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Mosquitos testing positive for West Nile Virus have been found in several Pittsburgh neighborhoods, and health department officials are urging people to be cautious around the insects this summer.

“Generally, the species of mosquitoes that carry West Nile Virus are active from dusk to dawn,” said Allegheny County Health Department Vector Control Specialist Nicholas Baldauf in a statement. “Residents can deter mosquito bites by using insect repellent on exposed skin or choosing to wear long sleeves and pants. Both methods are effective at reducing or eliminating the possibility of getting a mosquito bite.”

Mosquito samples collected in Brighton Heights, California-Kirkbride, Elliott, Sheraden, Esplen, and Marshall-Shadeland tested positive for West Nile Virus earlier in the month, and the health department sprayed areas with a low-risk insecticide to lower the mosquito population. The same is planned this week for Highland Park, Homewood, Point Breeze and Wilkinsburg, where samples also tested positive.

West Nile Virus is the leading mosquito-borne disease in the United States; it’s caused when an infected mosquito bites a human. According to the health department, most people infected with West Nile Virus do not feel sick. Common symptoms include fever, headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea or a rash, but only 1 in 5 people infected with the virus develop symptoms. Less than 1 percent of infected people develop a serious illness.

The last reported human case of West Nile Virus occurred in September 2023, however, Dr. Ernesto Marques, an associate professor in the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health’s Department of Infectious Disease and Microbiology, cautions that West Nile cases are likely underreported. 

“Diagnosing WNF [West Nile Fever] is often missed,” Marques said in an email. “A large fraction of cases is mild and can go unnoticed by the patient, and the symptoms are common with other more frequent diseases.” 

Marques notes the risk of neurological complications increases with age. People aged 50 and older are 10 times more likely to experience them, and people aged 80 and older are 43 times more likely. 

“The neurological symptoms can be confused with other diseases, like Parkinson’s disease and Guillain-Barré syndrome,” Marques says, therefore the number of West Nile Virus-related complications may be underestimated.

There is no vaccine for West Nile Virus, only treatment focused on alleviating symptoms. For neurological complications, hospitalization and close monitoring are required, he says.

Marques notes mosquitos breed in stagnant water, such as in plant vases, plastic containers, and water reservoirs, either inside or outside. He too recommends using mosquito repellents and reducing areas of exposed skin.

The health department noted mosquitoes can breed in as little as a half inch of stagnant water.

“Residents should pay close attention to potential breeding sites like stagnant water in tires, unused swimming pools, buckets, corrugated piping, and clogged gutters,” the statement said.

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With youth players gearing up for the fall football season, the question of safety may arise in parents’ minds. 

In April, the NFL allowed players to wear Guardian Caps, protective headgear worn around players’ helmets, during regular season games after officials said they saw a 50% reduction in concussions for players who wore them during training season the previous two years. 

Dr. Thom Mayer, the medical director for the NFL Players Association who was the originator of the NFL concussion guidelines program, says while his work focuses on the NFL, it’s important to focus on the issue at any age.

“We’ve had some very good success with that in terms of a combination of helmet testing, rules changes, reducing the number of contact practices that players have … the recent work on Guardian Caps, and it’s a work still very much in progress … If there happened to be corollary benefits to youth football or high school football, other areas, then [that’s] always good.” 

He says he feels kids younger than 12 don’t need to be playing contact football.

“I don’t think you learn any skills from contact, helmeted, padded football before about 12 to 14 years of age that you can’t easily pick up after that time,” he says. 

But football at any age provides “huge benefits” from teamwork, developing trust, developing responsibility and being fit. Mostly, he says, the benefit is having fun.

“The question, ‘Should I allow my son to play football?’ It’s an interesting phrasing of the question to begin with … My question is, is that the child’s deep joy?”

If a young person says they want to play because someone else thinks they should, whether that be a parent, a friend, or a coach, Mayer says that’s a bad sign.

The same goes for when a parent speaks with a coach. If a youth coach says they want players to have fun and build character, trust and teamwork, Mayer says he’s all in.

“If I hear a coach say, ‘Well, I’m going to make men out of them. I want to toughen him up. I want to win championships. As the great philosopher Monty Python used to say, ‘Run away!’”

“You want to run away from coaches like that,” he says. “That is not the kind of coach you want.”

Parents and coaches should have frank conversations about safety, Mayer says. Parents should ask about the coaches’ rules on safety and what they think is the role of the use of the head in the game.

“And if they say, ‘We do Oklahoma drills, we do bull in the ring,’ again, Monty Python, run away.”

He says when he coached his own kids (only when they asked him to), he told his team parents they were going to talk about having fun and building confidence, not winning.

He told them, “We’re not going to beat them down. We’re going to build them up.”

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If your eyes feel gritty or irritated or you’re suffering from blurred or fluctuating vision, it’s possible you have what’s simply called dry eye disease — one of the most common ocular conditions presenting symptoms that eye care providers see.

But it’s a serious problem, and one that affects everyday quality of life, says Dr. Sabrina Mukhtar, the director of the Dry Eye Center of Excellence at UPMC Vision Institute and assistant professor of cornea and refractive surgery in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

“It’s very impactful on patients’ lives because they can’t do the things they want to do,” she says. 

Dry eye disease can be caused by environmental factors such as screen time (when you’re staring at a screen you’re not blinking as much), dry air or allergies, hormonal changes, autoimmune diseases, medications or prolonged contact lens wear, among other things, Mukhtar says. 

“The conservative number that I read, and this was a couple of years ago, is that 30 million people in the United States suffer from dry eye disease,” she says. “I think people spend about $2 billion on dry eye therapy. It’s very prevalent.”

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Evaporative dry eye, which accounts for the majority of dry eye disease, is caused by meibomian gland dysfunction, when the oil glands at the base of our eyelashes aren’t releasing healthy oils that prevent our tears from evaporating. 

Forcing yourself to give your eyes a break is important, she says. She advises patients to set a timer on their phone for every 20-30 minutes when they’re on a screen, watching TV or reading a book. When the timer goes off, take 20 seconds and blink 20 times.

“It’s the 20/20/20 rule,” she says. 

Even if you have 20/20 vision, she recommends enlarging the font size on your computer so your eyes aren’t strained.

“Using anti-glare monitors or settings on your computer, phone or tablet always helps,” she adds. “The environmental modifications are super important.” 

She also recommends pointing air-conditioning vents in your car away from your face so that air is not constantly blowing in your eyes. Ceiling fans can also cause problems, she says, especially when you’re sleeping. 

“Most of us don’t sleep with our eyes completely shut and if you have even a sliver of opening, your eyes are drying out,” she says. “Sleep is supposed to be restorative.”

One treatment she recommends is placing a warm compress on your eyes for 15 minutes twice a day. After you remove the heat, blink forcefully to express the heated oils in your eyes.

“I tell people, you brush and floss your teeth every day, hopefully twice a day, so your eyes deserve the same care,” she says. “When those oil glands get clogged up, it’s like the equivalent of plaque buildup.”

She says it’s only in the last five years that dry eye disease has been taken seriously as an ophthalmology specialty, and she’s seeing younger and younger populations come in for treatment, whether due to the prevalence of screens in their lives and work or because of their use of contact lenses.

“We’re still doing more studies, trying to figure out what contributes to it and how to prevent it because I think prevention is key,” she says. 

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Drowning is the leading cause of death among children ages 1 to 4 — and drowning deaths on the whole are on the rise.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recent Vital Signs study, drowning deaths increased by 28% among children ages 1-4 in 2022, compared to 2019, and adults ages 65 and older had the second highest rates of drowning — drowning increased by 19% in adults ages 65–74 in 2022 compared to 2019.

Drowning also increased 28% in 2021 among Black people compared to 2019.

“Over 4,500 people drowned each year in the United States from 2020–2022,” the study said. “This is about 500 more drowning deaths each year compared to 2019.”

Local medical providers have offered some tips for helping to keep children safe in the water.

Dr. Kate DeAntonis, a pediatric hospitalist at AHN Wexford’s inpatient pediatric program, says adults should always keep children who aren’t strong swimmers within arms’ reach. She also notes children may get themselves in deeper waters than they realize during a game, and they tend to overdo it while playing in the water and may tire themselves out without realizing it. 

“Even children who are strong swimmers need to have somebody watching,” DeAntonis says.

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Floatation devices are helpful, but they shouldn’t be fully relied upon for water safety, she notes.

