Early on in the pandemic there was controversy over the use of ibuprofen after Olivier Véran, the French Health Minister, advised against it for coronavirus patients, saying it could make them more susceptible to worse infection. Scientists in the UK launched a review to assess ties to the drug and Covid-19, determining that, at the … Continue reading Study finds ibuprofen doesn’t increase coronavirus death risks

Researchers have developed a potential new tool to help clinicians detect hidden signs of autism in adults. Autism is usually diagnosed in childhood but a growing number of adults are being diagnosed with the condition, even in mid to late adulthood. Many adults develop compensatory psychological strategies to hide their symptoms from clinicians, employers and … Continue reading Researchers develop new tool to help detect hidden signs of autism in adults

Healthy older people who exercise regularly are less likely to struggle to find words to express themselves, according to research led by the University of Birmingham. The University of Birmingham reports researchers found older adult’s aerobic fitness levels are directly related to the incidence of age-related language failures. The research, published in Scientific Reports, is … Continue reading Regular exercise means older people aren’t lost for words

For the first time scientists around the world, with leading contributions from the UK’s world class centres of psychiatric genetics research, largely funded by the Medical Research Council, at Cardiff University, the University of Edinburgh and King’s College London, have been able to combine DNA data on a large enough sample to pinpoint which locations … Continue reading Revolution in the understanding of depression

The less commonly prescribed opioid substitute buprenorphine may be safer than methadone for problem opioid users, especially if used during the first month of treatment, according to a study by researchers from the University of Bristol, King’s College London, University of Manchester and Bristol Drugs Project, with implications for guidance on GP prescribing. The study, … Continue reading Buprenorphine mat be safer than methadone

Older people in Wales are being urged to think about donating their brains after they die to help scientists researching dementia. The BBC reports researchers at Cardiff University are not actively recruiting at the moment but are still keen to hear from people over eighty five without a diagnosis of dementia. While they also recruit … Continue reading Older people urged to donate their brains

Babies whose mothers had received support to breastfeed exclusively for a sustained period from birth have a 54% lower risk of eczema at the age of sixteen, a new study led by researchers from King’s College London, Harvard University, University of Bristol and McGill University shows. The University of Bristol report the study, which is … Continue reading Breastfed babies less likely to have eczema as teenagers

It may be possible to “retrain” the immune system to slow the progression of type 1 diabetes, according to a study by Cardiff University and King’s College London. Researchers leading the MonoPepT1De trial observed noticeable changes in the behaviour of the immune systems of type 1 diabetes patients that had been injected with peptides, small … Continue reading It may be possible to retrain the immune system

A Cardiff University-led trial has found smokers who undergo a CT scan of their lungs are more likely to quit than those who don’t (Cardiff University, 2017). The findings of the study, published in Thorax, looking at the effect of CT screening on smokers at high risk of developing lung cancer, dispute the belief that … Continue reading Smokers who undergo CT scans are more likely to quit

Bangor University has reported that ninety people who are living with dementia and their carers from across North Wales have contributed to new research findings which have shown that personalised cognitive rehabilitation therapy can help people with early stage dementia to significantly improve their ability to engage in important everyday activities and tasks (Bangor University, … Continue reading People with dementia benefit from goal-oriented therapy