(Credit-Canva)
Headaches are a common symptom of a stressful lifestyle, your body not feeling well and other issues. While headaches can be dealt with easily, migraines are not so easy to handle. Migraines are a type of headache that feels like severe throbbing and pulsing sensation, almost like you are hearing your own heartbeat in your brain, usually on one side of the brain. Many people believe that migraines are not that big of a deal because you just have to deal with the pain, but that is not all migraine is, some people find it very difficult to do their daily tasks as they experience dizzying spells, nausea and extreme sensitivity to light and sound! These attacks can last hours and make it difficult for people to go about their daily lives as well. While there are medications available for migraine patients, these medications need time to take effect, so you may be in a lot of pain, but there are not many quick reliefs you can have in place other than learning the symptoms of a migraine attack and taking medication before it happens. But a new approval by the FDA may change this!
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Symbravo, a new medicine to treat acute migraine attacks in adults. This means adults can now use Symbravo to get relief from their migraine symptoms. The FDA's decision was based on the results of three big studies, called Phase 3 trials. These trials involved over 21,000 migraine attacks, so the FDA has a lot of information about how well Symbravo works and how safe it is. The FDA only approves medicines that have been shown to be both safe and effective through a thorough testing process.
"Migraine attacks can happen suddenly and really mess up people's lives. It's estimated that over 39 million people in the U.S. alone get migraines," said Herriot Tabuteau, M.D., CEO of Axsome Therapeutics told US News. This shows how common migraines are and how important it is to have good treatments. "Symbravo gives patients and doctors a new option that can quickly stop a migraine attack, keep it away, and let people get back to their normal activities, all with just one dose." Having a medicine that can give fast and long-lasting relief from migraine pain is a big deal for millions of people. This new treatment is a real step forward in how we treat migraines.
The trials took place in 3 steps, the Momentum trial study focused on people whose migraines had moderate to severe pain. The results showed that a lot more people taking Symbravo felt pain-free two hours after taking the medicine compared to those who took a placebo which is a dummy pill. Even better, many people felt relief for up to 24 and even 48 hours after just one dose. This long-lasting relief is really important for people with migraines because it means they can get back to their normal lives without worrying about the pain coming back. The study also looked at how many people were free from their worst symptom, like sensitivity to light or sound, or nausea. Symbravo worked better than the placebo in this area too.
While the intercept trial looked at people who took Symbravo when their migraine pain was still mild. Even when the pain was just starting, Symbravo was effective. The results were similar to the MOMENTUM trial, with many people getting pain relief and relief from their worst symptoms. Treating migraines early is often better because it can stop the pain from getting really bad.
And lastly the Movement trial which was to see how safe the medication is when people take it regularly. This study followed 706 people who had at least two migraines a month. The most common side effects people experienced were sleepiness and dizziness. While these side effects are important to know about, the study showed that Symbravo is generally safe for people to use on a regular basis.
Credit: iStock
Pennsylvania has reported a third measles-related death amid an expanding outbreak that has infected hundreds of people across the state. The latest casualty involved a 40-year-old woman.
The woman, a resident of Jefferson County, died on Saturday from complications associated with measles, according to the county coroner. The case is now being reviewed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
The death comes as Pennsylvania's measles outbreak continues to expand. As of September 11, the state had recorded 676 confirmed cases across 37 counties, including 124 hospitalisations.
Measles is often perceived as primarily a childhood infection. The latest fatality of the 40-year-old reminds us that measles is not just a childhood disease.
“Many people associate measles with a childhood illness, but it can lead to severe complications in individuals of any age,” Jason Stiver, Jefferson County's chief deputy coroner and public relations officer, told WTAE.
He added, “Measles is highly contagious and can result in serious respiratory illness, hospitalization, and in rare cases like this, death. We encourage residents to stay informed, follow guidance from public health officials, and take appropriate steps to protect themselves and their families.”
The two earlier Pennsylvania deaths occurred in August and involved infants in Lancaster County. One infant died from measles infection, while the other died from a ruptured spleen, with measles listed as a significant contributing condition.
Neither infant was old enough to receive the routine measles vaccine, which is generally first given around 12 months of age.
Measles is among the world's most contagious infectious diseases. It spreads through respiratory droplets and airborne particles when an infected person coughs, sneezes or breathes.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health says two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine are 97% effective at preventing measles. The state has identified four breakthrough infections among appropriately vaccinated people during the current outbreak.
The outbreak has been particularly concentrated in Lancaster and Mifflin counties, although infections have now been reported across more than half of Pennsylvania's counties.
The health department previously warned that nearly 20% of people who contract measles may require hospitalisation, while measles-related death occurs in roughly one to three people per 1,000 cases. Complications include pneumonia and inflammation of the brain.
Also read: World Leaders Call For Obesity & NCD Prevention At BRICS 2026 Summit: Why Focus Is Growing?
There is also an ongoing dispute over how measles-related deaths are being counted nationally. Pennsylvania health officials have counted three deaths as measles-associated in 2026.
However, the CDC's national data currently does not include these deaths, and as of September 10 it reported 3,294 confirmed measles cases in the US without listing a measles death in 2026.
Pennsylvania officials are reviewing the latest death using the state's epidemiological definition for a measles-associated death, which has also been shared with the CDC and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists.
