Medical Bulletin 17/May/2023

Here are the top medical news for the day:

TCE exposure may raise your risk for Parkinson’s: Study

Two years of heavy exposure to TCE or trichloroethylene , a liquid chemical that lingers in the air, water and soil, may increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease by 70%.

TCE has been used for industrial and commercial purposes for nearly 100 years, and was used as a surgical anesthetic until it was banned in 1977. More recently it was used as a degreasing solvent. Today, it is primarily used to degrease industrial metal parts. This entails heating TCE in degreasing tanks to create a vapor that dissolves the grease, but it also releases the chemical into the atmosphere. Once TCE enters the soil or groundwater, it can persist for decades.

Reference:

Samuel M. Goldman, et al,JOURNAL JAMA Neurology

Even less frequent cannabis use during pregnancy may impact fetal growth significantly: Study

As more people use cannabis for recreational purposes, attitudes towards the drug have changed. For example, research has shown that dispensaries often recommend cannabis - also referred to as marijuana - to pregnant women to ease pregnancy symptoms, especially morning sickness.

“We show that even when marijuana use occurred only in the first trimester of pregnancy, birth weight was significant reduced, by more than 150g on average,” said Dr Beth Bailey, a senior author of the study published in Frontiers in Pediatrics. “If that use continued into the second trimester, newborn head circumference was significantly decreased as well.”

Reference:

The Impact of Timing of In Utero Marijuana Exposure on Fetal Growth, Frontiers in Pediatrics, DOI 10.3389/fped.2023.1103749

 Intense hot flashes after menopause heighten metabolic syndrome risk in women: Study

Women who experience more severe hot flashes after menopause are more likely to develop metabolic syndrome and high blood pressure, according to research presented at the 25th European Congress of Endocrinology in Istanbul. The findings of this long-term study highlight the importance of using hormone replacement therapy for menopause in these women.

Metabolic syndrome is a group of three or more conditions that occur together, which increase the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. These conditions include high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels. After menopause, women are at a higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease.

Reference:

The study “The severity of hot flashes is associated with the risk for incident metabolic syndrome and new-onset hypertension after the menopause” will be presented on Sunday 14 May 2023 at the European Congress of Endocrinology at the Halic Congress Center in Istanbul, Turkey.