According to information provided by the UPMC Mercy Trauma and Burn Center, in 9 out of 10 child-drowning deaths a parent or caregiver claimed to be watching the child. At-home pools should be separate from the yard via fences, and no one should be in the water alone, the center recommends.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, most children are ready for swim lessons around age 4, but swim lessons can also have benefits for children ages 1-4. 

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Extreme heat can cause numerous health risks, from dehydration to heat stroke, and children are at a higher risk as they have trouble regulating body temperature.

Dr. Kate DeAntonis, a pediatric hospitalist at AHN Wexford’s inpatient pediatric program, says prevention is key.

“Prevention is the most important thing for most health and safety matters. Prevention is especially important during a heat wave,” she says.

“The first tip I have, sadly, is to adjust your expectations. Everyone makes fun summer plans and it’s really hard to face the fact when a heat wave interrupts your recreation or vacation plans.”

But staying inside with air conditioning is safer, especially during the hours of 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. If your home is not air-conditioned, DeAntonis recommends going to a mall, play center or one of the city’s cooling centers.

Kids are more at risk in part because they’re less deliberate about drinking water. During times of extreme heat, kids ages 1-3 may need an extra four cups of water in a 24-hour period and kids ages 4-8 may need five or six extra cups of water, she says.

Keep an eye out for sunburn, fatigue, headache, abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting or if they tell you the heat is too much for them, DeAntonis recommends. If they’re experiencing symptoms, loosen any tight clothing, bring them indoors or get them into shade, use cold packs and offer them cold beverages or water.

Related: Just How Important Is Sunscreen?

“Those measures should help the patient turn around pretty rapidly,” she says. “If at any point while you’re doing that they get worse, or if you don’t see any progress after 30 minutes, you need to seek medical attention.”

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When Dr. Aditi Gurkar was growing up in India, she witnessed her grandparents grow older, as many children do. 

But she noticed her grandmother’s physical and mental conditions spiraled downward in the last 10 years of her life, whereas her grandfather was fit until the end of his life.

“They aged very differently” even though they were the same age, she says.

It’s an observation that ultimately led to her career path as an assistant professor of geriatric medicine at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Medicine and a member of the Aging Institute, a joint venture of Pitt and UPMC — and to a recent discovery. 

Gurkar is part of a team that found a blood-based marker that could help to predict why some people age well and others don’t. There’s a difference between a person’s chronological age, the number of trips they’ve taken around the sun, and their biological age, how they function cognitively and physically.

“We take one blood test and we can tell who’s a healthy ager versus a rapid ager, and we think this could be really promising, because if we can start doing these tests early on, hopefully, like when a person is in their 30s and 40s, maybe we can tell who is going to look like a healthy ager and be really functional until the end of life and who is going to be a rapid ager,” she says. 

It’s a discovery that can also help to determine what sorts of preventions a person should take based on their own body rather than making a requirement for various health screenings at an arbitrary age, which is how our healthcare system currently functions, Gurkar says. 

She gave the example of a healthy 50-year-old who is being told they need a mammogram simply because they’re 50, but perhaps a 20-year-old with risk factors is told they don’t need a mammogram simply because they’re 20. 

“We’re missing a lot of these people by not re-looking at our policies of when to do these things,” she says. 

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Gurkar’s lab has been studying a person’s metabolism — their environment, genetic factors, what someone eats and their level of physical activity — and a person’s senescent cells, sometimes referred to as “zombie cells.” Senescent cells accumulate as a person ages and are resistant to dying but can cause inflammation, a factor in several age-related diseases.

Gurkar gave the example of someone in their 30s discovering they have a large amount of senescent cells and discovering there’s a medicine they can take to eliminate them. 

“Then maybe I can take that when I’m 30 instead of having this low-grade inflammation that is then going to cause all of these diseases,” Gurkar says. 

This research is going to be very important with our aging population, Gurkar says. 

“We’re going to have an elderly population, and if they’re not in functional health we’ll have to provide a lot of resources, not only financially, but also we’ll have to make sure our young are able to take care of our older population,” she says. “I think this is a big challenge, and if we don’t start talking about it today it’s only going to grow bigger.”

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At a minimum, you should be wearing 30 SPF sunscreen all year round, says Maura Jeffries, a pharmacist with UPMC Presbyterian Prescription Shop. “Contrary to popular belief, we should always be wearing sunscreen, 365 days a year,” says Jeffries. “Even if you have a darker skin tone or you tan easily, everyone should be wearing sunscreen.”

People may think that they don’t need sunscreen in the winter, or while driving or swimming during the summer, but UVA rays from the sun that can cause cancer are still present in the winter and can penetrate car windows and water.

Related: Now That Spring is Here, Protect Your Skin With Our Favorite Sunscreens

“In the summer, at the beach, application [should be] every two hours, especially when you’re in the water,” Jeffries says. “There really is no water-proof, water-resistant sunscreen. It’s going to come off eventually.

“The best thing to do when you’re at the beach … find some shade, put on a hat, a shirt, anything to cover up your skin, any protection helps.”

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In addition to cancer, sun damage can also cause wrinkles, sunspots and skin discolorization, Jeffries notes.

She says the difference between chemical and mineral sunscreens is minimal; both work to block UV rays. In terms of lotion versus spray, she recommends lotion for better coverage and to avoid spraying particles into the environment. But with wiggly children, if spray is all they’ll tolerate, just make sure you’re applying it to their skin in close range.

“With some kids, there’s only so much you can do,” she says. “The more protection you can give them the better.”

The maximum SPF she recommends is probably 50, she says, especially if you’re going to be outside all day. Some research shows that anything over a certain number is not any more effective, but more research needs to be done, she says.

In case of sunburn, she recommends keeping the body hydrated with lots of water and keeping the skin moisturized.

“Colloidal oatmeal lotion — one of the active ingredients in Aveeno products — is good for any kind of inflammation,” she says

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When it comes to ticks, it’s all about common sense, says Dr. James Como, an infectious disease specialist at Allegheny Health Network.

You want “to prevent ticks from getting on your body, and then if they do, identify them before they can potentially transmit a disease to you,” he says.

Ticks can attach themselves to your clothes or skin — or to your pets — typically while walking in areas of high vegetation, tall grass or wooded areas with lots of dead leaves. Como recommends avoiding those areas, wearing long sleeves and pants, and using a DEET or permethrin repellent. 

If you do find a tick attached, you need to remove it properly, Como says. Using tweezers, you should pull the tick straight off, not twisting, pinching at the base where the head is attached to the skin and making sure the tick’s mouth is completely extracted from your body.

If you know the tick has been attached for fewer than 36 hours, you don’t need to worry about contracting Lyme disease, Como says. The tick needs that much time to take your blood, infect it with bacteria and transmit it back to you.

If it’s been longer than 36 hours, you should see your doctor for a single dose of doxycycline in highly endemic areas like Western Pennsylvania, Como says. In 2022, Pennsylvania ranked 9th in the United States for the number of Lyme disease cases reported by population, and cases increase from April through August, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

You should not send the tick away for testing to see if it was indeed infected with Lyme, Como says, because often labs that perform this service are not certified.

“You can get very variable responses,” he says. 

Should you fail to notice or remove the tick, one way to know you’ve acquired Lyme disease is if you notice a bullseye rash — or even more of a solid circle. If you do have Lyme disease, you’ll likely need a 10-day course of antibiotics. 

If left untreated, Lyme disease can cause longterm problems from irregular heart rhythms, arthritis, meningitis or even neurological disease. “Prevention is everything,” Como says.

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It’s summer, which likely means later bedtimes. But how do you make sure kids are still getting enough rest?

According to Dr. Joseph Aracri, the system chair of pediatrics with Allegheny Health Network Pediatric Institute, it all depends on their family’s activity level.

For working parents, the family’s routine may not change much because everyone is still getting up in the morning to head to childcare or summer camp. For families with kids at home during the summer months, there are numerous factors that play into their sleep schedule.

“For the stay-at-home parent, [if] the child doesn’t have any activities on a daily basis, I think it’s OK to be a little bit slack,” says Aracri. “It’s OK to let your child sleep in a little bit longer in the morning, play outside later. The whole idea is playing outside.”

For example, if children are swimming, they’re likely going to tire themselves out and fall asleep earlier.

“I think the real thing to focus on in the summer is activity, getting the kids used to being outside, playing, away from screen time, away from TV, away from gaming devices and really just take advantage of the extended day and just play until the old-fashioned, you play ‘til the streetlights come on.”

For families who have to keep to a routine in the summer, it’s important to maintain that routine, he says. The days are longer, so ensuring kids’ rooms have shades or curtains and wind down a little before their actual bedtime is important.

