Doctors should be on the lookout for cases of a respiratory virus that can sometimes cause polio-like muscle weakness and paralysis in children, U.S. health officials said.

Young children with respiratory illnesses and muscle weakness may be infected with enterovirus D68, a lung virus strain that’s been linked to rare, serious cases acute ...Read more

As mandatory evacuations for Hurricane Ian began in Florida and the warnings about damaging wind and flooding intensified, I called my aging parents to check in.

Being a disaster researcher, my concern for them was already in high gear, even though they weren’t directly in an evacuation zone. My dad takes medications that require ...Read more

The past decade has witnessed a rapid expansion of genetic tests, including new instruments to inform patients who have been diagnosed with breast cancer about the risk of recurrence and to guide their treatment.

But the clinical significance of many of the inherited mutations that can now be identified remains unclear, and experts are torn on ...Read more

Stress and upheaval are harmful at any time, but the pandemic has forced many families onto a roller coaster ride that seems unending. Families and caregivers are concerned about what this period of great instability means for their children, so we turned to psychologist Jennifer Vargas Pemberton, who has worked with children and teenagers for ...Read more

For many women, especially those who have had children, leakage of urine is a common complaint. So, too, is an urgency to use the bathroom.

These conditions are among the most common pelvic floor issues affecting women, according to Dr. Olivia Cardenas-Trowers, a Mayo Clinic urogynecologist. Pelvic floor disorders vary, but they are more common...Read more

A healthy lifestyle and reducing the risk of childhood obesity involves getting enough exercise, limiting processed and sugary treats, as well as getting the right amount of sleep. Dr. Tina Ardon, a Mayo Clinic family medicine physician, says promoting healthy choices start at snack time.

Whether in the classroom or on the playground, children ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My friend insists that taking a probiotic supplement has helped her lose 50 pounds by keeping her gut bacteria in check. Will taking a probiotic in conjunction with a balanced diet and exercise help me lose weight?

ANSWER: It is true that the gut bacterial population in people who are obese differs from the population in ...Read more

DALLAS — J.R. Chester got pregnant the summer before her senior year of high school. A bright student with good grades, she gave birth, graduated, and was pregnant again when she arrived at college that fall.

She was a teen mom — like her mother, her grandmother, and her great-grandmother. Her school did not teach sexual health education, ...Read more

When I talk about our research team’s work on pregnancy in transgender people, people often recall Thomas Beatie, a pregnant man who appeared on “Oprah” and in People magazine in 2008. The media focus on Beatie and his pregnancy provoked public fascination that tended to overshadow the everyday lived realities of being pregnant as a ...Read more

Help for a mental health crisis is now just three digits away: 9-8-8.

Early data show that people are increasingly reaching out to a national mental health hotline launched July 16 as an easy-to-remember alternative to 911. But how does it work? And is it "friendly"?

The basics

Instead of being directed to police, callers (or texters) are ...Read more

People hospitalized for COVID-19 were more likely to have heart failure after their discharge than those hospitalized for another reason, a Duke University study published this month found.

The study’s findings, published in Nature Communications, support a growing body of research that suggests some people infected with COVID-19 go on to ...Read more

Q: How do I avoid heavy metals in the food I feed my baby?

A: News about heavy metals found in baby food has left parents with a lot of questions.

The low levels of heavy metals found in baby foods likely are a relatively small part of a child's overall toxic metal exposure risk. However, exposure from all sources should be minimized. Toxic ...Read more

BOSTON — Eight years after the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral across social media and raised hundreds of millions of dollars for research, a Cambridge company is on the brink of a major breakthrough for ALS patients.

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals should receive word in the coming week from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on whether the ...Read more

A growing number of people in the U.S. identify as Hispanic. That has the medical community looking closer at diversifying information and samples that can apply to a broader patient population.

Dr. Richard O. White, a Mayo Clinic community internal medicine physician, says biobanks, including the Jax Saludable Biobank, are shaping the future ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I'm 70 years old and have worn hearing aids for about a decade. Over the past several years, my hearing seems to be getting worse. Although I have tried several different kinds of hearing aids, I feel as if they are not effective any longer. A friend suggested I ask an audiologist about cochlear implants. I thought those were ...Read more

Formulas for toddlers are a burgeoning business in the United States: Sales of the drinks more than doubled in recent years as companies convinced parents that their little ones needed the liquid boost. But many experts warn that these products, designed for children ages 1 to 3, fill no nutritional needs beyond what is available in a typical ...Read more

MIAMI — The gurus of the psychedelic era of American pop culture extolled the experience of the “acid trip.” But the U.S. government and much of the public remained leery of LSD, with President Richard Nixon declaring it and assorted other drugs “public enemy No. 1.”

Now, half a century after Nixon launched the War on Drugs, a Miami-...Read more

Endometriosis is a painful condition where cells similar to the lining of the uterus grow outside of the uterus. While it most commonly occurs in the pelvis, it can occur anywhere in the abdomen or pelvis.

Dr. Megan Wasson, a Mayo Clinic medical and surgical gynecologist, says it's a quality-of-life issue, affecting approximately 1 out of every...Read more

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

Simple computer exercises using positive words and images designed to boost self-worth can prolong the antidepressant effects of ketamine in people with depression. That’s what my research team and I found in our new study.

Over two decades ago, researchers ...Read more