StemCell Therapy

Dion Diep,1 Jasmine Ko,2 John Lan,3 Kinga T Koprowicz,3 Gordon Ko3,4

1MD Program, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; 2Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; 3Canadian Centre of Integrative Medicine, Toronto, ON, Canada; 4Division of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada

Correspondence: Gordon KoClinical Adjunct Lecturer, Division of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, CanadaTel +1416-480-4342Fax +1416-480-6885Email drgordko@rogers.com

Introduction: There is a paucity of long-term treatment benefit and safety data of botulinum toxin A (BTX-A) for cervical dystonia (CD) and myofascial neck pain syndrome (MPS). Additionally, the prevalence of adjunct modality uses during this period is unknown despite evolving practices.Objective: To assess and compare treatment benefit, safety, and adjunct modality prevalences of long-term BTX-A injections between CD and MPS patients.Design: Retrospective cohort study.Setting: Private practice tertiary care clinics in Toronto.Patients: Convenience sample of 37 (52.9%) CD and 33 (47.1%) MPS patients treated for a meanSD duration of 7.2 4.3 and 8.3 4.7 years, respectively.Interventions: BTX-A injections administered at least once yearly, for a duration longer than 1 year.Main Outcome Measures: Toronto Western Spasmodic Torticollis Rating Scales (TWSTRS) for disability and pain, Patient Global Impression of Change (PGIC) score, time to peak effect, duration of total response, adverse effects, and prevalence of adjunct modalities.Results: CD patients experienced improvements in TWSTRS disability (17.57 6.79 to 9.81 4.35, p< 0.001) and pain (14.61 3.08 to 9.05 3.49, p< 0.001) scores as well as PGIC score (52.00% 23.60% to 64.80% 23.60%, p=0.007). MPS patients experienced improvements in TWSTRS disability (15.86 7.70 to 10.07 7.01, p=0.01) and pain (15.25 4.09 to 10.85 4.49, p=0.01) scores. In both cohorts, there were no changes in time to peak effect and duration of total response. Adverse effects were minimal and self-limiting. Prevalences of adjunct modalities used by CD versus MPS patients were 28.13% versus 50.00% for anesthetic procedures, 23.08% versus 15.38% for image-guidance, 65.71% versus 56.25% for pectoralis minor injections, and 47.06% versus 53.13% for cannabis-use.Conclusion: There were demonstrated and comparable treatment benefit, safety, and adjunct modality prevalences. Our study is the first to demonstrate that long-term BTX-A injections for MPS, although commonly used off-label, can be effective and safe.

Keywords: botulinum toxin, cervical dystonia, myofascial pain syndrome

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Benefits, Safety, and Adjunct Modality Prevalences of Long-Term Botuli | JPR - Dove Medical Press

The Heal the Healers Now project of Delmarva is part of a nationwide initiative to bring the stress-reducing Transcendental Meditation technique to doctors, nurses and medical providers who are battling the coronavirus pandemic.

Kim Bemis, head of the Transcendental Meditation program for Delmarva, said, "The TM program is an effortless, enjoyable, and easy-to-learn mental technique for deep relaxation and stress reduction. It has been successfully offered in hospitals and clinics as well as medical schools, academic and VA medical centers, military academies, substance abuse centers, prisons and other settings."

Most recently, the program was offered at Weill Cornell Medical Center-New York Presbyterian Hospital with significant reductions in physician burnout, insomnia and symptoms of post-traumatic stress.

Bemis said, "Even before the pandemic, a Harvard report cited physician burnout as a public health crisis that urgently demands action. And today, the situation is far worse. This highly effective program can help our healthcare providers during this devastating public health crisis."

Laurie Vonasek, RN, MSN, an adjunct professor at Wesley College, said, "Practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique twice daily for the past three years has been transformative. I have increased focus, quieted my mind, decreased anxiety, slept better, increased efficiency, and I am slower to react to negative stimulus. I think before I react. TM has decreased the effects of stress. I am healthier and happier. I could not navigate life, especially now with all the uncertainty and pain related to COVID-19 without meditating. It has helped me to achieve balance and peace. Nurses by nature care for others before they care for themselves. It is time to help nurses heal.

Dr. Uday Jani, a doctor of integrative medicine in Lewes, said, The power of meditation to activate the bodys capacity for self-healing by reducing levels of stress-related hormones and strengthening the immune system has been well documented over the years. We are fortunate to be able to learn from master meditation teacher Kim Bemis, who draws on two decades of studying and living in the Himalayas to teach this remarkably effective technique in our community.

For more information on learning the Transcendental Meditation program, or to donate to help make this program available to medical providers who need it, go to http://www.healthehealersnow.org or contact KimBemis@tm.org.

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Meditation initiative benefits healthcare workers - CapeGazette.com

Sleep wrinkles arent your average fine lines: While expression lines can form overtime from repeatedly moving your face, these wrinkles form exclusively from your sleeping positionsay, if you curl up on your side or sleep on your stomach, face smashed into the pillow. Thats why one study on facial aging identified a distinct set of wrinkles that form from sleep alone, which brings us to the anecdotally dubbed sleep wrinkles.

It makes sense, no? If you sleep with your face smashed into the pillow for eight or some hours each night, thats quite a long time for the delicate skin on your face to endure that pressure. Not only that, but theskin is more permeable at night, which means it is more vulnerable to transepidermal water loss (also why you might opt for a heavier night cream to seal in moisture; nighttime skin care is no joke). This means your skin is not only experiencing friction, but may dry out faster, too. All things considered, of course you may wake up to some folds across your skin.

Now, those indents tend to fade when youre young, as your plump skin is chock-full of collagen and can quite literally bounce back from the pressure. (Think of a firm mattress molding to your weight as you sleep, then filling out once you leave your cozy bed.) But as you grow older and your collagen levels start to decline, you may notice those lines stick around well after mid-morning.

More here:
So Sleep Wrinkles Are A Thing: Here's What It Says About Your Skin - mindbodygreen.com

State by state, America is reopening after sheltering in place and we're doing it on a wing and a prayeror at least, with a face mask and rubber gloves. Only a few protections stand between us and a virus so menacing, it actually has spikes. Even more than disinfectant wipes and hand washing, we need good science to fight COVID-19. A safe, widely available vaccine could take months to roll out, as cells in a petri dish can only grow so fast. That's why scientists are carrying out parallel efforts to explore more rapid-fire solutions. Around the globe and close to home, doctors and researchers are uncovering every stonefrom repurposing existing drugs to developing antibody treatments and exploring nutraceuticals that could offer safe, affordable protection naturally. The following two research endeavors hold promise, and they're unfolding right here in our local communities.

When his 48-year-old mother struggled to recover from COVID-19 in late March, James Bruzzese, a second-year medical student at CUNY School of Medicine in Harlem, knew where to turn. He called his mentor, Dr. Richard Horowitz, a board-certified internist with a private integrative medicine practice in Hyde Park. Considered among the country's top Lyme disease doctors, Horowitz has built a practice around combining classical and complementary treatments for tick-borne infections. Not everyone jibes with Horowitz's stylesome online patient reviews bristle with talk of long waitlists and steep la carte expenses for his services. But after he became instrumental in helping Bruzzese's younger sister, Julia, in her battle with Lyme, Bruzzese grew close to the doctor. "He's been letting me shadow him, so every time I get a little break from school, I do that," says the 23-year-old Brooklynite. "I've been exposed to a lot in his practice and it's been an amazing experience."

Bruzzese's mother, Josephine, had woken up on the morning of March 22 with severe symptoms in line with COVID-19fever, body aches, coughing, and such severe shortness of breath that she couldn't get up from bed. "It was scary from the start," recalls her son. His family called New York's coronavirus hotline, which advised getting her to an emergency room. When her ambulance pulled in at NYU Langone Hospital in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, the ER was eerily empty. The hospital had no coronavirus tests at the time, but a lung X-ray showed that Josephine had severe lobe pneumonia and she was clinically (if not serologically) diagnosed with COVID-19 on the spot. Yet the doctors declined to admit herinstead, they gave her a dose of Zithromax (azithromycin) and sent her home with four more days of the oral antibiotic. Bruzzese was shocked. "We learn as medical students that the treatment for pneumonia is IV antibiotics," he says. "They didn't even do a culture. On my board exams, if I were to answer a question about a patient presenting with pneumonia and I didn't say, 'Order a culture to see what type of bacteria it is and [administer] IV antibiotics,' I would get that question wrong. What was going on during this crisis, just giving people a very weak oral antibiotic for a severe pneumonia, was just crazy."

Bruzzese knew his mother needed more. Back home, the family happened to have Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine) on hand because of his sister, but they didn't want to administer it blindly. He reached out to a local doctor for guidance who advised him on dosing, and Josephine remained on Zithromax and Plaquenil for about 10 days. Her fever and body aches went away, but the respiratory symptoms lingered. "She was still coughing like crazy and couldn't breathe," Bruzzese recalls. That's what prompted him to reach out to Horowitz for help. "I called him in desperation, and I gave him the rundown like I would do on rounds." (Current FDA guidelines caution against the use of hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 treatment outside of the hospital setting.)