“Every child is different … You just have to read your child and know your child as far as how much sleep they would need in the summer,” he says. 

He cautioned against letting kids stay up later while school is still in session, as much as they may be eager to enter summer mode. 

“You want them to still be able to function in school so you do have to maintain your school schedule until school is out,” he says.

When fall approaches, Aracri says that’s the time to bring bedtime back into alignment, beginning two to three weeks before school starts to get them used to the schedule, slowly bringing their bedtime earlier and waking them in the morning. 

“But in the summer, just let the kids be kids. Let them do what they need to do,” he says.

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Allegheny Health Network physicians have begun using a pacemaker-like device for patients with central sleep apnea, which occurs in roughly one out of three patients diagnosed with heart failure.

AHN is the first health system in Western Pennsylvania to implant the device, remedē. It has been FDA-approved since 2017.

“It feels great to offer our patients a therapy for a form of sleep apnea that’s not common but has adverse consequences if it’s untreated,” says pulmonologist and sleep medicine specialist Dr. Daniel Shade, director of the AHN Sleep Disorders Center; Shade was one of the physicians who oversaw the first implant at Allegheny General Hospital in December. 

“The common modalities we use, CPAP, BiPAP, oxygen, are sometimes difficult for patients to tolerate, and this seems to be more tolerable and has good outcomes,” he says.

The device is implanted in the chest in a minimally invasive outpatient procedure. It has been implanted in three patients in Western Pennsylvania so far. 

Central sleep apnea differs from the more common obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is caused by airflow blockage in the upper airway, but central sleep apnea occurs when the brain fails to send signals to the diaphragm, disrupting regular breathing. In severe cases, the body may go into fight-or-flight response, which affects the cardiovascular system. Remedē works by stimulating a nerve to regulate breathing.

While obstructive sleep apnea is identified more easily by snoring and noticeably disruptive sleep, the symptoms of central sleep apnea — insomnia, unexplained night wakings, fatigue — are common and make it hard to diagnose.

Cardiologists who are treating patients with a degree of heart failure or atrial fibrillation will screen patients for sleep apnea through a portable home test or an in-lab sleep study. If they’re positive for central sleep apnea, their doctor can refer them for further evaluation to see if they’re a candidate for remedē.

PHOTOS COURTESY IRREVERENT WARRIORS

When Patricia Stuecklen got out of the Navy, she had trouble transitioning to civilian life.

“I felt alone and missed the camaraderie of being in the military,” she says. 

Last year, her brother (also a Navy veteran) told her about the Irreverent Warriors Silkie Hike, and she was hooked from the first mile.

The fourth annual hike, set for Saturday, May 18, at Acrisure Stadium, is an opportunity for all veterans and military service members to walk anywhere from 8 to 14 miles, some carrying heavy packs, some in wheelchairs, wearing only their combat boots and “Silkies,” traditional military physical training shorts.

The mission of the nonprofit Irreverent Warriors, which has numerous chapters across the United States, is to bring veterans together using humor and camaraderie to improve mental health and prevent veteran suicide. “Irreverent Warriors has stood up to fit an unmet demand by introducing its members and participants to a life-saving network of support through their events and community,” they said in a press release.

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, there were an average of 16.8 veteran suicides per day in 2020. 

“IW Silkies Hike gives me the motivation to be able to be around other veterans of all generations that share the same bond to support each other and to remind us all that we are not alone,” Stuecklen says. “Cheer and honk if you pass our hikers on our route through Pittsburgh.”

Registration and check-in begin at 8 a.m. at Acrisure Stadium near Gate B. Step-off is at 9 a.m. The group will stop at multiple locations throughout the hike, including Sly Fox Brewing Company Downtown and Mike’s Beer Bar on the North Shore, for food, drinks and camaraderie. To register, click here.

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Rachel Cannon had a deadline for herself: if she didn’t have children by the time she was 35, she wasn’t going to have any.

Two years ago, Cannon — a librarian in the East End — found herself up against her self-imposed deadline. She decided to join All of Us, a $1.5 billion national genetic research study directed by the National Institutes of Health, as a way to pass along a piece of herself. She found additional meaning in participating because her mother died of brain cancer when Cannon was 21. “My mom, [her] body had died, but now her cells through me are also going to continue on.”

Cannon is one of more than 780,000 participants — 52,400 of whom are in Pennsylvania — in the largest research study of its kind. Funded by Congress through 2026, the program aims to recruit 1 million participants and use the resulting enormous amount of health data to advance individualized health care.

“What it seeks to do is try to understand what makes people sick or healthy,” says Mylynda Massart, co-investigator of the All of Us Pennsylvania and a family medicine physician at UPMC.

How It Works

Being part of All of Us is relatively simple. Participants give blood and urine samples, have measurements and vitals taken (height, weight and blood pressure) and answer surveys about their behavioral and emotional health. They can also give access to their electronic health records, which — as with other data — have identifying information removed to protect participants’ privacy.

For their effort, participants receive compensation of $25 as well as access to their data, which includes ancestry information, genetic traits, their predisposition to certain illnesses and their ability to metabolize certain drugs.

Robert Morlino, the communications lead for All of Us PA, says, “Some people will go through their entire lives struggling with diagnoses or with treatments and not know why. A lot of those are because of genetic phenotypes — the way your genes express themselves in your body.”

As a physician, Massart sees a wealth of patients who are seeking answers that the medical community does not yet have. “When we don’t have the answers in medicine, [doctors] are often not really great with that. We need better answers. We need better care. And we need those answers to apply to everyone.”

Broadening Diversity

The historical problem with medical studies is that they disproportionately excluded ethnic minorities, so most of the participants were older white men. “Those were people who were exposed to those sorts of opportunities,” Morlino says.

“The program is trying to enroll a cohort that is more representative of the country’s present and future population.”

When Massart’s own doctor wanted her to try a medication to mitigate her risk of a heart attack — which her dad died from — she pointed out the lack of data regarding the treatment’s effectiveness for women. “Then, as a clinician,” she says, “I take care of a large African American population. How do I help them make decisions every day and weigh the risks and benefits if the data doesn’t reflect [them]?”

The diversity ethos of All of Us reflects Massart’s values. “This should be the standard going forward.”

To reach participants across demographics, the NIH selected sites across the country. They chose the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at the University of Pittsburgh to represent Pennsylvania. The site enrolled the study’s first participant in 2018 after the national recruitment phase was launched.

There’s a “real intentionality in the grassroots engagement,” Massart says. This includes specific teams for relationships with indigenous communities, as well as teams dedicated to reaching the LGBTQIA+ population. They’ve “invested true dollars behind what they believe in to really get to all communities and all populations. And that, too, is setting the bar.”

For communities — such as African Americans — who have been harmed, directly and indirectly, by medical experimentation, engagement also means “you need to be able to talk about science; you need to address fears and concerns and history.”

Engagement across the board also involves going in person to communities and speaking about the project. Massart says, “They are going to any event that’s happening and setting up a table and just having conversations.”

Why Participate?

Jacquelyn Nixon, of Bridgeville, joined All of Us in 2017 (as part of an early recruitment effort) at age 68 after finding out about the study from a booth at an American Lung Association event.

Nixon, an advocate for education and awareness regarding radon gas and its lung cancer effects, thought back to when she was diagnosed with cancer two years before and all of the questionnaires she had to answer. The forms and doctors asked, “Did you smoke? Did anybody in your family smoke? What kind of cancer did your mother have?” (No; no; colon cancer at age 90, and her mother lived another nine years.) Neither she nor her sister knew of a family history of lung cancer.

Nixon had been diagnosed by chance. She went to the doctor for what she thought was muscle pain in her back, which turned out to be shingles. Since it had been a couple of years since Nixon had been in the office — she rarely got sick and otherwise stayed fit — her PCP asked other questions.

At the end of the appointment, Nixon mentioned that, while she wasn’t having trouble breathing, she had been having difficulty singing notes that had never given her trouble before. “I had my hand on the door, and we were both gonna blow it off.” Then her doctor suggested getting a chest X-ray just in case since insurance would cover it.

To sign up for All of Us, visit joinallofus.org or call 844-842-2855.

Nixon learned she had stage 1A lung cancer, for which she would need surgery, but no additional treatments.

She says she joined All of Us because “once you’ve had lung cancer, you never stop wondering how I got this.” Nixon later learned that her lung cancer was likely the result of exposure to radon, an odorless, invisible, radioactive gas that is naturally released from rocks, soil and water. It’s often found in homes. The study, though, “is adding another perspective, another level of understanding to my health,” she says.

