Medical Treatments

C4 proteins (green) are seen at the synapses in a culture of human neurons. (Heather de Rivera/McCarroll Lab/Harvard via AP)

Variations In A Gene Provide Clues About Schizophrenia

5:46pm January 29, 2016

by Katherine Harmon Courage

Scientists studied the genomes of more than 64,000 people and found that those with the debilitating psychiatric disease were much more likely to possess mutations of a particular gene.

Gilead Sciences' new drug Sovaldi effectively cures hepatitis C, but the price is straining state budgets.

California Pays Insurers Millions More For Hepatitis C Drugs

3:10pm January 28, 2016

by Pauline Bartolone

Private insurers billed California $387.5 million to treat just 3,624 patients with new medications for hepatitis C. The people are covered by the state's Medicaid program.

General surgeons are among the doctors most likely to be the subjects of paid malpractice claims.

Health & Safety

A Few Doctors Account For Outsize Share Of Malpractice Claims

10:59am January 28, 2016

by Lisa Aliferis

When it comes to medical malpractice, a history of claims against a doctor is the strongest indicator that more malpractice claims are likely.

Untreated depression can harm the health of mothers and their children.

Depression Screening Recommended For All Pregnant Women, New Mothers

4:36pm January 26, 2016

by Joanne Silberner

Depression is common in women during pregnancy and postpartum, posing risks to both mother and child. More effort is needed to get women screened and treated, a federal advisory panel says.

Journal editors want researchers to unlock the data vault.

Journal Editors To Researchers: Show Everyone Your Clinical Data

3:19pm January 26, 2016

by Harlan Krumholz

The world's leading medical journals have a proposal that could transform medical science: Researchers would have to publicly share their clinical data to get their studies published.

Queue Listen Now

A pharmacist counts pain pills. In an effort to curb the abuse of Oxycontin, Vicodin and other opioid painkillers, some health plans in Massachusetts now limit a patient's initial prescription to a 15-day supply, and plan to halve that number in February.

Insurers Hire Social Workers To Tackle The Opioid Epidemic

6:33pm January 25, 2016

by Deborah Becker

Some health plans in Massachusetts are putting tighter limits on painkiller prescriptions. Others are hiring their own social workers to help customers who struggle with opioid abuse quit for good.

Queue Listen Now

Just because you use insulin doesn't mean you have Type 1 diabetes.

What's Your Type? With Diabetes, It Can Be Unclear

2:48pm January 25, 2016

by Miriam E. Tucker

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are two different conditions, but people can get confused over which is which. Some doctors say it's time to overhaul diabetes definitions.

Tim Kilroy runs a business from his home in Arlington, Mass. His insurance company quit covering the long-acting Ritalin that helps him manage his ADHD.

Fight To Lower Drug Prices Forces Some To Switch Medication

1:28pm January 25, 2016

by Alison Kodjak

Health insurers are trying to spark a price war by refusing to pay for some brand-name medications unless they get a big discount. This forces some people to change their prescriptions.

Queue Listen Now

The routines that students learn at Dance for PD classes in Venice, Calif., can be quite challenging, instructors say.

Dance Returns The 'Joy Of Movement' To People With Parkinson's

8:14am January 23, 2016

by Ina Jaffe

Many struggle with tremors and balance much of the time, but when the music starts, these people dance. It gives them joy — body and soul. Scientists say dance might have lasting brain benefits, too.

A human cell infected with herpes simplex virus type 2 (shown in red).

Health & Safety

A Common Secret: Struggling With The Stigma Of Herpes

12:39pm January 22, 2016

by Sarah Ravani

Chances are that you know someone with the virus. But many people don't talk about it. Some say opening up about their herpes status helped them move on.