Medical Bulletin 16/February/2026 - Video

Here are the top medical news for today:

Shorter TB Regimens Reduce Costs in India: ICMR Study

Six-month, all-oral treatment regimens for multidrug-resistant and rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (MDR/RR-TB) are both cost-effective and associated with improved health outcomes compared to longer regimens currently used in India, according to an economic evaluation published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research.

The study was conducted by the ICMR–National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis and assessed the cost-effectiveness of two bedaquiline-based regimens: BPaL (bedaquiline, pretomanid and linezolid) and BPaLM (which adds moxifloxacin). These were compared with the existing 9–11 month shorter regimen and the 18–20 month longer regimen used under India’s National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP).

The analysis found that the BPaL regimen was both more effective and cost-saving. For every additional Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY) gained, the health system saved INR 379 per patient compared to the current standard regimen. This indicates better health outcomes at a lower overall cost.

The BPaLM regimen was also highly cost-effective, requiring an additional expenditure of only INR 37 per patient per additional QALY gained. Both regimens were associated with lower or comparable total healthcare costs, including medication, hospital visits, and follow-up care.

MDR/RR-TB presents major challenges due to prolonged treatment duration, adverse drug effects, and high financial burden. Shorter, all-oral regimens may improve adherence, reduce complications, and allow patients to return to normal activities sooner. By reducing treatment duration to six months, these regimens support more efficient use of healthcare resources and align with India’s national TB elimination goals.

The study concludes that BPaL-based regimens are likely to be cost-saving or highly cost-effective and should be considered for broader programmatic adoption under NTEP to strengthen India’s response to drug-resistant tuberculosis.

REFERENCE: Malaisamy Muniyandi, Karikalan Nagarajan, Karthick Chelvanayagam. Kavitha Rajsekar, Kirti Tyagi, Chandrasekaran Padmapriyadarsini; Cost-effectiveness of BPaL/BPaLM as compared to mixed standard of care bedaquiline containing regimen for MDR/RR-TB; Indian Journal of Medical Research; doi: 10.25259/IJMR_158_2025

Regular Weight Training May Slow Brain Ageing, Study Finds

Lifting weights may do more than strengthen muscles — it could also help keep the brain younger and sharper with age.

Resistance exercise, also known as strength or weight training, involves working muscles against a force so they contract more powerfully than usual. This can include free weights, resistance bands, bodyweight movements, or even lifting heavy household objects. Exercises such as squats, lunges, push-ups, deadlifts and presses build muscle tone and bone density, but research increasingly suggests they also benefit mood, circulation and cognitive function.

According to a review in European Medical Journal Reviews summarising a 2026 randomised controlled trial published in GeroScience, older adults who engaged in regular moderate to heavy resistance training showed signs of slower brain ageing. Using neuroimaging-based “brain-age” markers, researchers found participants’ brains appeared up to 2.3 years younger compared to those who did not exercise.

Importantly, the benefits were not limited to a single brain region. Strength training was linked to improved connectivity across multiple neural networks, particularly those involved in attention and executive function — key abilities for planning, focus and decision-making. Rather than producing narrow effects, resistance exercise appeared to influence distributed brain systems, suggesting a broader, whole-brain impact.

Participants who completed moderate or heavy training sessions demonstrated brains that looked 1.4 to 2.3 years younger on biological brain-age assessments. These improvements were observed even in healthy adults without signs of cognitive impairment, indicating that resistance training may serve as a preventive strategy rather than simply a therapeutic one.

The findings reinforce the idea that strength training can be part of long-term brain health planning. While traditionally associated with physical fitness, resistance exercise may also help preserve mental agility. By challenging muscles regularly, adults may simultaneously engage neural systems that support attention, coordination and cognitive resilience — offering a promising, non-drug approach to healthy brain ageing.

REFERENCE: Gonzalez-Gomez R et al. Randomized controlled trial of resistance exercise and brain aging clocks. Geroscience. 2026;doi:10.1007/s11357-026-02141-x.

Magnesium Intake Linked to Lower Fasting Blood Sugar in Older Adults: Study

Prediabetes, a condition marked by elevated blood glucose levels that are not yet high enough for a diabetes diagnosis, represents a key opportunity for early intervention. A recent study published in Frontiers in Nutrition examined whether magnesium supplementation could improve glycemic control in older adults with both prediabetes and magnesium deficiency.

Magnesium plays a central role in glucose metabolism and insulin signaling, and deficiency has been linked to insulin resistance. Older adults are particularly vulnerable due to reduced nutrient absorption and higher rates of both prediabetes and hypomagnesemia. To explore this connection, researchers conducted a 16-week randomized controlled trial involving 71 older Chinese adults (mean age 69 years) with prediabetes and low magnesium levels. Participants received either 360 mg of elemental magnesium daily in the form of magnesium oxide or a placebo. Sixty-five individuals completed the study.

The primary outcome was change in fasting plasma glucose (FPG). Researchers also assessed insulin, C-peptide, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), glycated albumin, and inflammatory markers including hs-CRP and IL-6.

Magnesium supplementation significantly increased serum magnesium levels compared to placebo, with an adjusted mean difference of 0.056 mmol/L. Fasting glucose levels were modestly reduced in the magnesium group, with an adjusted mean difference of –0.5 mmol/L. However, no significant differences were observed in HbA1c or other broader glycemic markers, suggesting the improvement in fasting glucose did not translate into sustained overall metabolic improvement over the 16-week period.

The intervention was well tolerated, with high adherence (approximately 92%) and no reported adverse events. While preliminary metabolomics analysis suggested changes in lipid metabolism and insulin resistance pathways, these findings remain exploratory.

Despite its strengths, including dietary monitoring and randomized design, the study was limited by a small sample size and short duration. Larger, longer-term trials are needed to determine whether magnesium supplementation offers clinically meaningful benefits in prediabetes management.

REFERENCE: Yang, J., Zhang, H., Li, Y., et al. (2026). Oral magnesium supplementation improves glycemic control in older Chinese adults with pre-diabetes and hypomagnesemia: a randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in Nutrition. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2026.1765308. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2026.1765308/full