She also wants to be able to leave that understanding to her son and other family members. “I can’t pass you any money,” she says, “but I can give you this.”

For Cannon, the librarian, joining All of Us was an easy decision. She and her brother began participating in research studies with their mother’s encouragement when she was 5. “She really believed in helping people,” Cannon says. She has also seen that belief play out in people she’s interacted with regarding the study. “There’s a lot of care.”

Despite years of participating in studies, Cannon feared needles. For the blood draw, “I had the nicest phlebotomist I’d ever met,” she says. “She gave me an ice pack and said, ‘Just put this on your neck.’ It was the first time someone distracted me enough that it was fine.”

JACQUELYN NIXON, LEFT, AND RACHEL CANNON ARE TWO OF MORE THAN 780,000 PARTICIPANTS IN ALL OF US, A $1.5 BILLION NATIONAL GENETIC RESEARCH STUDY AIMING TO ADVANCE INDIVIDUALIZED HEALTH CARE. | PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA

Where the Data Goes

Study data is made available at three different tiers. The first, which includes generalized demographic information, is public and available to everyone. The second tier includes individual-level data available to approved researchers. The third tier contains sensitive genomic data and requires more extensive credentials.

At that third level, all research work has to be done in what’s called a data playground. Researchers must include plain-language summaries and use of a virtual notebook so participants know who is studying their data and to what end. “Anything happening is fully transparent,” Massart says.

If researchers doing ancillary studies need additional data — for instance, with an MRI scan — they can request that the NIH send letters to relevant people asking if they’d like to continue participating. Any data derived from these studies would then be added to the database for future use.

In addition to diversifying study participants, All of Us also seeks to diversify its pool of researchers.

“We have a real paucity of diverse researchers that are being funded and educated nationally,” says Massart.

Data availability is one way of opening the field for opportunities. Both the NIH and the National Library of Medicine, Massart says, are also investing in training diverse researchers in the field of genetics.

Giving and Getting Back

Another hallmark of All of Us is the return of data to the participant. Historically, study participants were not told if researchers found anything concerning their health. “This is a brand-new frontier in research,” says Massart. Sharing this information is the start of a new ethical standard that also helps researchers “really see participants as truly partners in the research process.”

Returning data also helps solidify relationships with participating communities. “That is very, very transformational,” she says.

If a participant in All of Us has any results that are deemed medically actionable by the American College of Medical Genetics — such as the BRCA mutation risk for breast cancer — they will receive that information “in a supported manner through genetic counselors. So it’s not like you just get a message in your inbox,” Massart says. Genetic counselors have referral lists to connect participants to relevant information and specialists.

Among ancestry data she’s received, Nixon learned her heritage is approximately 77% West African, 12% Central/East African and 11% North/Central Europe. “That was really cool” to learn, she says. Among her genetic traits is an enjoyment of sour tastes.

Cannon already knew her ancestry data would show, “My family’s whiter than white bread.” She’s also someone who likes cilantro and is unlikely to taste bitter compounds.

Neither Nixon nor Cannon has yet received their report related to hereditary disease risk and potential reactions to medications. Cannon expects that she’ll find information about heart disease — which her father has — as well as cancer.

As for people like her patients who are also seeking information, Massart says, “I would love to see a world where we can get to a place where every time the doctor doesn’t know the answer, they can say, ‘We actually don’t know the answer to this yet in science, but if you participate in this research study, you might help find the answer.’”

Amy Whipple is a part-time writer, part-time writing instructor and full-time awesome. In addition to Pittsburgh Magazine, her work can be found in PublicSource, PINJ and The Imprint.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

When it comes to a summer medicine cabinet, sunscreen is just the beginning.

Maura Jeffries, a pharmacist with UPMC Presbyterian Prescription Shop, says sunscreen is the first thing that comes to mind, but summer also means bugs, bee stings, scrapes and bruises and poison ivy.

“When I was an intern in a community setting … we got so many questions about poison ivy, poison sumac, poison oak,” she says.

The plants’ leaves have oils that transfer from the plant to skin, which causes a reaction of bumps, blisters and/or swelling. She recommends a bar soap called IVY-Dry, which helps to remove the leaves/ oils from your skin, and calamine lotion can be applied to soothe your skin afterward.

“You have to get rid of the oils. You have to wash anything it came in contact with in hot water, your sheets, your clothes, anything you touched,” she says. 

As far as bug bites, mosquitos are the first thing that comes to mind, she says. If you’re hiking, you may want to apply a DEET-based repellent to ward them off.

“You would just want to put it on any exposed skin,” she says.

Most common bug bites are self-limiting, meaning they heal on their own, but you could use a hydrocortisone cream to soothe any itching.

“I prefer cream over ointment because creams are going to absorb faster,” she says.

For bee stings, anyone who is allergic should have an EpiPen on hand and an antihistamine like Benadryl.

“Antihistamines have so many uses, not just allergies,” she says. “Antihistamines are always a good thing to have in your medicine cabinet.”

Kids may be more prone to scrapes and bruises in the summer, and Jeffries says using Neosporin is not recommended since it’s an antibiotic and you don’t want to build up antibiotic resistance. 

For a small scrape, use Vaseline and a Band-Aid to keep the skin moist and make sure nothing gets into the scrape. For an open wound, she recommends Bacitracin.

She also says blisters can be common in the summer as people engage in more exercise and may be wearing new shoes.

“Blisters are your body’s way of protecting itself, so you should never pop a blister,” she says. She recommends a Band-Aid and potentially a hydrocolloid patch to draw out the fluid.

For swimmer’s ear, she recommends Debrox to remove any fluid, since swimmer’s ear can turn into an infection.

“You are never supposed to put a Q-tip in your ear,” she says. “Your ear canal is a very sensitive part of your body. It can be punctured super easily.”

“As far as symptoms go, if you’re feeling pressure and pain, if those continue, those are something to seek a doctor’s care for,” she says. “Any kind of fluid will have bacteria in it, and bacteria can fester causing an infection in the ear canal and then you would need an antibiotic at that point.”

A final tip she has for a home medicine cabinet is to keep it somewhere in the house that’s not the bathroom.

Medications “are not supposed to be kept near high-humidity areas,” she says. “I don’t understand why they started putting medicine cabinets in bathrooms.”

She says she keeps her medicine cabinet in her hall closet in a cool area of her house. Medications should be kept locked or high enough that children and animals cannot get into.

“Just because something is available over the counter does not mean it’s safe for everybody,” she says.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Taking care of your teeth can do more than prevent cavities. 

According to Dr. Martinna Bertolini, an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and more have been linked to dental health.

The same bacteria that causes problems in oral cavities, and are typically only found in oral cavities, have been shown to cause inflammation in other areas of the body, Bertolini says.

“We know some patients, they can tend to have these bacteria traveling from the mouth to the distant organs in the body,” she says. “Now there are ways to see exactly what are the bacterias that we have in the oral cavity and also what are those bacterias found in distant organs?” 

Research has found some of those bacteria causing inflammation on the brain, which can lead to cognitive decline and has been associated with Alzheimer’s. Some of the bacteria has also been found on aneurysms in the brain, which can erupt.

“They could be causing a local inflammation, and with that they could also be related to the worst outcome with the aneurysm,” Bertolini says.

There is a direct correlation between diabetes and oral health, Bertolini says. If a patient has diabetes, they have a higher chance of developing periodontal disease, which is the inflammation of the gums around the teeth. However, if a patient does have periodontal disease because of their diabetes, the more they treat the periodontal disease (through cleanings or surgeries if needed), the level of inflammation they’re able to reduce in their mouths is equivalent to an extra medication for their diabetes. 

“We always highlight these because of the dual connection between the periodontal disease and the diabetes and diabetes affecting the periodontal disease,” Bertolini. “This is one of the biggest ones that we always discuss with the patients.”

To maintain good dental hygiene, people should be brushing with fluoride toothpaste, despite myths that fluoride is bad for you.

“I still recommend patients to brush at least twice a day,” she says. 

Drinking unfiltered tap water containing fluoride to prevent tooth decay can also be beneficial, as is drinking black tea, which has a lot of fluoride. 

Smoking negatively impacts dental health as well, Bertolini says, noting some vapes can also have nicotine, so vaping is not a good alternative.

“We always talk about the lungs and the problems that come with that, but the periodontal disease is something that still needs to be looked out for” with smoking, she says. 

Visiting a dentist at least once a year and learning how to floss properly are also important, she says. 

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

No matter how bad they may seem this spring after a fairly mild winter, seasonal allergies are easily treatable through a variety of methods.

