The first case of COVID-19 may have occurred in China weeks earlier than previously thought, a new study claims. The first officially identified case occurred in early December 2019, but increasing evidence suggests the original case may have emerged earlier. In this study, British researchers conducted a new analysis and concluded that the first case… read on > read on >
U.S. high school seniors say marijuana was significantly harder to come by during the pandemic — yet their use of the drug continued at rates similar to those before school closures began, a new study finds. Their binge-drinking also continued at similar rates, according to the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). “Last year… read on > read on >
In the world of chronic kidney disease, the dilemma is not uncommon: A relatively young patient with kidney trouble may need a transplant down the road, and an older family member is more than ready to step up. But the need for a kidney transplant, while predictable, is not immediate. So the older donor doesn’t… read on > read on >
A year on, nearly all patients in a French study who lost their sense of smell after a bout of COVID-19 did regain that ability, researchers report. “Persistent COVID-19-related anosmia [loss of smell] has an excellent prognosis, with nearly complete recovery at one year,” according to a team led by Dr. Marion Renaud, an otorhinolaryngologist… read on > read on >
When a baby is born, the mother’s body provides a pathway into the world, but the journey also exposes them to beneficial bacteria that live in and on their mom. But that critical exchange doesn’t happen during a cesarean section delivery. Now, researchers report that swabbing babies delivered via C-section with gauze that has been… read on > read on >
One dose of a two-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is enough to protect previously infected people, but it’s likely they and everyone with two doses will still require booster shots at a later date, a new study suggests. That’s because antibodies triggered through either natural infection or vaccines decline at about the same rate, the University… read on > read on >
The pandemic not only cost hundreds of thousands of American lives, but it also appears to have triggered a deep drop in births, U.S. health officials reported Wednesday. Until 2020, the birth rate had been declining about 2% a year, but that rate dropped to 4% with the start of the pandemic, researchers from the… read on > read on >
As vaccination rates among young Americans lag, the White House acknowledged on Tuesday that it will miss two key benchmarks in its nationwide campaign to stop the spread of coronavirus. The first missed goal will be vaccinating 70% of all American adults with at least one shot by July 4, but officials stressed that threshold… read on > read on >
Women battling infertility are often given medications to help them conceive, and potential side effects are always a concern. Now, research suggests use of the drugs won’t raise a woman’s odds for breast cancer. Researchers at King’s College London in the United Kingdom analyzed studies from 1990 to January 2020 that included 1.8 million women… read on > read on >
Pollen is tough enough for allergy sufferers, but a new study suggests it also helps spread the new coronavirus and other airborne germs. Researchers had noticed a connection between COVID-19 infection rates and pollen concentrations on the National Allergy Map of the United States. That led them to create a computer model of all the… read on > read on >
