In a new Northwestern Medicine study in the journal Sleep Medicine, researchers reviewed treatment on non-rapid-eye-movement disorders, like sleep apnea, insomnia and “arousal disorders” to find that sexsomnia, sleepwalking or sleeptalking and sleep terrors have few guidelines for treatment. Arousal disorders can involve things like sleep eating, engaging in sexual activity during sleep, walking, running or even driving while asleep and the intense fear of terrors, according to a Northwestern Medicine press release. However, unlike nearly every other type of sleep disorder, there are no consensus treatment guidelines for arousal disorders, Jennifer Mundt, PhD, led author of the study and assistant professor of neurology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said in the release. “These disorders can be dangerous and result in injuries to the sleeper or loved ones, so it’s important that symptoms are evaluated and treated,” Mundt said in the release. “And we need to have guidelines, so patients are getting the most effective treatment, which is not necessarily a medication.” Mundt found that the treatments with the most evidence about their effectiveness are cognitive behavioral therapy, hypnosis, sleep hygiene and scheduled awakenings, in which a sleeper is is woken up before they usually have an episode.

Growing up on the South Side of Chicago as the child of Mexican immigrants who primarily spoke Spanish, Dr. Daniel Meza was often asked to translate for his parents during medical appointments. “It’s a skill that I grew up with, having that technical language,” Meza said. “I just recall how stressful it was for my parents when they were in clinics, and as well as for myself, being a small child.” Two months ago, Meza, an assistant professor of medicine in pulmonary and critical care at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, became a part of the Northwestern Medicine Canning Thoracic Institute Hispanic Program. Patients of the program receive lung and thoracic care, including surgery and preventive screenings, entirely in Spanish. “When I see patients come in with their children and they see I speak Spanish, there’s kind of a relief on both sides,” Meza said. The program launched two months ago. It is led by Dr. Diego Mauricio Avella Patino, a thoracic surgeon trained in Colombia, and by Meza, both native Spanish speakers. Avella performs surgeries related to esophageal disease, lung failure, various cancers, chest wall issues and breathing obstruction. Meza specializes in treating pulmonary problems such as asthma, respiratory failure and emphysema.

Fifteen-year-old boy Swaysee Rankin, who died of a gunshot wound, had two other encounters with gun violence prior. It had been two years since someone in a moving car opened fire on him and a cousin as they walked toward home. It had been three years since he used his shirt to give first aid to a little girl who he witnessed being shot. Having been shot is itself a risk factor for becoming a victim of gun violence in the future, experts told the Tribune. The years 2018 and 2019 saw a total of 119 homicide victims under 17, according to professor Maryann Mason, PhD. Mason, associate professor of emergency medicine at Northwestern University, who runs a surveillance system tracking violent deaths, said 90 of those young people’s deaths were related to a firearm. And 21 of those victims had previously suffered a firearm injury. “Firearm violence is concentrated in certain subpopulations,” Mason said. “But for those populations, it’s sort of relentless.”

As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations rise across the United States and a new updated vaccine becomes available, many have questions on how to best keep their families safe. Treatment is currently recommended for those are at higher risk of severe illness including those with underlying conditions, who are immunocompromised or who are young or aged 65 and older. “I think your run-of-the-mill young, healthy person who has symptoms, for the most part, will be able to, to weather the storm of COVID with just over-the-counter fever-reducing medicines, nasal congestion, and so on,” John Coleman, III, MD, a pulmonary and critical care specialist at Northwestern Medicine, told ABC News. There are three treatments commonly available. Paxlovid and Lagevrio (molnupiravir) are oral medications taken at home for five days while Veklury (remdesivir) is an intravenous mediation given a health facility for three days.