内容摘要：“Any of these outbreaks we’re seeing can easily be prevented by increasing the rate of vaccination in the community,” he said. “If we can maintain 95% of people vaccinated, we’re not going to see this happening in the future. And we’ve slipped well below that level in many parts of the country.”

“Any of these outbreaks we’re seeing can easily be prevented by increasing the rate of vaccination in the community,” he said. “If we can maintain 95% of people vaccinated, we’re not going to see this happening in the future. And we’ve slipped well below that level in many parts of the country.”

The drug’s ability to slow hair loss is likely related to its effect on blood circulation, according to experts.“By increasing blood flow to the scalp it signals hairs to stay in their growth phase for longer,” said Dr. Adam Friedman, chair of dermatology at George Washington University. “We’re trying to keep those hairs in that growth phase as long as possible.”

by more than 40 U.S. and international dermatologists concluded that minoxidil pills are effective and often more convenient and affordable than the liquid formulation.There’s little research comparing the two forms of minoxidil, but many dermatologists believe the drug works better as a pill.At a chemical level, minoxidil is absorbed more directly when digested in the gut than when applied to the hairline. It’s also more convenient, with patients taking the drug by mouth once a day, instead of applying the liquid once or twice daily using a dropper.

“As you can imagine, that can be rather onerous,” said Dr. Susan Taylor of the University of Pennsylvania. “Although people often enthusiastically begin therapy— and even see results — after a while there are many who drop off.”The doses prescribed for oral use are also very low. Dermatologists often direct men to take one half of the lowest-dose pill; women may only need a quarter of a pill.

Those low doses can also reduce the chances for side effects, which can include dizziness, rapid heartbeat and swollen legs. The drug isn’t recommended for people with a history of heart issues or who are pregnant or breastfeeding.

The only other FDA-approved medication for hair loss is finasteride, sold under the brand name Propecia, a drug that blocks a byproduct of testosterone that triggers hair loss in men. That drug is generally considered more effective than minoxidil, but it can occasionally cause troubling sexual side effects, including erectile dysfunction. For optimal results, some dermatologists prescribe the two drugs in combination.are urged to get a newer vaccine that’s proven more effective against shingles than its predecessor.

The new findings add another reason for people to consider rolling up their sleeves, said Dr. Maria Nagel of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, who studies viruses that infiltrate the nervous system.The virus “is a risk for dementia and now we have an intervention that can decrease the risk,” Nagel said.

With Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia on the rise in an aging population, “the implications of the study are profound,” Dr. Anupam Jena, a Harvard physician and health economist, wrote in a Nature commentary.Anyone who’s had ever had chickenpox – nearly everybody born before 1980 – harbors that virus for the rest of their life. It hides in nerves and can break out when the immune system weakens from illness or age, causing painful, blister-like sores typically on one side of the body that last for weeks – what’s called shingles.