EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health - News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 14-Sep-2025 03:11 ET (14-Sep-2025 07:11 GMT/UTC)

Acupuncture treatment improves disabling effects of chronic low back pain in older adults

NIH/Office of the Director
Peer-Reviewed Publication

According to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), older Americans with chronic low back pain who received acupuncture had greater improvement in physical function and reduced pain than those who received usual medical care only, generally prescribed medications or physical therapy. Chronic low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide and affects over one-third of older adults in the United States. Treatment options range from pain-relieving drugs to complementary therapies, including acupuncture. There is an urgent need for safe, effective, and non-addictive pain management approaches.

Journal: JAMA Network Open
Funder: NIH/National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, NIH/National Institute on Aging

Parental diseases of despair and suicidal events in their children

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: This cohort study found an association of parental diseases of despair (defined as a suicide attempt, alcohol-related disease, or substance use disorder) with youth suicidal events; this finding may be underlying the increase in adolescent suicidal behavior observed in the U.S. over the past 2 decades. Improved access to care for parents with diseases of despair and systematic screening and referral of their offspring could help to reduce the adolescent suicide rate.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

Acupuncture for chronic low back pain in older adults

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: The findings of this randomized clinical trial of older adults with chronic low back pain suggest that acupuncture needling provided greater improvements in back pain–related disability at 6 months and at 12 months compared with usual medical care alone. These findings support acupuncture needling as an effective and safe treatment option for older adults with chronic low back pain.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

Puppy power: Parents see quality of life improvements in children with impaired walking thanks to mobility assistance dogs

Trinity College Dublin
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Parents of children with variable levels of walking impairment perceive significant quality of life improvements in their children after six months of living with a mobility assistance dog, according to the first qualitative assessment of its type that provides important evidence in an area of growing therapeutic interest.

Specifically, the parents of 10 children aged 6-12 with neurological and/or physical impairments in their walking perceived improvements in most of the childrens’ physical activity levels, as well as in their social engagement and family life.

Journal: Physical Therapy Reviews

Benchmark study tracks trends in dog behavior

Virginia Tech
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The Virginia Tech study, which seeks to understand the link between dog behavior and health, compiles four years of owner-reported data from over 47,000 dogs.

Journal: PLOS One

Training doctors for the digital age: Canadian study charts new course for health education

JMIR Publications
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new article published in JMIR Medical Education by researchers at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and University of Calgary proposes using the Quintuple Aim as a national guiding framework to prioritize the digital health skills health care workers need now and in the future.

Journal: JMIR Medical Education

Collaborative team earns five-year renewal grant from NINDS to continue stroke research

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Grant and Award Announcement

In 2018 the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) awarded a five-year, $2.9 million R01 grant to a TTUHSC research team in Amarillo to help uncover and develop much needed therapies for the treatment of ischemic stroke. Due to their high level of productivity and potential to create new medications for stroke injury, NINDS recently awarded a new $3 million competitive renewal that extends the grant for an additional five years to 2030.

Funder: NIH/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

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