Dr. Howard Smith Reports

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CraCMLiv6HH/ When infection occurs post-operatively, a timely selfie of the operative incision is nearly 4 times more likely to prevent a delayed diagnosis.   University of Edinburgh surgeons proved this point with the study of 233 surgical patients following their operations. Each patient was contacted on days 3, 7, and 15 post-operatively, questioned about h...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CraBO4aJh2F/ If you can’t seem to please your boss, the problem, dear Brutus, is not in your stars but in your commute.  A just published Dartmouth study tracked 275 information technology workers using their smartphones and wearables to quantify the characteristics of their commutes and their bodily reactions to them.  Their HR records served to determine the...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CraAXVsMxN5/ Playing video games triggers beneficial changes in teen brains that are associated with better cognitive function.  University of Vermont psychiatrists compared the brain functions of 679 9 and 10 year old video game players with those of 1128 pre-teens never played. The data reveals that video game jockeys exhibited  significantly better cognitiv...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrZ_9NspxP3/ Babies consuming increased amounts of breastmilk containing one particular micro-RNA molecule enjoyed a lower risk of skin, food, and respiratory allergies.  Penn State pediatricians studied 163 mothers who planned to breastfeed 4 months or more.  Samples of their breastmilk were collected over that time period and analysed for microRNA. The analy...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrZ-N0_LJQZ/ University students who consumed half a cup of walnuts enjoyed significant improvements in their self-reported mental outlook.  Investigators at the University of South Australia studied 80 undergrads with baseline assessments and updates during and after exam periods.  Half the group ate walnuts for 16 weeks and half didn’t.   The data demonstrat...

Vidcast: https://www.instagram.com/p/CrZ89Mmu1-o/ Frequent use of electronic devices to distract and calm preschoolers seems to paradoxically lead to a greater incidence of sudden mood shifts and more impulsive behavior.  So say University of Michigan pediatricians who studied 422 kids 3 to 5 years of age and their parents.  This so-called emotional reactivity surge occurred more often in boys.  T...

Vidcast: https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKi3amvErV/ Dr. Smith speaks with a WBZ Radio caller about the management of her basal cell cancer. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/4581-basal-cell-carcinoma #basalcellcarcinoma #skincancer #mohs #efudex #5fu

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKhStprwou/ Dr. Smith and Susan Rist, WBZ Radio news anchor discuss the hazards created by these popular bicycle handlebars. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/386596 #bicycle #handlebars #aerodynamic #braking #wbzradio

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKgSADNHa4/ Dr. Smith and WBZ Radio sports anchor Alan Segal discuss how Fenway Park helps those with hearing challenges.  The park provides FM earphones and preferential seating.  Other sports venues likely provide similar accessibility provisions. https://www.mlb.com/redsox/ballpark/disability-access-guide#alds #hearing #hardofhearing #fmearphones #accessib...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKfLAgv63s/ Sleep deprivation will drive you to consume a wider variety of products.  Marketing researchers from the University of British Columbia’s business school draw this conclusion from several studies of buying patterns as a function of sleepiness.   Their experiments included artificial situations such as choosing candy bars on more or less sleep and...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKeeh9vcqv/ Up to 90% of cosmetics contain the nastiest superbugs on the planet.  A British study just published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology cultured skin foundation blender sponges, mascara, and lip gloss finding grossly unhygienic conditions. These contaminated products contain Staph aureus, E. Coli, and Citrobacter freundii that can trigger skin...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKdl-OuiSG/ If you’ve had a heart attack, living with a dog can lower your risk of dying prematurely by up to 35%.  A Canadian meta-analysis just published in the journal Circulation tabulated the data from more than 3.8 million participants over 10 years. This large study shows that dog ownership prolongs lives and builds on previous work that credited dogs...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKcz4VLHOc/ Those suffering from bronchial asthma can experience a severe, sometimes fatal, exacerbation of their asthma at night.  Japanese pulmonary physiologists now report that the sleep hormone melatonin may be the culprit. The investigators found that higher doses of melatonin trigger the MT2 receptor in airway smooth muscle that causes the bronchial ch...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKbxcoMFv0/ Waiting even a minute before clamping the umbilical cord of a just-born premature infant can reduce that child’s risk of death before the age of 2 by 30%.  Researchers at the University of Sydney now publish their followup results on some 15,310 Australian and New Zealand premies half of whom had the clamping of their umbilical cords delayed for 6...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKbEggAcZM/ University of Cincinnati researchers show that adding blueberries to the diet of mid-life adults may reduce their chances of developing dementia later in life.  Blueberries contain a high level of antioxidants known as anthocyanin. https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/8/1619/htm #blueberries #dementia #antioxidants #anthocyanins

