Medical Treatments

The New York State Department of Health said Thursday that it is looking at vitamin E acetate as a potential cause of severe pulmonary illness cases in the state that have been associated with vaping.

Vitamin E Suspected In Serious Lung Problems Among People Who Vaped Cannabis

7:51pm September 05, 2019

by Joe Neel, Allison Aubrey

New York officials say tests found high levels of vitamin E in cannabis vaping products used by people who developed lung damage. But it's only one of many possible causes still under investigation.

Groupon and other deal sites are the latest marketing tactic in medicine, offering bargain prices for services such as CT scans.

Groupon For Medical Scans? Discounted Care Can Have Hidden Costs

1:59pm September 05, 2019

by Lauren Weber

Groupon and other deal sites are the latest marketing tactic in medicine, offering bargain prices. But critics say pursuing such discounts can also entail getting unnecessary or duplicative services.

Bags of heroin, some laced with fentanyl, picked up in a 2016 New York City drug bust. "Basically, [fentanyl] is so cheap to produce and it's so powerful, that drug dealers began realizing it was a way to increase their profits," Fentanyl, Inc. author Ben

Fentanyl As A Dark Web Profit Center, From Chinese Labs To U.S. Streets

2:51pm September 04, 2019

by Dave Davies

Fentanyl, Inc. author Ben Westhoff says the opioid, while useful in hospitals, is killing more Americans as a street drug than any other in U.S. history. Here's how it moves from China to your corner.

Queue Listen Now

The measles virus is highly contagious. If someone with measles coughs or sneezes, the virus in those droplets can survive for two hours afterward — infecting about 90% of the people lacking immunity who pass through that space.

Millennial And Gen-X Travelers: Need Another Measles Shot?

6:43am September 02, 2019

by April Dembosky

Americans born in the '70s and '80s may not be immune to measles, health officials say. If you're traveling to a country or region having an outbreak, consider a second dose of vaccine before you go.

Queue Listen Now

UK Biobank, based in Manchester, England, is the largest blood-based research project in the world. The research project will involve at least 500,000 people across the U.K., and follow their health for next 30 years or more, providing a resource for scie

UK Biobank Requires Earth's Geneticists To Cooperate, Not Compete

8:19am August 31, 2019

by Richard Harris

A project that shares medical information from 500,000 volunteers is driving innovative research around the world. The richness of the database means scientists are motivated to make it even better.

Water utilities need quick ways to check for contamination in the drinking water supply, including from norovirus, which causes intestinal distress. Scientists are trying to make it easier to test for the virus.

Health & Safety

A Speedy Test For Norovirus Could Help Water Supplies Check For Contamination

4:12pm August 30, 2019

by Joe Palca

Flooding from storms can sometimes lead to contamination from sewage in the drinking water supply. Scientists are trying to develop a quicker test for one troublesome contaminant: norovirus.

Scientists say pea-size organoids of human brain tissue may offer a way to study the biological beginnings of a wide range of brain conditions, including autism, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

After Months In A Dish, Lab-Grown Minibrains Start Making 'Brain Waves'

5:21pm August 29, 2019

by Jon Hamilton

Researchers say clusters of human brain cells grown in the lab can spontaneously generate electrical patterns similar to the brain waves of a 6-month-old fetus.

Before scheduling his hernia surgery, Wolfgang Balzer called the hospital, the surgeon and the anesthesiologist to get estimates for how much the procedure would cost. But when his bill came, the estimates he had obtained were wildly off.

Health & Safety

Bill Of The Month: Estimate For Cost Of Hernia Surgery Misses The Mark

4:08pm August 29, 2019

by Rachel Bluth

Patients are often told to be smart consumers and shop around for health care before they use it. But even when you do so, estimates from insurers, hospitals and doctors can be unreliable.

Purdue Pharma and other health care giants are discussing potential deals with authorities that could resolve thousands of lawsuits they are facing over the U.S. opioid epidemic.

Health & Safety

Several Big Drug Companies Considering Massive Settlements To Resolve Opioid Suits

6:02pm August 28, 2019

Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson and other health care giants are discussing potential deals with authorities that could resolve thousands of lawsuits they're facing over the U.S. opioid epidemic.

Americans have the right to access their medical records, but actually doing so is often complicated, slow and costly.

Health & Safety

Opinion: It's Your Right To See Your Medical Records. It Shouldn't Be This Hard To Do

11:09am August 28, 2019

by Harlan Krumholz

Hospitals and other health care companies often make it hard — and pricey — to get access to your medical data. It doesn't have to be this way.