As it turned out, Horowitz had recently treated another COVID-19 patient successfully with a simple, natural therapyglutathione. Produced in the liver and also available to take as a nutritional supplement, glutathione is one of the body's main antioxidants. It assists with detoxification and helps to combat free radicals, the molecules that can damage cells when there is too much inflammation in the body. "He said, 'If you're willing, let's see if it helps your mom, too,'" recalls Bruzzese, who happened to have glutathione in the family medicine cabinet. Horowitz suggested a 2,000-milligram dose, and within an hour Josephine was breathing easier and even got out of bed to take a shower. The next morning, she took a double dose and felt even better, and in the following days she made a full recovery. "We saw these miraculous effects very quickly," says Bruzzese, "and Dr. Horowitz said, 'We need to write this up. This is definitely something.'" With Bruzzese as a coauthor, Horowitz went on to publish a study of the two patients in the online journal Respiratory Medicine Case Reports in May.

"It is a miracle and it's not," says Horowitz of glutathione, which he has used on thousands of patients in his medical practice over the past 30 years. "It's already in the literaturethere are published articles on glutathione showing that it has anti-viral activity against herpes viruses, HIV, and hepatitis. The problem is, all of the COVID research is happening through pharmaceutical companies. No one is looking at natural approaches. You hear a little about how low vitamin D might put you at risk, so it's coming out in dribs and drabs." And just like with vitamin D, you can be deficient in glutathioneespecially if you've been exposed to a lot of environmental toxins (which is everyone). Older people are also more likely to be depleted of the compound.

Horowitz's a-ha moment with glutathione came from reading dozens of scientific articles about COVID-19. "I saw that the inflammatory molecules that are released when people are exposed to COVID are exactly the same inflammatory molecules that are released when you're exposed to Lyme," he says. "There's a cytokine storm that happens, which is like a fire in the body, a huge inflammatory reaction that can affect all the organs. And we know that with COVID, it's not the virus itself that's killing people. It's this overstimulated immune response with all the inflammation. When I saw that the cytokines in COVID were the same molecules in Lyme, I thought, well, we already know how to lower these cytokines." (Cytokines are molecular messengers between cells. Inflammatory cytokines are molecular messengers that can increase the inflammatory response.)

On a biochemical level, the way to reduce this inflammation is to turn off a switch inside the nucleus of the cells called NF-kappa-B. Three different compounds effectively shut down these inflammatory cytokines: glutathione itself; N-acetylcysteine (NAC), which is the precursor of glutathione; and alpha lipoic acid, which helps to regenerate glutathione. Horowitz recommends taking all three as supplements600 mg of NAC two to three times a day; 600 mg of alpha lipoic acid once or twice a day (the higher dose can cause reactive hypoglycemia in sensitive individuals); and 250 to 500 mg of glutathione twice a dayas a preventive measure against COVID-19. People who have multiple chemical sensitivities or a sulfa allergy should be careful using glutathione, as it could cause an allergic reaction (Dr. Horowitz has seen this only rarely in IV forms of glutathione). The oral version is generally safe for everyone, but it is always best to check with your healthcare provider before starting a new regimen.

The next step is to conduct a randomized controlled study of glutathione for COVID-19, but Horowitz will need help to make that happen. One way would be to give the therapy to residents at a nursing home at high risk and see how well it protects them compared to residents of a nursing home that doesn't use it. He reached out about a glutathione study to his contacts in government after serving on a committee that gave recommendations on tick-borne diseases to Congressand got back only two responses. "The medical journals are excited about remdesivir, an antiviral that only lowers your course in the hospital by four days," he says. "I'm sorry, but we're not going to base our hopes on getting four days less in the hospital. We really need something that's going to protect the public now, that is cheap, safe, and effective. Based on the peer-reviewed literature, and my clinical experience, there is a high likelihood that it will be NAC, alpha lipoic acid, and glutathione."

The upshot: The evidence on glutathione for COVID-19 is anecdotal and we need a solid study to explore its potential.

If anyone knows the importance of controlled clinical trials, it's the folks at Regeneron, a local biotech company that has seven FDA-approved medicines and about 20 investigational drugs in the pipeline. Headquartered in Tarrytown, with manufacturing facilities near Albany and in Ireland, Regeneron is buzzing with COVID-19-related activity these days. "This is a once-in-a-career thing for many people," says Alexandra Bowie, Regeneron's senior director of corporate communications, about her colleagues' opportunity to help find a cure for the biggest health crisis of our time. "The company has really rallied around this and made it our main priority, while still ensuring that we're able to deliver the medicines we make and give to people every day. We're shifting a lot of our R&D resources, our clinical resources, to prioritize the COVID projects." While the endgame is to develop a vaccine, that's not in Regeneron's wheelhouse, but they are going full force on two projects that harness their expertise. One looks to repurpose an existing medicationthe FDA-approved rheumatoid arthritis drug Kevzarawhile the other is a novel antibody therapy that could serve as a bridge of protection before a vaccine is widely available.

Jointly developed by Regeneron and the French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi, Kevzara (sarilumab) is an injectable medication that inhibits the pathway of an inflammatory cytokine called interleukin-6 (IL-6). "Some data came out of China indicating that IL-6 medicines may be helpful in addressing some of the [hyperactive] inflammatory response that comes at late stages of COVID-19," says Bowie. However, that data came from a 21-patient trial without a placebo group for comparison. So, Regeneron and Sanofi quickly launched a larger, double-blind trial to investigate the drug further. The results from phase 2 of the trial, which was conducted in both severe and critical hospitalized COVID-19 patients, did not show much effect on the severe patientsthough it did show a positive trend in the critical patients at high doses. The next step will be to focus only on critical patients in phase 3 of the trial. "We'll see what goes on there," says Bowie, "but this really confirms how important it is to conduct trials with rigor, and with a placebo arm."

Regeneron is more optimistic about its work creating a novel antibody treatment for COVID-19. The idea is that if you can find an antibody, or combination of antibodies, that can block the spike protein on the SARS-CoV-2 virus (coronavirus) cell, then you are effectively disarming it, because the virus uses its spikes to infect into healthy cells. To find these virus-neutralizing antibodies, Regeneron uses its VelociSuite platform, which is an antibody discovery development technology. "Essentially, we've replaced portions of a mouse's immune system with a human immune system, with genes that code for human immune response," explains Bowie. "When these mice are challenged with a virus or a bacteria, they produce antibodies, which are protective proteins, that look just like human antibodies. We then comb through those antibodies and pick the ones that are the most potent at blocking the virus." (If this sounds very Frankenstein, it is, especially to anyone interested in animal rights. Unfortunately, the FDA requires animal testing for most new medicines, though Regeneron says it adheres closely to the industry's ethical laws related to animal welfare.)

Moving quickly, Regeneron has already created a cocktail of two antibodies, and the treatment will go into clinical trials in humans in June. They chalk up their speed to their prior experience developing similar antibody cocktail treatments against Ebola as well as against Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which is another type of coronavirus.

It's important to note that an antibody treatment differs from a vaccine in a number of ways. While a vaccine "teaches" the body how to make antibodies that protect against a pathogen, an antibody treatment skips that step and simply administers the necessary antibodies directly into people. Unlike a vaccine, which can protect you for years or even a lifetime, an antibody treatment is effective for only a month or so. But it could offer stop-gap protection, especially for high-risk groups like healthcare providers, who could be re-dosed as needed. More important, an antibody treatment could also help treat people who are already infected, effectively curing the virus. "That's why we think that our option is really a bridge to a vaccine," says Bowie. "We're still going to need a vaccine in the longer term, but this can be a good solution for the next year or however long we need it."

The upshot: Kevzara might help treat critical COVID-19 patients, but Regeneron's antibody treatment is the one to watch as we await results from the clinical trials. Stay tuned.

The rest is here:
Two Potential Treatments for COVID-19 Unfold in the Hudson Valley - Chronogram

With America on lockdown the past two months, many people turned to the woods for safe isolation and social distancing. And now as sections of the country reopen and summer approaches, the outdoors will be filled with hikers, campers, hunters and fishermen. It will also be filled with ticks that may be carrying the bacterial infection that spreads Lyme disease to humans and pets.

Unlike a mosquito bite where people know immediately if they have been bitten, a tick bite may go undetected; and one of the challenges with Lyme disease is that symptoms may not appear for two to six weeks. That makes it critically important to take steps to avoid catching the disease and to know its warning signs so treatment can begin early when it is most effective.

"While not all deer ticks cause Lyme disease, it is still smart to avoid areas where deer ticks live, especially wooded, bushy areas with long grass," said Sean McCloy, M.D., a family medicine physician with an expertise in Lyme disease at the Integrative Health Center of Maine. "You can decrease your risk of getting Lyme disease with some simple precautions, such as wearing shoes, long pants tucked into your socks, a long-sleeved shirt, a hat and gloves. And after spending time in vulnerable areas you should always check your clothing, yourself, your children and your pets for ticks; and remove any that you find as soon as possible with tweezers. Only a minority of tick bites leads to Lyme disease; but the longer the tick remains attached to your skin, the greater your risk of getting the disease."

