Menopausal women are at relatively high risk for memory loss, high blood pressure (hypertension) and diabetes. A decade ago, the standard treatment for these problems was long-term hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Since then, studies have shown that extensive use of HRT is associated with significant adverse effects.
Gender influences the prevalence and progression rate of many renal diseases, such as polycystic kidney disease (PKD). The physiology behind gender differences and renal disease is still uncertain, but the distinct characteristics of male and female kidney size, along with diet and the presence of hypertension, have all been thought to play a part.
For decades, older women have taken hormone replacements to replenish estrogen and progesterone levels lost to aging. More recently, testosterone (the most important male hormone) supplements have been used by aging men to improve their muscle mass, bone strength, libido and quality of life.
In a new study, researchers examined the differential contribution of genetic factors involved in regulating blood pressure based on samples drawn from a large community. They found significant differences in genetic contributors to blood pressure in males vs. females.
At menopause, women lose hormone protection against heart (cardiovascular) and kidney (renal) diseases, and are likely to become obese. A research team has tested the idea that estrogen deficiency in aged females may trigger the development of high blood pressure and obesity. The results of their study, using an animal model, suggest that estrogen depletion can have these effects.
A nationwide study led by researchers at UCSF provides evidence that inhaled nitric oxide is safe and effective for the prevention of the most common type of long-term lung disease of very premature infants.
An international trial looking at the benefits of giving blood-pressure lowering medication to elderly patients has stopped early, after researchers observed significant reductions in overall mortality in those receiving treatment.
Practising physicians are nowadays presented with official guidelines on the treatments they should give their patients. In an article published in PLoS Medicine, researchers have attempted to grade the quality of evidence used in drawing up the recommendations contained in guidelines for the treatment of patients with diabetes, high blood pressure and dyslipidemia (abnormal levels of fats in the blood).
Blood clots are a leading cause of disability and death in patients following surgery, despite medical advances in their prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.
Infants whose mothers smoke during pregnancy have substantially higher blood pressures in their first months of life, Dutch researchers reported in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.