To Your Health: NLM update Transcript

NIH MedlinePlus magazine Winter 2017: 03/06/2017

Cover of NIH MedlinePlus the Magazine Winter 2017 Issue

Greetings from the National Library of Medicine and MedlinePlus.gov

Regards to all our listeners!

I'm Rob Logan, Ph.D., senior staff, U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM).

Here is what's new this week in To Your Health, a consumer health oriented podcast from NLM, that helps you use MedlinePlus to follow up on weekly topics.

The new edition of NIH MedlinePlus magazine covers pain management, breast cancer, as well as depression.

The cover features Olympic icon and swimmer Michael Phelps, who explains he experienced depression during the height of his extraordinary athletic career. Phelps won 28 medals in four different Olympiads and is the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time.

Phelps tells NIH MedlinePlus magazine (and we quote): '...I thought of myself as just a swimmer and nobody else. I was lost and pushing important people out of my life.' (end of quote). However, Phelps says (and we quote): 'I got help (with depression) and the life that I live now is a dream come true' (end of quote).

NIH MedlinePlus magazine explains about 19 million Americans have depression, which can impact any person at any age. In addition to Phelps, NIH MedlinePlus magazine notes several other prominent Americans have been treated for depression, including actress Kerry Washington and singer Bruce Springsteen (who thoughtfully discuses depression in his recent autobiography).

NIH MedlinePlus magazine reports there are five types of depression and notes depression's symptoms and signs include: persistent sadness; anxious or empty moods; and difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions.

NIH MedlinePlus magazine adds depression can be treated, usually with psychotherapy and diverse medications (known as anti-depressants), or combinations of the two approaches.

Meanwhile, NIH MedlinePlus magazine explains current research at the National Institute of Mental Health focuses on ketamine, an anesthetic that - in low doses - works as a rapid anti-depressant. The National Institute of Mental Health's research focuses on developing a safe form of ketamine that mitigates its side effects.

In a separate section, NIH MedlinePlus magazine reports there are disproportionate breast cancer survival rates for African American women and introduces new research that finds possible associations between Vitamin D deficiencies and breast cancer tumor progression.

NIH MedlinePlus magazine reports African American women die from breast cancer at a rate that is 42 percent higher than white women. NIH MedlinePlus magazine explains a current, pioneering genetics study among African American women attempts to better explain their breast cancer risks and eventually provide a new generation of targeted treatments.

Other National Institute of Mental Health research focuses on how Vitamin D deficiencies are linked in humans to tumor growth and cancer's spread to other areas within the body.

NIH MedlinePlus magazine also provides a question and answer interview about the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health's research to improve pain management.

NIH MedlinePlus magazine explains the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health's current research focuses on how the brain perceives, modifies, and manages pain. The director of the Center tells NIH MedlinePlus magazine (and we quote): 'Our scientists are looking at the role of the brain in pain processing and control, and how factors such as emotion, attention, environment, and genetics affect pain perception' (end of quote).

Incidentally, NIH MedlinePlus magazine explains complementary health recognizes evidence-based as well as traditional approaches to medical treatment, including yoga, acupuncture, and massage therapy. Integrative strategies combine and coordinate evidence-based with traditional approaches in order to help patients.

Other articles in the current NIH MedlinePlus magazine include treating men for an enlarged prostate; and navigating menopause for women.

As always, NIH MedlinePlus magazine provides a helpful list of phone numbers (many of them a free call) to contact NIH's array of institutes and centers.

NIH MedlinePlus magazine is distributed to physicians' offices nationwide by the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the Friends of the National Library of Medicine. You can subscribe or find the latest edition online by clicking on 'Magazine,' which is on the bottom right side of MedlinePlus.gov's home page.

Previous editions of NIH MedlinePlus magazine are available at the same site. A link to NIH MedlinePlus Salud, which provides other health information and resources in Spanish, is available there as well (see the top right of the page). The web version of NIH MedlinePlus magazine includes links that visually supplement the information in some articles.

Before I go, this reminder... MedlinePlus.gov is authoritative. It's free. We do not accept advertising .... and is written to help you.

To find MedlinePlus.gov, just type 'MedlinePlus.gov' in any web browser, such as Firefox, Safari, Chrome, or Explorer on any platform.

We encourage you to use MedlinePlus and please recommend it to your friends. MedlinePlus is available in English and Spanish. Some medical information is available in 48 other languages.

A written transcript of recent podcasts is available by typing 'To your health' in the search box on MedlinePlus.gov's home page.

The National Library of Medicine is one of 27 institutes and centers within the National Institutes of Health. The National Institutes of Health is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

A disclaimer — the information presented in this program should not replace the medical advice of your physician. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat any disease without first consulting with your physician or other health care provider.

It was nice to be with you. Please join us here next week and here's to your health!