Tag Archives: illness

Massachusetts Maternal Mortality Rates Rising: Opioid Abuse and Psychiatric Illness Play a Role

Pregnancy-associated mortality, defined as the death of a woman during pregnancy or within one year of the termination of pregnancy, is increasing in Massachusetts.  In 2012, there were 30.4 deaths/100,000 live births. In 2014, the rate increased by 33%, to 40.4 deaths per 100,000 live births. Because pregnancy-associated mortality rates have historically been relatively low… Read More »

Even among the insured, cost of illness can be devastating, Harvard-backed poll finds

Despite the Affordable Care Act’s much-touted expansion of health coverage in the U.S., a first-ever poll of America’s seriously ill demonstrates that insurance alone isn’t enough to protect against the high cost of care. The poll showed that though 91 percent of respondents had health insurance, 53 percent of those with insurance had trouble paying… Read More »

In Brief: Mothers with Affective Illness (Even In Remission) Have Deficits in Emotional Processing

We have long known that postpartum depression may have negative effects on the child and may contribute to deficits in social development and emotional regulation.  Exactly what mediates these effects is not so clear; however, researchers have observed that depressed mothers tend to be less responsive to their children’s emotional cues and are more likely… Read More »

AFM: The scary polio-like illness

It is a scary illness, not just for parents but for doctors, too: Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) causes sudden weakness and loss of muscle tone in the arms and legs and can go on to cause even more serious problems. It’s not just the symptoms that are scary. It’s also scary because we don’t know… Read More »