UK
Experts have warned about rising AI chatbot use for emotional support and companionship, especially among younger people. Systems such as ChatGPT, Claude and Copilot are increasingly used as confidants, with reports placing therapy and companionship among top reasons. ChatGPT alone has around 810 million weekly active users worldwide. Writing in the BMJ, Susan [...]
A new attempt to create a national, longitudinal health record was one of the big ideas in the 10 Year Health Plan. However, the use case and architecture is far from clear, and there are some big commercial issues to address with health tech vendors… The NHS has a troubled history when it comes to [...]
Health education platform Patient.info and digital health coaching provider Holly Health have announced a new collaboration. The partnership will bring Holly Health’s personalised digital health coaching service to millions of people when they are seeking reliable information on wellbeing, via Patient.info. It will help users to take small, achievable steps towards long-term improvements in sleep, [...]
AI therapy ‘works best’ when users feel emotionally close to their chatbot, a study of 4,000 app users suggests. The research highlights what authors say is key to effective chatbot therapy, and the risks of “synthetic intimacy” (forming human-like bonds with AI). Professor Dimitra Petrakaki from the University of Sussex, said: "Synthetic intimacy [...]
A new sound therapy has been found to quieten tinnitus by around 10 per cent on average, with effects lasting about three weeks after treatment finishes. Experts are hopeful that the therapy, which involves patients listening to modified sounds to disrupt brain activity patterns and quieten the ringing, could one day be available as a [...]
Daily scans during prostate cancer radiotherapy could guide changes to treatment to cut side effects, a recent study suggests. Using AI, scientists found that scans taken to position patients for treatment also flagged changes linked to later rectal bleeding as early as one week into therapy. Monitoring these early changes could help doctors decide when [...]
Prostate supplement adverts and home testing kits have been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over concerns they could mislead vulnerable people. The advertising regulator took action against adverts from Nutrisslim, Nutreance, Muxue Trade and Impact Herbs for claiming their products could treat an enlarged prostate, prostate inflammation or urinary flow problems. None of [...]
By Dr Krishan Ramdoo, founder and CEO of TympaHealth Despite the fact that hearing loss affects approximately 18 million people in the UK, impacting one in three adults, there remain key barriers in addressing it. According to research by TympaHealth, over one in three (35 per cent) have never had their hearing checked, with 28 [...]
A quarter of teenagers in the UK used AI chatbots for mental health support in the past year, new research finds. A study of 11,000 children aged 13 to 16 in England and Wales found more than half had used some form of online mental health support in the last year, with 25 per cent [...]
Stroke AI in over 70 NHS hospitals is helping patients get treated more than an hour sooner, according to a study of care across England. An analysis of nearly 453,000 patients found about 15,000 directly benefitted when scans were reviewed by the technology, which flags dangerous blood clots within minutes. Hospitals using the Brainomix 360 [...]
