Western Pa. docs offer advice on staying healthy with kids back in school
Back-to-school season brings not only a return to classes for children across Western Pennsylvania — but also a return of sicknesses that can spread like wildfire. Dr. Raquel Zemtsov said these sicknesses, which can range from the common cold to severe cases of the flu, affect whole classrooms, teachers, parents...
In a heartbeat: Where gut health pop culture fizzles out
It’s just as fair to raise an eyebrow when companies are marketing “healthy” sodas to consumers as it is forgivable to have given in to the hype. Prebiotic sodas aimed at improving gut health first started gaining popularity in the late 2010s. They have since proliferated to include numerous colorful...
Kratom products remain unregulated in Pa. It’s led to deadly consequences
Familiar to many through the flashing lights of smoke shops and corner stores, the controversial supplement called kratom is under increasing scrutiny from public officials and even some longtime consumers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported a more than tenfold increase in kratom- related calls to poison...
Pittsburgh’s Rare Ventures start-up, backed by Eddie Vedder, rings New York Stock Exchange opening bell
A new Pittsburgh nonprofit that aims to fight rare diseases took to Wall Street Friday morning to ring in the trading day at the New York Stock Exchange. Rare Ventures, a coalition of medical experts, industry veterans and philanthropists — backed by Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder — was announced...
Pa. health department pushes to update disease-tracking rules last changed in 2001
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is seeking a large-scale overhaul of the rules that govern its disease management practices — drawing criticism from one of the state’s top Republicans. The shakeup would sharply increase the number of conditions clinicians would have to report to the department and expand its power...
6-week-old central Pa. baby died of measles, coroner says
A 6-week-old Amish infant with a rare neurological genetic disorder died from measles at home in Lancaster County around Aug. 18. Lancaster County coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni told Lancaster Online-LNP that the infant had Amish lethal microcephaly, a condition that “occurs in about one in every 500 births in the...
Renovated McKeesport Public Health Office to serve an estimated 150 people daily
McKeesport residents soon will step into a newly modernized public health office following the Thursday unveiling of a $1.2 million renovation project designed to expand local services and welcome an estimated 150 visitors daily. The significant overhaul by the Allegheny County Health Department transforms the local facility to broaden the...
UPMC to shutter Shadyside center focused on ‘natural healing practices’
UPMC will close its Center for Integrative Medicine — which offers services like acupuncture, chiropractic therapy and medical hypnosis — after more than 25 years, the hospital system confirmed Wednesday. The center in Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood will stop offering services Nov. 1, a UPMC spokesperson said. The spokesperson did not...
Measles cases top 500 in Pa. as outbreak continues
More than 500 measles cases have been confirmed in Pennsylvania so far this year, according to updated figures from the state health department. The count sat at 540 confirmed cases Wednesday, up more than 40 from Monday, when the state offered its last update. More than 20% of cases this...
WVU Medicine OKs conditions set by Pa. attorney general in Independence Health deal
West Virginia University Health System must keep each of its newly acquired hospitals in Western Pennsylvania open for at least five years — among other conditions — as part of a settlement that advances its acquisition of Independence Health System. The settlement, filed Monday, was announced Wednesday morning by Pennsylvania...
Top U.S. doctors offer updated flu and covid vaccine recommendations, aiming to ease confusion
Leading U.S. medical groups are urging people to get updated flu and covid-19 vaccinations this fall, banding together Wednesday to issue shot guidelines — and highlight the science behind them — saying they hope to ease confusion caused by the Trump administration’s changing advice. Flu vaccinations are beginning and covid-19...
Congo’s Ebola outbreak shows no signs of slowing as deaths top 3,000
BUNIA, Congo — Congo’s Ebola outbreak has killed more than 3,000 people out of more than 6,100 confirmed cases, according to the latest government data from Wednesday, as the disease is spreading at an unprecedented speed, faster than efforts to track and slow it. Data from Congo’s Ministry of Health...
2 test positive for measles after visiting UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
Two people who visited UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh last week have tested positive for measles, prompting Allegheny County health officials to warn of possible exposures in several areas of the hospital. On Tuesday, the health department warned of potential exposure Thursday in the hospital’s main lobby, third-floor waiting and...
