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A mother's mental health during pregnancy could impact a child's birthweight — and more

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

For Monday, Dec. 4, WGN’s Dina Bair has new medical information, including: More Coverage: WGN's Medical Watch Prenatal depression & fetal growthA study in the Journal of the American Medical Insitute reveals depression during pregnancy is linked to slower fetal growth in critical stages before delivery. Femur length, abdominal circumference, and weight between 30 and 37 weeks are impacted. Doctors say the research points out the need to both screen expectant mothers for mental health issues during pregnancy and intervene to protect the health of the newborn. Brain implants & cognitive abilitiesA novel way to repair the brain following a traumatic injury. Stanford medicine scientists used brain implants to revive cognitive abilities in TBI patients. The deep brain stimulation worked long after the initial injury. They tailored the level of electrical activity to each patient's brain. Researchers say they were surprised at how well the technique worked in people with b...

PAWS Chicago takes in displaced dogs, cats from Dominica

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

CHICAGO — More than 75 dogs and cats rescued by PAWS Chicago from Dominica seek a new and forever home. The animals arrived in Chicago on a Wings of Rescue flight Saturday night after the only shelter on the Caribbean island suddenly closed down. Many of the dogs and cats had been abused before being taken in by the shelter. Chicago named one of the most fun cities in America: report "These pets have been through a lot. The worst abuse we’ve ever seen," a PAWS Chicago Facebook post read. "Burned, beaten, unspeakable acts…in the midst of those horrors, this shelter was there to rehabilitate them. It’s a terrible loss that they had to shut their doors, but we’ll make sure every single happy ending they worked so hard for comes to fruition."The PAWS Chicago veterinary team immediately examined them to begin treatment. To help these new arrivals, locals can adopt any cat or dog in the PAWS program.  Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines Anyone interested in fostering a...

Palos Park police offer warning about scam targeting seniors

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

PALOS PARK, Ill. — Police in Palos Park are offering a warning about a scam targeting seniors.Police say the warning comes after a woman in Palos Park fell victim to a "grandparent scam," something officers say is also referred to as an “emergency scam."According to police, the scams are carried out over the phone by people claiming to be a relative of the victim, usually a grandchild, who claims to be in trouble and in need of money immediately. Police warn that scammers may also pose as police officers or lawyers who claim to represent the family member. Community programs, staff return to Amundsen Park after city scraps migrant shelter plans Officers say the scammers ask for cash and then send an associate who poses as a police officer, bail bondsman or official to collect the money from the victim.According to police, during many of the scams, the victims are told that they have to keep quiet and not speak about the situation for a variety of reasons.Palos Park police urge res...

4 critical following crash involving semi in Joliet

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

JOLIET, Ill. — Four people were critically injured following a crash involving a semi-truck early Monday in Joliet, police said in an updated release Monday evening.Just before 5:15 a.m., officers responded to the intersection of South Chicago Street and McDonough Street on the report of a crash with injuries.Police believe a Volkswagen Passat, driven by a 28-year-old male, went through a red light and struck a semi-truck heading southbound on Chicago. 2 SIU students from Park Ridge, Des Plaines killed in head-on crash The Volkswagen contained one 26-year-old male passenger and three females (two 30-year-olds and one 25-year-old.) According to police, the male driver and 25-year-old femalepassenger were transported to Silver Cross Hospital in critical condition. Both were later taken by ambulance to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where they remain in critical condition.The 26-year-old male and both 30-year-old female passengers of the Volkswagen weretaken to Ascensio...

Search underway for 2 armed robbery suspects who held up Walgreens in Gold Coast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

CHICAGO -- Two men reportedly forced Walgreens employees into a back office at gunpoint and stole an undisclosed amount of money from a safe Sunday night.According to the Chicago Police Department, officers responded to a Walgreens located on the 900 block of North State Street in the city's Gold Coast neighborhood on reports of an armed robbery just after 9 p.m. on Sunday. Naperville woman charged after fatal shooting at Hilton Hotel in Oakbrook Terrace Two men reportedly entered the Walgreens in the Gold Coast displaying guns and demanded money. The men restrained a 23-year-old while they removed an unknown amount of money from a safe.The suspects fled the scene on foot. No one is in custody at this time.No injuries have been reported. The investigation is ongoing.

