October 2025 Medical News Summary

Dementia is still a highly stigmatized condition. Nancy Berlinger, PhD, a senior research scholar at The Hastings Center for Bioethics, discusses a new report about the cultural narratives of dementia and how they can affect the quality of life and the care of patients with the condition. Related Content: Living With Dementia Report Emphasizes That Even Those With Advanced Disease Have Stories to Share

State Laws Aim to Bring Internationally Trained Physicians to Underserved Areas, but Barriers Abound; Oral Microbiome Composition Linked to Pancreatic Cancer Risk Related Content: Oral Microbiome Composition Linked to Pancreatic Cancer Risk State Laws Aim to Bring Internationally Trained Physicians to Underserved Areas, but Barriers Abound

A new European Society of Cardiology clinical consensus statement deals with cardiovascular disease prevention and management in COVID-19, including cardiac long COVID. The report's lead author, Vassilios Vassiliou, MBBS, PhD, MA, discusses the guidance and key questions that remain about COVID-19 and the heart. Related Content: New Guidance on Cardiovascular Disease and COVID-19—From Infection to Long COVID to Vaccination

Epidemiologist Brian Lee, PhD, discusses his study on acetaminophen use during pregnancy and children's risk of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders in this interview with JAMA Deputy Editor Linda Brubaker, MD. Related Content: Acetaminophen Use in Pregnancy—Study Author Explains the Data

Ultraprocessed Foods and Cardiometabolic Health—New Report on a "Growing Public Health Challenge"; New Analysis of Women's Health Initiative Data Aims to "Clear the Air" Over Menopausal Hormone Therapy Related Content: New Analysis of Women's Health Initiative Data Aims to "Clear the Air" Over Menopausal Hormone Therapy Ultraprocessed Foods and Cardiometabolic Health—New Report on a "Growing Public Health Challenge"

Updates on GLP-1 drugs in heart failure, β-blockers after myocardial infarction, the shingles vaccine, and more: Felix Mahfoud, MD, chair of the Department of Cardiology at University Hospital Basel, shares clinical research highlights from the recent European Society of Cardiology Congress. Related Content: GLP-1 Drugs in Heart Failure, β-Blockers After MI, the Shingles Vaccine, and More From ESC 2025

Pulmonologist Michael J. Welsh, MD, is the co-recipient of the 2025 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award for his research on cystic fibrosis. In this interview, he discusses his early clinical encounters with the disease, the foundational work that led to the lifesaving drug Trikafta, and future directions for cystic fibrosis treatment. Related Content: How Cystic Fibrosis Went From Fatal to Treatable Rewriting the Chapter on Cystic Fibrosis

What Is 7-OH?; Real-World Experience With Antiamyloid Therapies for Alzheimer Disease; FDA Panel on SSRIs and Pregnancy Lacked Nuance, Experts Say Related Content: What to Know About 7-OH, the New Vape Shop Hazard Treating Alzheimer Disease With Antiamyloid Therapies—The Real-World Experience Grows FDA Panel Casts SSRIs During Pregnancy as Risky—Many Experts Disagree  

The Effects of Newly Changed Guidance on COVID-19 Shots During Pregnancy; Heart Disease Deaths Have Changed; Progress Toward a Norovirus Vaccine Related Content: The CDC No Longer Recommends COVID-19 Shots During Pregnancy—Now What? New Research Finds Long-Term Shifts in Heart Disease Mortality Is There a Norovirus Vaccine on the Horizon?

In this follow-up to a 2017 interview with JAMA Medical News, the University of Southern California's Maja Matarić, PhD, the computer scientist who pioneered the field of socially assistive robotics, discusses how artificial intelligence is advancing the field in areas ranging from autism to physical rehabilitation to anxiety and depression. Related Content: Social Robots That Help Support People's Health Are Getting a Boost From AI Socially Assistive Robots