Allegheny County recognizes breastfeeding-friendly spaces
For decades, Allegheny County has worked to ensure nursing mothers feel supported when they leave the privacy of home by recognizing workplaces and public spaces that accommodate breastfeeding families. The Breastfeeding Friendly Place Awards, an initiative of the Allegheny County Health Department’s Women, Infants and Children program, is marking its...
Picture-perfect fall exacerbates symptoms during Western Pa. allergy season
One of the foremost images of fall as a season of change is, in part, responsible for the changing environment millions of Americans feel in their sinuses every autumn. About 50 million people in the U.S. are allergic to ragweed, which is found in every U.S. state except Alaska. According...
The CDC left 2 measles-associated Pa. deaths out of its latest count after RFK Jr. sparred with Gov. Shapiro
PHILADELPHIA — Two measles-associated deaths in Pennsylvania last week were omitted from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest measles outbreak update, continuing an increasingly political clash over the nature of the deaths announced by the state last week. The two deaths reported by Pennsylvania — the first in...
Clancy trial sparks need for postpartum mental health care education, expert says
With the spotlight on postpartum mental health amid the Lindsay Clancy trial, the medical director of Allegheny Health Network’s Women’s Behavioral Health Clinic said many people are “suffering in silence” from postpartum depression and psychosis. Dr. Ewurama Sackey, a psychiatrist, is director of the clinic within AHN’s Psychiatry and Behavioral...
Lancaster County coroner reports the death of another child linked to the measles outbreak as cases rise in Pa.
A second child diagnosed with measles has died in Lancaster County, according to Coroner Stephen Diamantoni. “Just today, we received a report of another child who died with measles, and we’re in the process of doing an investigation,” Diamantoni told ABC27. The official cause of death could take weeks to...
Allegheny County issues heat advisory beginning Tuesday
Allegheny County has issued a code red heat advisory beginning Tuesday and continuing through Thursday, as meteorologists warn of above-normal heat and the possibility of severe thunderstorms. The Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) announced the advisory Monday, warning that forecast high temperatures may pose a risk to vulnerable...
Amish family affected by measles outbreak speaks out
An Amish family in Lancaster County directly affected by the measles outbreak spoke out to a national news outlet over the weekend. The family didn’t know that their son’s death had become national news, as they are off the grid, The Atlantic reported in an article published on Sunday. The...
Congo authorities report more than 6,000 confirmed Ebola cases and nearly 3,000 deaths
BUNIA, Congo — Congo’s authorities said Monday that the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history has topped 6,000 cases with 2,911 deaths. More than 1,360 people have recovered from the virus, in what authorities said was an “encouraging” development. The outbreak in eastern Congo is spreading under extremely difficult conditions, fueled...
Pitt study finds cold-stored platelets could boost U.S. blood supply, save lives
Local researchers say a change in how blood platelets are stored could triple or even quadruple the U.S. supply available to treat life-threatening bleeding. Recently, study author Dr. Philip Spinella and his team published research in JAMA showing platelets stored cold for up to 21 days could soon become a...
Tenants endure deteriorating conditions as some Allegheny County subsidized properties sit in limbo
Vines have swallowed Patrice Aaron’s back window. They press against the glass from outside her home, blocking nearly all of the sunlight. For the single mother of two, the vines are just one of a handful of health and safety issues inside the Bedford Avenue home in Pittsburgh’s Hill District....
In a heartbeat: Navigating end of life logistics
Just less than one fourth of people in the United States leave legally binding end-of-life planning instructions behind, according to Hospice News, so many families are left to make difficult decisions in the dark. Dr. Jane Schell — who serves as an associate professor and section chief of palliative care...
5 things to know about the newly approved covid-19 vaccines
Four updated covid-19 shots earned approval from the Food and Drug Administration Thursday, setting the stage for the shots to reach the arms of millions of Americans this fall, when respiratory diseases tend to see the most dramatic spikes. The shots were approved for those age 65 and older and...
