The truth about laughing horses
Ibuprofen linked to heart attacks In high doses, common painkillers such as ibuprofen can raise the risk of heart disease within the first week of regular use, a new study suggests. An international team of researchers examined health data from 446,763 people, of whom 61,460 had suffered a heart attack. They found that the risk of having a heart attack was 20% to 50% higher if the patient was taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS); however, it varied according to the individual drug. With ibuprofen, the increased risk associated with a month of use was about 75%, whereas for rofecoxib (now withdrawn from the market) it was more than 100%. The risk was highest in the first month of use, and at higher doses (1,200mg a day for ibuprofen). For most people, the absolute risk of having a heart attack remains very small, however, and it’s not clear how significant the findings are. The study involved patients who had been prescribed the drugs, who may not be representative of the general population – and it is not known if the pills were the cause of the extra heart attacks.
Is “dairy” harmless after all? Consuming cheese, milk and yoghurt, even the full-fat varieties, does not increase a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease, a major new study has found. Millions of people have been encouraged to cut down on dairy products, on account of their high levels of saturated fat. But the authors of the latest research – a meta-analysis that combined data from 29 cohort studies and involved 938,465 people – say that this fear is based on a “misconception”: in a report in the European Journal of Epidemiology, they say they found no association between dairy consumption (either high- or low-fat), and “health outcomes including all-cause mortality, coronary heart disease, or cardiovascular disease”. Dairy products are an important source of calcium, but can also contain a lot of salt. Public Health England continues to advise that people eat dairy products in moderation, and opt for lowfat varieties where possible, to keep their levels of saturated fats down.
A patch to save stroke victims A new skin patch that can be applied to stroke patients’ arms before they even get to hospital has been shown, in an early trial, to dramatically reduce mortality rates, reports the Daily Mail. The patch, which costs 39p, and which can be applied by paramedics in the ambulance, works by releasing drugs into the skin to relax the blood vessels, lower blood pressure, and improve circulation to the brain. Strokes occur when the blood flow to the brain is blocked, by a clot in an artery or bleeding in the brain; restoring it quickly is crucial to the patient’s chances of surviving, and of making a good recovery. In the pilot study at Nottingham University, patients who were given the patch by paramedics had a 16% risk of dying; the mortality rate among other patients was more than twice as high, at 38%. However, the trial only involved 40 people, and a far bigger study is now planned. Funded by the British Heart Foundation, it will involve 850 patients, seven of England’s ten ambulance services, and ten hospitals. Separately, researchers at King’s College London warned that stroke cases could rise by as much as 44% over the next 20 years, owing to our ageing population.
The truth about laughing horses Social media is full of photos of horses “laughing”, with their lips pulled back, but according to a vet who specialises in equine orthopaedics, the animals are probably not happy. Sue Dyson, who has conducted research on horses’ expressions for the Animal Health Trust, says that when horses are contented, they tend to have their mouths closed and ears forward. If their ears are flicking sideways, or pointing backwards, it may mean they are irritated, while smiling – bared teeth and gums – can often indicate pain.
HIV life expectancy boost The life expectancy of young adults with HIV has risen by about ten years, on average, since the mid-1990s, largely thanks to better antiretroviral therapies, a major new study has found. This means that many 20-year-olds starting treatment today can expect to live into their late 60s. But patients who’d injected drugs, or who were diagnosed relatively late, have shown less marked improvements.