Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose coronavirus vaccine is much less effective against the highly contagious Delta variant than it is against the original virus, new research claims. “The message that we wanted to give was not that people shouldn’t get the J&J vaccine, but we hope that in the future, it will be boosted with either… read on > read on >
Unlike many others in his party, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday urged unvaccinated Americans to get COVID-19 shots as new coronavirus cases climb and the country risks the return of shutdowns. During his weekly press conference call at the Capitol, McConnell said people should ignore the “demonstrably bad advice” coming from those who… read on > read on >
Just small amounts of exercise can benefit people with implanted heart defibrillators, new research shows. An implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) is a battery-powered device placed under the skin to detect abnormal heart rhythms and deliver an electric shock to restore a normal heartbeat. The new study found that even slight increases in physical activity reduced… read on > read on >
Breathing in smoke from wildfires may significantly increase the spread of COVID-19, researchers say. The warning, from a new study of links between smoke-caused air pollution and SARS-CoV-2 infections, comes as firefighters battle 80 large wildfires in the western United States. The largest — 300 miles south of Portland, Ore. — covers over 500 square… read on > read on >
The U.S. government issued its most dire warnings against travel to Britain on Monday as coronavirus cases surged in that country while nearly all COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in an effort to restart the economy. Both the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Level 4 travel alerts and… read on > read on >
Indiana University’s mandate that most students be vaccinated in order to attend classes was upheld by a federal judge on Monday in what may be the first such ruling in the United States. The decision came in a lawsuit involving eight students who claimed the vaccine requirement violated their right to bodily integrity and autonomy,… read on > read on >
A noninvasive method of screening for endometrial cancer often fails to detect signs of it in Black women, a new study says. The findings raise questions about the use of transvaginal ultrasound (TVUS) to determine the need for a biopsy in these patients, according to the authors. “Black women have an over 90% higher [death]… read on > read on >
COVID-19 vaccination rates in Canada have now beaten those in the United States. As of Saturday, more than 49% of eligible people in Canada were fully vaccinated, and 70% had received at least one dose of vaccine, according to figures from the Our World in Data project, The New York Times reported. The rates in… read on > read on >
When you’re hospitalized, you’ll want qualified medical professionals treating you, but does it matter if your doctor is a man or a woman? It might. A new study in Canada found that patients cared for by female physicians had lower in-hospital death rates than those who had male doctors. “Our study overall shows that female… read on > read on >
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said Sunday that he supports reinstating local mask mandates when they are needed to curb the spread of COVID-19 among unvaccinated people. “It’s very reasonable for counties to take more mitigation measures like the mask rules you see coming out in L.A., and I anticipate that will happen in… read on > read on >