For those who are bitten by an infected tick, early warning signs include fever, headache, fatigue, joint pain, swollen lymph nodes, weakness in the limbs and a characteristic skin rash often in a bull's-eye pattern. If untreated, new symptoms could include neurological problems and, though less common, heart problems (such as an irregular heartbeat), eye inflammation, liver inflammation and severe fatigue.

"If you think you've been bitten and have signs and symptoms of Lyme diseaseparticularly if you live in an area where Lyme disease is prevalentit is critical to get tested as treatment is more effective if begun early," said Robert Dracker, M.D., chairman of the heart, lung and cancer committee for the Medical Society of New York and medical director of Summerwood Pediatrics and Infusacare Medical Services in New York. "Fortunately, new tests are available that are easy to administer and provide results faster than ever."

Leading the way in Lyme disease testing is the innovative Sofia 2 Lyme FIA test. This in-office test provides a patient as well as his or her physician with indicative results within minutes as opposed to days, which has historically been the norm. Performed in the privacy of a doctors office or local clinic, it is also the only test that can get results from a simple finger prick of blood. The test was developed by Quidel, a California-based diagnostic healthcare manufacturer and one of the nations leaders in developing rapid diagnostic health solutions.

"Given that the vast majority of patients tested are negative, getting results quickly will mean discernable peace of mind and remove a significant weight off a persons shoulders," said Dr. Dracker. "Not having to wait days for test results allows physicians and nurse practitioners to more rapidly treat those patients with positive results while more quickly pursuing other diagnosis and treatment for those who test negative."

Patients seeking more information are encouraged to contact their private physician to find out more about the availability of this innovative new test in their area. More information on Quidel may be obtained at quidel.com.

About Quidel Corporation

Quidel Corporation serves to enhance the health and well-being of people around the globe through the development of diagnostic solutions that can lead to improved patient outcomes and provide economic benefits to the healthcare system. Quidels products aid in the detection and diagnosis of many critical diseases and conditions including not only Lyme disease but, among others, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, strep A, herpes, pregnancy, thyroid disease and fecal occult blood. Quidels research and development engine is also developing a continuum of diagnostic solutions from advanced immunoassay to molecular diagnostic tests to further improve the quality of healthcare in physicians offices and hospital and reference laboratories. For more information about Quidel, visit quidel.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200602005149/en/

Contacts

Jim Yeager424-644-0225 (office)818-264-6812 (mobile)jim@breakwhitelight.com

See the article here:
Knowing Signs and Symptoms of Lyme Disease Is Critical for Early Detection and Treatment, Says Industry-Leading Quidel - Yahoo Finance

Calmaria means calm in Portuguese, and is the word chosen by Fabio Sasso to launch his first application. Sassos name may not sound too much to you, but its a designer who currently works for Google and he is the founder of Abduzeedo: a prestigious blog design that we have already talked about on other occasions.

In the midst of a global pandemic and seeing racial unrest increase in the United States, one could feel somewhat anxious. There are many breathing techniques to relax, and Calmaria invites us to try a well-known one.

Obviously, coming from the hand of Abduzeedo, design is one of its most striking points. A kind of minimalist sunset, with warm tones, will indicate the way in which we must breathe.

Although there are many websites and applications that use this method, the truth is that a nice and easy to follow interface It can help us establish a habit or that we feel like using it throughout the day.

Calm is based on the 4-7-8 technique, a method designed by Dr. Andrew Weil (director of Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona and a popular character in the United States).

As the name suggests, this technique is made up of three steps different: inhale for four seconds, hold your breath for seven seconds and exhale for eight seconds.

It has a web app and an Android version (the iOS version will be soon)

We will not have to be counting time, since this app will indicate the missing seconds in each phase at all times. Currently it has a web app and an Android version, and they assure that soon the iOS version will arrive. Another positive point is that its completely free.

ShareAbduzeedo launches its first app: beautiful and minimalist design that helps us breathe and relax

Read more:
beautiful and minimalist design that helps us breathe and relax - Explica

Leading breast cancer specialists to share best practices on leveraging the latest in cancer therapies to enhance patient care and minimize virus exposure

NASHUA, N.H., June 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- iCAD, Inc. (ICAD), a global medical technology leader providing innovative cancer detection and therapy solutions, today announced it will host a free virtual roundtable event for clinicians, titled The Impact of COVID-19 on Breast Cancer Surgery and Targeted Radiation Therapy, on June 4, 2020 at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT. Event registration is available via this link: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5960832272590383888.

The roundtable will feature leading specialists in breast cancer treatment, including the following experts*:

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced unprecedented challenges to our health care system and specifically impacted cancer screenings and treatment in our country and worldwide. During these extraordinary times, it is imperative for clinicians to share best practices and adapt approaches to patient care. iCAD is honored to host virtual events such as this, which provide an educational forum for clinicians to enhance patient care during this global healthcare crisis and beyond, according to Stacey Stevens, President of iCAD. In the face of this pandemic, iCADs technology is now more relevant than ever. Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) with the Xoft Axxent Electronic Brachytherapy (eBx) System offers a viable solution that could potentially alleviate the burden to our health system, while enabling clinicians to administer high-quality care to patients who are candidates, while minimizing their potential exposure to the novel coronavirus.

Xoft breast IORT is a single-fraction therapy option that allows select early-stage breast cancer patients to replace weeks of daily radiation with one treatment, delivered at the time of surgery. This targeted treatment option offers a full course of radiation in just one day, which could contribute to a reduction in the healthcare system resources needed for breast cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic and reduce those patients risk of exposure to the novel coronavirus by minimizing the number of visits required to a hospital or medical facility.

In the recent months during the COVID-19 pandemic, hospital resources have become limited in many areas, and guidelines issued by a number of medical societies advise clinicians to determine how best to triage the care of cancer patients safely.1 Some breast cancer patients are choosing to delay parts of their treatment for safety concerns, according to Sadia Khan, DO, FACS, Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery at Keck School of Medicine, USC, Director of Integrative Breast Oncology at Hoag Breast Program. In areas where there is still a high incidence of COVID-19, some patients with breast cancer may opt to choose IORT, which offers a one-dose radiation option for patients who meet the criteria. For those who are candidates, IORT gives patients an additional option to complete their radiation in a one-time dose, which decreases their exposure to the hospital.

Positive results from a long-term study involving Xoft breast IORT conducted at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian were published in the Annals of Surgical Oncology in 2019.2 Led by Melvin J. Silverstein, MD, Medical Director of the Hoag Breast Center, the prospective study, titled Intraoperative Radiation Therapy (IORT): A Series of 1000 Tumors, found breast cancer recurrence rates of patients who were treated with Xoft breast IORT were comparable to those seen in the cornerstone, randomized TARGIT-A and ELIOT trials, which evaluated IORT using different technology.

A number of breast cancer patients at our facility have had their treatment delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is concerning to physicians and patients alike, as some cases could potentially progress and it could result in a considerable backlog of patients who require urgent treatment with more advanced disease, according to Michael Howard, PhD, DABMP, RSO, Director of Oncology Services, Chief of Medical Physics, Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute, Parkridge Medical Center, HCA Healthcare. The concern for a second wave of COVID is very real, but IORT offers a way to help reduce this potential backlog.

Story continues

The reality is, IORT may be able to play a bigger role right now in the treatment of patients. In some cases, it may be ultimately more beneficial to offer IORT to avoid the backlog in treatment as a means of not overrunning hospitals and radiation centers once we are back up and running, added Barry Rosen, MD, FACS, Chief of Breast Surgery, Advocate Healthcare and Managing Partner, TME. IORT is one of those exceptional interventions that I believe satisfies the triple aim in treatment: it offers benefits to patients, providers and payers alike. For patients, it offers added convenience, with better cosmetic outcomes and fewer side effects; from a physician standpoint there is an inherent efficiency, as it enables them to condense one month of daily treatments to a single dose of targeted radiation. Lastly, for payers, the overall cost of treatment is reduced as the course of treatment may be reduced from weeks of daily fractions to one concentrated dose of radiation, administered at the time of surgery.

As clinicians, we are going to have to adapt to the COVID-19 situation as it evolves. At a certain point, delaying treatment for even early-stage breast cancer is going to come with risk. In many cases, the decision really should be made to go forward with cancer treatment; IORT offers a treatment option that may allow more women to get the treatment they need during this time, according to Charles Wesley Hodge, MD, Radiation Oncologist, Florida Hospital Celebration Health/AdventHealth. We are facing an unprecedented challenge in healthcare, and as clinicians we need to come together and adjust to these new realities. For those of us who practice in the oncology space, it is particularly challenging because we are dealing with a potentially life-threatening illness that requires appropriate management. Now is the time for clinicians to work together, to adjust to our new reality, and to come up with an approach that will do the greatest good for our patients.

This virtual roundtable event is a part of larger series of webinars hosted by iCAD in recent weeks, featuring leading experts in breast cancer detection and treatment. This series has examined various aspects of breast cancer care in the era of COVID-19, including risk adaptive tools and pragmatic solutions for both screening and treatment. To view the schedule, register for an upcoming free event, or view a prior event on-demand, visit https://www.icadmed.com/educational-webinars.html.

