U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisors will meet Friday to consider whether it is safe and effective for Americans to receive a third “booster” dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The FDA posted the materials it intends to use in the review on Wednesday. The advisory panel will review a variety of evidence, including new…  read on >  read on >

Treating sickle cell anemia with the drug hydroxyurea may also reverse related heart abnormalities, a new study suggests. Heart issues are common among people with sickle cell disease. Among them are enlargement of the heart and an impaired ability to relax heart muscles, a condition called diastolic dysfunction that can lead to heart disease and…  read on >  read on >

Health officials are bracing for a viral double whammy this fall and winter. “This year, we expect influenza and COVID-19 to circulate at the same time,” said Dr. Jonathan Grein, director of hospital epidemiology at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles. That’s why Grein and his colleagues remind Americans that it’s time to get your seasonal flu…  read on >  read on >

Diseases that can rob you of vision as you age also appear to be tied to an increased risk for dementia, a new study finds. Specifically, age-related macular degeneration, cataracts and diabetes-related eye disease were linked with a higher likelihood of dementia, researchers in China said. However, one other common eye ailment, glaucoma, was not…  read on >  read on >

Cholesterol made in the brain may spur development of Alzheimer’s disease, a new study suggests. Cholesterol made by cells called astrocytes is needed for controlling production of amyloid beta, a sticky protein that builds up in the brain and accumulates into the plaques that are the tell-tale sign of Alzheimer’s. Researchers say these new findings…  read on >  read on >

Logging and landscaping are the most dangerous jobs in America, a new study finds. The risk of death for loggers is more than 30 times higher than for all U.S. workers. Tree care workers also encounter hazards at rates far higher than a typical worker. “This was the first research to look at commercial logging…  read on >  read on >

FRIDAY, Sept. 17, 2021 (HealthDay News) – Researchers hoped to show that the natural antioxidant urate could delay Parkinson’s disease progression, but a study completed at Massachusetts General Hospital dashed those expectations. The trial enrolled nearly 300 individuals recently diagnosed with early Parkinson’s disease, which affects the body’s motor system. Symptoms such as tremors, stiff…  read on >  read on >