interest in sex
Conclusion
This study appears to suggest that many factors increase the likelihood of both men and women reporting a lack of interest in sex. Overall, women seem to be more likely to lose interest than men.
While this large study provides some insight into the possible reasons behind having a lack of interest in sex, it has a few limitations:
As so many factors were considered, there were bound to be some that showed statistical significance – this could just be by chance.
The cross-sectional nature of the study means we can't be sure if the specific factors reported on caused the lack of interest, or vice versa.
People ...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 15, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Source Type: news
Tattoo ink particles can spread into lymph nodes
Conclusion
If you already have a tattoo, there's nothing in this study that should alarm you. It doesn't show that people with tattoos are more likely to get cancer, despite the scaremongering headlines.
The researchers explain how tattoo pigments are picked up as "foreign bodies" by the body's immune system and are then stored in the skin and lymph nodes.
But they can't tell us what effects this process has on our health. The researchers weren't told any medical information about the donor samples, such as any diseases they had (including cancer) or the cause of donors' deaths.
The study also has other limitatio...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 14, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Lifestyle/exercise Source Type: news
No change to alcohol guidelines for pregnancy
Conclusion
The results of this review found that low-to-moderate alcohol consumption during pregnancy was linked with a slightly increased risk of having a baby small for gestational age.
However, there was no evidence for any other links, including any difference in the average birth weight of babies born to drinkers and non-drinkers.
There are some important limitations of the research to note:
• The evidence still doesn't prove that drinking directly increases the risk of a baby born small for gestational age. Studies were observational and varied widely in accounting for the extensive number of confounding factors t...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 12, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy/child Source Type: news
Avoid eating just before your bedtime, study recommends
Conclusions
Previous research suggests we may be better off consuming more of our calories earlier on in the day, when we have a full, active day ahead of us to use up the energy.
It's also been observed that people who consume large calorific meals late in the evening can have a higher body weight.
In a sense, the results of this study seem plausible and don't really say anything different from what's already been observed. But as this is a cross-sectional study, it can't really prove very much.
The study involved a small, select sample of US university students. Their results can't be applied to everyone, as they have di...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 11, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Source Type: news
Could a Mediterranean diet be as good as drugs for acid reflux?
Conclusion
The results of this relatively small cohort study seem to show that a plant-based Mediterranean diet with alkaline water is equally good as PPI medication at treating acid reflux symptoms when people also follow standard advice to cut out certain things from their diet.
This might suggest that the first port of call for people with gastro-oesophageal reflux could be to try a Mediterranean diet before going on PPI medication, to avoid potential side effects.
There are, however, some limitations to this research:
Cohort studies can only show links and cannot prove definite cause and effect, and retrospective co...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 8, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Source Type: news
Drinks industry accused of downplaying 'alcohol-cancer risk'
Conclusion
This qualitative analysis aimed to determine the accuracy of health information circulated by the alcohol industry on the links between alcohol and cancer.
It found the industry and affiliated organisations use three main approaches:
denial of the link between alcohol and cancer
misinterpretation of the risk
distraction by focusing on other risk factors
This analysis highlights how these strategies could be detrimental to public health.
Of course, it's possible, given this data was collected in 2016, that some of the websites and documents analysed by the researchers have since been updated.
Regardless, ...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 8, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Cancer Source Type: news
Statins cut heart deaths in men by 28% finds study
Conclusion
This new analysis found that men without cardiovascular disease who were prescribed a statin were less likely to go on to develop heart disease or have a major cardiovascular event.
These findings from the five-year randomised controlled trial are useful – there's been a lot of debate about whether giving statins to people without any cardiovascular disease is helpful.
But it's harder to draw conclusions from the longer term results, as these were from a non-randomised observational period. Potential confounding factors – such as the men's attitude to medicine, risk and health – may have influenced the res...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 7, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Heart/lungs Source Type: news
Zika virus may be useful in treating brain tumours
Conclusion
This is an interesting piece of research that shows how knowledge in one field of medicine can sometimes be applied to another field with surprising results.
But it's important to be realistic about the stage of research. This is very much a "proof of concept" study, and tests on cells, tissues and mice don't necessarily translate into a safe and effective treatment for humans.
The study has several limitations, but the fact the treatment so far hasn't been tested on humans is the most important. For one thing, Zika virus doesn't naturally infect mice, so researchers had to use a specially engineered v...
Source: NHS News Feed - September 6, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Cancer Source Type: news