*Panelists have been compensated with an honoraria/speaking fee, but are encouraged to provide their own expert opinions and viewpoints. Dr. Patel is a member of iCADs Board of Directors.

About iCAD, Inc.

Headquartered in Nashua, NH, iCAD is a global medical technology leader providing innovative cancer detection and therapy solutions.

ProFound AI is a high-performing workflow solution for 2D and 3D mammography, or digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), featuring the latest in deep-learning artificial intelligence. In 2018, ProFound AI for Digital Breast Tomosynthesis (DBT) became the first artificial intelligence (AI) software for DBT to be FDA-cleared; it was also CE marked and Health Canada licensed that same year. It offers clinically proven time-savings benefits to radiologists, including a reduction of reading time by 52.7 percent, thereby halving the amount of time it takes radiologists to read 3D mammography datasets. Additionally, ProFound AI for DBT improved radiologist sensitivity by 8 percent and reduced unnecessary patient recall rates by 7.2 percent.1

The Xoft System is FDA-cleared, CE marked and licensed in a growing number of countries for the treatment of cancer anywhere in the body. It uses a proprietary miniaturized x-ray source to deliver a precise, concentrated dose of radiation directly to the tumor site, while minimizing risk of damage to healthy tissue in nearby areas of the body.

For more information, visitwww.icadmed.com and http://www.xoftinc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this News Release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements about the future prospects for the Companys technology platforms and products. Such forward-looking statements involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited, to the Companys ability to achieve business and strategic objectives, the ability of IORT to alleviate the burden to our health system and minimize a patients potential exposure to Covid-19, to be more beneficial for patients that traditional therapy or to be accepted by patients or clinicians, the impact of supply and manufacturing constraints or difficulties, uncertainty of future sales levels, to defend itself in litigation matters, protection of patents and other proprietary rights, the impact of supply and manufacturing constraints or difficulties, product market acceptance, possible technological obsolescence of products, increased competition, litigation and/or government regulation, changes in Medicare or other reimbursement policies, risks relating to our existing and future debt obligations, competitive factors, the effects of a decline in the economy or markets served by the Company; and other risks detailed in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The words believe, demonstrate, intend, expect, estimate, will, continue, anticipate, likely, seek, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on those forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date the statement was made. The Company is under no obligation to provide any updates to any information contained in this release. For additional disclosure regarding these and other risks faced by iCAD, please see the disclosure contained in our public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available on the Investors section of our website athttp://www.icadmed.comand on the SECs website athttp://www.sec.gov.

Contacts:Media inquiries:Jessica Burns, iCAD+1-201-423-4492jburns@icadmed.com

Investor Relations:Jeremy Feffer, LifeSci Advisors+1-212-915-2568jeremy@lifesciadvisors.com

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iCAD Hosts Virtual Roundtable Event on Breast Cancer Surgery and Targeted Radiation During COVID-19 - Yahoo Finance

At some point, youve probably been told totake a deep breathin a moment of anxiety. As it turns out, theres more to the clich than you might think. We spoke to experts about 4-7-8 breathing, a technique that, in a matter of seconds, can ease your negative response to stress. Inspired by yoga, 4-7-8 breathingisnt just a psychological tool: It can actually change the speed at which your heart beats and promote the effective pumping of blood to various organs and muscles. Heres how (and why) to do it.

Its a breathing pattern based on pranayama, which is the part of yoga that deals with breath control. 4-7-8 is relaxing because it extends the exhale portion of the breathing, said Dr. Victoria Maizes, the executive director of the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Extending the exhale has a quieting effect on the body by interacting with the parasympathetic nervous system (essentially the flip side of the fight-or-flight stress response).

Its free,its simple, and you can choose to use it any time youre feeling stressed.

Sit upright with your chest open and put the tip of your tongue at the roof of your mouth. Theres a little ridge behind your upper front teeth where your tongue will stay for the entire exercise (the placement of which will cause a whoosh sound when you exhale). Inhale through your nose to the count of four, hold your breath for seven counts, and exhale slowly through your mouth for eight counts (you can purse your lips while exhaling if that feels more comfortable for you).

This is one breath, so do this three more times for a total of four breaths. If its helpful, you can count on your fingers to track how many cycles youve done. You have to exhale slowly or else youll run out of air pretty fast, since your exhale is now twice as long as your inhale, says Maizes. The ratio is whats important not the exact time you spend on each phase so you can speed the whole thing up or slow it down as long as you keep the 4-7-8 count intact.

I think its hard to learn anything new when youre really anxious, but in particular, I think its hard to learn to relax, says Maizes, which is why she suggests making 4-7-8 a practice by doing it twice a day, every day. You can do it more than twice a day do it 20 times a day if you want but you should only do the 4-7-8 breath four times in a row at a time. Once you get really good at it after practicing it for about a month or longer the typical recommendation is to bump it up from four to eight times in a row, but no more. (Its not exactly clear why this restriction exists, but Maizes theorises that its because you can blow off more carbon dioxide while slowly exhaling, and doing too much of that could make you lightheaded or uncomfortable.)

Because youre doing no more than four cycles (or, eventually, eight) at a time, the exercise will only take seconds. It is physiologically impossible to be stressed and relaxed at the same time, Maizes said. Practicing 4-7-8 breathing makes your nervous system smarter, so then if youre anxious, your body goes, Oh yeah, I know how to relax. Ive been practicing this for weeks. Sometimes, Maizes adds,if youre feeling really anxious, you might have difficulty both taking a deep breath and holding your breath. Thats why its helpful to familiarise yourself with the practice throughout the day, particularly in moments when you are not feeling stressed. The more you practice it and get better at it, the more helpful it will be for you when youre feeling a lot of anxiety, says Dr. Sarah Kate McGowan, assistant clinical professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioural sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Thats not to say that you shouldnt try 4-7-8 in the moment if youve never done it before it will likely still be helpful but ina highly anxious moment, its easier to draw on something youve done before.

Its free,its simple, and you can choose to use it any time youre feeling stressed. Part of anxiety is loss of control, says McGowan. With something like 4-7-8, you dont need to rely on anyone but yourself. Dont underestimate the self-efficacy aspect of this practice.

But there are physiological components at play, too. This sort of breathing helps regulate the bodys stress response the fight or flight reaction that helps us survive life-threatening situations. In stressful circumstances, your breath increases in order to get extra oxygen to your lungs and your brain helpful, should you actually have to fight or take flight. But in a lot of modern day stressors, there isnt a physical threatcreating that anxiety.So what were doing with breathing exercises is trying to slow down our bodys sympathetic response, McGowan said.

The bodys stress response isnt inherently a bad thing. Even fruit flies have a stress response, said Dr. Esther Sternberg, research director at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. You cannot live without it. The goal is not to get rid of the stress response thats not possible. The question is how you turn that negative stress into good stress and make it work for you.

And the way to do that is by engaging whats called the relaxation response. This response isactivated by the vagus nerve, which connects the spinal cord to the internal organs of the body. One way to quickly engage the vagus nerve in other words, to quickly engage the relaxation response is through deep breathing. Its like putting your foot on the brake and putting the brake on the stress response, Sternberg says.

Breathing deeply changes the speed at which your heart beats.

Breathing deeply changes the speed at which your heart beats. If you look at one minute of heart rate, youll see that your heart doesnt beat exactly evenly. This is whats called heart rate variability, which is the variation in the spaces between the beats. Thats because the vagus nerve is directly connected to the part of the heart that controls heart rate, the rhythm center, says Sternberg. When you inhale the heart rate increases, and when you exhale, it decreases. As you breathe deeply, it changes the speed at which the heart beats, so you get more variability. The greater the heart rate variability, the more effective the pumping of the blood to all your different organs and muscles.

Just as there are brain pathways engaged with negative experiences of stress, Sternberg says positive experiences such as deep breathing, walking in nature, and even prayer engage other brain pathways that are rich in endorphins and feel-good molecules. In addition to making you feel good, they contribute to putting that break on the stress response, Sternberg says. Remember,if youre feeling anxious, your body is telling you something. she says. As soon as you change course, you shift from feeling stressed to feeling exhilarated the difference between the two feelings is whether or not youre in control.

This article originally appeared on Science of Us 2020 All Rights Reserved. Distributed by Tribune Content

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How to breathe using the 4-7-8 technique if you're feeling anxious - SBS

In the times when India is grappling due to the COVID-19 situation, swarms of locust attacking various parts of the country is another formidable challege the country has to tackle. According to the Agriculture Ministry, nearly 15 districts in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have experienced locust attacks which are still active.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on Wednesday informed that locust control operations have been stepped up in affected states to combat the menace.

"Amidst a wave of locust swarms sweeping across western & northwestern India, Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare has stepped up locust control operations in affected states of Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat & Madhya Pradesh," said the Agriculture Ministry in a press release.

The ministry further added: "As of today, there are active swarms of immature locust in Barmer, Jodhpur, Nagaur, Bikaner, Ganganagar, Hanumangarh, Sikar, Jaipur Districts in Rajasthan and Satna, Gwalior, Seedhi, Rajgarh, Baitul, Devas, Agar Malwa district of Madhya Pradesh."