Local pharmacist Amanda Jaber Merranko, manager of UPMC Community Pharmacies, says antihistamines are usually the go-to medication, but people can try other remedies even before medication.

First, you should make sure you’re doing everything you can to prevent pollen from entering your home.

“Keeping your home sealed is actually important,” Merranko says. That means keeping windows and doors shut and ensuring they’re sealed properly.

Second, daily saline rinses can help to get irritants out of your nose, just make sure you’re using pure distilled water or saline solution that comes with a neti pot, not tap water, she says.

Common medications include Benadryl, Allegra, and Claritin, which are all antihistamines (histamine is a chemical released by our immune systems that cause allergy symptoms). Benadryl has a reputation for causing drowsiness, Merranko says, so it’s not ideal for regular daytime use.

Antihistamines also come in the form of eye drops, and those are good for patients with itchy or watery eyes, Merranko says.

Merranko says people often ask her if the generic version of the medication is OK.

“Generic is always fine,” she says. “There’s a significant savings to using generic drugs.”

Using a nasal spray in conjunction with an anti-histamine is also a good idea, she says, but it’s important to consider the timing and the technique. Nasal steroid sprays take a couple of weeks to get to their full efficacy, she says, so starting them a few weeks before allergy season can help. For technique, you should sniff the spray gently so it stays in your sinuses.

“If you are spraying it up your nose and you can taste it or can feel it coming down the back of your throat, you sniffed way too hard,” she says.

“As always, it’s important to contact your doctor if your symptoms are severe or don’t improve or get worse but these affordable strategies are a good place to start,” she adds.

Dr. Desha Jordan, a specialist in Pediatric Allergy and Immunology at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, says it’s important to know that what you have is actually allergies. If you’re experiencing symptoms and you tried an antihistamine but it didn’t seem to be working, an allergist can narrow down the issue. Nose sprays, however, are helpful even without allergies though, she notes, because they treat inflammation.

Allergists can do allergy tests (usually scratch tests, not needles) and narrow down what’s bothering the patient. Sometimes pediatric patients come to the doctor with a chronic cough and they think it’s allergies, but it’s actually asthma.

“It’s helpful if we find out, hey, you thought your whole life you had allergies but we tested you and you didn’t,” she says.

“Allergists can help you figure out what medicines are helpful for you.”

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Why aren’t you seeing results in your workouts?

To build muscle in workouts, we must first have a focus. What are you lifting each day? How many times a week do you have to dedicate to working out and reaching your goals? 

I typically build a 4x-a-week program for my clients looking to build muscle. Our lift breakdown looks like this:

Monday – Glutes & Hamstrings
Tuesday – Biceps & Back
Thursday – Leg Day (Quad Focused)
Friday – Chest, Shoulders & Triceps

Now, the key to actually building your workouts so they are efficient and showing the results is making sure to hit at least 9 to 12 sets of each muscle group.  

PHOTO BY ANNA KESTLER

Check out our Upper Body: Bicep & Back lift in our current 6-Week Challenge.

UPPER BODY LIFT:

1a Hammer Curl 3 x 10 

1b Bent over Narrow Row 3 x 10 

2a Circle Curls 3 x 10 

2b Bent over Fly 3 x 10 

3a Curl Forward Press 3 x 10 

3b Single Arm Bent over Wide Pull 3 x 10

Complete this workout as supersets. 1a and 1b will be done back to back, with a break of 1 to 2 minutes between sets. Finish sets 2 and 3 before moving on to the second superset, Circle Curls + Bent over Fly. 

Our Bicep and Back day is hitting both groups for nine sets each. When performing this workout, reps 8 to 10 should be a struggle without compromising form in order to achieve hypertrophy (growth of a muscle). 

Try the workout above on your next upper body day to build muscle and increase your metabolism.

I am Anna Kestler, born and raised in Pittsburgh, where I co-own a fitness studio, Sweat PGH. I am a fully certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist. My love for fitness started at a young age with basketball and continued into the collegiate level at The College of William & Mary. I love the way fitness can not only transform the body and mind, but also how we can use it to break through boundaries and realign to heal ourselves naturally. Check out my online studio annakestler.com for more workouts and challenges!

Follow Me On Instagram!

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

You may be surprised to learn polo is played in the Pittsburgh area more than once a year.

The Family House Polo Match, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, is a well-known fundraiser where local celebrities and other patrons gather in their finest hats and engage in well-mannered frivolity for a worthy cause.

But polo is also a growing sport that has been around the Pittsburgh area since the early 1900s with fields at the Hunt Armory in Shadyside, Firemen’s Memorial Park in Fox Chapel and even the airstrip at the Zelienople Airport.

In the 1940s, “As the original landing strip was grass, it also provided an excellent field for polo matches,” according to the Zelienople Airport’s website.

Ople Farms, one of the Pittsburgh region’s five local polo clubs, is located not far from the airport in Fombell. When Libby and William Kofmehl purchased their farm, Libby knew it was the perfect location.

“I was like, this is incredible, this is exactly the location to make this club come alive being next to this history in Western Pennsylvania,” Libby says.

PHOTO COURTESY OPLE FARMS

Libby, a certified instructor with the Polo Training Foundation and a coach with the United States Polo Association, started playing the sport when she was 7 growing up in Florida.

“I feel like it’s a really great sport and a lot of people aren’t introduced to it, and once they are they’re like ‘wow,’” she says, noting people love the social aspect and team spirit involved. “Polo has really grown in our region. It’s exciting.”

Polo is played on horseback with riders hitting a ball with a mallet. It can be played indoors or outdoors.

Other local polo clubs are Pittsburgh Polo Club, Northpointe Polo Farm, the Ligonier Polo Association and the Darlington Polo Club.

Clubs compete in tournaments locally and across the United States and can offer private instruction, camps and youth programs.

Libby says people will come to her farm to try riding and they’ll fall in love with riding the polo ponies. From there, they fall in love with polo.

“Polo becomes a lifetime passion for people who really get into it,” she says. “It’s always exciting to take a complete beginner and turn them into a player.”

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Medical dramas, no matter how intriguing, are ultimately fictional television shows.

But that doesn’t mean they can’t do some good in the world.

Beth Hoffman is an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health who teaches a course called Entertainment, Media, and Health. She says medical dramas such as the recently announced Max show “The PITT,” which will be set in Pittsburgh, can ultimately shape public perception of the medical field and important public health issues. 

“Most of my research looks at what’s called entertainment education or the ways in which media programs influence health or perceptions of health and medicine. I think this [new show] will be a really good opportunity to promote health messages, create dialogue and ultimately inspire people to join medicine and get involved in health and their communities.”

When the TV show “Code Black” premiered on CBS in 2015, Hoffman studied what viewers were saying on Twitter, now known as X, and found that some were tweeting that the show made them want to become EMTs or nurses. She also noted that when “ER” premiered on NBC in 1994, applications for emergency medicine residencies jumped 25% the following year.

Hoffman’s team has also researched the influence of the Pittsburgh-set television show “This Is Us,” where a major character develops Alzheimer’s disease.

“We found [the show] seemed to be motivating people to plan for aging and have some awareness of Alzheimer’s, so I’m hoping we see similar positive influences with this show,” she says. “We’re not asking these shows to be documentaries or be news stories, but I think the writers really do recognize that these are shows that millions of people watch and that shape the perceptions of millions of people.”

Producers for “The PITT” reached out to Hoffman, who works with the Hollywood, Health & Society out of the University of Southern California, which provides the entertainment industry with accurate information on storylines related to health. They asked her to put them in touch with local clinicians, particularly those with knowledge of emergency medicine and health disparities. She was quick to tell them about Freedom House, the first emergency medical service in the nation which was founded in the Hill District with an all-Black staff.

“I think this could be a really great way to share with the world the Black men from the Hill District who were some of America’s first paramedics and also then explore the reasons why that story was not told the way it probably should have been shared, but also the ways in which we are now working to share that legacy,” she says.

“The PITT,” produced by and starring Noah Wyle of “ER” fame, will be “a realistic examination of the challenges facing health care workers in today’s America as seen through the lens of the frontline heroes working in a modern-day hospital in Pittsburgh,” according to a press release.

PHOTOS: SHUTTERSTOCK

Why is it really important to shield your eyes during an eclipse when the world is dark?

According to local eye specialists, it’s because you’re still being exposed to the sun’s rays, even if the moon is moving in front of it, which will happen on Monday, April 8, when a total solar eclipse will take place over a large swath of the U.S. 

