Long term cognitive effects of menopausal hormone therapy . . . and other stories
BMJ 2024; 387 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.q2728 (Published 12 December 2024) Cite this as: BMJ 2024;387:q2728
Cardiovascular disease in people with psoriasis
Although psoriasis is known to carry an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, the underlying reasons aren’t clear. Two cross sectional studies from Sweden and the United States report that levels of a glycan biomarker of acute phase proteins correlate with both an index of psoriasis severity and indicators of atherosclerosis (JAMA Dermatol doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2024.4433). The association between the two conditions may be mediated by systemic inflammation.
Ultra-processed food and psoriasis
On the subject of psoriasis, a large study of nutrition from France links disease activity to a higher intake of ultra-processed foods (JAMA Dermatol doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2024.4832). But it’s hard to interpret this finding usefully because, as this column noted a couple of weeks ago, ultra-processed foods are a wide and diverse group. What’s more, the cross sectional design of the study makes it impossible to know whether the raised intake of ultra-processed foods is a cause or a consequence of psoriasis.
Long term cognitive effects of menopausal hormone therapy
A study of early hormone therapy in menopausal women found no short term effects on performance in tests of cognitive ability (PLoS Med doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1004435). Ten years later, the findings are unchanged. Whatever the type of hormone supplement, menopausal hormone therapy seemed to have no impact on higher mental function.
Prenatal exposure to residential greenness
A longitudinal investigation of 3000 pregnant women in New York reports that preterm birth was less common among those who lived in areas with more parks and green spaces (Am J Epidemiol doi:10.1093/aje/kwae436). Minerva struggled to understand why the research was necessary. Surely, people living in cities deserve easy access to green spaces regardless of any influence on gestational outcomes?
Ig Nobel prizes
It’s easy to criticise Nobel prizes. They go to individuals rather than the teams that made the discoveries possible; they’re usually awarded 20 years too late; and women don’t get anywhere near their fair share. Ig Nobel prizes are a different matter—not least because no one takes them too seriously. They make people laugh and help scientists engage with the public about their work (Nature doi:10.1038/d41586-024-03756-w). A few years ago, investigators who showed that the pinna of the human ear continues to grow throughout adult life were awarded one. The finding was first published in a Christmas edition of The BMJ (doi:10.1136/bmj.311.7021.1668).
Asystolic cardiac arrest outside hospital
Registry data from Japan on 36 000 people who experienced an out-of-hospital asystolic cardiac arrest show that the outlook is bleak (JAMA Netw Open doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.45543). Thirty days post arrest, only one in 500 cases showed cerebral function at a level adequate for independent daily life. Life support measures before hospitalisation, such as advanced airway management and intravenous adrenaline (epinephrine), improved survival but didn’t increase the chances of a favourable neurological outcome.
Hearing and quality of life in older adults
Judged by its primary outcome, cognitive change over three years, the ACHIEVE trial failed to show that providing hearing aids for older people with hearing loss was beneficial (Lancet doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01406-X). A secondary analysis now finds that the intervention had little effect on quality of life (JAMA Netw Open doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.46591). People randomised to receive hearing aids scored no higher on measures of health related quality of life than those in the control group.
Log in
Log in using your username and password
Log in through your institution
Subscribe from £184 *
Subscribe and get access to all BMJ articles, and much more.
* For online subscription
Access this article for 1 day for:
£50 / $60/ €56 (excludes VAT)
You can download a PDF version for your personal record.