Media Coverage
The work done by Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine faculty members (and even some students) is regularly highlighted in newspapers, online media outlets and more. Below you’ll find links to articles and videos of Feinberg in the news.
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Yahoo! News
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New label law has unintended effect: Sesame in more foods
A new federal law requiring that sesame be listed as an allergen on food labels is having unintended consequences – increasing the number of products with the ingredient. The new law, which goes into effect January 1, requires that all foods sold in the US must be labeled if they contain sesame, which is now the nation’s ninth major allergen. More than 1.6 million people in the U.S. are allergic to sesame, some so severe that they need injections of epinephrine, a drug used to treat life-threatening reactions. Cases of sesame allergy have been rising in recent years along with a growing number of foods that contain the ingredient, said Dr. Ruchi Gupta, a pediatrician and director of the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research at Northwestern University. “Sesame is in so many things that people don’t really understand,” said Gupta, who called the move to add sesame to products “so disappointing.” Instead, some companies have taken a different approach. Officials at Olive Garden said that starting this week, the chain is adding “a minimal amount of sesame flour” to the company’s famous breadsticks “due to the potential for cross-contamination at the bakery.” Chick-fil-A has changed its white bun and multigrain brioche buns to include sesame, while Wendy’s said the company has added sesame to its French toast sticks and buns. United States Bakery, which operates Franz Family Bakeries in California and the Northwest, notified customers in March that they would add a small amount of sesame flour to all hamburger and hot dog buns and rolls “to mitigate the risk of any adverse reactions to sesame products.” Although such actions don’t violate the law, the FDA “does not support” them, the agency said in a statement.
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The Washington Post
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Weight-loss drugs are a milestone for the obese but expose health inequity
Mounjaro by Eli Lilly, is part of a new crop of therapies that experts are hailing as a medical milestone – a long-sought way to transform the treatment of obesity, one of the nation’s most serious health threats. Designed for diabetes but used for obesity at higher doses, the medications induce loss of 15 to 22 percent of body weight on average – more than enough to significantly reduce cardiovascular and other health risks. But during the past year, soaring demand for the drugs has ignited a mad scramble, exposing some of the most persistent problems in the nation’s healthcare system, including supply shortages, high costs and healthcare inequities. “The number one distressing and upsetting issue when it comes to these medications is that the population most in need are unable to afford or have access to it,” said Robert Kushner, professor of endocrinology and medical education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. The high costs appear destined to increase the rampant disparities in weight-loss medicine, in which many drugs and services are only available to those who can pay out of pocket. Many are unable to even consider these medications.
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US News & World Report
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Homicide a Leading Cause of Death for Kids, Teens
Homicide has become a leading killer of children, with guns being the most common weapon used in their deaths, a new study shows. The overall rate of homicides in children has grown about 4.3% each year for a decade, with a steep rise seen between 2019 and 2020, when the number of kids who died by homicide rose 27.7%. One area of concern is growth in homicides among children ages 6 to 10, increasing since 2014. “I think people often forget about this age group. We think about the younger kids with child abuse and the older kids with firearm injury, but that 6- to 10-year-old group — it’s something that we need to get on our radar and be paying attention to,” said Dr. Karen Sheehan, physician at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital and professor of pediatrics, medical education and preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Children ages 10 and younger are typically killed by neglect or abuse from parents or caregivers, especially a father’s or mother’s companion. Victims ages 11 and older are typically killed in arguments, during a crime or by a friend or acquaintance, the study found.