Pittsburgh will experience 97% coverage of the sun, which means special eclipse glasses or other eye protection are needed throughout the entire duration of the eclipse, which begins about 2 p.m. that day.

Dr. Denise Gallagher, a retina specialist and a clinical assistant professor of ophthalmology at UPMC Vision Institute, says especially because viewers are looking directly at the sun for a prolonged period of time, there’s a big risk to one’s eyesight. Without proper eye protection, the sun’s rays can cause damage to the retina that could result in temporary or even permanent changes to vision, she said.

“Unfortunately, there is no proven treatment to correct this type of damage to the retina, so the best thing you can do is to prevent it from happening,” Gallagher said in an email.

To view the eclipse, people need eye protection supported by the American Astronomical Society specifically designated as safe to use while looking at the sun, not just sunglasses. 

Dr. Sarah Zambotti, an optometrist at AHN, says that solar eclipse filters that meet the ISO 12312-2 standard are 100,000 times darker than normal sunglasses and will filter damaging UV rays from the sun. She says these can be purchased at American Paper Optics, Daystar Filters, Rainbow Symphony and Thousand Oaks Optical. The Carnegie Science Center also was stocking eclipse glasses in its gift shop.

Related: How to Safely Take Great Pictures of the Eclipse

“Although we’re excited to witness a solar eclipse, we want to ensure that our eyes are well-protected from any damage it could cause,” Zambotti said in a press release.

Gallagher noted it’s also important to wear the protective eye covers properly because the eye can still be exposed to the sunlight from around the sides of the glasses.

Children’s eyes are more vulnerable to sun damage, but kids can still view the eclipse while wearing protective glasses. Another option that’s good for kids is an indirect viewing of the eclipse, such as the pinhole viewing method. 

AHN also advised not to watch the eclipse through a camera phone, camera lens, binoculars or recording devices because they can magnify the UV light and cause damage to your eyes. People with eye conditions are also advised not to watch this solar eclipse and instead watch videos of the event after the fact to avoid further damage, AHN said.

PHOTO COURTESY BIKE SHARE PITTSBURGH

If you feel like you’re noticing more bikes on the roads, you’re probably right: POGOH bikeshare hit record-breaking ridership last year and has reached 1 million rides total since launching in 2015.

“Students, residents and visitors embraced POGOH last year — it’s clear that when we expand the station network, our ridership grows significantly,” said David White, executive director of Bike Share Pittsburgh, the nonprofit that operates POGOH bikeshare, in a press release.

To meet the demand, Bike Share Pittsburgh has announced POGOH’s Phase 3 Expansion, which aims to add more than 50 new stations to Pittsburgh over the next few years. There are currently 60 stations across Pittsburgh.

“We have a vision that POGOH stations cover every neighborhood in the city, and that over time our network will extend to many inner-ring municipalities in Allegheny County,” White said.

POGOH plans to engage with Pittsburgh communities to choose the 50 new locations; feedback is being accepted through an interactive map on its website.

Funding for the new stations will come from the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program, the Gaming Economic Development and Tourism Fund Grant in partnership with the Redevelopment Authority of Allegheny County, and other grants.

In 2023, 211,000 rides were recorded, up significantly from the previous high of 124,000 in 2021. Bike Share Pittsburgh said the increase in usage can be attributed to factors such as the popularity of the electric-assist bicycles, high ridership from the University of Pittsburgh community, increased support for biking and walking, and collaboration with PRT, which allows users to register and rent POGOH bikes through its Transit App.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Wearing a fitness tracker can do a lot more than help you count your steps — it can help you to know your heart better.

Dr. Mehak Dhande, a cardiologist at University of Pittsburgh Physicians, Department of Cardiology, says available data from a wearable device, whether it’s a Fitbit, an Apple Watch or many other devices, includes a person’s baseline heart rate, their heart rate variability, their respiratory rate and stress levels.

“The amount of data that’s available is really, really vast,” she says. 

“The good parts of it are the heart rate, physical activity, number of step counts … those data are very helpful for knowing your health trends, how much have you been walking, how much activity have you been engaged in,” she says, noting those are also good motivational tools for people to seek more exercise. “For being more engaged and involved in your own health, I think from that standpoint that data is very helpful.”

Dhande says patients may become concerned if their device detects an irregularity, but because the devices are not medical grade, they don’t have the final say. The ultimate gold standard is still talking to your health care provider. “But these devices can definitely be a first step to understanding about your own health,” she says.

“How much of it is actionable and in what ways, that’s where the real caution comes in … You don’t want to be overdiagnosing folks who don’t have a disease. You don’t want to overwhelm the health care system.”

Dhande says overall, if her patients tell her the devices are motivating them to stay healthy, that is fantastic.

“In that case, literally and figuratively, take your wearable and run with it,” she says. 

Dr. Amit Thosani, director of Cardiac Electrophysiology for AHN and vice chair for the AHN Cardiovascular Institute, is using the data generated from wearable devices in his research of heart rhythm disorders. It could be a game changer, he says.

He’s working with the Allegheny Singer Research Institute, which is the second leading enrolling site in a randomized controlled trial called REACT-AF, which stands for Rhythm Evaluation for AntiCoagulaTion with Continuous Monitoring of Atrial Fibrillation. 

The study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, follows 5,500 patients with atrial fibrillation, the most common form of arrhythmia — or irregular heartbeat — in the United States. Half of the patients are given an Apple Watch, which can monitor whether or not a patient is in atrial fibrillation or has a normal heart rhythm at any given time. Patients who do well are told to discontinue their blood thinners (a common treatment for this condition) and continue monitoring with their device in hopes patients may not need to be on blood thinners as much.

“I do think that the effort that we’re part of is potentially going to lead to a landmark shift in how we take care of patients,” he says. 

Before smart devices, any attempt to monitor heart rhythm long term or continuously would require a patient to receive a medical-grade prescription, wear a monitor that often was cumbersome, and mail the device to their doctor for analysis.

“Millions and millions of people now have a smartwatch, Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch, etc., etc., and when they’re having certain symptoms, or even in the absence of symptoms, those devices can notify patients directly,” Thosani says. “Our patients then can record and store tracings of their heart rhythms, which they can then bring to us to review.

“I think that the current technology that’s available is very promising for potentially personalizing patient care,” he says. “We’re excited to be part of that effort.”

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

If you feel like you’re always taking your child to the doctor for a suspected ear infection, there’s good news on the horizon.

Physician-scientists at UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh have developed an app that uses AI to make a diagnosis by assessing a short video of the eardrum captured by an otoscope, the apparatus doctors use to look inside of patients’ ears, connected to a smartphone camera. The tool could help to decrease unnecessary antibiotic use in young children, according to research published this week in JAMA Pediatrics. 

“Our tool helps get the correct diagnosis and guide the right treatment,” said Dr. Alejandro Hoberman, senior author on the study and a professor of pediatrics and director of the division of general academic pediatrics at Pitt’s School of Medicine, in a statement. He also serves as president of UPMC Children’s Community Pediatrics; several CCP sites and other UPMC sites have already been using the tool.

Eventually, Hoberman says, the hope is that families will be able to buy an off-the-shelf product and obtain a video at home of their child’s ear to share with their pediatrician.

“Your pediatrician can decide if you need to bring him or her in and the video produces the artificial intelligence,” he says.

The tool can also be used when patients are seen at an urgent care center. A medical assistant could take a video of the child’s ear when they get their vital signs, and the doctor and parent can look at the video together. 

“It will give an answer whether it’s an ear infection or not an ear infection with a confidence level,” says Hoberman. “When the doctor comes in to examine the child, we’ll be able to see that information, look at the video of the eardrum and decide in conjunction with the parent whether there is an ear infection or not and what is the benefit of antibiotics.”

It’s often difficult for care providers to get an accurate diagnosis of ear infections, whether due to inexperience or wiggly babies. If a child is prescribed antibiotics but doesn’t really need them, it makes the medicine less effective the next time the child is prescribed them, Hoberman says. 

The study examined 1,151 videos from 635 children who visited outpatient UPMC pediatric offices between 2018 and 2023. Two trained experts reviewed the videos and made a diagnosis.

The researchers used 921 of those videos to teach two different AI models to detect ear infections and the remaining 230 videos to test how the models performed. Both models had accuracy rates of more than 93%. 

According to Hoberman, previous studies of clinicians have reported diagnostic accuracy ranging from 30% to 84%, depending on the type of health care provider, level of training and age of the children being examined. 

“These findings suggest that our tool is more accurate than many clinicians,” he said in a statement. “It could be a gamechanger in primary health care settings.”