The ministry further informed that till 26 May, control operations against locusts done in 47,308-hectare area at 303 places in Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh by Locust Circle Offices (LCO) in coordination with District Administration and State Agriculture Department.

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Swarms of locust still active in 15 districts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh - Free Press Journal

Quick and Cheap: RT-Lamp COVID-19 tests to cost up to Rs 200, give results in less than an hour, says CSIR  |  Photo Credit: iStock Images

New Delhi [India], May 27 (ANI): The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed an MoU with Reliance to develop a new RT-LAMP COVID-19 diagnostic kit, which is cheap and gives a quick result, said Director-General Dr Shekhar C Mande on Wednesday.

COVID-19 RT-LAMP (Reverse Transcriptase-Loop Mediated Isothermal Amplification) test is a nucleic acid-based test carried out from nasal or throat swab samples from the patients. The test has been developed and successfully demonstrated using synthetic templates.

Talking about the test, Dr Mande said that "RT-LAMP test is cheap because you don't need to have instrument cost. It's also quite quick. You can actually take it into different areas. You can very quickly take it into the rural area."

The CSIR on Tuesday had announced that the Institute of Integrative Medicine in Jammu has tied up with Reliance Industries Ltd to develop and scale-up a new RT-LAMP based COVID-19 diagnostic kit.

Dr Mande said that the new testing kit "could cost between Rs 100 and Rs 200. It will take less than an hour for a test to do. Within one hour, we can get the result."

Talking about the difference between Feluda test and RT-LAMP kit, Dr Mande said: "Technological basis of Feluda kit and RT-LAMP kit is different. Faluda is based on technique call crisper cash, while RT-LAMP is based on RT-PCR. There is isothermal PCR. So, the technology of both kits is different."

"RT PCR requires a specialised machine. The first step is a reverse transcription that is common to both RT-PCR as well as RT-LAMP. The second step is once DNA is made from RNA, the PCR quantitative to PCR machine does three cycles of temperature," added he.

The CSIR-DG said further said: "In this condition, you do something at 92 degrees; you do something at 55 degrees; you do something at 73 degrees, and you keep cycling between these three temperatures about 25 and 30 times, and in each cycle the number of DNA molecules doubles and you measure. That is in the fluorescent level. So that is a base of RT-PCR."

"But RT-PCR required this machine the fluorescent level is costly and it takes time. On the other hand, the RT-LAMP test is using only four to six primers for the amplification of DNA. It uses four and six primers and you do the amplification of DNA. First of all, it is common for converting RNA into DNA. When in the second step, you use only a single temperature something like 60-degree Celsius," he added.

Dr Mande informed that the Institute of Integrative Medicine in Jammu and Reliance Industries Ltd have agreed that they will scale up the production of the test kit.

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Quick and Cheap: RT-Lamp COVID-19 tests to cost up to Rs 200, give results in less than an hour, says CSIR - Times Now

This contribution is a part of the $50 million commitment from Southern Company and its subsidiaries to historically black colleges and universities

ATLANTA, May 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Southern Company Gas and the Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation are donating $1 million toward academic expansion and efforts to provide greater equity in healthcare led by Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM).

Southern Company Gas Logo (PRNewsfoto/Southern Company Gas)

This gift, part of MSM's Expansion into the Future Initiative, enables the medical school to strengthen its academic offerings and research enterprise, including its budding Natural Products Research Center and the development of an Emerging Pathogens Research Team focusing on topics such as coronaviruses.

"As our communities continue to be impacted by the coronavirus and work to recover from what has become a global health crisis, Southern Company Gas recognizes the immediate need to support institutions seeking solutions while addressing critical health equity issues," said Kim Greene, chairman, president and CEO of Southern Company Gas. "We support MSM's cutting-edge research and education model, which fosters greater inclusion in not only healthcare, but ultimately our entire society."

According to a study led by amfAR and the Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access and data from the U.S. Census Bureau, black Americans represent 13.4% of the U.S. population, but counties with higher black populations account for more than half of all COVID-19 cases and almost 60% of deaths. MSM's efforts to improve diversity in the medical profession, research into health challenges facing minority communities and service to underserved communities play a critical role in addressing racial inequality.

The academic expansion initiative will provide the campus community with state-of-the-art facilities that effectively integrate technology and foster collaborative learning among students, faculty, and staff. It will also support MSM's research portfolio focused on infectious diseases such as COVID-19, as well as cancer, cardiovascular disease and neuroscience, among other topics critical to improving the health of underserved communities.

"Our existing virology research's success may help to establish an even larger U.S and global structure examining emerging pathogens of all types and how we can identify and address them," says Professor Vincent C. Bond, chair of the Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Immunology at MSM. "Our integrative approach to health care allows us to translate the discoveries made in labs, to the bedside of patients, and then to the communities we serve."

Recently celebrating its 45th anniversary, MSM has made monumental strides increasing the class size of each of its degree-granting programs, including the Medical program, Graduate Education in Biomedical Sciences, Graduate Education in Public Health and Physician Assistant Studies.

Higher education plays a critical role in driving economic wellbeing; however, studies have shown one approach to ending the cycle of poverty caused by our nation's long history of racial inequity considers quality education and healthcare. This is why earlier this year Southern Company Gas and its parent company, Southern Company, announced plans to donate $50 million to historically black universities and colleges to support career readiness and develop future leaders.

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For more information on Southern Company Gas' efforts to support COVID-19 relief, visit scgcares.org.

About Southern Company GasSouthern Company Gas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO), America's premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.2 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in four states and approximately 700,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines, asset management for natural gas wholesale customers and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. For more information, visit southerncompanygas.com.

About the Southern Company Charitable Gas FoundationThe Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to supporting those who are transforming lives by tackling complex challenges with revolutionary vision. Every year, the Charitable Foundation donates millions of dollars in grants to organizations that align with Southern Company Gas' values and that passionately work to improve the lives of the communities the company serves. As an independent, nonprofit philanthropic foundation, the Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation is funded solely by Southern Company Gas through shareholder dollars.

About Morehouse School of MedicineMorehouse School of Medicine (MSM), located in Atlanta, GA exist to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities, increase the diversity of the health professional and scientific workforce, and address primary health care through programs in education, research, and service, with emphasis on people of color and the underserved urban and rural populations in Georgia, the nation,and the world. MSM is among the nation's leading educators of primary care physicians and has twice been recognized as the top institution among U.S. medical schools for its dedication to the social mission of education. The faculty and alumni are noted in their fields for excellence in teaching, research, and public policy, and are known in the community for exceptional, culturally appropriate patient care. Morehouse School of Medicine is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award doctorate and master's degrees.

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Southern Company Gas donates $1 million to Morehouse School of Medicine to support the advancement of health equity - Yahoo Finance

Global health experts on Wednesday said novel coronavirus is here to stay for more than a year and called for aggressive testing to prevent its spread. In an interaction with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, health experts Professor Ashish Jha and Professor Johan Giesecke talked about the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the series being aired on Congress social media channels.

While Jha exuded confidence that a vaccine will be available in a year's time, Prof Giesecke said India should practice a lockdown that is as 'soft' as possible, as a severe lockdown will ruin its economy very quickly.

"When the economy is opened up after lockdown, you have to create confidence among people," Harvard health expert Ashish Jha told Gandhi.

Jha is a professor of Global Health at TH Chan School of Public Health and Director, Harvard Global Health institute. He said coronavirus is a '12-18 months' problem and the world is not going to be free of this till 2021.

Professor Johan Giesecke, former chief scientist, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said India should have a 'soft lockdown'. "The situation that India is in, I think, you should have a soft lockdown, as soft as possible," he said. "I think for India, you will ruin your economy very quickly if you have a severe lockdown. It is better, skip the lockdown, take care of the old and the frail...," he noted.

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COVID-19 here to stay till 2021, aggressive testing needed to curb its spread: Health experts - ETHealthworld.com

Press Trust of IndiaMay 26, 2020 08:04:50 IST

With a vaccine still a long distance away, efforts to repurpose old medications used for other ailments provide hope of an early counter to COVID-19, say, scientists, placing the antiviral remdesivir on top of the list of possible contenders.

As COVID-19 continues its spread crossing 5.2 million cases and 3,38,000 fatalities on Saturday several categories of drugs are under clinical trial. Of them, remdesivir, which initially went into trials for treating the deadly Ebola virus five years ago, has shown promise by modestly speeding recovery from COVID-19, experts said.

More than 130 drugs are under experimentation to treat COVID-19, some may have the potential to stop the virus while others may help calm overactive immune responses that damage organs, according to a tracker maintained by the Milken Institute, an independent economic think tank in the US,

Remdesivir is helping people recover faster, and is lowering the death rate among critically ill patients.

"Right now, there is only one effective approach which is to repurpose already approved drugs for other diseases if they can be used for COVID-19. One example is remdesivir," Ram Vishwakarma, director of the Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, CSIR, Jammu, told PTI.

Remdesivir is helping people recover faster, and is lowering the death rate among critically ill patients, Vishwakarma said, adding that it can be life-saving.

