Pandemic News and Research

RSS

A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. During a pandemic, transmission can be anticipated in the workplace, not only from patient to workers in health care settings, but also among co-workers in general work settings. A pandemic would cause high levels of illness, death, social disruption, and economic loss. Everyday life would be disrupted because so many people in so many places become seriously ill at the same time. Impacts could range from school and business closings to the interruption of basic services such as public transportation and food delivery.

Pandemic isolation linked to cognitive decline in UK's older population, study finds

The Lancet study on UK older adults finds COVID-19 pandemic's social restrictions contributed to a marked decline in cognitive functions like working memory and executive function, with sustained effects into the second year despite eased restrictions.

7 Nov 2023

New quantitative analysis of how flu viruses evolved may help predict future strains

Simon Fraser University researchers studying the evolutionary history of flu viruses have found that a new quantitative analysis of how they evolved may help predict future strains.

7 Nov 2023

Omicron variant BA.2.86 spreads faster, but current antivirals hold the line

Researchers discover the BA.2.86 Omicron lineage with higher transmission potential than current dominant strains, yet show that existing antivirals remain effective. Despite its higher infectivity, BA.2.86 exhibits lower pathogenicity in hamsters, indicating decreased replication capacity may lead to less severe infections.

7 Nov 2023

Novel scale effectively measures pandemic-related stress in children and adults

The Pandemic-related Traumatic Stress Scale (PTSS) can be used to effectively measure stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic and identify children and adults with higher levels of stress who may need additional mental health support, according to a new study funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes Program (ECHO) at the National Institutes of Health.

6 Nov 2023

Researchers identify a 'Threshold of Immunity' to SARS-CoV-2

How much immunity do we need against COVID-19? New international research led by scientists in Ireland and published in Nature Communications, has identified a 'Threshold of Immunity' to SARS-CoV-2.

6 Nov 2023

CEPI and University of Oxford launch new project to initiate vaccine development against Junín virus

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the University of Oxford today announced the launch of a new project to initiate early development of prototype vaccines against the Junín virus, selected as an exemplar of the Arenavirus family which is responsible for multiple deadly hemorrhagic fevers with epidemic and pandemic potential.

6 Nov 2023

Work from home: a mixed blessing for parents' health during COVID-19?

The impact of telework during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the general and mental health of parents.

6 Nov 2023

State-by-state snapshot: Long-COVID's grip varies, with mental health in the crosshairs

Study shows 14% of Americans face long-COVID with variations across states and ethnicities, linking it to significant declines in physical and mental health.

5 Nov 2023

Avian flu decimates 5% of Peru's sea lions, sparking conservation alarm

Over 5,000 Peruvian sea lions, approximately 5% of Peru's population, succumbed to a mass mortality event linked to the avian influenza A(H5N1) virus, signaling an urgent need for research and conservation efforts to prevent further declines. The rapid spread of the virus among these colonially breeding mammals highlights potential risks of cross-species transmission and the necessity for heightened monitoring to avert new pandemics.

5 Nov 2023

Cruise ship cabin study reveals optimal airflow to curb virus spread

Research shows proper ventilation rates can limit virus spread in cruise cabins, with medium airflow optimizing droplet containment and air renewal.

5 Nov 2023

Study: Nursing homes most adversely affected by employment declines since the pandemic

Among health care job sectors, nursing homes have been the most adversely affected by declines in employment growth since the pandemic—a rate more than triple that of hospitals or physician offices, says a University of Michigan researcher.

3 Nov 2023

Dental opioid prescribing declines in the U.S., but pandemic slows progressNovember 3, 2023

Americans who have a tooth pulled or another painful dental procedure in the United States today are far less likely to get opioid painkillers than they were just a few years ago, a University of Michigan study shows.

3 Nov 2023

Childhood adversity linked to COVID-19 deaths, hospitalizations in adulthood

People who endured childhood adversity, like abuse or neglect, were more likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID-19 in adulthood, a new University of Pittsburgh study found. Specifically, higher self-reported childhood adversity was linked to 12-25% higher odds of COVID-19 hospitalization and mortality.

3 Nov 2023

Zoonotic spillover epidemics increasing at exponential rate, study finds

Four types of animal-to-human (zoonotic) Infections have been increasing at an "exponential rate," amid a general pattern of increasingly larger and more frequent 'spillover' epidemics, finds an analysis of 60 years of historical epidemiological data, published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.

3 Nov 2023

Teleworking during the pandemic linked to higher parenting stress, especially for fathers

Forty percent of parents who worked remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic reported higher parenting stress compared with only 27 percent of parents who worked onsite, reports a new survey from scientists at Northwestern University and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.

3 Nov 2023

Medicare expands the roster of available mental health professionals

Lynn Cooper was going through an awful time. After losing her job in 2019, she became deeply depressed.

3 Nov 2023

COVID-19 pandemic may have thrown a wrench in efforts to reduce opioid use in dental care

Americans who have a tooth pulled or another painful dental procedure in the United States today are far less likely to get opioid painkillers than they were just a few years ago, a new study shows.

2 Nov 2023

TUM start-up nominated for Science Breakthrough of the Year at Falling Walls summit

It all began with basic research: While conducting laboratory experiments, a team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) came across an active agent against multidrug-resistant bacteria with a fundamental difference to antibiotics developed to date.

2 Nov 2023

New virus diagnosis device gives lab-quality results within just three minutes

A virus diagnosis device that gives lab-quality results within just three minutes has been invented by engineers at the University of Bath, who describe it as the 'world's fastest Covid test'.

2 Nov 2023

Medical debt is disappearing from Americans’ credit reports, lifting scores

The share of American consumers with medical debt on their credit reports has declined dramatically over the past year as major credit rating agencies removed small unpaid bills and debts that were less than a year old, according to a new analysis from the nonprofit Urban Institute.

2 Nov 2023

Pandemic News and Research

Further Reading

Pandemic isolation linked to cognitive decline in UK's older population, study finds

New quantitative analysis of how flu viruses evolved may help predict future strains

Omicron variant BA.2.86 spreads faster, but current antivirals hold the line

Novel scale effectively measures pandemic-related stress in children and adults

Researchers identify a 'Threshold of Immunity' to SARS-CoV-2

CEPI and University of Oxford launch new project to initiate vaccine development against Junín virus

Work from home: a mixed blessing for parents' health during COVID-19?

State-by-state snapshot: Long-COVID's grip varies, with mental health in the crosshairs

Avian flu decimates 5% of Peru's sea lions, sparking conservation alarm

Cruise ship cabin study reveals optimal airflow to curb virus spread

Study: Nursing homes most adversely affected by employment declines since the pandemic

Dental opioid prescribing declines in the U.S., but pandemic slows progressNovember 3, 2023

Childhood adversity linked to COVID-19 deaths, hospitalizations in adulthood

Zoonotic spillover epidemics increasing at exponential rate, study finds

Teleworking during the pandemic linked to higher parenting stress, especially for fathers

Medicare expands the roster of available mental health professionals

COVID-19 pandemic may have thrown a wrench in efforts to reduce opioid use in dental care

TUM start-up nominated for Science Breakthrough of the Year at Falling Walls summit

New virus diagnosis device gives lab-quality results within just three minutes

Medical debt is disappearing from Americans’ credit reports, lifting scores

Best practices - optimize qPCR processes for pathogen detection eBook

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Latest News