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US News & World Report
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‘Holiday Heart’: Heart Attacks Spike in Last 2 Weeks in December
The holiday season is filled with to-do lists, but one should rise to the top: Take care of your heart. Whether from stress, cold weather or falling out of good habits in terms of eating, sleeping and drinking, heart attack rates spike as much as 40% between Christmas and New Year’s, according to cardiologist Dr. Donald Lloyd-Jones and professor of cardiology, preventive medicine and pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “When we look across the year in terms of heart attack rates, what we see is fairly constant rates week by week with two exceptions: One is that there’s a broad, shallow dip in summer months and, two, there is a very short spike of about 30% to 40% in the last couple weeks of the year between Christmas and New Year’s,” Lloyd-Jones said in a university news release. It’s important not to underestimate symptoms, he stressed. “We have two kidneys and two lungs, but only one heart and one brain, so it’s much safer to err on the side of caution,” Lloyd-Jones said. “If there’s any doubt, get checked out in person. At best, hopefully you are aborting a heart attack or stroke. Time is heart muscle, time is brain cells, and so time is of the essence. The sooner you seek help in that situation, the sooner we can save your life or brain.”
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WTTW
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Heart Attacks Spike by 30% in the Last 2 Weeks of the Year. Here Are Warning Signs to Watch.
Research shows heart attacks spike by 30 % to 40% in the last two weeks of the year. Dr. Donald Lloyd-Jones, chair of preventive medicine and professor of preventive medicine, cardiology and pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, says a combination of factors like cold weather and the stress of the holiday season can contribute to the spike. “When we breathe colder air, it cools the blood as it passes through our lungs and when that cold blood hits the coronary arteries that feed the heart muscle, the coronary arteries tend to constrict or get smaller,” said Lloyd-Jones. If there is an already compromised blood flow to the heart, activities in the cold weather, like shoveling snow, create the perfect storm for a heart attack to happen, he said. Heart attack and stroke remain the leading causes of death in the U.S. Lloyd-Jones says any sudden onset of symptoms should be taken seriously. In men, sudden heavy, crushing chest pressure in the middle of the chest or sudden, unexplained shortness of breath are signs of a possible heart attack. Women can have the same symptoms but can have other subtle symptoms like occasional dizziness and lightheadedness or profound fatigue.
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Crain’s Chicago Business
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As respiratory viruses surge, health officials stress vaccinations and boosters
On the second anniversary of the first COVID-19 vaccinations in Chicago, experts from Lurie Children’s Hospital and the Chicago Department of Public Health warned that the pandemic is not behind us and that, combined with other respiratory viruses, the region is still at risk of a dangerously strained healthcare system. In addition to rising cases of COVID, there are more flu infections coming earlier in the season than Chicago has seen in many years and there was a dangerous nationwide surge of RSV, a virus that hits infants and children particularly hard. That RSV surge among children is now subsiding, said Dr. Larry Kociolek, associate professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. The hospital is now at about 90% capacity, but two weeks ago it was at capacity and was forced to turn down transfers of pediatric patients from other hospitals, he said. Kociolek warned that while the early surge of RSV is waning, the virus has exhibited strange timing for the last several years and the city could see a resurgence of it later in the season. Reflecting on the first time a COVID vaccine was available, Kociolek recalled walking through the hospital hallways that were finally “filled with relief and hopeful faces.” Now, families need to keep getting boosters because they allow children to stay in school and be involved in activities, he said.
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What is an Aortic Aneurysm?
Aortic aneurysms are rare, doctors say, but more common than people may think. Aneurysms, which are enlarged, weakened areas in blood vessels, can occur in any part of the body. An aortic aneurysm is a bulge in the aorta, the main blood vessel that ferries blood from the heart throughout the chest and the rest of the body. There are two primary types of aortic aneurysms: thoracic aortic aneurysms, which occur in the chest, and abdominal aortic aneurysms, which occur in the belly. Doctors tend to think of abdominal aortic aneurysms as a disease that occurs in older people, said Dr. Douglas Johnston, the chief of cardiac surgery for Northwestern Medicine, but thoracic aortic aneurysms can strike younger patients, too. Having a bicuspid aortic valve, meaning that your aortic valve has two flaps, instead of three, puts you at a higher risk of developing an aortic aneurysm. Roughly 2 percent of the population has a bicuspid aortic valve, Dr. Johnston said. But the average patient walking around with an aortic aneurysm in the chest will not have any symptoms. Dr. Johnston noted that some people may feel chest tightness or have a cough. Others may have a slight heart murmur, he added. “Anyone who develops sudden chest pain should be in the hospital as soon as possible,” Dr. Johnston said. If a patient has access to emergency care and is properly diagnosed, there is a high chance of survival. Doctors can perform surgery to remove the enlarged part of the aorta and help the patient recover.
