Posts Tagged ‘epidemiology’

The results of a game of historical epidemiology has been published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The question: What did Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart die of? His early death at the age of 35 has intrigued historians around the world, and now researchers from Austria and the UK believe they may have solved the puzzle. According to eyewitnesses, Mozart’s body was very swollen before he died, suggesting he had edema (swelling due to excessive fluid build up in bodily tissues). By looking at historical death records around the time of Mozart’s death, the most common cause of death during that period that would have been associated with edema is streptococcal infection that led to kidney dysfunction, otherwise known in medical speak as acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis. During an infection with strep throat, your immune system can sometimes react in such a way that causes inflammation of the kidneys, leading to kidney failure, edema and even death (if left untreated). [ via Medical News Today]

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For the majority of Americans, our access to health care is intimately linked to whether we have a job or not. Even though many of us have lost health insurance benefits, obtaining good health doesn’t have to cost a bundle.  M.D. Anderson, one of America’s top cancer centers, has released their top 5 list of low-cost tips to reduce your risk of cancer, four of which doesn’t involve stepping foot into the doctor’s office. ”If we eat healthier meals and increase daily exercise, we could avoid about one-third or 186,000 cancer deaths this year,” says Michele Forman, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology at M.D. Anderson. Here’s what made the list:

1. Exercise daily.
2. Eat more fruits and vegetables.
3. Avoid tobacco.
4. Practice sun-safety.
5. Get regular check-ups.

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