Benchmarks: Mass General Research News and Notes for January 12, 2024
Welcome to Benchmarks, your weekly dose of research news and notes from Massachusetts General Hospital.
With over 9,500 researchers working across 30 departments, centers and institutes, there's more research news each week than we can cover. Here are a few highlights:
Research in the News
Lack of Leisure-Time Exercise Tied to Higher Rates of Death from Cardiac Disease
If you don’t have getting more exercise on your list of New Year’s resolutions, you may want to add it (as long as it is medically safe to do so).
Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and Kaiser Permanente have found that communities with higher prevalence of adults who do not exercise in their spare time have higher rates of death from cardiac disease.
The study, which was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, identifies a crucial need for new public health interventions that can increase physical activity, the researchers say.
The researchers further expressed concern over the higher risk of CVD death for women – particularly middle-aged – and the older Black population, who don’t engage in physical activity during their free-time.
“Women are more likely to engage in sedentary behavior and have lower physical activity levels than men, which may be due to sociocultural factors like caregiving responsibilities, and persisting social expectations regarding gender roles,” says lead author Shady Abohashem, MD, MPH.
“In the case of elderly Blacks, we corroborated previous studies that indicate this group is generally less active and more susceptible to cardiovascular disease.”
Stress Prior to Conception Can Lead to Higher Blood Sugar Levels During Pregancy
Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital have analyzed data from approximately 400 women between the ages of 18 and 45 who self-reported experiencing high levels of stress prior to pregnancy.
They found that blood sugar levels were abnormally high in 82 of the women involved, and that women who conceived through interuterine insemination had higher stress and blood sugar levels than those who conceived through in vitro fertilization.
This may be explained by the fact that IUI treatment has shown less effectiveness as an infertility treatment compared to IVF, so women undergoing IUI may experience more distress compared to IVF women, the researchers write.
While more research is needed to confirm these findings, the results highlight the importance of stress levels during preconception and cardiovascular health during pregnancy. Read more.
Tweets of the Week
The "You Belong in Cardiology" launched at MGH! This program helps address the underrepresentation of minority physicians and allied professionals in cardiology. @ddefariayeh @GiselleSA_MDPhD Click here to learn more: https://t.co/oL2QfT0YZg pic.twitter.com/tzrEEP87yg
— Mass General Heart (@MGHHeartHealth) January 12, 2024
My newest piano piece called "From the Heart" - hope you enjoy it! https://t.co/wExrbqU418
— Dr. Rudy Tanzi (@RudyTanzi) January 11, 2024
Larry Wald and team are nearing completion of the first-ever human-scale magnetic particle imaging (MPI) scanner. With dramatically higher sensitivity than functional magnetic resonance imaging, MPI could serve as a valuable tool for clinical neuroscience. https://t.co/mNjV3mctKV pic.twitter.com/j0w6feKJBP
— MGH Martinos Center (@MGHMartinos) January 11, 2024
A study co-authored by #MassGeneral physician David Hinojosa-Gonzalez, MD @UroDhino was covered by @medpagetoday. The study found that men treated with ADT for prostate cancer had a significantly higher risk of dementia and other neurocognitive disorders. https://t.co/Ul4WJNx5XV
— Mass General MDs (@MassGeneralMDs) January 12, 2024
Hoping to leverage imaging for discovery at a much larger scale. @MGH_RI and @MGHImaging are an amazing environment for the @MGHGordon center, which will strive to become a collaborative hub for all interested in inflammation assays 🔥❤️🧠 https://t.co/8LLIjn0OFT
— Matthias Nahrendorf stands with Israel (@MatthiasNahrend) January 11, 2024
This Week in Mass General History
Could Early Training in Drinking Lead to Heathier Relationships with Alcohol?
January 13, 1966 (New York Times)— At a conference in New York City, the director of the Mass General Alcoholic Clinic and Alcoholic Psychiatric Service made a surprising proposal that would still spark controversy today—that children should be taught how to drink alcoholic beverages in school.
The goal of the proposal, which was presented by Morris Chafetz, MD, would be to “combat alcoholism and drink-related social behavior problems by instructing young people in the proper use of alcoholic beverages under supervised conditions," according to the New York Times.
Chafetz’ proposal called for starting elementary school aged children with very small amounts of sherry diluted with water. Instruction from teachers should include both the benefits of light drinking (increased socialization and a feeling of relaxation) as well as the hazards of improper use, he said.
“Alcohol is here to stay and people must learn to develop a healthy attitude towards it.”
When a member of the audience observed that drinking in school, even under teacher supervision, is against the law in the United States, Chaeftz said the drinking laws were for the most part "absurd."
About the Mass General Research Institute
Research at Massachusetts General Hospital helps to make the care we give our patients tomorrow better than today. Our research spans the spectrum of discovery from fundamental, lab-based science to clinical trials to population-based research dedicated to improving the health of the communities that we serve.
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