It’s not too late to get the latest COVID-19 booster shot. Whether it’s the bivalent vaccine from drug maker Pfizer or from Moderna, the shots offer more protection against symptomatic infection, public health officials reiterated at a White House briefing on Tuesday. However, since the vaccines debuted in September, only 13% of American adults have… read on > read on >
Even if you’ve already had COVID-19, you can still benefit from a vaccine that can help prevent another infection, a new study shows. Danish patients gained between 60% and 94% protection against reinfection, depending on the COVID variant wave, the researchers found. The findings were published Nov. 22 in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine. “In… read on > read on >
Annual lung cancer screening for heavy smokers can provide a big boost in lung cancer survival over the long term, a new study shows. When low-dose CT screening identifies early-stage lung cancer, patients have an 80% chance of surviving 20 years, researchers found. And for some, the odds are as high as 100%. But only… read on > read on >
Research in wild bats is reinforcing a notion crucial to stopping future pandemics: When wildlife populations stay healthy, the odds of “crossover” viruses infecting humans subsides. In Australia, deforestation has caused a deadly respiratory virus to pass from fruit bats to humans, by forcing the two species into closer contact, a new study reports. Robbed… read on > read on >
Vaccines have become a hot topic in the past few years, but a new survey finds many parents aren’t discussing immunization with their child’s doctor. Though a child’s pediatrician has often been the go-to resource on vaccines, the University of Michigan Medicine poll found that 1 in 7 parents have not discussed vaccines with their… read on > read on >
Fungi found in the soil are causing lung infections nationwide, even in places that doctors aren’t aware are at risk. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not revised maps for environmental fungi since 1969, according to a new study that found one disease-causing fungus — histoplasma, or histo — to be more… read on > read on >
Americans are more likely to carry a loaded handgun than ever before: New research finds about twice as many adults carried in 2019 as did in 2015. “Between increases in the number of people who own handguns and the number of people who carry every day, there has been a striking increase in handgun carrying… read on > read on >
Pfizer’s updated COVID booster shots are proving their mettle against emerging omicron variants, the company announced Friday. The latest version of the vaccine generated virus-fighting antibodies against four more omicron lineages, including the troubling BQ.1.1 variant. Notably, the immune response wasn’t as strong against these newer variants as it is against the BA.5 strain. But… read on > read on >
The Biden administration on Thursday offered assistance to communities and hospitals dealing with a surge in cases of pediatric respiratory illnesses, but it did not declare a national public health emergency. The Children’s Hospital Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics had asked President Joe Biden and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra for… read on > read on >
It’s sort of like the Goldilocks principle — a room that’s either too dry or too humid can influence transmission of COVID-19 and cause more illness or death, Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers say. Maintaining an indoor relative humidity between 40% and 60% is associated with lower rates of COVID-19 infections and deaths, they reported… read on > read on >
