Browse evidence-based analysis of health-related claims and assertions
While the chest part of the surgery is happening, another team is working on the stomach in the abdomen to prepare it for the new connection.
Descriptive
The surgery involves carefully removing tissue around the esophagus and nearby lymph nodes in the lower chest area, working from multiple directions to avoid damaging important structures.
During the surgery, doctors need to be careful when moving the windpipe to avoid damaging its soft part.
During the surgery, doctors remove lymph nodes near the voice box nerve and in the area between the aorta and pulmonary artery.
Having two surgical teams work together during the procedure might make the surgery faster.
A special robot with 3D vision and less arm interference helps surgeons work precisely in tight spaces in the chest during this surgery.
The surgery starts with a small cut (4 cm) on the left side of the neck near the muscle that runs from the collarbone to the ear, to access the esophagus.
Doctors use a special dye to see the thoracic duct (a tube that carries fluid) during surgery, so they can avoid cutting it and causing leaks.
This is a new way to remove the esophagus using a robot through a small neck incision, without needing to open the chest or use special breathing equipment.
Scientists have calculated that the idea of special coherent water domains doesn't work because random molecular motion would break them apart instantly.
Mechanistic
The exclusion zone grows over time in a way that matches what would be expected from diffusion processes, supporting the theory that concentration differences drive this phenomenon.
Quantitative
Tiny bubbles and surface impurities can mess up EZ experiments, as shown by how removing bubbles reduces certain light absorption patterns and how hard it is to get rid of these bubbles completely.
Other scientists have tried to reproduce the exclusion zone effect near aluminum and zinc surfaces but couldn't, which means these findings might not be reliable.
The light absorption that Pollack thought was special to EZ water also happens in salt water and when bubbles are removed, suggesting it's not actually from a special water structure.
For metals, the repulsion of particles might be explained by a type of force between materials that depends on their electrical properties, which could make particles move away from metal surfaces.
Nafion makes the water around it very acidic, about as acidic as 1.2 M sulfuric acid, which helps explain why particles are repelled from its surface.
A theory based on how particles move in response to concentration differences explains the exclusion zone phenomenon better than the idea of a new water phase, matching what scientists have observed in experiments.
When scientists looked at light patterns near Nafion surfaces, they found the patterns were actually caused by light reflecting off the surface, not by any special water structure.
Using a special neutron imaging technique, scientists found no evidence of denser water near Nafion surfaces, which contradicts the idea that EZ water is much denser than regular water.
Scientists have seen multiple times that tiny plastic beads move away from certain water-friendly surfaces in water, and this is a real physical effect that needs to be explained.
A quick, painless heart rate test might help doctors check for fatty liver disease risk
People who don't already have liver problems but have lower heart rate variability are more likely to develop fatty liver disease later
Correlational
How much your heart rate changes might be connected to other health issues like fatty liver disease
This connection between heart rate variability and fatty liver disease was found in a study with many participants followed over time