According to the National Insitute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, ear infections are the No. 1 reason why parents bring their child to the doctor. It’s more common in youngsters because their immune systems are developing and because their eustachian tubes are smaller and more horizontal, making it more difficult for fluid to drain out of the ear. In fact, five out of six children will have at least one ear infection by their third birthday, according to the federal health agency.

PHOTOS BY ANNA KESTLER

Our core is essential for balance, control and support throughout our body. When I need an efficient workout that is short and sweet, I love to throw in a 10-minute core workout that will benefit me physically and mentally.

Next time you’re crammed for time or need an energy boost, try this core workout to feel stronger, more energized and connected to your body.

3 Rounds | 45 seconds on, 15 seconds off

Forearm Hip Dips

4 Mountain Climbers

1 Push Up

Bicycle Crunches

I am Anna Kestler, born and raised in Pittsburgh, where I co-own a fitness studio, Sweat PGH. I am a fully certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist. My love for fitness started at a young age with basketball and continued into the collegiate level at The College of William & Mary. I love the way fitness can not only transform the body and mind, but how we can use it to break through boundaries and realign to heal ourselves naturally.

Follow Me On Instagram!

PHOTO COURTESY MARGO KIMBLE

It all started with TikTok.

Margo Kimble saw a video on TikTok of the Philly Girls Who Walk group, and she thought: “I would love to see something like this in Pittsburgh.”

“It dawned on me it was going to be on me to start it, and I happily did so,” she says.

Pittsburgh Girls Who Walk was founded in 2022 and has become more than just a walking group. The women in the group, mostly in the 20 to 40 age range with multiple outliers, are attorneys, moms who work from home, pharmacists and beyond. At first, the group did one walk a week, with their first walk in Schenley Park, and then it expanded into other events — from supper clubs and murder mystery nights to self-defense workshops and speed-friending events.

“It’s definitely a community at this point,” Kimble says. “People really started leaning into just how hard it is to make friends on top of staying well and doing little things to keep our mental health up because it’s so gray here all year long.”

In January, Conde Nast Traveler named Pittsburgh the 9th most walkable city in the country. Multiple walking groups explore the city and offer fellowship, among them the Pittsburgh Hiking Meetup Group, Pittsburgh Slowpokes Walking Group and many others.

Making connections was one reason Kimble, who has a background in supply chain management logistics, wanted to start the group. She’s a Pittsburgh native but says it’s sometimes hard for those in their late 20s and 30s to maintain friendships as they move into different stages of life. 

Walks typically happen at 11 a.m. Sundays in different Pittsburgh neighborhoods to make the events accessible to all members. 

The group has also done some charitable work: tickets from one of their speed-friending events raised money for Girls Who Code, and they’re running a 30-day step challenge in March with proceeds going to charity.

“It’s become so much more than I ever thought it would,” Kimble says.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Immediately performing CPR after cardiac arrest dramatically increases a person’s chance of survival. 

But studies have shown women are less likely to receive it.

Whether due to fear of sexual assault accusations or fear of hurting a person of smaller stature, bystanders are less likely to perform CPR on women than men.

Dr. Virginia Singla, a cardiologist at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, says this has come to light during the last five-10 years as researchers have looked at groups of people who receive out-of-hospital bystander CPR.

“There’s a gender inequity there,” she says. “They did notice that this effect was much more prominent in public places rather than private places where women received CPR, so that has led the [medical] community to speculate that this may be partially due to concerns over repercussions or accusations of harassment.”

Another reason is that in popular culture men are more frequently depicted as having a heart attack or other heart issues, even though heart disease is the leading cause of death in women.

“We all have the association of men clutching their chests, having a heart attack,” Singla says. “So reframing how we think about, in general, who is likely to collapse, who is likely to have their heart stop, is the first step to this.”

The American Heart Association is working to ensure that women are included in CPR training materials and videos, Singla says, and startup companies are manufacturing CPR dummies to look more like biological women.

“The assumption is that there is just some ignorance in the community about where to place the hands when breasts are involved,” Singla says. “Where to place the external defibrillation patches can be a little trickier, and it’s important to have an awareness of that during our training.

“Our hope is that with each iteration, each generation that trains on these models, that it will in some ways normalize that many of our victims, as we call them, are women.”

Another reason bystanders may be hesitant to perform CPR on women is they’re worried about hurting them, Singla says. But the outcome of not trying is far worse.

“We need to get over … this fear of potentially hurting someone just because a woman may be smaller or perceived as more frail,” Singla says. “She still needs the robust reaction and treatment.”

PHOTOS BY LAURA PETRILLA

It has been an absolute joy the last few months opening Mic’s, figuring it all out, launching exciting foods, beverages and new products, and overall just experiencing it all.

With this full-service micro-grocer we are creating a wellness community within Sewickley and Pittsburgh and its neighboring pockets.

There have been some prevalent themes on this journey that I would love to share, and, in some cases, debunk.

1. “Red meat isn’t good for you.”
I often hear the same false blanket statements from customers, whether it’s about eggs, chicken, yogurt, oats — you name it. I will tell you this: I have tried every fad diet and every type of eating. I’ve researched many food philosophies and have noticed a running theme: whoever is pushing, selling or preaching how to eat usually has some skin in the game. I’ve learned that overly simple messages are often too good to be true. Plus, what works for some might not work for others.

So, with that in mind, my general food philosophy has always been the following: eat whole foods and things found in nature. Specifically, aim to eat high-quality options with a focus on protein.

Of course, red meat is wrong in some cases. Of course, greasy burgers with a white bun and cheese won’t be your healthiest option. But consuming high-quality lean red meat shouldn’t be considered taboo, especially when done in moderation. Further, combining it with vegetables, fiber, healthy fats and resistance starch makes for a well-rounded, highly nutritious meal.

2. “My doctor told me to be vegan.”
Being a vegan has many pros and is indeed better for animals. I myself was a devout vegan for 1.5 years. But there was a point where my body needed something more, so I re-introduced fish. I eventually found that eating high-quality animal products made me feel better and more vibrant (you can not replicate the amino acid profile in red meat).

Cutting out dairy, meat, poultry and animal products may, of course, have certain benefits (i.e. weight loss), but it comes with its drawbacks, too: a lot more sugar, carbs, processed products, and less protein. French fries (fried in vegetable oil) are vegan, as is most candy.

Often, professionals tell people to change their diets drastically because it is a lot easier and far less time-consuming than diving deeper and putting in the work. But there are no quick fixes when it comes to health. If you have high blood pressure, I can guarantee it didn’t happen from eating one burger, and I can almost promise that exercise, proper sleep and hydration have yet to be considered. Advocate for yourself. Avoid the temptation of quick fixes. Know that real change takes time and patience.

3. “Healthy food is expensive.”
I am happy we’re having this conversation! Yes, whole-grain cereal with high-quality ingredients for $11.99 sounds like highway robbery at first glance. But the truth is, diabetes is expensive. And so is poor health. Even getting my comprehensive blood panels done every quarter costs me, but I know I am being proactive and eyeing longer-term longevity. Fruit loops are $4.99 and offer zero nutrition. Zero. They house a future of poor health and more significant problems. So spending $7 more on a cereal that has protein, better ingredients and unprocessed food may seem costly now, but what’s more important than health?

4. “But you’re so healthy, you don’t need to fix anything.”
If I want to get vulnerable with you, some of my biggest fears involve my health. I quit drinking, I move my body six to seven days a week, meditate, sleep, hydrate and eat high-quality foods. However, even though I am doing my best, certain genetics and pre-dispositions play a part, too. I have a family riddled with cancer. I have seen people close to me struggle with illness and disease, and I do my best to prevent that as much as possible.

There are no guarantees, but if something were to happen, I would know I did what I could with what I had control over. I have a tumor on my thyroid, which could potentially become cancerous, so it is my job to get a yearly biopsy and test my thyroid hormones to make sure I am OK. Though that may be an overshare, we all have our issues. Don’t compare your journey to others. We are all in control of our own bodies.

If you’re not feeling vitality and energy, think of it as your body offering you an invitation to dig deeper. You can feel good every single day. It really does feel good to feel good.

5. “I can’t lose weight. I can’t sleep. Eating healthy is expensive.”
If I hear this from someone drinking two to three glasses of wine each night, therein lies the problem: First of all, wine is expensive. Consider budgeting differently to prioritize healthy eating. Second, wine disrupts sleep, wrecks your cortisol, and is pure sugar. It leaves you bloated and sluggish and interrupts your entire system; you are ingesting a toxin. Try exercising during the day to release happy endorphins, drink calming tea at night to take the edge off, and use the wine budget to buy a beautiful, nutritious meal.

