After vocal cord surgery, many patients develop stiff vocal folds that impact their ability to speak. Hydrogels can help prevent this by promoting healing, but delivering hydrogels to the vocal cords is difficult. Publishing October 29 in the Cell Press journal Device, a team of biomechanical engineers and surgeons have developed a 3D-printing soft robot that can accurately deliver hydrogels to the vocal cord surgical site to reconstruct tissues removed during surgery. The robot’s printhead is only 2.7 mm in size—the smallest bioprinter reported to date.  

In this cohort study of patients infected with COVID-19, patients with serious mental illness (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or recurrent major depressive disorder) compared with those without serious mental illness were at increased risk of postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC), underscoring the need for coordinated mental health and COVID-19 care strategies. PASC is defined as ongoing, relapsing, or new symptoms or other health effects occurring after the acute phase of SARS-CoV-2 infection (i.e., that present 4 weeks or more after the acute infection). 

States that explicitly criminalize prenatal drug use may unintentionally discourage pregnant people from seeking essential medical care, according to new research from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. The study is the first to empirically test whether fear of legal repercussions leads some people with drug use disorders to give birth outside healthcare settings to avoid hospital drug testing.

In a new study, researchers analyzed access to emergency departments (EDs) with high levels of pediatric readiness in the United States, examining not only changes in overall access but also how the changes varied by state and region. They found that pediatric access to high-readiness EDs declined modestly between 2013 and 2021, though some areas improved.

A study from the University of Michigan Health Rogel Cancer Center and Department of Pathology shows that further testing in renal cell carcinoma with an overexpression of gene TRIM63 could uncover a mutation otherwise undetected, leading to more treatment options for patients.

WECARE 2.0, a digitally delivered health promotion program for Chinese American dementia caregivers, is easy to use for all literacy levels and increases social supports. An innovative assessment by PhD student Kang Shen highlights that self-report feedback and website activity are crucial for understanding the delivery of a digital intervention.

Among patients undergoing panniculectomy to remove excess abdominal skin, those with previous COVID may be at higher risk of serious blood clot-related complications called venous thromboembolism (VTE), reports a study in the November issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.