Measles was eliminated from the US in 2000. But the growing outbreak is a reminder that elimination does not mean the virus can never return. Sustained high vaccination coverage remains critical to preventing further infections.
Credit: AI
Your eyes may explain a lot about how your brain handles attention. A new Indian study suggests that tiny fluctuations in the pupils may provide a physiological clue to attention related differences in children with ADHD.
Researchers from the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi analysed eye-tracking data from 50 children aged 10 to 12, including 28 children with combined-type ADHD and 22 without a neurodevelopmental diagnosis. These findings were published in Scientific Reports.
Instead of just looking at the size of the pupils, researchers examined how pupil responses shifted from one trial to another while children performed a working-memory task.
During the experiment, children watched dots appear on a grid and had to remember their positions while ignoring distractions. An eye tracker recorded their pupil diameter 1,000 times per second.
After accounting for age, IQ and memory-task difficulty, the researchers estimated that unmedicated children with ADHD had about 23% greater trial-to-trial variability in their pupil responses than children in the control group.
Among the unmedicated children with ADHD, greater pupil variability was also associated with poorer accuracy on the task.
The pattern was, however, more complicated. Within individual trials, pupil variability was actually lower in the ADHD group. This suggests that different measures of pupil dynamics may capture different aspects of attention and brain activity.
Also read: Increased Screen Timings Have Lead to ADHD: Key Symptoms
The researchers also looked at 17 children with ADHD who completed the task both after taking their usual methylphenidate medication and after stopping it for 24 hours.
When the children were taking medication, their pupils showed a stronger response during the task and less variation between trials. Their overall pupil-response pattern also became more similar to that of the control group. But the researchers caution against interpreting this as proof that medication normalising attention span.
Methylphenidate can itself influence physiological systems that affect pupil size, meaning the study could not completely separate the drug's direct effects on the pupils from changes related to attention.
Also read: Using AI Apps To Manage ADHD? How They Can Help And Why Experts Urge Caution
There is no single biological test for ADHD currently. Diagnosis involves clinical assessment, developmental history and behavioural symptoms across different settings and circumstances.
The study itself has several limitations. For instance, it was based on a small sample, used existing eye-tracking data and involved a controlled laboratory task rather than everyday environments like classrooms.
Although the statistical model found greater trial-to-trial pupil variability, the direct participant-level difference between the ADHD and control groups did not remain statistically significant after correction for multiple comparisons.
The researchers therefore describe pupil dynamics as a useful source of additional physiological information, rather than a diagnostic test.
First author Saumya Yadav said, "It is still too early to consider pupil measurements as a clinical diagnostic tool.”
Larger studies will need to determine whether these pupil patterns can reliably distinguish ADHD from other conditions and whether they remain consistent outside laboratory settings.
Credit: AI
A recent AI analysis of more than 400,000 Reddit posts about popular GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound revealed several side effects that researchers may not have fully recorded in clinical trials.
The study, published in Nature Health, analysed 410,198 Reddit posts from May 2019 through June 2025. Researchers identified 67,008 people who self-reported using semaglutide or tirzepatide, with 43.5% reporting at least one side effect.
The findings do not prove that the drugs caused the symptoms. Instead, they did identify patterns in patients' own accounts that may need further investigation.
As expected, the analysis found gastrointestinal symptoms in majority. Among GLP-1 users who reported side effects, the most common were:
Researchers also found abdominal pain, reduced appetite, acid reflux, bloating, headache and dizziness among commonly reported symptoms.
But two groups of symptoms stood out as they may be less represented in existing clinical-trial data and drug information. They are reproductive symptoms and complaints associated with temperature.
Nearly 4% of people who reported side effects described reproductive symptoms, including irregular menstrual cycles, bleeding between periods and heavy bleeding.
GLP-1 drug users also described chills, feeling unusually cold, hot flashes and fever-like sensations.
Also read: GLP-1 Drugs Mounjaro, Zepbound Show Promise For 1 Billion With Sleep Apnea
The study was based on self-reported social-media posts, so researchers cannot establish whether semaglutide or tirzepatide directly caused menstrual changes, chills or hot flashes.
Other factors may also influence these symptoms. People taking GLP-1 drugs may experience substantial weight loss, changes in food intake, metabolic changes or other health changes that could effect these symptoms.
The researchers therefore describe these findings as safety signals, rather than confirmed adverse effects.
Clinical trials help in determining whether a medication is effective. They also help in identifying its potential side-effects. But once millions of people begin using a drug, patients may describe symptoms in everyday settings that were uncommon or not specifically investigated during trials.
Reddit provides researchers with a huge data collection of real-world experiences. AI can quickly scan hundreds of thousands of posts for recurring symptom patterns that would be extremely difficult to identify manually.
However, Reddit users are not representative of all people taking GLP-1 drugs. The researchers noted that the population studied was younger, more likely to be male and disproportionately based in the US.
The study does not provide evidence that people should stop Ozempic, Mounjaro or other GLP-1 medications. Instead, it shows how AI-assisted analysis of patient experiences could help in addition to traditional drug-safety trials and monitoring.
Common symptoms of GLP-1 medications remain nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and constipation as they are backed by extensive research and clinical trials.
The newly highlighted symptoms, particularly menstrual and temperature-related changes, need clinical research to determine whether they are genuinely caused by the drugs.
© $2026 Times Horizon Private Limited