It’s frightening to see your child have a fever-related (febrile) seizure, but researchers are learning more about who’s more susceptible. An international study has identified seven new genes associated with febrile seizures, or febrile convulsions, in young children. Febrile seizures are defined as seizures in children younger than age 5 who have a fever above… read on > read on >
A one-two punch from science has clearly tagged the mononucleosis virus, Epstein-Barr, as a major cause of multiple sclerosis. The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) appears to trigger multiple sclerosis (MS) by tricking the immune systems of some into attacking their body’s own nerve cells, a new study indicates. “We demonstrated that a specific protein in EBV… read on > read on >
More than 1.1 million American kids were diagnosed with COVID-19 during the week ending Jan. 20, new data show. That’s 17% higher than the 981,000 cases diagnosed the week before and double the number from two weeks before that. “As we approach the two-year anniversary of the pandemic, cases of COVID-19 among children and adolescents… read on > read on >
COVID-19 vaccines don’t affect the outcomes of in-vitro fertilization (IVF), according to a new study. It’s more evidence that the shots won’t harm fertility, researchers said. The results “will give people comfort to know that the COVID-19 vaccine does not affect their reproductive potential,” said senior study author Dr. Alan Copperman, director of reproductive endocrinology… read on > read on >
Remember when everyone was disinfecting their groceries at the start of the pandemic, fearful that the new coronavirus could be spread simply by touching a surface on which the virus had landed? New research confirms that much of that cleaning was unnecessary because people are unlikely to get COVID-19 from contaminated surfaces. “Early on in… read on > read on >
Living through the pandemic has not been easy for kids, but it has really thrown off children who have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), new research warns. Though they were not more likely to catch COVID-19, they were more likely to experience symptoms if they were infected. But the damage did not stop there: These children were… read on > read on >
Pfizer Inc. announced Tuesday that it has launched a trial that will compare its existing COVID-19 vaccine against a new version tailored to beat back the highly contagious Omicron variant. “While current research and real-world data show that boosters continue to provide a high level of protection against severe disease and hospitalization with Omicron, we… read on > read on >
It has begun to feel like a pandemic that will never end, but public health experts now say the Omicron variant may be ushering in a “new normal,” where COVID-19 becomes an endemic, but manageable, disease. “I do feel that we are moving into a transition phase in the pandemic, and I do think Omicron… read on > read on >
Coronavirus infections before or after vaccination provide equal levels of increased immunity, and the key to this so-called “super immunity” is to be vaccinated, researchers report. “It makes no difference whether you get infected-and-then-vaccinated, or if you get vaccinated-and-then-a-breakthrough infection,” said study co-senior author Fikadu Tafesse. He is an assistant professor of molecular microbiology and… read on > read on >
Support from family and friends, along with exercise and sufficient sleep, have helped protect teens’ mental health during the pandemic, new research shows. The study also found that teen girls have been more likely than boys to suffer mental distress during the pandemic. For the study, researchers analyzed data gathered from more than 3,000 participants,… read on > read on >