We do not have time to develop new drugs. New drug development takes five-10 years so we are using existing drugs and conducting clinical trials to find if any of them are effective, Vishwakarma said.

Some molecules available for treating diseases like HIV or other viral infections can be quickly checked against the novel coronavirus, he explained. If found effective, they can be used against COVID-19 with the appropriate approval from drug control bodies.

When drug company Gilead Sciences sought to begin clinical trials for remdesivir to treat the novel coronavirus, it immediately got approval from the US FDA.

According to Vishwakarma, the other drug showing promise is favipiravir, a broad-spectrum antiviral approved in Japan, which is also under clinical trials for its effectiveness against COVID-19.

The Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad, has developed the technology to make favipiravir, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Director-General Shekar Mande announced this month.

CSIR is conducting clinical trials for favipiravir, remdesivir and an anti-inflammatory drug called colchicine, which is commonly used to treat gout, said Vishwakarma.

"A number of drug trials are happening in India, which we are doing with pharmaceutical companies," Vishwakarma said.

Of the drugs under trial, remdesivir has shown the most promising results, agreed Subhabrata Sen, professor at the Department of Chemistry in Shiv Nadar University in Uttar Pradesh.

Sen, whose lab is involved in the discovery of biologically active molecules, told PTI that some of the drugs being tested are antivirals, and some are antimalarials and antibiotics.

Of the antivirals in the tracker list, some are new molecules under trial, whereas others are old drugs being repurposed and tested for their effectiveness against COVID-19.

Remdesivir, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in April, mimics the genetic material of the coronavirus. When the virus copies its RNA or genetic material, the drug replaces some of the pathogen's building blocks.

According to the authors of this study, the drug prevents new virus copies from being produced.

Preliminary results had shown that patients who received remdesivir had a 31 per cent faster time to recovery than those who received placebo.

However, another study published in the journal Lancet in April cautioned that interpretation of these findings is limited since the remdesivir study was stopped early after the scientists were unable to recruit enough patients due to the steep decline in cases in China.

The authors of The Lancet study concluded that more evidence from ongoing clinical trials is needed to better understand whether remdesivir can provide meaningful clinical benefit.

Some drugs developed to treat HIV, such as lopinavir and ritonavir, are also being tested to cure COVID-19, Vishwakarma said.

A study published in Lancet this month said a treatment involving a combination of the drugs interferon beta-1b, plus the antiviral combination lopinavir-ritonavir and ribavirin, is better at reducing the viral load or quantity of the virus than lopinavir-ritonavir alone.

But these, too, were early findings, observed only in patients with mild to moderate illness, so the scientists behind the study stressed the need for larger trials to examine the effectiveness of this triple combination in critically ill patients.

Another study published last month in the journal Science noted the effectiveness of two small molecule drug candidates named 11a and 11b which could block the SARS-CoV-2 M protease enzyme, which the virus uses to make copies of itself.

The molecules could stop the virus from replicating in monkey cells and have been found safe for administration in rats and beagles, with the study concluding that both the drugs warrant further studies.

Scientists have also tested the effectiveness of therapies involving the use of antibodies that can bind to some parts of the virus, and block their entry into host cells.

In a study, published last month in the journal Cell, scientists reported that antibodies derived from the immune system of the South American mammal called llamas can block the entry of the novel coronavirus into host cells.

This study found that llamas, which belong to the same category of mammals as camels, produce special kinds of antibody molecules that bind tightly to a key protein on the novel coronavirus.

However, scientists believe its efficacy is yet to be proved in human clinical trials.

Last week, scientists from the Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics at Peking University in China, revealed a new method to identify multiple antibodies from recovered COVID-19 patients.

Using a single-cell genomics method, the researchers could rapidly identify antibodies from convalescent plasma, a component of patients' blood.

When the researchers tested these antibodies in mice, they found that some of them could neutralise the virus.

Another team from the University of Washington in the US found recently that a combination of antibodies, including those from a patient who had recovered from the 2002-03 SARS pandemic virus infection, can effectively block the novel coronavirus.

One of these molecules, named S309, showed particularly strong neutralising activity against SARS-CoV-2, they said, adding that it can act in combination with another, a less potent antibody that targets a different site on the virus.

However, these results to are yet to be validated in human clinical trials.

Among other therapeutics currently under trial or in use, Sen said US President Donald Trump's "game-changer" drug hydroxychloroquine was promising "until it demonstrated serious side effects in the form of cardiovascular complications", rendering it ineffective.

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Clinical trials are showing that Remdesivir can be life-saving drug for COVID-19 infected patients - Firstpost

Dr. Donald Moss

MONTREAL (PRWEB) May 26, 2020

In an ongoing webinar series presented by Thought Technology Ltd., experts from various fields discuss how they are using biofeedback in their practices. Todays mental health practitioners have many tools at their disposal to best address the individual needs of their clients. In an upcoming webinar, Dr. Donald Moss will discuss adjunctive therapies that can be used in conjunction with biofeedback.

Adjunctive therapies are interventions that combine well with biofeedback and neurofeedback training and augment the therapeutic effect of the biofeedback and neurofeedback. The combined therapeutic effect of biofeedback and relaxation together is often greater than the effect of either intervention alone. Regular home practice of relaxation skills improves basal autonomic nervous system regulation and reduces the onset of problematic symptoms. This Webinar introduces six adjunctive therapies, including progressive muscle relaxation, autogenic training, paced diaphragmatic breathing, guided imagery, meditation, and mindfulness. Two of them will be demonstrated, and brief clinical vignettes will illustrate the use of the adjunctive techniques. Each of these skill sets can be administered on its own, with therapeutic effect, or provided in combination with biofeedback as a treatment package.

Adjunctive Therapies for Use with Biofeedback and NeurofeedbackPresenter: Dr. Donald MossDate: May 29, 2020Time: 1:00-2:00 pm EDT

Click here to register.

About Dr. Donald MossDonald Moss, Ph.D., BCB, is Dean, College of Integrative Medicine and Health Sciences, at Saybrook University, Oakland, CA. Dr. Moss is the Education Chair of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis (SCEH). He is also the ethics chair and international certification chair for the Biofeedback Certification International Alliance. He has served as president of Division 30 (hypnosis) of the American Psychological Association, SCEH, and the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB). Dr. Moss has a book with co-author Angele McGrady on Integrative Pathways: Navigating Chronic Illness with a Mind-Body-Spirit Approach (Springer, 2018), and a book with co-editor Fredric Shaffer on Physiological Recording Technology and Applications in Biofeedback and Neurofeedback (AAPB, 2019). He has a book in press with co-editor Inna Khazan on Mindfulness, Compassion, and Biofeedback Practice (AAPB). Moss is co-editor of Foundations of Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback (AAPB, 2016), co-author of Pathways to Illness, Pathways to Health (Springer, 2013), and chief editor of Handbook of Mind-Body Medicine for Primary Care (Sage, 2003) and Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychology (Greenwood, 1998).

About Thought Technology Ltd.Founded in 1975, Thought Technology is the world's leading biofeedback and physiological instrument manufacturer. Its products are used as an essential part of many therapeutic treatments and clinical assessment protocols in over 85 countries and are used by tens of thousands of clinicians in thousands of medical institutions.

Always supportive of new research and development ideas, Thought Technology Ltd. has encouraged a number of special interest groups and clinicians to create cutting edge applications for its instrumentation. Thought Technology Ltd. equipment is now being used in telemedicine, web-based monitoring and biofeedback, sports training, research in human-machine interface, physiology-driven multimedia environments and virtual reality. Constantly striving to improve the quality of the products and services, TTL has obtained, and maintains, ISO 13485, and CE certification for the organization and products.

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Thought Technology's Webinar Series Focuses on Adjunctive Therapies That Combine Well with Biofeedback and Neurofeedback - PR Web

By Deepak Chopra, MD

The COVID crisis is being fought on two fronts, medical and economic, but most people are suffering psychologically. The word existential rarely comes up in normal everyday life, but the crisis has created all the symptoms of existential dread: a sense of futility, anxiety about the human condition, and a deep fear of death. This comes as a shocking occurrence, and if there is such a thing as existential healing, now is the time for it.

Questions about existence baffle people, and there seems to be no reason to confront them until the last moment. One of the reasons that Elisabeth Kbler-Rosss 1969 book, On Death and Dying, was seized upon by millions is that she drew a map of grief that showed dying patients that the inevitability of death wasnt terrifying in the end. The five stages of grief outlined by Kbler-Rossdenial, anger, depression, bargaining, and acceptancecoincides with what is seen in hospice care. The prospect of death for most people leads to acceptance.

But there is a sixth stage of grieving that applies right now: meaning. The most fortunate patients go beyond acceptance to see that their lives had purpose, that existence is meaningful, and therefore that death lost its final power, which is fear and dread. This is the healing that I think should be embraced now. The actual deaths caused by COVID-19 are outnumbered by the cases of fear and dread being experienced on a mass scale. One way or another, we have all entered the grieving process.

