A team of interventional neuroradiologists and neurosurgeons at Johns Hopkins reports wide success with a new procedure to treat pseudotumor cerebri, a rare but potentially blinding condition marked by excessive pressure inside the skull, caused by a dangerous narrowing of a vein located at the base of the brain.
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Patients with obstructive sleep apnea can better control their symptoms when traveling to higher altitudes by combining autoadjusted continuous positive airway pressure with acetazolamide, research suggests.
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For individuals with obstructive sleep apnea traveling to higher altitudes (which may exacerbate symptoms), use of a combination therapy resulted in improvement in symptoms including reduced insomnia and better control of sleep apnea, according to a preliminary study published in the December 12 issue of JAMA.
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Altitude sickness manifests by symptoms including a headache, fatigue, dizziness and sometimes nausea and vomiting. In addition, patients most likely also feel like they are working harder to breathe, like they are constantly trying to catch their breath. It normally takes days to weeks to fully acclimate to a higher altitude. It affects between 25 percent and 40 percent of the population and can be debilitating.
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Boehringer Ingelheim presented results of a drug interaction study that found Aggrenox (aspirin/extended-release dipyridamole), an antiplatelet medication, is not affected by the co-administration of omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), frequently used to treat several gastrointestinal conditions. These data were presented at the International Stroke Conference (ISC) in New Orleans.
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Measuring specific, exercise-related responses can help physicians determine who may be more at risk for severe high altitude illness (SHAI), according to a study conducted by researchers in France. The researchers also found that taking acetazolamide (ACZ), a drug frequently prescribed to prevent altitude illness, can reduce some of the risk factors associated with SHAI.
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A rare but increasingly more common disease striking overweight, younger women is the focus of a clinical trial at Michigan State University, where an osteopathic physician is testing the effectiveness of a certain drug against a potentially blindness-causing ailment.
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As the American military rushes to confront adversaries in some of the world's highest mountain ranges, the Department of Defense is giving $4 million to the Altitude Research Center at the University of Colorado School of Medicine to develop revolutionary ways to combat high altitude sickness in soldiers, sailors and marines.
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Climbers of high peaks such as Mount Kilimanjaro are at high risk for Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS). Trekkers should not ignore AMS warning signs, which can progress to more serious medical outcomes.
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Since sleep apnea is associated with heart failure, patients who take a single dose of acetazolamide - a mild diuretic and respiratory stimulant - before going to bed exhibit less sleep apnea, improved blood oxygen levels and fewer daytime symptoms of sleepiness.
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It's a no-brainer that the brain needs a constant supply of blood to keep it going. But some medical conditions can block or reduce that life-giving flow. Whether it's a stroke, a clogged artery or a brain tumor, any situation where blood can't get to the whole brain can lead to death or permanent disability.
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