Today’s Solutions: November 23, 2024

Medicine

From advancements in the fight against malaria to new cancer treatments, to novel medical technologies, find all positive news about incredible medical breakthroughs and life-saving technology from all corners of the globe.

Young diabetic Asian woman sits on couch and pricks finger to measure blood sugar level

FGF1 hormone could offer new and improved diabetes treatment

Diabetes treatment has long relied on insulin, which is known for regulating blood glucose levels. However, scientists at the Salk Institute have made an exciting discovery - another molecular pathway that regulates blood glucose. This may potentially open up an alternate avenue for Read More...

Nurse dressed in blue scrubs with stethoscope spraying nasal spray

New nasal spray treatment could help prevent Alzheimer’s

According to the World Health Organization, around 55 million people worldwide suffer from dementia. Although there’s currently no cure, researchers are unabatedly looking for treatments that could improve the lives of dementia patients and their care-givers. Working towards that end, researchers Read More...

Silhouette of depressed man sitting on walkway of residence building.

How ketamine can help fight depression

Quick acting aid A recent review from the University of Exeter, has shown that the sedative drug ketamine, has therapeutic effects in regards to mental health. The study, published in BJPsych Open, analyzed 83 papers to conclude that the drug can quickly improve symptoms of depression and suicidal Read More...

Medicine for treatment of HIV infection called antiretroviral therapy (ART).

Decline in orphanhood as HIV treatment increases

Sub-Saharan Africa was hit by an epidemic of HIV, starting from the 1980s. With it came death, resulting in an increase in orphanhood for the children left behind. Studies have associated individuals left in this situation with an increased rate of adverse mental and physical health Read More...

Doctors discussing treatment for a brain aneurysm.

A new approach to treating brain aneurysms

A brain aneurysm is defined as a weakness in a blood vessel. This area then becomes susceptible to filling with blood and creating a dome, just like a balloon. Causing increased pressure in the brain and loss of oxygen to the surrounding cells, leading to sometimes deadly outcomes. A wide-necked Read More...

Practitioner administering ultrasound treatment in the brain to an elderly patient.

Ultrasound could be used to treat addiction and OCD

The 'credit assignment' problem refers to when someone attributes an event to the wrong outcome. For example, passing an exam and instead of assigning your success to the many hours of studying put in, you put it down to the number of times you brushed your teeth that day. This psychological Read More...

young woman pulls down mask to reveal irritated skin or

How to deal with "maskne"

Mask-wearing helps keep us and everyone else safe and healthy, but we can all agree that mask-wearing-induced skin irritation and acne (otherwise known as “maskne”) is not ideal. The two types of maskne that people get when wearing face masks are: contact friction and breakouts. While they Read More...

A person in a grey t-shirt measures their belly fat with a yellow measuring tape.

CRISPR-Cas9 may be able to solve obesity

Cases of obesity have been steadily increasing worldwide, especially during the pandemic. Lack of physical activity through more office-based jobs, plus a lack of access to fresh healthy food means more and more people are experiencing obesity. Having too much fat on your body can be extremely Read More...

A black cab driving through London.

London’s black cabbies help navigate research into Alzheimer’s disease

What do squirrels and London’s licensed black cabbies have in common? An extraordinarily large hippocampus—the area of the brain that deals with spatial navigation. London’s licensed black cabbies don’t need the modern convenience of GPS devices. Instead, they rely on “the Read More...

Mitochondria in,HeLa cervical cancer cells.

WHO recognizes Henrietta Lacks for her life-changing contributions to medicine

When Henrietta Lacks sought treatment for cervical cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore in the 1950s, her cancer cells were harvested without her consent. These “HeLa cells” became the first sample of human cells to divide indefinitely in a lab, providing the basis for life-changing Read More...