https://medicalxpress.com/common-illnesses-prevention-news/ en-us Latest health news and information about Common Illnesses & Prevention A new study led by researchers at Dartmouth Cancer Center pinpoints why many patients in rural areas experience delays in receiving critical follow-up treatment for head and neck cancer, and what can be done to address those gaps. Published in JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, the study examines factors that influence whether patients begin postoperative radiotherapy within the recommended six-week window after surgery, the timeframe known to improve survival for patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-barriers-neck-cancer-treatment-rural.html Sat, 18 Apr 2026 19:30:03 EDT news695572634 Acute sinusitis leads to more antibiotic prescriptions for U.S. adults than any other condition, but there is no consensus on which antibiotic is preferred for uncomplicated cases. In a retrospective, nationwide study of more than 500,000 patients with acute sinusitis, a research team led by Mass General Brigham investigators found no major differences in measured outcomes between adults who received standard amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanate (a more powerful, combination antibiotic). Patients treated with amoxicillin-clavulanate were at slightly higher risk of contracting secondary infections. Results are published in JAMA. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-standard-dose-antibiotic-choice-treatment.html Sat, 18 Apr 2026 07:30:01 EDT news695634731 Measles remains one of the most contagious infectious diseases, spread through coughing and sneezing, with even small declines in vaccination coverage leading to outbreaks. As of 2026, California has reported its highest annual measles case count in seven years. In response to this growing concern, researchers have begun examining gaps in measles-related knowledge and vaccination coverage. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-emergency-room-survey-uncovers-measles.html Sat, 18 Apr 2026 06:40:42 EDT news695713179 A supplier of baby food jars in Austria is recalling a line saying a lethal substance may have been introduced through tampering. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-austria-recalls-baby-food-jars.html Sat, 18 Apr 2026 06:18:19 EDT news695711871 Have you been to a licensed cannabis dispensary lately? My team and I often visit them in the Greater Lansing area to invite cannabis users to participate in our studies. As soon as we walk in, we are met with a dazzling array of products: high-potency vape cartridges, gourmet gummies, premium marijuana flowers and more. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-cannabis-sales-high-michigan-federal.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 19:40:01 EDT news695634886 Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common virus that can cause severe respiratory illness in infants and young children, including lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia. It is a leading cause of infant hospitalization worldwide, with early-life infection linked to potential longer-term effects including recurrent wheeze or asthma, repeat hospital admissions and impaired lung health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-maternal-rsv-vaccination-infant-hospitalization.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 18:00:04 EDT news695625391 Women taking antiseizure medication for epilepsy have around a 45% reduced risk of major congenital anomalies in their children—if they initiate high-dose folic acid before pregnancy. This is the finding of a large Nordic register-based study (SCAN-AED) involving Aarhus University Hospital. The study also finds that starting folic acid supplementation after pregnancy onset is not associated with any protective effect. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-early-folic-acid-supplementation-halve.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 16:00:03 EDT news695647099 A diet rich in fruit, vegetables, and whole grains is generally recommended for better health and to lower the risk of cancer and other diseases. However, new research from USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC, presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research suggests that this type of diet may put non-smoking Americans under the age of 50 at greater risk of developing lung cancer. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-healthy-diets-expose-younger-smokers.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 15:00:03 EDT news695625539 Most parents of children and adolescents aged 10 to 19 years are unaware that the U.S. federal minimum legal age (MLA) for tobacco sales is 21 years, according to research published online April 14 in Pediatrics. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-parents-children-teens-unaware-minimum.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 14:20:05 EDT news695650981 The accumulation of fat in the abdominal region, especially visceral fat (fat that accumulates between organs), significantly increases the risk of stress urinary incontinence in women. A study conducted at the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, identified this region as the one most strongly associated with involuntary urine leakage, surpassing total body fat. The results are published in the European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology and indicate that body fat distribution may be a more decisive factor than weight itself in explaining the condition. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-abdominal-fat-linked-higher-urinary.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:40:03 EDT news695647861 New guidance from the American College of Physicians (ACP) says all average-risk females ages 50 to 74 should receive biennial screening mammography for breast cancer. Females between the ages of 40 and 49 should discuss with their doctor their risk for breast cancer and the benefits and harms of screening. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-guidance-average-females-aged-biennial.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:00:02 EDT news695543521 A new University of Michigan study, published in Injury Prevention, tested a method called the Family Safety Net in Alaska, which shifts suicide prevention away from individual screening and toward household action. This change, researchers say, could help reach people who are often missed by standard tools. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-family-firearm-strategy-screen-curb.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 09:40:04 EDT news695636822 UCF researchers have uncovered evidence that some movement-related symptoms of Alzheimer's disease may originate outside the brain, which could change how the disease is diagnosed and treated in the future. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-alzheimer-symptoms-brain.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 07:20:06 EDT news695618641 A study published in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry by University of Technology Sydney (UTS) researchers showed that even short-term vaping at exposure levels below typical daily human use resulted in measurable accumulation of toxic metals in lung tissue—including lead, copper and nickel. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-cigarette-devices-expose-users-toxic.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 07:20:05 EDT news695627041 Advances in cancer treatment mean more people are living longer after a cancer diagnosis. But some survivors develop lymphedema—long-term swelling in the arms, hands, legs or feet that can cause pain, limit movement and raise the risk of serious infections. The condition can also affect body image and mental health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-surgery-relieves-chronic-leg-arm.