Category: Clinical Considerations
JAMA From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March, 2020, through mid-February 2023, nearly 103 million cases and 1.1 million deaths were reported in the United States.1 Increasing evidence suggests that pregnant patients with COVID-19 infection are at high risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes.2–4 Several studies have examined outcomes before and during the pandemic periods.2–4 National-level […]
Apr 11, 2023
COVID caused brain damage in 2 infants infected during pregnancy -US study
Reuters Researchers at the University of Miami reported on Thursday what they believe are the first two confirmed cases in which the SARS-CoV-2 virus crossed a mother’s placenta and caused brain damage in the infants they were carrying. (Related paper in Pediatrics from University of Miami) Doctors previously had suspected this was possible, but until […]
Apr 7, 2023
Nature COVID-19 is a newly recognized illness with a predominantly respiratory presentation. Although initial analyses have identified groups of candidate gene biomarkers for the diagnosis of COVID-19, they have yet to identify clinically applicable biomarkers, so we need disease-specific diagnostic biomarkers in biofluid and differential diagnosis in comparison with other infectious diseases. This can further […]
Apr 6, 2023
Less COVID testing of nursing home staff linked with higher resident death rates
Harvard School of Public Health Related Study in NEJM Nursing homes in the U.S. that conducted more COVID-19 testing of their staff early in the pandemic experienced fewer COVID cases and deaths among residents, according to a study co-authored by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Michael Barnett. The study was published March 23 in the New England Journal […]
Apr 4, 2023
Understanding neurological complications of COVID-19
NIH Although SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, was initially identified as a respiratory virus, its effects on the nervous system have been profound. There were reports in the initial phases of the pandemic that the virus was contributing to large, severe strokes in individuals, including younger people typically at lower risk for such events. […]
Apr 4, 2023
Concerns about exercise as a treatment for long COVID
Nature Advocates say an NIH trial of exercise for long COVID could harm participants. Plus, split-site doctorates boost African research and hibernating dormice glow under ultraviolet light. Patients and patient advocates are calling on the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) to reconsider its decision to include exercise trials in its RECOVER initiative, which aims […]
Apr 4, 2023
Emory researchers discover key pathway for COVID organ damage in adults
Emory University Even after three years since the emergence of COVID-19, much remains unknown about how it causes severe disease, including the widespread organ damage beyond just the lungs. Increasingly, scientists are learning that organ dysfunction results from damage to the blood vessels, but why the virus causes this damage is unclear. Now a multidisciplinary […]
Apr 4, 2023
Infected Immune Cells In Brain Could Be Causing Long COVID Symptoms
Medical Daily Scientists may have finally found an explanation for what has been causing neurological symptoms in long COVID patients. A research team at Tokyo’s Keio University conducted a study on how SARS-CoV-2 infects the microglia and not the neurons in the brain using 2D and 3D cultures. The former refers to the resident immune […]
Apr 4, 2023
Paxlovid Linked to Lower Risk of Long COVID
Contagion Live Treating COVID-19 with Paxlovid, a combination of nirmatrelvir with ritonavir, within 5 days of symptom onset was associated with lower risk for developing Post-COVID-19 Conditions (PCC), or Long COVID, in a large Veterans Affairs (VA) cohort study. In addition to reducing risk of mild to moderate infection becoming severe, and of severe symptoms requiring […]
Mar 28, 2023
Study finds co-infection with ‘superbug’ bacteria increases SARS-CoV-2 replication
Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry Global data shows nearly 10 per cent of severe COVID-19 cases involve a secondary bacterial co-infection – with Staphylococcus aureus, also known as Staph A., being the most common organism responsible for co-existing infections with SARS-CoV-2. Researchers at Western have found if you add a ‘superbug’ – methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus […]
Mar 21, 2023