Sudden cardiac arrest is described as the abrupt, unexpected loss of heart function, breathing, and consciousness, which usually results from an electrical disturbance in the heart that disrupts normal pumping action and blood flow to the rest of the body. An analysis of data from the Oregon Sudden Unexpected Death Study indicates that the risk…

According to a new study, the rate of childhood obesity has massively increased around the world since 1975. Overall, researchers found that childhood obesity rates jumped from just under 1% in the 1970s to nearly 6% for girls and almost 8% for boys in the present day, with rates at 20% or greater in the…

A report issued by the National Cancer Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concludes that obesity plays a role in at least thirteen types of cancer, which accounts for about 40% of all cancer diagnoses in a given year. These cancers include brain cancer; multiple myeloma; esophageal cancer; postmenopausal breast cancer; thyroid…

A survey of more than 41,000 Americans suggests that only half of the 6.7 million young adults with high blood pressure received treatment for it in 2013 and 2014. Senior study author Dr. Andrew Moran writes, “While hypertension awareness, treatment, and control have improved overall since the early 2000s, all three remain worse in young…

A research review of 41 studies that included data concerning more than 57 million births and 2.7 million hospital admissions found that anti-smoking measures are associated with a more than 18% decrease in childhood lung infections requiring hospital care, a nearly 10% decline in severe asthma attacks, and about a 4% decrease in preterm births.…

A large-scale study involving more than two-million siblings suggests that taller people have a greater risk for developing blood clots. Specifically, men shorter than 5 foot 3 inches (1.62 m) appear to have a 65% lower risk of blood clot than men 6 foot 2 inches (1.89 m) or taller. Among women, those shorter than…

In a new study, researchers examined 77 kids, six months to four years of age, who had confirmed a bone or joint infection and found that throat swabs from the majority of the children (70%) indicated the presence of a bacteria called Kingella kingae. This bacteria was uncommon in throat swabs collected from 300 healthy…

While obesity rates appear to be leveling off in the United States, experts say that rates are still far too high. The data show adult obesity rates exceeded 30% over the last year in 25 states, and rates topped 35% in five states. Overall, forty-six states had an obesity rate above 25%—a sharp contrast to…

The number of drivers killed in car crashes under the influence of prescription painkillers has increased dramatically over the last two decades. In this study, researchers focused on male drivers who died within one hour of a motor vehicle crash and found that the prevalence of prescription narcotics increased from around 1% between 1995 and…

A review of data concerning nearly 23 million adult hospital admissions that occurred between 2009 and 2015 revealed a 34% increase in opioid overdose-related ICU admissions during this time. Furthermore, the average cost of care per ICU overdose admission increased from just under $59,000 in 2009 to more than $92,000 in 2015. Lead author Dr.…