There are two paths to arrive at the peace that comes when your life is meaningful. The first path is through action and achievement. You set out on a purpose, and you succeed in fulfilling it. Ideally everyone should be able to create meaning through the work they do, the service they offer, the love they share, and the good they achieve. But during lockdown, there is often no outlet for this path. We find ourselves passively victimized by a mindless virus that is achieving far more than its human victims; that is, its purpose in life, which is to find a host and multiply, has been astoundingly successful.

But the second path to a meaningful life hasnt been touched by the virus, and never can be. This path is one of realization. You go inside and discover that you are sustained by your own being. At your core you find value, no matter what you do in life, and no matter what external threats assail you. This path has been open forever, and its teaching occupies the worlds spiritual traditions both East and West. Nirvana, Moksha, liberation, the Kingdom of Heaven within, the peace that passes understanding: by whatever name, the path is essentially the same.

The problem is that we have erected mental barriers that block this path, which should be the easiest path imaginable. Its message is grasped naturally by children: You are here, and that is enough. There is no need to a pilgrimage to a holy place, years in a spiritual retreat, long immersions in silence, or the proverbial cave in the Himalayas. The only thing to do is to wake up as directly as you can, here and now. So why dont we? It isnt as if the teachings from spiritual guides, teachers, seers, sages, avatars, gurus, and saints is lacking. Whats the problem?

Once you ask this question, you are on your way to waking up. Existential dread is actually a mental creation. We listen to the voice of fear in our heads; we let fear become an emotion that we feel powerless to oppose; we are lulled into passivity by the everyday routine of life; we dont bother to see for ourselves; and we have a lot of desirable goals in mind that make it easy to avoid the inner journey.

If you set all of that baggage aside for one moment of clarity, you will see clearly that existence has never been the problem. In fact, it is the solution. Every moment of epiphany, revelation, divine presence, inner peace, etc. has only one source: existence. You have to be here first before anything, good or bad, can happen. So why not just be here? The thinking mind cannot just be here, because it is filled with a riotous display of thoughts, feelings, and sensations. Yet these must have a source, and the source isnt a thought, feeling, or sensation.

The source is existence. The spiritual promise, the goodie that every religion holds out, is that there is higher existence. But this too is a mental construct. Existence isnt like a luxury high rise that saves the best apartments for the top floors. Existence is the rock solid, indestructible, eternal, immutable zero point at which everything begins. Simply by existing, human beings are given infinite possibilities in life. That alone is the source of lifes vibrancy, as well as our own joy, live, creativity, discovery, and evolution.

The real promise that we should all explore is this: Being is more meaningful than doing. The ultimate healing, the end of all fear, including the fear of death, is contained in that simple axiom. Being is more meaningful than doing. This is why Buddhism engendered the concept of non-doing. Settle down in yourself, meet yourself in silence, appreciate the silence, and accept the peace that is part of existence. You cant create peace; you can only discover it.

We test out how life works through our experiences. The good experiences encourage us to give a cheer for being alive; the bad experiences raise doubts, fear, uncertainty, and depression. So healing cannot come from amassing more good experiences until your bank account is bursting with them. Goodies dont make for a good life. Only life makes for a good life. Shed all your experiences temporarily, in other words sit in silence for a few minutes. You wont know who you really are or what your life means until you meet yourself inside. What awaits is the merging of self, silence, existence, and being. In this merging lies the answer to fear and dread. More importantly, this is where life finally begins to mean everything we want it to mean.

DEEPAK CHOPRA MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a non-profit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a modern-day health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 89 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. His 90th book, Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential, unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. TIME magazine has described Dr. Chopra as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.

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Existence and the Virus: A Healing Solution - SFGate

An interdisciplinary team of researchers has developed a virtual 3D heart, digitally showcasing the heart's unique network of neurons for the first time. Using the rat heart as a model, the investigators in this study appearing in the journal iScience created a comprehensive map of the intrinsic cardiac nervous system (ICN) at a cellular scale. This map allows for gene expression data to be superimposed within it, which can help determine the functional role that specific neuron clusters play. The researchers say this map will allow neurologists and cardiologists alike to more precisely study the neuroanatomy of the heart and lays the groundwork for developing virtual maps for other major organs.While people normally associate neurons with the brain, they play important roles in other organs as well. "Many cardiologists aren't even aware there are neurons in the heart, let alone that they are critical to heart health," says senior author James Schwaber, director of the Daniel Baugh Institute for Functional Genomics and Computational Biology at Thomas Jefferson University. With the newly developed virtual framework, scientists can study the organization and function of the heart's neurons at an unprecedented level of detail. "By using this 3D reference space, we can build a comprehensive picture of the heart's structure which is foundational to address various health concerns."

The 3D model is made possible by interweaving imaging, collection, anatomical mapping, and gene expression techniques. First, a diamond knife is used to create fine slices throughout the length of the heart, where microscopic images and tissues samples are taken at each cut using 3Scan software. These images are used to create the base of the 3D reconstruction. In parallel, laser capture microdissection is used to remove individual neurons from the collected samples, while recording their precise placement within the heart's anatomy. Researchers then used single-cell transcriptomics to determine the gene expression profiles of each of these collected neurons. Once all the data are collected, they are fit onto the 3D model to create a comprehensive picture of the heart's neural network.

"With the spatial mapping of the gene expression, we can begin to discuss the precise roles that these neurons play. Do separate clusters of the ICN neurons have different functions, or do they work into an integrated way to influence heart health? Now we can address these questions in way that wasn't possible before," says co-author Zixi Jack Cheng, a cardiovascular anatomist and physiologist from the University of Central Florida College of Medicine.

The map revealed a consistent spatial pattern of the intrinsic cardiac nervous system moving from the top to the bottom of the heart. And although the 3D map was constructed using the hearts of rats, the researchers say the protocols generated to create it will likely have long-term impacts on human medicine. For instance, some cases of severe heart disease have been reversed or remediated by stimulating the vagus nerve though it is unclear why this treatment is effective in some patients and not others. "Evaluating these cardiac neurons from an anatomical and molecular perspective may help us better understand their function and develop therapies that can produce these protective effects of the vagus nerve onto the hearts of more patients," says co-author Jonathan Gorky, a recent MD/PhD graduate from Thomas Jefferson University and medical resident at Massachusetts General Hospital.

"Now that we have a comprehensive map of the heart, the way we pursue bioelectronic medicine will significantly change as we have information available at a level of resolution that just wasn't accessible before this," says co-author Rajanikanth Vadigepalli, a systems biologist with a chemical and control systems engineering pedigree at Thomas Jefferson University.

All the techniques and technologies used to create the atlas are made readily available through the Stimulating Peripheral Activity to Relieve Conditions program (SPARC), so other researchers can recreate and build upon the 3D framework whether it be with other animal hearts or with other organs such as the liver or lungs. "The SPARC program has created an online portal that allows other research teams to access our and other's data, empowering them to understand, expand, explore, and contribute to how we think about the innervation aspects of each organ of the body. Thereby, we can start to create a community that extends beyond a single area of focus onto all the integrative aspects of the brain and body," says co-author Susan Tappan, a developmental neuroscientist and the scientific director at MBF Bioscience.

Already, the combined efforts of this research team and the SPARC program have generated new projects across several labs that are working to understand the autonomic nervous system for other organs of the body. Though much research is left to be done, these efforts work towards the larger goal of creating effective treatments utilizing neuromodulation.ReferenceAchanta et al. (2020). A Comprehensive Integrated Anatomical and Molecular Atlas of Rat Intrinsic Cardiac Nervous System. iScience. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2020.101140

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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Mapping the Neurons of the Rat Heart in 3D - Technology Networks

University Health System physicians say each scent offers a unique effect.

SAN ANTONIO Over the past few months most of us have gotten used to wearing masks, whether it is in the grocery store, outside, or for some at all times, and in many cases it just isn't comfortable.

Dr. Jan Patterson, the Medical Director of the Integrative Medicine Program and an Infectious Disease Physician at University Health System, and Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases at UT Health San Antonio, spoke to KENS 5 about the study among UHS where they found essential oils to improve mask comfort.

"When COVID happened we realized we had to shift some of our focus to the staff with universal masking which we are very grateful for because it helps us protect each other," she said. "We started in early April with our hospital staff and went to different departments. We are doing both clinical staff and non-clinical staff. More recently weve open it up to patients, some of our patients who are in the clinics who are here for quite a while for infusions and so forth. We would like to try it and see if it makes a difference for them as well."

Rebekah Kendrick, a nurse specializing in pain management told us, "People are feeling different effects from wearing these all day so we wanted to offer them something that might alleviate some of those complaints. Essential oils are really becoming a new thing, so theres new interest in it."

Some of the most common mask complaints include anxiety, fatigue, poor mental focus, headaches, and shortness of breath. Dr. Patterson said, "We know that essential oils, not only do they smell good, but they can affect us very positively in terms of our mood."

The oils go directly to the brain through the olfactory nerve or smell nerve, and they can also affect the respiratory system by opening up the lungs, making breathing easier. The doctors say each scent does something different.

The doctors told us, "Lavender would be great for that to help alleviate some of the anxiety with that and mental focus. The orange oil, we call it happy oil, which is a very happy and calming oil. The lemon oil is brightening and cleansing. People get their headaches relieved through peppermint oil and it can help with mental focus fatigue and breathing. Eucalyptus it's a strong oil we like to say it opens the mind as well as the lungs."