Yes, the latter sounds boring, but boring can be better than remaining in a cycle of poor health brought on solely by things you can control. Reaching for wine is the easy solution that produces the most complex results. Making the “harder” choices produces ease of living. Choose your own adventure! You are in control.

Hard decisions in the short term bring ease in the long term. It didn’t happen overnight; I have been on this journey for years. But there is not a single day I look back and think, “Wow, I wish I still felt like crap.” Some days, though, I opt for the pizza. Freedom from food. 80% great diet, 20% freedom — it works every time.

Follow me for more yummy recipes and tips @michaelablaney or subscribe to my newsletter michaelablaney.com

Whoever said no good story started with a salad has never had one of mine. (It was me, I used to say that). 

But here’s the truth: I am not naturally fit or thin and don’t naturally reach for vegetables. I am not a chef, but I’m good at assembling ingredients. I put in the work. I believe in feeling and looking my best — but not compromising. So, here you will find good ingredients and real wellness made fun.

More formally, I cook up clean comfort food, am a passionate health coach, ritual maker and health product queen and I’m a Certified Health Coach from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition with a specialty in hormone health. 

PHOTOS COURTESY EMILY MICK

Emily Mick was told she shouldn’t have a baby.

Diagnosed in her mid-20s with a condition that causes the heart muscle to become thick and have to work harder, the veterinary technician says doctors were worried that her heart couldn’t handle a pregnancy. Another concern was that she could pass on the genetic condition to her offspring.

But today, she and her husband have a healthy 2-year-old keeping them on their toes in their Lisbon, Ohio, home.

Mick’s case of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is treated with medication and a defibrillator and she’s able to lead a normal life. But pregnancy and delivery can put a strain on the heart as it’s pumping blood to both mother and baby.

“There are cardiovascular issues that may arise during pregnancy or delivery, because we look at pregnancy almost like a stress test,” says Dr. Indu Poornima, co-founder of the cardio-obstetrics clinic at Allegheny Health Network and the director of AHN’s Women’s Heart Center and Preventive Cardiology.

“It’s the first stress test that a young woman may have, where if she had underlying heart issues that may become manifest.”

The reasons pregnancy is the first stress test for women are that women are getting pregnant later in life and there’s a higher prevalence of obesity, high blood pressure, early diabetes, or pre-diabetes in women who are getting pregnant.

“As a result of all that, we are likely seeing a higher incidence of cardiovascular issues becoming kind of manifest during pregnancy and delivery,” Dr. Poornima says.

Years ago, patients with congenital heart disease may not have lived long enough to get pregnant. 

“Now, thanks to all the advances that we’ve made in congenital heart disease, patients undergo surgeries and they pretty much have a complete lifetime ahead,” Dr. Poornima says. “As a result … we are seeing more young women who have maybe had surgeries as a child now wanting to get pregnant, which is great.”

Despite being told she shouldn’t get pregnant, Mick and her husband remained hopeful. Her primary care physician connected her with the cardio-obstetrics clinic at AHN, and she had extensive genetic testing done to see if she could pass on her condition to future children. Doctors were able to narrow down her chances.

“There weren’t any definite answers, but it made me more confident about trying,” she says. “[My high-risk doctor] said, ‘There are things that can happen, but this is what we’re going to do to try to complete the journey.’

That doctor was one of the first people who told her: You could probably have a baby. 

“That was kind of a big deal,” she says.

Mick says because of potential complications her doctors didn’t want her pregnancy to progress to the full 40 weeks, so they decided to induce her labor at West Penn Hospital at 38 weeks. After two days of labor with no progression, doctors performed a C-section, which they had hoped to avoid because of how her heart could handle blood loss. 

“I had some really great nurses and doctors and they were very confident but honest about the concerns,” Mick says. “I was a little bit nervous, but it actually went great.”

Mick’s daughter was born completely healthy with no heart murmur but will go in for testing every few years to check for any issues. 

“She’s really brought in so much positivity into our world and I’m really happy I had doctors that told me that I should try and it is possible for me to give birth and have a healthy baby,” Mick says. “That was really important to us and my family.”

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

When you think about heart attack symptoms, the mental image of an elephant sitting on your chest may come to mind.

While chest pain and any variant such as chest pressure, chest tightness or chest heaviness is the most common presenting symptom of a heart attack, women sometimes have “atypical symptoms” as well, says Dr. Malamo E Countouris, an assistant professor of medicine and the director of the Clinical Scientist Track in the Internal Medicine Residency Program at the University of Pittsburgh. 

“These can include even just shortness of breath,” she says. “It could be nausea or even vomiting, sometimes a blushing sensation in the face or like a pain that radiates to the jaw or the left arm. Those kinds of less-typical symptoms we are more likely to see in women, and so you’re really trying to keep an open mind.”

As for when to take symptoms seriously, she notes chest pain and tightness should be addressed with a doctor right away.

“But it also depends on sort of the suddenness of onset,” she says. “If something comes on really quickly and it’s very intense, then that might be a situation where you want to go to the ER versus something that has been kind of gradually worsening or maybe comes and goes, doesn’t last a long time, is not super intense. Typically, physicians will take chest pain pretty seriously.”

If a woman experiences a combination of symptoms that come on suddenly, for example nausea and jaw pain and flushing in the face, that’s also something they should take seriously, she says.

Risk factors for heart disease are different for women patients, too.

“There’s the typical things that we think about like high cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, but there are unique risk factors to women, and there are risk factors that we see more commonly in women,” she says.

Complications related to pregnancies including hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preeclampsia and gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes and preterm birth increase a patient’s risk for heart disease down the line. Early menopause (menopause that starts before age 45) is another risk factor for women. 

Countouris also notes certain treatments for breast cancer such as radiation to the left chest or chemotherapy can accelerate the progression of cardiovascular disease, and inflammatory disorders more common in women like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus are also associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Getting enough exercise, eating a heart-healthy diet, quitting smoking, getting enough sleep and keeping stress low are ways women can help to keep their heart healthy, Countouris says.

COURTESY SHUTTERSTOCK

A colorful plate is a heart-healthy plate.

So says Dr. Indu G. Poornima, the director of the Women’s Heart Center and Preventive Cardiology at Allegheny Health Network. A heart-healthy diet focuses on multiple nutrients, rather than specific foods, she says.

Those who have had a cardiovascular event or simply want to maintain their heart health should focus on macronutrients: carbohydrates, protein and fat. The Mediterranean diet, which incorporates these as well as fruits and vegetables and plant protein rather than animal protein, is ideal, she says.

“There is certainly not one single component of the diet which is more important than the others,” she says. “It’s really a combination of things that are important.”

Plant protein includes nuts and legumes such as lentils or black beans, which contain healthy fats and a lot of fiber.

“There’s plenty of studies showing that a high-fiber diet actually reduces cardiovascular events,” Poornima says.

The inclusion of eggs in a heart-healthy diet is often debated, but Poornima says they do have healthy protein.

“I don’t think we should really take eggs off the heart-healthy plate,” as long as they’re consumed in moderation and not fried or cooked with a lot of butter, she says.

The health benefits of red wine are also debated, but Poornima says wine is not as wise of a choice. While red wine may increase people’s HDL, or good cholesterol, levels, it’s hard to know if that’s because of the wine itself or because of other things that wine consumers, typically in the Mediterranean region, consume, such as those legumes and high-fiber fruits and vegetables.

“We’ve sort of concluded that alcohol in general is not beneficial to the heart,” she says.

A common problem she sees is patients consuming a highly processed diet.

“I would say the biggest challenge is getting people to move from processed food to freshly cooked food,” she says. “That is definitely a challenge, but I think the more conversations we have about it, and the more that is available out there that is fresh, and learning to cook that in an easy way, hopefully we can make that change.”

I love a good rinse exercise. It helps retrain my body’s range of motion so I not only feel strong, but I feel open.

Here’s the workout:

Complete the first exercise for 45 seconds on and then rest for 15 seconds before moving on to the next exercise. For the full workout, complete 3 to 4 total rounds.

Russian Twist

Alt Heel Tap Crunches

Forearm Hip Dips

I am Anna Kestler, born and raised in Pittsburgh, where I co-own a fitness studio, Sweat PGH. I am a fully certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist. My love for fitness started at a young age with basketball and continued into the collegiate level at The College of William & Mary. I love the way fitness can not only transform the body and mind, but how we can use it to break through boundaries and realign to heal ourselves naturally.

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