In this month鈥檚 Science Mitten, we take a look at several studies coming out of Michigan, including research on how doggy daycare services support hospital patients, how COVID-19 in pregnant women increases the risk of preeclampsia, and why conservationists shouldn鈥檛 create 鈥減erfect鈥 habitats for animals.
Hospital patients benefit from doggy daycare options听
Patients who are anxious about care for their household pets struggle to focus on their recovery and leave hospitals earlier than is advisable, according to research conducted by University of Michigan neurologist Tiffany Braley and published in the Journal of Patient Experience. Braley found that 63 percent of patients said they had trouble figuring out who would watch their dogs, cats, or other pets while they or a loved one were hospitalized and 16 percent knew someone who had left the hospital, against medical advice, out of concern for the animals. 鈥淲e see a rising need for a formalized service to identify patients, early in their course, who need assistance with pet care, and a need to provide better resources, before it becomes a crisis and impacts their care or the welfare of their pets,鈥 Braley says.
COVID-19 increases pregnancy danger
Women who contract the coronavirus while pregnant face a significantly higher risk of developing preeclampsia, a dangerous elevation of blood pressure that is responsible for 76,000 maternal deaths and more than 500,000 fetal deaths worldwide each year. The finding, from researchers Drs. Roberto Romero and Agustin Conde-Agudelo at the Wayne State University School of Medicine and published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, show women with SARS-CoV-2 had a 62 percent higher likelihood of developing the condition. Romero and Conde-Agudelo reviewed 28 previous studies that included 790,954 pregnant women 鈥 15,524 of whom had been diagnosed with COVID-19 infection. 鈥淏oth asymptomatic and symptomatic infection significantly increased the risk of preeclampsia,鈥 Romero says. 鈥淣evertheless, the odds of developing preeclampsia were higher among patients with symptomatic illness than among those with asymptomatic illness.鈥
Forcing animals听to wander is good听for their health
That鈥檚 the conclusion of a study by Michigan State University scientists on wildlife conservation tactics deployed at a giant panda refuge in Chengdu, China. Lead author Thomas Connor says their analysis, published in Conservation Biology, shows that while it鈥檚 important to provide animals in conservation areas with the tools for survival, humans shouldn鈥檛 make life so easy that they don鈥檛 roam and seek out mates. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have to create perfect habitats to keep protecting pandas,鈥 he says.
This story is featured in the December 2021 issue of 香港六合彩图库资料 magazine. Read more stories in our听digital edition.
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