Health Topics – Johns Hopkins Medicine Podcasts

When cancer exists in the body it has a three dimensional structure, an architecture, that only now is being looked at in detail to understand better how cancers behave. Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson at Johns Hopkins explains. Nelson: … What can a 3D atlas of cancer teach us? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Childhood obesity is a worldwide problem with long term health implications, especially cardiovascular disease. Now a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin has shown a personalized program of text messages to parents of very young infants staved … Text messages meeting people where they are allow children to avoid becoming obese, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

While childhood obesity is a widespread problem, the children who are most at risk to develop this disabling condition are already those with fewer educational opportunities and lower income. Now an intervention using text messages helps to close this gap … Childhood obesity rates keep rising, but a text based intervention can help. Read More »

Childhood obesity is a worldwide problem that keeps accelerating, with the kids most at risk from already disadvantaged groups. Now a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin shows that a comprehensive texting intervention helps, with kids whose … Helping kids most at risk for obesity is possible, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

New parents are motivated people. That’s one observation from a new study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin using a text-based intervention to prevent early childhood obesity. Perrin says parents both helped design the intervention and were participants. … Parents were pivotal in the success of a study to prevent childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Can a texting intervention to parents of very young children prevent the development of obesity in their offspring? A study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin shows the answer is yes. Perrin: We enrolled 900 kids. We did … Getting to kids and parents very early in life may be key to preventing obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Engaging parents in developing a host of text messages around healthy behaviors for infants and young children was pivotal to the success of a study showing it is possible to avoid childhood obesity. The study, co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics … Parents are invaluable when it comes to avoiding childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

How can we stem the rising tide of childhood obesity? Start in infancy and engage parents personally. That’s the conclusion of a study co-led by Eliana Perrin, a pediatrics expert and study author, using a variety of text messages crafted … Specific text messages to parents help slow down childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Obesity is a complex condition that all too often begins in childhood. Now a comprehensive program using educational materials and personalized text messages has been shown to enable parents to stave off the early development of obesity in their young … What sorts of messages help parents prevent obesity in their young children? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

With about one in five children in the US falling into the obese range, trying to find a way to intervene effectively is top of mind for many pediatricians and public health experts. That’s because childhood obesity paves the way … Can texting prevent obesity in young children? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Preventing obesity in young children is possible using a program of texting new parents, a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin has shown. All parents enrolled in the study received written information on sleep, diet, activity and … A comprehensive text program can help prevent childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Even if you have high blood pressure when it’s measured in your doctor’s office, you may not really have it at all. That’s according to Tammy Brady, author of a Johns Hopkins study looking at the impact of arm position … What’s the best practice for measuring your blood pressure at home? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Taking a look at blood pressure should begin in childhood so good habits can be instilled, Elizabeth Tracey reports Arm position is just one factor when it comes to obtaining an accurate blood pressure reading. That’s according to Tammy Brady, … Read More »

Both arm position and resting for a moment before measurement are things to consider if you have a high blood pressure reading. Those are the conclusions of two studies by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, … If your blood pressure measures high it’s wise to consider a couple of things, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Besides arm position, must rest also be a part of blood pressure measurement? Elizabeth Tracey reports Arm position matters when it comes to accurate blood pressure measurement, a Johns Hopkins study by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert, shows. … Read More »

Incorrect arm position when your blood pressure is being measured may result in a mistakenly high reading, a study by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, and colleagues has shown. Brady says since home blood pressure … If you measure your own blood pressure, pay attention to your arm position, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Vital signs like blood pressure may be measured by a number of clinicians during a medical visit, and all of them need to be trained and recertified periodically. That’s according to Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns … Taking a blood pressure right is more complicated than it might seem, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

High blood pressure is associated with cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes, so keeping it under control is important. Yet many times blood pressures are measured without consideration for arm position, resulting in higher readings than would be seen … How high might your blood pressure be if your arm isn’t properly positioned? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Turns out when you get your blood pressure measured, arm position is critical. That’s according to a study led by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, who showed that suboptimal arm positions increase the top number … What should your arm position be if you’re having your blood pressure measured? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

