Medical Bulletin 26/November/2025 - Video

Here are the top medical news for today:

Indian Study Shows Music during surgery eases procedure, reduces anesthesia needs, speeds recovery

Under the intense lights of an operating room, patients undergoing surgery are deeply unconscious due to a precise mix of drugs that dulls pain, induces sleep, and relaxes muscles. But new research from Delhi's Maulana Azad Medical College reveals that music played during this unconscious state can still reach the brain and positively influence recovery.

In the study published in Music and Medicine, researchers found that soothing music delivered through headphones during gallbladder removal reduced the need for anesthesia and opioid pain killers, stabilized vital signs, and lowered stress hormone levels.

The study involved 56 adult patients randomly assigned to two groups: both wore noise-cancelling headphones, but only one listened to calming flute or piano music. Anesthesia drugs like propofol and fentanyl were carefully monitored during the laparoscopic surgery. Researchers measured drug dosages, blood pressure, heart rate, cortisol (a stress hormone), and recovery factors.

Patients exposed to music required significantly less anesthetic medication and experienced smoother, less stressful awakenings. Cortisol levels were notably lower, suggesting music dampened the brain's stress response even while patients were unconscious. This works because auditory pathways remain partly active under anesthesia, allowing music to modulate nervous system activity, reduce inflammation, and tone down physiological stress signals.

The results suggest that music can serve as a low-cost, non-invasive adjunct therapy to anesthesia, improving patient comfort and potentially decreasing side effects from high drug use. Beyond pharmacology, this approach humanizes surgical care by offering patients a gentle, healing stimulus amid the mechanical environment of an operating room.

Further large-scale research is needed to optimize protocols, but this evidence opens promising avenues for incorporating music therapy into routine surgical practice worldwide, ultimately enhancing recovery and wellbeing for millions undergoing anesthesia.

REFERENCE: Dr. Tanvi Goel, Dr. Farah Husain, Dr. Sonia Wadhawan, Dr. Amit Kohli, Dr. Smita Kaushik; Maulana Azad Medical college; Effect of patient selected music therapy on propofol consumption in laparoscopic cholecystectomy under total intravenous anaesthesia: A randomised controlled trial; Music and Medicine; Vol. 17 No. 4 (2025): October; DOI: https://doi.org/10.47513/mmd.v17i4.1111

Anti-Inflammatory Mediterranean Diet May Help Slow Early Memory Decline, Study Finds

A recent study published in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies examined how adherence to different Mediterranean-style diets and the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) impacts memory complaints and subtle cognitive decline in women over 50.

Researchers focused on three diet models: the standard Mediterranean diet (MED), the MIND diet designed for brain health, and the anti-inflammatory Mediterranean diet (AnMED), which excludes pro-inflammatory foods like refined grains, sugars, and dairy products.

The study enrolled 348 women aged around 70, collecting detailed diet information and assessing cognitive and psychological health with questionnaires and cognitive tests.

The methodology involved cross-sectional data collection at community pharmacies and health centers in Spain over five months. Trained interviewers recorded dietary intake using food frequency questionnaires and calculated adherence scores based on specific diet criteria. Cognitive status was evaluated using tools like the Memory Impairment Screen and the Short Portable Mental Questionnaire. Statistical analyses including logistic regression and odds ratios assessed associations between diet adherence and cognitive outcomes.

Findings revealed that while MED and MIND diets did not show significant links to subjective memory complaints (SMC) or cognitive decline, the AnMED diet strongly protected against SMC. Women highly adherent to the AnMED diet were much less likely to experience memory issues, even after adjusting for factors like depression and diabetes.

Higher consumption of leafy and non-leafy vegetables, legumes, and nuts correlated with reduced memory complaints, whereas dairy, refined grains, and sugary foods increased risk. Lower DII scores, reflecting reduced inflammation, were also associated with fewer memory concerns.

This study highlights anti-inflammatory dietary patterns emphasizing plant foods as promising strategies to protect brain health among older women.

Although limited by its cross-sectional design and self-reported data, the research supports the potential of targeted nutrition in preventing early cognitive problems and calls for longer-term studies to confirm these benefits.

REFERENCE: Lopez de Coca, T., Sala-Climent, M., Bosch, L., de las Heras-Santos, N., Muñoz-Almaraz, F.J., Moreno, L. (2025). Evidence of an anti-inflammatory diet as a key protector for subjective memory complaints in women. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies. DOI: 10.1186/s12906-025-05195-0, https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-025-05195-0

New Study Finds Current Heart Attack Screening Tools Miss 45% People at Risk

A recent study led by researchers at Mount Sinai has revealed a critical issue with the current cardiac screening methods used to prevent heart attacks. Published in JACC: Advances, the research found that nearly 45% of patients at actual risk of heart attacks would be missed using the widely adopted atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk score.

Even a newer, more comprehensive tool called PREVENT failed to identify more than half of these high-risk patients. This suggests a significant gap in patient care, where many individuals at risk of first-time heart attacks are not flagged in time for preventive therapy.

Cardiac screening plays a crucial role in preventing heart disease and saving lives by detecting early warning signs before symptoms appear. Many heart conditions, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and coronary artery disease, develop silently and often only become noticeable once the disease has progressed. Regular screening can identify these risks early, allowing timely intervention through lifestyle changes, medications, or procedures that significantly reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, or heart failure.

The study analyzed data from 474 patients under the age of 66 who suffered a first heart attack between 2020 and 2025. Researchers retrospectively applied the atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and PREVENT risk assessments as if the patients were evaluated just two days before their cardiac events. They found that 45% would not have received preventive treatment recommendations based on atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease guidelines, increasing to 61% with PREVENT. Additionally, most patients (60%) developed classic symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath only in the final two days before their attack, making symptom-based prevention unreliable.

Lead author Dr. Amir Ahmadi highlighted that population-based risk tools work at a broad level but often fail to accurately reflect individual risk. The study recommends shifting the focus from symptom and risk score screening to early detection of atherosclerotic plaque—the silent buildup in arteries that eventually causes heart attacks. Advanced imaging techniques to identify these plaques before they rupture might dramatically improve prevention.

The findings underscore the urgent need for more precise, personalized cardiovascular risk assessment methods. Enhanced screening could save lives by enabling timely preventive interventions.

REFERENCE: Mueller, A, Leipsic, J, Tomey, M. et al. Limitations of Risk- and Symptom-Based Screening in Predicting First Myocardial Infarction. JACC Adv. 2025 Dec, 4 (12_Part_2) .https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.102361