Wear-and-tear knee arthritis might be made less painful by a surgical procedure that limits blood flow to the joint, a new pilot study says. As a person’s knee breaks down, the pain is made worse by the growth of small blood vessels that increase blood flow to the joint, researchers said. The new procedure involves…  read on >  read on >

It can be spooky to realize that Alexa or Siri has been listening in on you, when a device in your home inadvertently springs to life. But eavesdropping artificial intelligence (AI) can prove a godsend to overworked doctors, protecting them from burnout by handling some of their paperwork, a new study says. Ambient AI “scribes”…  read on >  read on >

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is finalizing the termination of at least 600 employees this week, including some working in violence prevention programs. The cuts come less than two weeks after a man opened fire outside the agency’s Atlanta headquarters, killing a police officer. “The irony is devastating,” more than 50…  read on >  read on >

Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to have a variety of potential health benefits, including a lower risk of heart disease, dementia and some forms of cancer. Now, new findings indicate omega-3s might help ward off the development of nearsightedness (myopia) in children, according to a reported Aug. 19 in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.…  read on >  read on >

Vaping appears to act as a gateway to cigarette smoking among young people, a new evidence review says. E-cigarettes also were significantly linked to risk of asthma and substance use, researchers reported Aug. 19 in the journal Tobacco Control. “The consistency in the evidence is striking,” said lead researcher Su Golder, an associate professor in…  read on >  read on >

Seniors with known heart-related problems aren’t doing a very good job taking steps to protect their health, a new study says. Older folks with high blood pressure, stroke survivors and heart failure patients in the United States all have been neglecting Life’s Essential 8 — a checklist of lifestyle factors that can protect heart health,…  read on >  read on >

Exposure to a common pesticide during pregnancy can impair children’s brain development and motor function for years to come, a new study says. The widely used pesticide chlorpyrifos (CPF) is linked to altered brain function and poorer fine motor control among children exposed to it while in the womb, researchers report in JAMA Neurology. “The…  read on >  read on >

Sensitive people tend to have a higher risk of developing a mood disorder, a new evidence review says. In particular, highly sensitive souls are more likely to develop depression or suffer from anxiety, researchers report in the journal Clinical Psychological Science. “This is the first meta-analysis providing robust evidence that highly sensitive people are more…  read on >  read on >

Tight control over blood pressure is not only good for patients, but is also cost-effective health care, a new study says. Controlling blood pressure to below 120 systolic prevents more heart attacks, strokes, cases of heart failure and other heart-related health problems, compared with higher targets, researchers report in the Annals of Internal Medicine. It’s…  read on >  read on >