Dr. Patterson spoke about how you apply the oil and said, "Once we choose an oil we simply get a very small drop and put it on the outer edge of the inner mask."

But the ones you get online could be stronger and have a more pleasant effect than the ones you get at the grocery store

Dr. Patterson said, "The ones you get at the grocery store or drugstore or at a lower price point, so sometimes they are diluted and have synthetics in them but you may still get a positive affect. We wanted to use some very pure oils that are what we call therapeutic grade, because we think it has a better affect because they are purer and they last longer.

Dr. Kendrick added, "We have a lot of different options that can help make it a little more of a pleasant experience."

Dr. Patterson also told us how the study they are conducting works. She said, "The survey simply ask things like whats bothering you and how is the mask affecting your anxiety level your mood your fatigue your mental focus. We go through that survey and we help them choose an essential oil that we think is best for them."

Make sure to start with one drop and if you need more add one at a time.

For more information about family health call 210-358-3045. You can also find the rest of Wear The Gown stories, just go to WearTheGown.com.

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Wear The Gown: Using essential oils to improve mask comfort - KENS5.com

A quiz.

Q. You are walking on one side of a sidewalk. Someone strolling toward you veers within six feet of you. You dont have any room to move but the other person does. You call out through your mask, Six feet!

The correct action for that person is:

a. Pretend not to hear and stay the course.

b. Give you the finger and swerve a little.

c. Create some distance by moving away.

The right answer is c.

As some of our COVID-19 pandemic lockdown rules in Illinois are easing and the spring weather is bringing us outside more frequently to walk, run and bike, Ive been navigating the new normal while social distancing. There is no best practices manual for this.

Im a speed walker. I aim at five miles a day. As I roam around, Ive made it a point to observe social or physical distancing behavior who among us tries to observe the six feet; who doesnt; and whether lapses appear willful or the result of being oblivious. Ive become a student of the various tactics people are using and developing some of my own.

Without getting into the heavier political issues associated with wearing masks and social distancing as President Donald Trump ignores both I want to share my evolving rules of the road for folks finding themselves sharing the same sidewalks, paths and streets.

In writing this column, I consulted with two specialists at Northwestern University working on caution fatigue behavior during this pandemic: Dr. Melinda Ring, executive director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, and her colleague, Jacqueline Gollan, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depressive Disorders at the Feinberg School of Medicine.

Caution fatigue, Ring said, is a loss of interest in following the recommended guidelines due to mental or physical exhaustion.

Gollan told me in an email, Caution fatigue can influence our ability to comply (with) the new rules. This occurs when people show low motivation or energy to comply with safety guidelines. We may become impatient with the warnings, or we dont believe the warnings to be real or relevant (or) we interpret the risk incorrectly. We may stop safety behaviors, like washing our hands and social distancing.

Caution fatigue occurs because we become desensitized to warnings or risk. Initially, when we hear pandemic warnings, we become fearful and take action. But being intensely fearful is highly taxing on the brain. We adjust psychologically to reduce the fear and desensitize to the pandemic information.

And with that, here are the Sweet Outdoor Rules of the Road:

1. Its on me.

Social distancing is key to avoiding the spread of COVID-19. There are all sorts of persuasion messaging and advertising campaigns ongoing to convince people to stay six feet apart. Yet people dont. Maybe its a spatial dissonance thing? A political statement? Youthful rebellion? Entitlement? Free floating hostility? Ignorance? Doesnt matter why.

Since I care more than you may do about this six-feet thing, its on me to get out of your way.

In general, what we know is, Ring said, you cant change another persons behavior. You can only change your own.

2. Make peace with doing the easiest thing to create the six feet: cross the street, take a turn, whatever. Remember we are living in difficult times.

We are seeing a rise in depression, anxiety, PTSD, Ring said. Add to that people struggling with financial and relationship burdens.

3. Maintain situational awareness. Do not stop in the middle of a sidewalk or path to read your email or chat on the phone. Move off the sidewalk or path.

4. Its also on you.

When you are walking, running or biking behind someone who doesnt know you are there, it is your responsibility to create the six feet of space. Slow down, which, for heavens sake, is not the end of the world. Please call out something like on your left so I can scramble out of your way.

5. End the blockades. Dont be a sidewalk hog. No, you cant always walk or run three abreast with a dog if the path is crowded. Single file.

6. Distance shaming can backfire. Reserve calling out six feet when there is no alternative.

It sounds like a mother scolding a kid, Ring said.

7. Signal. This is for walkers. Sidewalk hogs get a warning when you stick out your arm to create some safe distance and flap it up and down a little. The nonverbal cue is effective in getting folks to fall into single file. Yes, I look a little crazy.

Many folks are great. I zig, they zag, and it works out. Dont get worked up. Said Ring, take some deep belly breaths beneath your mask and move on.

Continued here:
Exercising while social distancing: Rules of the road for walking, running and biking - Chicago Sun-Times

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Pulse Oximeters Market To Witness The Highest Growth Globally In Coming Years 2020-2026 - News Distinct

Dr David Glass - MBChB, FCOG (SA)

Last week we gave a brief history lesson describing the origins of the fibre hypothesis as basic to human health. This was based on the research of three icons of medicine in Africa Drs Denis Burkitt, (Uganda), Hugh Trowell (Kenya) and ARP Walker (South Africa). All originated from the UK, but spent many years in Africa as clinicians but also perceptive researchers.

ALSO READ: Turning the Tide: The importance of fibre in your diet

Today we will cover a somewhat controversial subject, leaky gut syndrome, which has a connection to the fibre hypothesis. It has long been propounded by alternative and integrative medicine practitioners, and more recently by functional medicine practitioners. However there are some gastroenterologists who now also recognise the condition, although perhaps would not blame this condition as the cause of as many diseases as the former practitioners would.

In our first article in this series on the GIT, we noted that the intestines are lined with a single layer of cells, spread out across finger-like villi and microvilli to increase the surface area through which nutrients can be absorbed. Just under the surface is an extensive capillary network which provides transport of these absorbed nutrients into the portal system which directs all blood from the intestines into the liver. The liver detoxifies harmful substances, and processes all nutrients into basic chemicals available for bodily functions. It is important for many reasons that this single layer of cells remains intact.

Although the lining of the gut is inside the body, it nevertheless is a vast area exposed to the outside world.

What happens when the integrity of this delicate barrier is breached through holes or tears? It is claimed partially digested foods, bacteria and toxins are allowed to pass directly into the blood stream where they can cause inflammation and chronic illness, including auto-immune diseases. Much of the research on this condition has been done in laboratories as basic science, rather than clinical research. It is still very controversial. Read an overview of the condition from Harvard Health, written by Dr Marcelo Campos HERE

I do believe the most important intervention to ensure a healthy gut comes from providing a healthy diet, which in particular includes fibre-rich plant foods. Other interventions include adequate exercise, control of stress through meditation and spiritual activities, avoidance of alcohol and dietary or environmental toxins.

Unfortunately many of the strong proponents of the leaky gut theory are also pedlars of all manner of supplements and fad diets. Many have blamed gluten or wheat or antibiotics or fruit as the cause.

In a later article we will address the gluten/wheat theory and also discuss the importance of fibre in both gut and general health.

One of the bright lights in the world in gut health is Dr Will Bulsiewicz a doubly qualified specialist physician and gastroenterologist who has written a just released book Fiber Fueled which is getting rave reviews in the lifestyle medicine circles. We will use some of the information from his book in future blogs to give a balanced view on gastrointestinal health.

In the mean time HERE is a really exciting interview with Dr B discussing gut health and Covid-19. It is over an hour long but so full of scientifically sound and rational information, all so very pertinent to our present crisis.

Next week we will introduce the subject of fibre and the microbiome. I wish I could share information directly from Dr Bs book, but we will have to rely on interviews with him for pertinent facts given the fact that access to books from the USA is limited, and it is selling like hot cakes.

Continue your good preventive habits. Until next week. Dave Glass

Dr David Glass MBChB, FCOG (SA)

Dr David Glass graduated from UCT in 1975. He spent the next 12 years working at a mission hospital in Lesotho, where much of his work involved health education and interventions to improve health, aside from the normal busy clinical work of an under-resourced mission hospital.

He returned to UCT in 1990 to specialise in obstetrics/gynaecology and then moved to the South Coast where he had the privilege of, amongst other things, ushering 7000 babies into the world. He no longer delivers babies but is still very clinically active in gynaecology.

An old passion, preventive health care, has now replaced the obstetrics side of his work. He is eager to share insights he has gathered over the years on how to prevent and reverse so many of the modern scourges of lifestyle obesity, diabetes, ischaemic heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis, common cancers, etc.

He is a family man, with a supportive wife, and two grown children, and four beautiful grandchildren. His hobbies include walking, cycling, vegetable gardening, bird-watching, travelling and writing. He is active in community health outreach and deeply involved in church activities. He enjoys teaching and sharing information.

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Turning the Tide A healthy gut comes from a healthy diet - South Coast Herald