Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Research Roundup: Screen Time; Parechovirus; Covid; Pig Organs; More
CIDRAP: Survey: A Third Of US Kids Had Excessive Screen Time Amid COVID
More than one third of US children used media addictively in fall 2020, a finding tied to family stressors but not a decrease in the number of screen-time rules implemented, finds a survey of US parents published today in Pediatrics. (Van Beusekom, 8/2)
CIDRAP: Fewer Pregnant Women Had Severe COVID Amid Omicron, After Vaccination
Fewer pregnant women had severe COVID-19 in the Omicron variant-era than during periods dominated by previous strains, and vaccinated patients were better protected than their unvaccinated peers, according to research published yesterday in the American Journal of Infection Control. (Van Beusekom, 8/1)
CIDRAP: Tennessee Clinicians Describe Cluster Of Babies Hospitalized With Parechovirus
Writing in the most recent issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), the authors said the babies, ages 5 days to 3 months, were previously healthy and were admitted to the hospital between Apr 12 and May 24. Symptoms included fever, fussiness, and poor feeding. All got sick in community settings, except one preterm infant who started having symptoms in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Sixteen babies had siblings or were exposed to other kids, and one went to daycare. (8/1)
In other scientific research —
The Wall Street Journal: Scientists Revive Cells In Pigs’ Organs After Death
Scientists restored function to the organs of dead pigs, raising hopes that a similar approach might one day make more human organs available for transplantation but also sparking ethics concerns. The research, described in a paper published Wednesday in the journal Nature, involved the use of an experimental system that included circulation-monitoring sensors, a filter and a pump that delivered a fluid containing multiple medications to the pigs’ organs. When the bodies of pigs that had been dead for an hour were hooked up to the system, their hearts resumed beating and limited function was restored to the animals’ brains, lungs, livers, kidneys and pancreases. (Marcus, 8/3)
The Washington Post: Scientists Create Synthetic Mouse Embryos, A Potential Key To Healing Humans
Stem cell researchers in Israel have created synthetic mouse embryos without using a sperm or egg, then grown them in an artificial womb for eight days, a development that opens a window into a fascinating, potentially fraught realm of science that could one day be used to create replacement organs for humans. (Johnson, 8/1)
Fortune: Is Red Meat Really Bad For Your Heart? The Answer May Be In Your Gut
A new study published Monday in the American Heart Association’s peer-reviewed journal, Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, delves into the role of metabolites, or the chemicals in the gut created from digestion of food, and how certain metabolites may increase the risk for cardiovascular disease. It’s the first study to look at the link between animal-based foods, ASCVD, and metabolites. Eating a diet rich in meat, specifically red and processed meat, was associated with a higher risk for ASCVD, and a 22% increased risk for every 1.1 serving of meat a day, the study concluded. The increased risk was attributed to the trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) metabolite, which is produced by the gut microbiome after eating red meat. (Mikhail, 8/3)
AP: Even Simple Exercise May Help Aging Brain, Study Hints
New research hints that even a simple exercise routine just might help older Americans with mild memory problems. Doctors have long advised physical activity to help keep a healthy brain fit. But the government-funded study marks the longest test of whether exercise makes any difference once memory starts to slide — research performed amid a pandemic that added isolation to the list of risks to participants’ brain health. (Neergaard, 8/2)
Also —
Stat: European Research Funders Often Fail To Monitor Clinical Trial Transparency
Nearly two dozen major organizations that fund medical research in Europe often failed to set policies or monitor progress for registering clinical trials and publishing study results, an issue that can lead to shortcomings in medical literature, a new analysis finds. (Silverman, 8/1)
Stat: A Cancer Center Director’s Try-It-All Strategy To Build Trust In Clinical Trials
The residents agreed: Nobody like Robert Winn — director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center — had ever visited the neighborhood before. (Chen, 8/3)
