Rethinking MS treatment: Why less may be more
For years, people living with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) have depended on powerful medications to keep their disease under control. One of the most effective treatments has been rituximab, a therapy that works by depleting B cells, which are the immune cells that drive inflammation ...
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Staying active during pregnancy helps keep postpartum weight off
For years, researchers have known that many people struggle to lose the weight they gain during pregnancy. Up to 1 in 4 individuals retain at least 10 pounds 1 to 2 years after giving birth, and this ...
Wildfire smoke studies reveal differing health risks
Wildfire smoke has increasingly been recognized as a serious public health threat. Now, 2 new Kaiser Permanente studies in Southern California have examined how health risks for both young and old people ...
Researcher Dr. Hui Zhou’s joyful New Year’s Day walk
On a rainy New Year’s morning in Pasadena, Dr. Hui Zhou, a research scientist with the Department of Research & Evaluation, walked alongside Kaiser Permanente’s float, “A Better Idea ...
Promoting heart health through research
February 2, 2021Kaiser Permanente researcher seeks to reduce heart disease by finding better ways to prevent, detect, and treat high blood pressure, known as a “silent killer.” Epidemiologists are scientists who study patterns of diseases and health conditions in large populations. Early in her career as an epidemiologist, Kristi Reynolds, PhD, MPH, decided to focus on heart health. ...Read more...Self-order option boosts colorectal cancer screening rates
January 21, 2021A study among Kaiser Permanente members in Southern California shows that allowing patients to self-order a colorectal cancer screening test online improves rates of testing completion. The rates of both completion and follow-up activities were higher among patients who ordered the tests themselves than those who received the test kit automatically in the mail when ...Read more...Chest pain risk assessment may reduce treatment disparities
December 23, 2020The use of a standardized tool for assessing the risk of serious outcomes in patients with chest pain was associated with women at high risk receiving comparable care to men, according to new research published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine. Care received by women at low and intermediate risk was consistent with current clinical ...Read more...Progression of children’s myopia may be influenced by race and ethnicity
December 2, 2020Asian American children are at a much higher risk of a progression of myopia—commonly known as nearsightedness—a new Kaiser Permanente Southern California study shows. “Some people think of myopia only as an issue that can be easily corrected with glasses or contact lenses. However, myopic patients have a higher risk of vision loss throughout life as ...Read more...People on dialysis have higher risk from COVID-19
December 1, 2020Kidney dialysis patients should take extra precautions to avoid being infected with COVID-19. A new Kaiser Permanente Southern California study found patients on dialysis have 18 times higher risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 than people who do not have end-stage kidney disease. Intuitively, the physicians and researchers knew that these patients may be at ...Read more...Five questions for … Dr. Chunyuan Qiu
December 1, 2020Chunyuan Qiu, MD, MS, is a clinician investigator for the Department of Research & Evaluation and the chief of the Department of Anesthesiology at Kaiser Permanente Baldwin Park Medical Center. He is actively involved in teaching regional anesthesia fellows. In his practice, he focuses on the long-term outcomes after surgery and anesthesia. What is the value to ...Read more...Kaiser Permanente San Diego enrolling patients in monoclonal antibody trial
November 30, 2020In November, emergency departments at the Kaiser Permanente San Diego and Zion medical centers began enrolling patients in the ACTIV-2 Outpatient Monoclonal Antibodies and Other Therapies trial, which is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “This trial will evaluate the safety and efficacy of treatments for people who have COVID-19 but aren’t ...Read more...Seeking early detection for pancreatic cancer
November 23, 2020Earlier this year, much-loved game show host Alex Trebec died from a cancer that’s rare but extremely deadly: pancreatic cancer. In fact, the disease is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in the United States. Pancreatic cancer’s high mortality rate is due in large part to a lack of effective screening methods, according to ...Read more...New tool helps predict outcomes for COVID-19
November 20, 2020A study published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine this month reports on an assessment tool developed by Kaiser Permanente researchers and physicians that helps ensure patients get the right care, when they need it, by accurately predicting the probability that patients with COVID-19 symptoms will experience severe disease or even death. “As the pandemic ...Read more...2016 presidential election associated with uptick in heart attacks and stroke
November 2, 2020The hospitalization rate for heart attacks and strokes was 1.62 times higher in the 2 days immediately after the 2016 presidential election than the same 2 days in the week before the election, new research shows. “We saw the same increase in acute cardiovascular disease (CVD) events across sex, age, and race and ethnicity groups,” said ...Read more...