stroke

Winter Kills: Even Mild Ones Cause More Deaths

Posted on 11/8/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthIt doesn’t matter whether you spend winter shoveling snow in Massachusetts or walking on the beach in California, you’re more likely to die of heart-related issues in the winter months, a new study finds. Cardiac researchers with Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles reported this week that it’s not the climate that causes heart-related deaths to spike in the winter, it’s just the season. Basically, winter is bad for your heart. Compared to the summer months, people are 26 to …

Bypass Better for Diabetics With Heart Disease

Posted on 11/5/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthOlder diabetics with more than one blocked artery were much less likely to die within five years or have another heart attack if they chose bypass surgery instead of stents to treat their condition, a major new study found. Researchers said the five-year study of 1,900 patients (average age: 63) with diabetes found that those who underwent bypass surgery to improve blood flow to the heart were 30 percent less likely to die or suffer a heart attack than were …

Medicare Coverage Change for Therapy Offers Ray of Hope for Caregivers

Posted on 10/25/2012 by | Aging, Home & Family Expert | Comments

Caregiving | Home & Family | Relationships | Your LifeA loved one suffers a stroke, a fall, or has a chronic illness such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis. Medicare initially covers payment for vital services such as skilled nursing, home health care and physical, occupational or speech therapy. We see improvement as they heal, grow stronger, speak more and become more engaged in life. Suddenly the bad news is delivered: the patient reaches a “plateau” or doesn’t show “improvement” according to Medicare standards. They will no …

Back and Neck Pain: The Chiropractic Therapy Debate

Posted on 10/10/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthSpinal manipulation, in which a chiropractor or osteopath “adjusts” the spine using various kinds of thrusts, is no more effective than other kinds of treatment at reducing lower back pain, a new review of 20 previous trials involving more than 2,600 adults finds. And, in a second hit at this kind of treatment, doctors warned that spinal manipulation for neck pain should be abandoned because of the danger of serious injury, including stroke, from tears in neck arteries. According to …

Can Spaghetti Sauce Prevent a Stroke?

Posted on 10/9/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthGood news, Italian-food lovers: A new study finds that eating lots of tomatoes and tomato-based foods like spaghetti sauce is associated with a lower risk of stroke. Tomatoes, you might remember, are high in the antioxidant lycopene, which gives tomatoes their red color. The study of 1,031 older men in Finland found that those who had the highest amount of lycopene in their blood were 55 percent less likely to have a stroke than those with the lowest amounts. The …

Stroke Drugs Vs. Stents: An Issue For Medicare

Posted on 09/24/2012 by | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthThere’s a debate growing among doctors over whether drugs are just as good — or better — at preventing strokes as carotid surgery or carotid stents to keep neck arteries free from plaque. The issue has major implications for Medicare, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, because a number of stent manufacturers are pushing Medicare to pay for carotid stent placement in people with no stroke symptoms. This would greatly expand stent use because an estimated 100,000 or more …

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