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 07:00:05 EDT news695618461 A new report, published in Nature Metabolism, is shedding light on the distinct and underappreciated role of fructose in driving disease, separate from its role as a simple source of calories. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-fructose-emerges-key-driver-metabolic.html Fri, 17 Apr 2026 05:00:03 EDT news695568601 Several common cough drop brands are being pulled from shelves after officials raised concerns about how they were made. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-brands-recalled-fda.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 22:40:01 EDT news695564154 If humans or animals eat something that causes them to feel unwell, they subsequently avoid this food source. Until now, it has been unclear precisely how this avoidance learning takes place. A new study shows that communication between the brain cells and fat cells could play a crucial role here. The participants from the Universities of Bonn and Tohoku (Japan) and University Hospital Bonn have revealed the previously unknown mechanism in the fruit fly Drosophila. It may also exist in a similar form in mammals and even in humans. The results have now been published in the journal Neuron. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-fat-cells-flies-pathogen-tainted.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:00:05 EDT news695573401 Researchers at The University of Manchester have identified a range of key risk and protective factors influencing whether young people vape, drink alcohol, smoke or use drugs. Based on data from more than 30,000 pupils aged 12–15, the study, published in the International Journal of Drug Policy, provides one of the most comprehensive pictures to date of adolescent substance use in England, highlighting the importance of social, emotional and environmental influences. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-teen-substance-linked-peer-pressure.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:00:02 EDT news695564612 A study conducted at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil reveals that tissues such as the tonsils and adenoids can serve as hiding places for the rhinovirus, which causes the common cold and is responsible for most respiratory infections worldwide. Using samples from 293 children who underwent surgery to remove these tissues, the study showed that the pathogen can infect immune cells known as lymphocytes and remain there for long periods without causing symptoms. This allows the virus to potentially be transmitted to others without warning. The findings are published in the Journal of Medical Virology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-cold-virus-tonsils-adenoids-people.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:40:04 EDT news695569141 Loneliness is something most of us will experience at some point. It is a normal emotion, not a character flaw. But it is also something that can quietly affect how we think and remember, and researchers have long debated whether it might even raise the risk of dementia. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-loneliness-affect-memory-doesnt-dementia.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:40:01 EDT news695564835 The worrisome rise in colorectal cancer deaths in younger adults is concentrated in people with less education, suggesting socioeconomic factors could be driving the escalation, according to a new study. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-colon-cancer-deaths-younger-adults.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:20:06 EDT news695565723 Men with severely reduced fertility are at greater risk of developing other health conditions later in life. A research team from Lund University in Sweden has now shown that these men are also more likely to develop colorectal cancer and thyroid cancer. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-severe-male-infertility-higher-colorectal.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 14:20:06 EDT news695561041 A new study from MIT suggests that a carcinogen that has been found in medications and in drinking water contaminated by chemical plants may have a much more severe impact on children than adults. In a study of mice, the researchers found that juveniles exposed to drinking water containing this compound, known as NDMA, showed dramatically higher rates of DNA damage and cancer than adults. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-chemical-ndma-cancerous-mutations-early.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 13:20:08 EDT news695558761 Imagine you and your partner are sitting in the waiting room of your doctor's office, waiting for your appointment to get birth control—and instead of calculating how many other people will be called before you, or perusing old magazines, a nurse hands you a digital tablet and encourages you to play a game. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-health-video-game-bridge-communication.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 13:20:07 EDT news695561102 The more optimistic a person is, the lower their risk of developing dementia, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The research, published April 8 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, was led by Säde Stenlund, research associate in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences. Other Harvard Chan co-authors included Hayami Koga, Peter James, Justin Farmer, Colleen McGrath, and Laura Kubzansky. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-greater-optimism-dementia-years.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 13:00:01 EDT news695559242 A major international research collaboration led by UNSW Sydney's Center for Healthy Brain Aging (CHeBA), in partnership with an international consortium of six leading universities, has found that social health—how individuals interact with and are supported by their social environments—plays a critical role in maintaining cognitive function and building the brain's resilience against dementia. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-strong-social-health-linked-brain.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 12:20:01 EDT news695559001 High blood pressure during pregnancy is a serious concern for any woman. In addition to posing a threat to the health of the mother and baby, disorders such as preeclampsia are early warning signs that a woman could develop heart disease later in life. But Black women need to pay extra attention to those disorders, said Dr. Rachel M. Bond, a cardiologist who is system director of women's heart health at Dignity Health in Chandler, Arizona. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-blood-pressure-pregnancy-black-women.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 11:20:03 EDT news695556841 Placebo effects, in which patients experience relief without therapeutic treatment, increasingly have been considered as potentially powerful clinical treatments for ailments such as depression and pain. Yet the neurological mechanisms underlying such processes are not fully understood. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-neurobiologists-hack-brain-circuits-placebo.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 11:00:03 EDT news695547901 Scientists have found the strongest evidence to date that a condition known as Barrett's esophagus is the starting point for all cases of esophageal adenocarcinoma—the most common type of esophageal cancer in the developed world—even when telltale signs of this pre-cancerous stage are no longer visible. The findings, published in Nature Medicine, could help improve screening for and early detection of esophageal cancer, the sixth-most deadly cancer, helping improve outcomes for the disease. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-precursor-commonest-esophageal-cancer-opportunities.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 05:00:04 EDT news695493242