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKaUfIuu9-/ Over the past decade, the numbers of melatonin poisonings in children and adolescents have soared more than 5-fold.  As of 2020, melatonin was the most frequently ingested substance by children.   These are just 2 of the startling findings by a CDC study that reviewed cases between 2012 and 2021.  Also during the same time span, 4,000 children req...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKZbbMvK0m/ If you experience nightmares during middle age, you are about 4 times more likely to develop dementia as you age.  Neurologic researchers from Britain’s University of Birmingham studied 605 adults aged 44 to 57 years who were followed up for as long as 13 years with cognitive testing. The analysis also showed that this tendency toward dementia was...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CrKYc2QPbou/ A multi-site meta-analysis by Australian obstetricians provided the necessary statistical power to demonstrate the superior safety profile of balloon cervical dilatation over prostaglandin drug cervical ripening.  The investigators analyzed the data from 5460 women who participated in 12 studies. While use of balloon cervical dilatation did not pr...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8k3ekAp5m/ Dr. Smith talks with Lewis First, MD, MS, formerly of Boston Children’s Hospital and currently chief of pediatrics at the University of Vermont and editor-in-chief of the journal Pediatrics.  They take an on-air call from a mother of twins and give e her advice regarding management of biting. #twins #pediatrics #biting #drfirst #wbznewsradio #pare...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8k3ekAp5m/ Dr. Smith talks with former WBZ Radio sports broadcaster John Hennessy about the health benefits and possible dangers of video and computer games. #videogames #computergames #exercise #seizures #tendonitis #wbznewsradio

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8iYsbgzWB/ Dr. Smith recounts cases from the New England Journal of Medicine documenting aspiration of foreign bodies into the airway and  choking as the result of improper use of asthma inhalers. #aspiration #choking #foreignbody #asthma #inhaler #wbznewsradio

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8hOyKg_vd/ Lead-in by Gary LaPierre Dr. Smith reviews studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of bladder training and pelvic floor exercises for women’s incontinence problems. #incontinence #bladder #pelvicfloor #kegel #bladderexercises #wbznewsradio

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8gUeUgITo/ Meditation is designed to relax you, but a new study from University College London finds that one in every four persons who regularly meditates experiences a decidedly unpleasant experience on a regular basis. The investigators surveyed more than 1200 persons who had regularly meditated for at least 2 months.   The unpleasant experiences included...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8fg6Dg0AS/ The myth that falling asleep to the TV is good for children is now dispelled by a study from the University of ‘Massachusetts-Amherst.  Developmental specialists and neuroscientists there studied some 470 preschoolers and their parents using electronic sleep monitoring and questionnaires for behavioral assessment.   Thirty-four percent of the kids...

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq8dw9Ygjaj/ First we had tennis elbow, more recently football CTE dementia, and now we have golfer’s wrenched back.  The latest study in the Joural of Neurosurgery:Spine sounds an alarm for golfers to ease up on their swings a bit.   Over the past 40 years, competitive pressure has driven the golf swing to become more and more powerful.  Golfers now seek stre...