Mattel has launched Autistic Barbie. Because children with autism should be visible, including to themselves. ‘Every child deserves to see themselves in Barbie.’ So goes Mattel’s blurb. It is a theme of our times: being visible, seeing ourselves, coming-out into the light. Launched in the domain of what is called ‘sexuality,’ it is now a general possibility with multiple pathways. And everything...
Scientists are taking a multipronged approach to tackle this dangerous carrier of dengue, yellow fever and other noxious viruses Deep in northwestern Africa, a high-pitched hum pierces the moist forest. It is the mosquito Aedes aegypti, laying its eggs inside water-filled tree holes and feeding on various animals, posing little danger to any person it encounters. But that is a scene from the...
Only a small percentage of people with substance use disorder seek treatment, but millions of people discuss their experiences with drugs in online communities. vladans/iStock via Getty Images ~~~~~ When you think of tools for studying substance use and addiction, a social media site like Reddit, TikTok or YouTube probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. Yet the stories shared on...
The Food and Drug Administration rarely uses its authority to pull dangerous medical devices off the market and is so poorly staffed that it’s sometimes unable to make sure companies are taking critical steps to protect patients during health emergencies, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office. The inquiry by the congressional watchdog was requested nearly two years...
For nearly three years, Eric Tennant endured chemotherapy infusions, rounds of radiation, biopsies, and hospitalizations that left him weak and depleted. “It’s good to be home,” he said after one hospital stay in early June, “yet I’m tired and ready to get on with things.” In 2023, Tennant, of Bridgeport, West Virginia, was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare cancer of the bile ducts that...
Scientists are learning more about this leading complication of childbirth. Treatments are improving and doctors can test for biological markers that flag heightened risk. Like many first-time mothers, Lisette Lopez-Rose thought childbirth would usher in a time of joy. Instead, she had panic attacks as she imagined that something bad was going to happen to her baby, and she felt weighed down by...
