Most Americans voluntarily stayed at home during the early days of the COVID-19 tsunami, before states began issuing official “shelter-in-place” orders, new research indicates. Why? Because statewide emergency declarations coupled with news — of first infections, first fatalities and school closures — were motivation enough to get folks to stay home. This was more motivating… read on >
Since the coronavirus pandemic began, rates of hospital admission and death from COVID-19 have been significantly higher in men than women. Now, new Dutch research suggests a reason why: Compared to women, men have higher concentrations of a blood enzyme that helps the new coronavirus infect human cells. The enzyme is called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2… read on >
A cough or other respiratory symptoms aren’t the only early signs of COVID-19 in children, according to researchers. They examined the cases of five children who were admitted to the hospital with digestive tract symptoms and later diagnosed with pneumonia and COVID-19. Children with sickness and diarrhea who also have a fever or history of… read on >
Hunkering down during the coronavirus pandemic has stressed families and raised the risk for child abuse, Penn State researchers report. “We’re very worried about children becoming more seriously injured over longer periods of time before they can get treatment,” said Dr. Lori Frasier, chief of the division of child abuse pediatrics at Penn State Children’s… read on >
(HealthDay News) — As U.S. coronavirus cases topped 1.3 million and the death toll was set to pass 80,000 on Monday, three of the nation’s top health officials have started to quarantine themselves after being exposed to two White House aides who have been diagnosed with COVID-19. The officials include Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of… read on >
The first emergency use authorization for a COVID-19 antigen test has been issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Antigen tests are a new category of tests for use in the coronavirus pandemic and quickly detect fragments of proteins from the virus in samples collected by swab from people’s noses. The approval was issued… read on >
Many COVID-19 patients are at risk for acute kidney failure, according to a new study. Acute kidney failure — also called acute kidney injury (AKI) — is a serious complication of COVID-19 that’s underreported and not well understood, the Northwestern University researchers said. The death rate for patients with severe acute kidney failure is about… read on >
There’s good news for women: Getting a mammogram regularly can cut their odds of advanced and sometimes fatal breast cancers, a new study says. European researchers tracked data from nearly 550,000 women in Sweden who were eligible for mammography screening. The team compared rates of advanced and breast cancers that were fatal within 10 years… read on >
Asking your child to mow the lawn is a risky proposition, a new study suggests. About 9,400 American kids are injured by lawn mowers each year, and mowers cause 12% to 29% of all traumatic amputations among them, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Toe and foot amputations are the most common. “Lawn… read on >
With U.S. coronavirus cases topping 1.2 million and the death toll climbing to more than 75,000 on Friday, the federal government’s monthly jobs report showed a staggering 14.7 percent of Americans are now unemployed. A total of 20.5 million jobs were lost during the April lockdown, and not since the Great Depression has the unemployment… read on >