Funeral set for Mahtomedi youth hockey player who died days after crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

Samson Walters loved fishing, foraging for mushrooms and agates, and “hunting for any wildlife that he could fry.”Hockey families around Mahtomedi have been putting hockey sticks out on their front porches and turning on their porch lights to show support for Samson Walters, 16, of Hugo, who was critically injured in a head-on collision in Grant on Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2023. (Courtesy of Mahtomedi Youth Hockey Association)Walters, 16, of Hugo, died Saturday at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, three days after he was critically injured in a car accident on his way to school at Mahtomedi High School.Walters, a Junior Gold 16 player with the Mahtomedi Youth Hockey Association, loved being outside, according to his obituary.“The outdoors were Samson’s happy place,” the obituary states. “You would rarely find him inside.”Walters, whose nickname was “Smiler,” was a great big brother and a triple-sport athlete who had a smile that “lit up every room he entered,” according to his obituary...

Man found dead in wreckage of South St. Paul house explosion was owner’s son, family says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

Family has identified the man found dead in the wreckage of last week’s house explosion in South St. Paul as the homeowner’s 42-year-old son.Nhu Richards wrote on a fundraising page that firefighters pulled the body of her brother Ryan James Richards from the “heartbreaking aftermath” of Thursday morning’s explosion and fire that leveled their mother’s home on the city’s south end, just south of Interstate 494.Fire officials have not said what they believe caused the explosion — only that it remains under investigation — and the Hennepin County medical examiner’s office has not released a cause or manner of the man’s death.Nhu Richards wrote on GoFundMe last week that donations will go toward paying for her brother’s funeral and care for their 77-year-old mother, Ester Richards, who is a paraplegic. She was not home at the time of the explosion.“As we grapple with the pain and loss, we’re left with uncertainty about the full exte...

Mississippi River: Minnesota DNR reports biggest capture of invasive carp to date

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

Wildlife officials have captured hundreds of invasive carp from the Mississippi River near Trempealeau, Wis.The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced Friday that officials caught 296 silver carp, 23 grass carp and four bighead carp Nov. 30 in what the agency called the largest single capture of invasive carp in Minnesota to date.Agency officials said the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources tracked six tagged invasive carp in that area of the river that led officials to larger schools moving upstream. Observations from commercial anglers also helped officials pinpoint the fish.“Asian” carp were imported to the U.S. in the 1960s and 1970s to help rid Southern aquaculture farms of algae, weeds and parasites. They escaped through flooding and accidental releases, found their way into the Mississippi River and have used it as a superhighway to spread north into rivers and streams in the nation’s midsection.The carp are voracious eaters — adult bigheads and...

Twin Cities man ID’d in fatal landslide at southern Minnesota state park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

Officials on Monday identified a 19-year-old man who was killed in a landslide at a state park in southern Minnesota near Mankato.Jack Robert Loso, of Robbinsdale, died Saturday afternoon after becoming trapped under collapsed earth from the landslide, the Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. Loso was visiting the park with family members when the landslide occurred at the base of the falls area of the park, investigators said.Emergency workers called to the scene recovered Loso’s body. The accident remains under investigation, officials said Monday.Minneopa State Park is one of Minnesota’s oldest state parks, and contains waterfalls and a bison herd, according to the state Department of Natural Resources.Related ArticlesOutdoors | Mississippi River: Minnesota DNR reports biggest capture of invasive carp to date Outdoors | Two Twin Cities companies issue cantaloupe recalls amid nationwide salmonella warning Outd...

AP names Eliah Drinkwitz SEC Coach of the Year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:55 GMT

LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels is the unanimous pick as the Associated Press Southeastern Conference offensive player of the year, while Mississippi State linebacker Nathaniel Watson is defensive player of the year.Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz won coach of the year honors Monday after leading the ninth-ranked Tigers into the Cotton Bowl against No. 7 Ohio State. Alabama safety Caleb Downs is the top newcomer.Daniels, a leading contender for the Heisman Trophy, leads the nation in total offense (412.2 yards per game), passing for 3,812 yards and a nation's best 40 touchdowns against only four interceptions. Daniels has also run for 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns.Watson is the SEC's leading tackler with 137 and also has a league-best 10 sacks. Watson has two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and an interception.Downs led No. 5 Alabama with 99 tackles as a freshman, well ahead of No. 2 tackler Jihaad Campbell's 65. He also has two interceptions and returned a punt 85 yards for a t...