Cardiovascular Research: Hip strengthening might ease pain of clogged leg arteries ♦ New cause discovered for arterial stiffness ♦ Computer for acute stroke detection

Hip strengthening might ease pain of clogged leg arteries Exercise to strengthen hip flexor muscles may increase how far some patients can walk without calf pain. Gait analysis reveals that people with clogged leg arteries use calf muscles to compensate for weakness of certain hip muscles

Dexamethasone May Help Prevent Severe Kidney Injury Following Heart Surgery Acute kidney injury can be a serious complication following heart surgery. Patients who received dexamethasone during heart surgery had about a 2.5-times lower risk of developing kidney failure requiring dialysis compared with those receiving a placebo. The greatest benefits of dexamethasone were seen in patients with pre-existing advanced chronic kidney disease.

New cause discovered for arterial stiffness, a contributor to cardiovascular disease Previous studies of aortic stiffness have focused on changes in structural proteins that alter the properties of vascular walls causing them to become rigid. Now, researchers have determined that smooth muscle cells, which line the interior of vascular walls, are a major contributing factor to vascular stiffness, one of the major causes of hypertension.

Novel computer intelligence system for acute stroke detection Medical researchers have developed a novel computer-aided detection system for acute stroke using computer intelligence technology. The detection accuracy is 90%, which is as high as that conducted by specialists, but at a much reduced time from 10-15 minutes to 3 minutes.

Children's Health: Blood markers predict outcome of infant heart surgery ♦ Plant toxin causes biliary atresia in animal model ♦ changes to childcare 'mandatory' sleep rules in daycare

Parents often misperceive their obese children as 'about the right weight' Although rates of childhood obesity have risen over the last several decades, a vast majority of parents perceive their kids as “about the right weight”. The authors believe it is the first study to examine the lack of change over time of parents’ perception of their preschool child’s weight.

Using fresh whole blood lowers children's' donor exposure risk in heart surgery Children who undergo heart surgery are better off receiving fresh whole blood transfusions from a single donor, rather than receiving component blood from multiple donors. Limiting donor exposures reduces the patient's' risk of complications.

Blood markers could help predict outcome of infant heart surgery It may be possible to predict an infant's progress following surgery for congenital heart disease by analysing a number of important small molecules in the blood.

New study calls for changes to childcare 'mandatory' sleep rules in daycare Findings from a new study have put to bed the idea of mandatory sleep times in licensed child care settings. The study found that children who were exposed to more than 60 minutes mandatory sleep at childcare slept worse at night which continued when they started school.

Plant toxin causes biliary atresia in animal model A new study is a classic example of how seemingly unlikely collaborators can come together to make surprising discoveries. An international team of gastroenterologists, pediatricians, natural products chemists, and veterinarians, working with zebrafish models and mouse cell cultures have discovered that a chemical found in Australian plants provides insights into the cause of a rare and debilitating disorder affecting newborns called biliary atresia, is the most common indication for a liver transplant in children.

Children's Health; Arduous journey to pediatric epileptic surgery ♦ Many young ACL surgery patients need second surgery later ♦ New evidence in favor of healthier kids' menu

Beyond chicken fingers and fries: New evidence in favor of healthier kids' menus New research is a first of its kind to look at ordering patterns and sales data following healthy menu changes. Researchers examined outcomes before and after the Silver Diner, a full-service family restaurant chain, made changes to its children's menu in order to make healthier items easier to choose.

Parents describe arduous journey to pediatric epileptic surgery when their child's disease becomes resistant to anti-seizure meds Now, parents share their arduous and “circuitous” journey to get referrals for pediatric epilepsy surgery once their child’s disease stops responding to anti-seizure medications.

Fresh whole blood reduces possible complications in pediatric heart surgery patients Using fresh whole blood from single donors is better than using component blood from multiple donors in pediatric heart surgery patients,  

Many young ACL surgery patients need second surgery later on Orthopedic surgeons are seeing an epidemic of anterior cruciate ligament injuries among young athletes, and a large number of patients who have surgery to reconstruct a torn ACL undergo a second knee operation later.

Teens who mix energy drinks with alcohol more likely to have alcohol use disorder Teens aged 15-17 years old who had ever mixed alcohol with energy drinks were four times more likely to meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder. The team looked at a sample of 3,342 adolescents and young adults aged 15-23 years old recruited across the U.S. They found that 9.7% of adolescents aged 15-17 years old had consumed an energy drink mixed with alcohol. Analyses showed that group to have greatly increased odds of not just binge drinking, but also clinically defined criteria for alcohol use disorder.

Heart Research:Heart bypass surgery outperforms new generation stents ♦ Patients 80 years old benefit from aggressive treatment ♦ Healthy diet reduces risk of cardiovascular disease + more

Heart bypass surgery outperforms new generation stents Despite the advent of a new generation of stents, patients with multiple narrowed arteries in the heart who received coronary artery bypass grafting fared better than those whose arteries were opened with balloon angioplasty and stents Continue Reading

Acute coronary syndromes: Patients 80 years and older would benefit from aggressive treatment  Patients over age 80 with acute coronary syndromes would likely benefit from more invasive tests and therapies that may otherwise be denied them due to their age, according to research .Continue Reading

Frequency of blood tests in heart surgery patients may lead to anemia. Laboratory testing among patients undergoing cardiac surgery can lead to excessive bloodletting, which can increase the risk of developing hospital-acquired anemia and the need for blood transfusion, according to a new article. Continue Reading

Healthy diet reduces risk of cardiovascular disease by a third in over-40s  Men and women who adapt their daily diet to meet current UK dietary guidelines could reduce their risk of a heart attack or a stroke by up to a third. Those on the modified diet ate oily fish once a week, more fruit and vegetables, replaced refined with wholegrain cereals, swapped high-fat dairy products and meats for low-fat alternatives, and restricted their intake of added sugar and salt  Continue Reading