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Health News Results - 22
Using a CBD Product? Be Sure to Tell Your Doctor
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- September 17, 2023
- Full Page
Cannabinoid products may interfere with some prescription medications, so people who use them should add these to the list of supplements they tell their doctors about.
This interference could have serious health consequences, according to Penn State Health, which offere...
Herbal Remedies & You: 6 Tips to Safeguard Your Health
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- January 18, 2023
- Full Page
Not all prescription drugs and dietary herbal supplements work well together.
It's important to be aware of possible drug/supplement interactions that could be harmful, according to the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (
In Study, Reminder Letters Helped Doctors Make Safer Choices Prescribing Opioids
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- January 10, 2023
- Full Page
Could a simple letter prompt doctors to prescribe opioids more safely?
Yes, claims new research that found reminding doctors to check a prescription database before doling out opioids increased their engagement with the program, having the potential to create more inform...
Patients' Genes Raise Odds for Rare Brain Infection When Using Certain Meds
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- December 12, 2022
- Full Page
For some people, dozens of U.S.-approved drugs can lead to a rare but often fatal brain infection.
Researchers have now confirmed a strong link between four genetic mutations and this illness, called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).
COVID Drug Paxlovid Might Interact With Heart Meds
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- October 13, 2022
- Full Page
The COVID-19 antiviral Paxlovid has been a game-changer in the global pandemic, shielding high-risk patients from the coronavirus' most devastating effects.
Weed May Mess With Your Medicines, Causing Harm
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- December 16, 2021
- Full Page
Many people turn to marijuana or cannabidiol to ease their achy joints and help them sleep, but a new study suggests that could wreak havoc with any other medications they're taking.
Why? Because the body uses the same set of enzymes to process them all, scientists repor...
Certain Meds Raise Odds for Delirium After Surgery
- Robert Preidt
- December 13, 2021
- Full Page
Older adults have a higher risk of delirium after hip and knee surgery if they're taking anxiety, depression or insomnia drugs, researchers say.
"Our findings show that different classes of medicine are riskier than others when it comes to causing delirium after surgery,...
Many People With High Blood Pressure May Take a Drug That Worsens It: Study
- Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter
- November 29, 2021
- Full Page
Nearly 1 in 5 people with hypertension may be unintentionally taking a drug for another condition that causes their blood pressure to climb even higher, a new study suggests.
Left untreated or undertreated, high blood pressure will increase your risk for heart attack, s...
Many Psychiatric Patients Are Getting Risky Drug Gabapentin 'Off-Label'
- Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
- November 22, 2021
- Full Page
Most prescriptions for the medication gabapentin are for unapproved uses -- and many patients end up taking it along with drugs that create potentially dangerous interactions.
That's the conclusion of a new study that looked at "off-label" use of gabapentin. In the Unite...
Confusion, Seizures: People Hospitalized After Taking Veterinary Drug for COVID
- Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
- October 21, 2021
- Full Page
It's a drug that's been supported by some conservative media figures, but taking ivermectin to treat or prevent COVID-19 might land you in the hospital, a new study warns.
Interest in the drug surged last summer as the highly contagious Delta variant took over the United...
Animal Sedative Is Driving Rise in Fatal Drug ODs
- Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
- September 21, 2021
- Full Page
An animal tranquilizer, xylazine, is increasingly linked to drug overdose deaths across the United States, health officials say.
According to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, xylazine has turned up in overdose deaths in 25 of 38 stat...
Autism & Drinking, Drug Abuse Can Be Dangerous Mix
- Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter
- July 8, 2021
- Full Page
Teens and adults with autism may be less likely than others to use drugs and alcohol, but new research finds those who do are nearly nine times more likely to use these substances to mask symptoms, including those related to autism.
This is known as camouflaging, and it ...
Two Is Not Better Than One When It Comes to Blood Thinners
- Robert Preidt and Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporters
- April 22, 2021
- Full Page
It may not be a good idea to take a daily low-dose aspirin if you're also taking a widely used class of blood thinners called direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), researchers caution.
DOACs include drugs such as Eliquis (apixaban), Pradaxa (dabigatran), Lixiana (edoxaban)...
1 in 3 Older Thyroid Patients Takes a Med That Can Interfere With Tests
- Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
- March 18, 2021
- Full Page
Nearly one-third of seniors who take thyroid hormone also take drugs known to interfere with tests of thyroid function, a new study finds.
It's common for older adults to take a thyroid hormone (levothyroxine) to treat low levels of natural thyroid hormone. But tests use...
Many Older Americans With Heart Failure Take 10 or More Meds
- Cara Roberts Murez
- October 13, 2020
- Full Page
When older people hospitalized for heart failure are sent home, they are often given a whopping 10 medications to take for a variety of conditions. But is this "polypharmacy" practice necessary, or does it just place a bigger burden on already frail patients?
It's n...
Older Patients at Risk When Dentists Prescribe Opioids
- Robert Preidt
- September 28, 2020
- Full Page
Seniors who take depression and anxiety drugs shouldn't be prescribed opioid painkillers by their dentist because it puts them at increased risk for problems, researchers warn.
They analyzed 2011-15 dental and medical data for 40,800 patients aged 65 and older across...
Potential COVID-19 Drug Could Increase Heart Risk: Study
- Robert Preidt
- September 21, 2020
- Full Page
The widely prescribed antibiotic azithromycin is being investigated as a COVID-19 treatment, but a new study warns it could increase the risk of heart problems.
Researchers analyzed data from millions of patients (average age: 36) in the United States and found that ...
Dangerous Abuse of Anxiety Drug Phenibut Is on the Rise
- Amy Norton
- September 9, 2020
- Full Page
A growing number of Americans may be having serious reactions after taking phenibut -- an unapproved anxiety drug sold in some dietary supplements.
That's the finding of a new study looking at calls to U.S. poison control centers. The numbers are not huge: Between 20...
In Rare Cases, Diabetes & Cholesterol Drug Combo Could Be Toxic
- Serena Gordon
- August 3, 2020
- Full Page
Taking the statin Crestor in combination with the diabetes drug canagliflozin (Invokana) may have the potential to trigger statin toxicity, a new case report suggests.
Although this report details the problem in just one woman, the researchers noted concern because ...
Many Americans Take Antibiotics Without a Prescription
- Alan Mozes
- July 22, 2019
- Full Page
No one would argue that antibiotics are an amazing 20th-century innovation, promising a quick cure for bacterial illnesses that might otherwise cause serious harm or death.
But they are not without risk, especially when taken without a doctor's supervision.
FDA Orders Label Warning on Alcohol Use With 'Female Viagra'
- Robert Preidt
- April 12, 2019
- Full Page
A drug touted as a "female Viagra" can cause severe low blood pressure and fainting when used with alcohol, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns.
As a result, the agency has ordered the drug's maker Sprout Pharmaceuticals to make a safety labeling change to Ad...
Which Misused Prescription Meds Send Americans to the ER?
- Dennis Thompson
- March 6, 2019
- Full Page
Most folks treated in a U.S. emergency room for misuse of prescription medications get into trouble because they mix different substances, a new study reports.
Benzodiazepines like Xanax (alprazolam) and Ativan (lorazepam) are most commonly implicated in health crise...