Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Obesity Protection Later May Come From Being Breastfed Longer
Zenger News: Babies Breastfed For A Year Or More Better Protected Against Adult Obesity: Study
Babies breastfed for a year or more could be protected against obesity into adulthood, according to new research. In experiments, rodent pups given mother's milk for prolonged periods didn't put on weight after they grew up - even when fed junk food. (Kitanovska, 7/26)
Stat: Researchers Launch Effort To Make Artificial Human Eggs In Test Tube
In a little-noticed study published earlier this year, scientists from Oregon Health & Science University reported the birth of three mouse pups that had been created with a never-before-used recipe for reproduction. Using a common cloning technique, researchers removed the genetic material from one female’s eggs and replaced them with nuclear DNA from the skin cells of another. Then with a novel chemical cocktail, they nudged the eggs to lose half their new sets of chromosomes and fertilized them with mouse sperm. (Molteni, 7/28)
In other scientific developments —
Zenger News: Scientists Say They May Have Discovered Why Men Die Earlier Than Women
A new study has potentially shed light on why men die earlier than women. The loss of the male sex chromosome as many men age causes the heart muscle to scar and can lead to deadly heart failure, according to the study. (Barillas, 7/26)
North Carolina Health News: Uterine Cancer Rates Rising, Black Women Especially At Risk
Black women die of uterine cancer at twice the rate of white women, and the reasons for the disparity remain unclear. That’s an unacceptable fact for a group of researchers and clinicians at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. That’s why they have research underway to investigate many factors such as tumor biology, access to care, and lifestyle and behavior that may play a role in survivorship. (Crumpler, 7/26)
Stat: Telehealth Buoyed Treatment Of Veterans With Opioid Use Disorder During Covid
Drug treatment of veterans with opioid use disorder increased during the first year of the pandemic, according to a new study, suggesting that the rapid shift from in-person to telehealth visits at VA medical centers enabled patients to get access to care despite Covid-related disruptions. (Muthukumar, 7/28)
CIDRAP: Less Methadone, More Buprenorphine Distributed Amid COVID In US
A study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open details US utilization of the two most effective medications used to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that quantities of methadone dwindled as buprenorphine doses expanded. The increases in buprenorphine dispensed didn't offset the proportional declines in the methadone distributed. (Van Beusekom, 7/27)
On other covid research news —
ABC News: Smoking, Vaping Increases Risk Of Death From COVID, Study Finds
Smokers and vapers are more likely to have a severe case of COVID-19 or die of the disease, a new study finds. People who reported use of tobacco products prior to their hospitalization were 39% more likely to be put on mechanical ventilation than non-smokers. What's more, they were 45% more likely to die. (Kekatos, 7/27)
San Francisco Chronicle: COVID In California: Adults With Young Children Less Likely To Get Severe COVID
The study, which was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that adults without children who got COVID were 49% more likely to be hospitalized and 76% more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit than adults with COVID who had children under five years old. The study looked at medical records for more than 3 million adult members of Kaiser Northern California from two years before the pandemic through the first year of COVID. (Ho, 27)