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USA Today
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Kids ibuprofen and acetaminophen are in short supply. Here’s what parents can do.
Despite early wanings from health experts, parents are still confronted by empty pharmacy shelves looking for something to alleviate their kids’ symptoms. “I’ve been doing this for over 20 years now and this fall-winter is like no other. It’s bananas,” said Dr. Shelly Vaziri Flais, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Health experts don’t anticipate the shortage to end anytime soon as flu, COVID-19, RSV and cold cases continue to rise ahead of holiday gatherings. With over-the-counter medication shortages parents should use saline drops for a runny nose, use a humidifier to increase moisture in the air, keep your child hydrated and let them rest. Specifically, what parents should not do includes using vaporizers, giving aspirin and crushing or halving adult medication. Overall, Vaziri Flais said the best way to care for a sick child is to keep at-home remedies simple, treat what your child is feeling (not the number on the thermometer), trust your gut and “typically, less is more.”
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These Factors Increase the Risk of Kidney Cancer
Kidney cancer is one of the 10 most-diagnosed cancers in the United States. Like many of the other cancers on that list – including colon and rectal cancer – kidney cancer is more common now than it used to be. But unlike some others, the underlying causes of kidney cancer are often hard to discern. For example, a significant proportion of breast cancers stem from inherited genetic mutations. But that’s not the case for kidney cancer. Just 3% to 5% of these cancers are caused by hereditary factors. “There are certain genetic conditions associated with increased risk, but the majority of kidney cancers are not familial-based,” says Dr. Shilajit Kundu, chief of urologic oncology and professor of urology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Patients always ask me, ‘Why did I get this?’ And it’s tough to give them an answer,” Kundu adds. “I often say it’s just bad luck.” The medical term he an other cancer experts use for this kind of bad luck is “sporadic,” meaning the disease tends to appear randomly without any obvious cause. However, not all kidney cancers arise out of the blue. There are a handful of established risk factors, including exposure to some known carcinogens. There are also demographic factors – such as biological sex and race – associated with increased risks. Here, Kundu and other kidney cancer experts detail medical science’s current understanding of these risk factors, plus how it may be possible to lower your risk for the disease. Refraining from smoking, avoiding chemical exposures and maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle can all help curb kidney cancer.
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TIME
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How COVID-19 Immunity Works at This Point in the Pandemic
When the immune system meets a new intruder like SARS-CoV-2, its first response is to churn out sticky antibody proteins that attach to the virus and block it from binding to and infecting cells. Immunization is the most effective way to launch this antibody production against SARS-CoV-2. Getting the virus itself also triggers the process, but to a lesser extent. However, neither past vaccination nor infection necessarily provides protection against later strains of this ever-evolving virus. There’s another important difference between the protection provided by vaccines vs. natural infections. Getting COVID-19 comes with the risk of symptoms, including durable ones in the form of Long COVID. “The risk of natural infection for some infections, like SARS-CoV-2, still outweighs the potential immune benefits,” says Dr. Egon Ozer, director of the center for pathogen genomics and microbial evolution at the Havey Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University. For now, the combination of vaccines, boosters and infections is building a type of immunity against SARS-CoV-2 that is keeping most people from needing hospital care or dying. However you generate that immunity, the good news is that the immune system “has got a little flexibility built in,” Ozer says. “Not every immune cell is completely identical to the other.”
