On Tuesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first pacemaker designed to be used safely during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. The device, the Revo MRI SureScan Pacing System by Medtronic, was first …
House Watch: The Dangerous Line Between Hypochondria and Illness
It was a dark and stormy House M.D. Last night, Princeton-Plainsboro was in a state of near-dissolution: besieged by a thunderstorm (a slightly odd choice for February in New Jersey), the hospital was home to furious outbursts, …
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Study: Weight-Loss Surgery May Change the Shape of the Heart
Gastric bypass surgery not only helps obese people lose weight, but it may also help patients’ hearts return to a healthier state and shape, according to a new study in the Feb. 8 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Toddlers’ Junk-Food Diet May Lead to Lower IQ
The human brain develops rapidly in early life — transforming helpless infants into walking, door-opening, question-asking, willful little people. And now a new study suggests that a toddler’s diet may have some impact on his …
A New Project to Track Animal Diseases Before They Infect Humans
Back at the start of 2009, I thought I was sure where the next influenza pandemic would come from: Asia. I’d spent a few years in the region following the steady progression of the H5N1 avian flu virus as it spread from wild and …
CommittedMarriage
Do Tight Times Make Close Marriages?
Most partnerships, business or personal, are easy when money is easy. The lucre seems to take the sting out of any disagreements, and, frankly, the cost of disharmony is too high. But according to a new report from the National …
In Politics, It’s Survival of the Fittest, Literally
One of the most confounding questions facing political scientists is why some people vote and others don’t.
Family MattersPregnancy
Prolonging Pregnancy: New Drug Helps Prevent Premature Birth
Lauren Fleming was born 3½ months early and weighed just a smidge over 2 lbs. When her mother, Nikki Fleming, got pregnant again, her doctor administered weekly progesterone injections. Fleming’s next two children, Erin and …
CommittedFriendship
Why Kids Bully: Because They’re Popular
Mean kids, mothers tell their wounded young, behave that way because they have unhappy home lives, or feel inadequate, or don’t have enough friends or because they somehow lack empathy. But a new study suggests some mean kids …
Is School Lunch Making Your Kids Fat?
In addition to the usual contributors to child obesity — excessive TV watching and indulging in sugary sodas, for instance — a new study finds another major culprit: eating school lunches.
Marijuana Linked with Earlier Onset of Schizophrenia in Research Review
Many studies have linked marijuana use with early onset of psychosis. The question is, does smoking marijuana cause earlier psychosis? A new review of 83 studies involving more than 22,000 participants seeks an answer.
NYC Bans Smoking in Parks, Beaches and Pedestrian Plazas
New York’s City Council voted last week to pass a law extending the city’s smoking ban to parks, beaches and public plazas where pedestrians congregate like in Times Square and Union Square.