One of the most important things you can do to prevent the number one cause of death – cardiovascular disease – is to keep your blood pressure under control, and that starts with measuring it. Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health … Accurate blood pressure measurement is harder than it seems, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Can you trust a video game to help your child with ADHD, depression or anxiety? A new study by Johns Hopkins psychiatrist Barry Bryant surveyed the field of such games to find out more about them. Bryant: There were some … Just how are video games to help manage mental health conditions in children developed? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Just how does a video game designed to help kids with ADHD, depression and anxiety differ from other video games? Barry Bryant, a psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins, recently completed a study looking at such games and has some observations. Bryant: … What characterizes a video game designed to help kids with mental health issues? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

if you’re using a gaming program to help a child with ADHD, depression or anxiety, these technologies work best if they are done on a computer. That’s one finding of a study surveying video games to help with these mental … Having kids using mental health care gaming works best at a computer, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Can video games help children and adolescents with mental health issues like anxiety, ADHD or depression? A Johns Hopkins study led by psychiatrist Barry Bryant aimed to find out. Bryant: What we found were about 30 randomized controlled trials looking … What does a survey of video games to help kid’s mental health show? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Mental health issues are skyrocketing among US youth, data shows. Barry Bryant, a psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins, wondered whether technology might be able to step into this gap with a recent study looking at video games for three common mental … Can video games help fill in the gap between kids who need mental health care and the dearth of providers? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Skin biopsies can diagnose both Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions called prion diseases, recent studies show. Ted Dawson, Johns Hopkins Parkinson’s expert, predicts that soon, blood will supplant skin for detection of these incorrectly folded proteins. Dawson: We also … Skin isn’t the only place to sample to make a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

More than 200,000 people in the US alone are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease yearly, but it can be caused by multiple forms of a misfolded protein called alpha synuclein. Ted Dawson, a Parkinson’s expert at Johns Hopkins, says managing the … Personalized treatment may soon come for Parkinson’s disease, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

A type of test known as a seeding assay has been shown to be very good at diagnosing conditions like Parkinson’s disease, caused by a protein that folds incorrectly. Parkinson’s disease expert Ted Dawson at Johns Hopkins predicts these types … Some people with Parkinson’s disease will test negative with the best test yet, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

A protein called alpha synuclein is normally found in our bodies, but it’s also found in a misfolded form that’s known to cause Parkinson’s disease. A recent study shows a skin biopsy can help make the diagnosis. Johns Hopkins Parkinson’s … What is it that causes a normal protein to fold differently and cause Parkinson’s disease? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Used to be Parkinson’s disease was thought of as a movement disorder, but now it’s known that as the condition progresses two different types of dementia can also emerge. Ted Dawson, a Parkinson’s expert at Johns Hopkins, says recent studies … Parkinson’s disease is actually a few different clinical entities, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Prions are misfolded proteins that can infect us and cause our normal proteins to fold incorrectly also, and they can be found in the skin, a new study reports. Ted Dawson, a Parkinson disease expert at Johns Hopkins, says this … A new way of diagnosing prion disease may also help in other diseases, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Prion diseases are caused in people when an aberrant form of a protein that is already in our bodies infects us, and causes the normal protein to fold like it, resulting in neurological disease. A new study found that one … What is a prion and how does it cause disease? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

The rare brain disorder abbreviated CJD, for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, can be diagnosed with two or more skin biopsies, a recent study shows. Johns Hopkins neurologist Ted Dawson says the fact that what causes the disease, a particle smaller than a virus … Why is it that a disorder that affects the brain can be diagnosed with a skin biopsy? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Skin biopsies have proven better at diagnosing the rare brain disease Creutzfeldt-Jakob, abbreviated CJD, than doing a spinal tap to obtain cerebrospinal fluid, a new study reports. Ted Dawson, a neurologist at Johns Hopkins, says this new test has multiple advantages. … Making the diagnosis for a rare brain disease may now be easier, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »