Nathan Seppa

Biomedical Writer (retired September 2015)

All Stories by Nathan Seppa

  1. Health & Medicine

    New blood test may predict some heart risk

    People carrying high levels of a protein called cardiac troponin T are more likely to have heart failure or die from cardiovascular problems, two studies show.

  2. Humans

    Vitamin D targets increased

    A panel advises raising the dietary allowance for the nutrient, but some scientists say the new recommendations are still woefully low.

  3. Health & Medicine

    Antiretroviral drugs may prevent HIV infection

    Gay and bisexual men who don’t have the AIDS virus can reduce their risk of getting it by taking a drug combination, a new study finds.

  4. It’s enough to give you heartburn

    Wonder drugs they may be, but PPIs are overprescribed and pose some health risks.

  5. Health & Medicine

    New drug bumps up good cholesterol

    Anacetrapib raises beneficial HDL while lowering harmful LDL, a medical trial finds, suggesting it may be a powerful new weapon against cardiovascular disease.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Mining fat tissue for cardiac repair

    Stem cells that are abundant in adipose tissue seem to boost the recovery of heart tissues in people who survive the big one, early research shows.

  7. Health & Medicine

    Fish oil fails to hold off heart arrhythmia

    Atrial fibrillation patients who took capsules rich in omega-3 fatty acids had about as many episodes as those getting a placebo, a study finds.

  8. Health & Medicine

    Drug helps in mild heart failure

    Already prescribed for severe cases, eplerenone cuts death and hospitalization rates in patients with less severe but chronic forms of the condition, a new study finds.

  9. Health & Medicine

    Alcohol heart benefits show up even after bypass surgery

    Having two to three drinks a day was associated with decreased heart problems in men during the three years after the operation, researchers from Italy report.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Laptops and infertility: It matters how you sit

    Men who keep their legs together while using the computers generate more sperm-endangering scrotal heat than those who splay them, a study finds.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Immune gene variants help stop HIV

    Research on HIV-infected people who rarely develop AIDS might lead to better drugs or a vaccine.

  12. Health & Medicine

    MRIs pinpoint time of stroke

    Doing a magnetic resonance scan promptly when a patient arrives at a hospital could render more patients eligible for a time-sensitive clot-busting therapy that can limit brain damage.