Respiratory Virus News and Research

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Antibiotic resistance threatens millions of lives worldwide

More than 39 million people around the world could die from antibiotic-resistant infections over the next 25 years, according to a study published in The Lancet.

18 Sep 2024

National survey reveals vaccine hesitancy ahead of flu and COVID-19 season

With flu season just around the corner and COVID-19 cases on the rise, a new nationwide survey from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center reveals hesitancy around vaccines this fall.

13 Sep 2024

Targeted RSV vaccination for older adults with health conditions found cost-effective

Targeting vaccination programs for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) to older adults with underlying health conditions is a cost-effective way to reduce disease, according to a new modelling study https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.240452 in CMAJ.

9 Sep 2024

RSV vaccine reduces illness and hospitalizations in adults over 60

Vaccination against respiratory syncytial virus for adults over 60 is likely cost-effective by preventing illness, hospitalizations, lost quality of life and deaths, according to new research.

5 Sep 2024

As interest from families wanes, pediatricians scale back on covid shots

When pediatrician Eric Ball opened a refrigerator full of childhood vaccines, all the expected shots were there — DTaP, polio, pneumococcal vaccine — except one.

4 Sep 2024

Innovative nasal spray and vaccine for respiratory virus protection

A team of researchers, led by the University of Houston, has discovered two new ways of preventing and treating respiratory viruses.

6 Aug 2024

$Study shows wearable health sensors only prompt a fraction of at-home tests$

Study shows wearable health sensors only prompt a fraction of at-home tests

When seemingly healthy people receive an alert from a wearable sensor telling them they might have a respiratory virus - based on small changes in their unique heartrate, sleep and activity patterns - what do they do? According to a new study by Scripps Research scientists carried out at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, only a quarter of people follow up such an alert with an at-home viral test.

24 Jul 2024

Evaluation and treatment of early Lyme disease

Every year in the United States, an estimated 476,000 people are diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease. The estimate comes from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

23 Jul 2024

Study links common infections to enhanced COVID-19 defense in children

Analyzing nasal swabs taken during the pandemic, researchers at Yale School of Medicine suggest that the frequent presence of other viruses and bacteria may have helped to protect children from the worst effects of COVID-19 by boosting their immune systems.

1 Jul 2024

N95 respirators potential standard of care in nursing homes and healthcare settings during respiratory viral infections

Researchers examined the efficiency of surgical masks, fabric masks, N95 respirators, and KN95 respirators in lowering the SARS-CoV-2 viral loads in the exhaled breath aerosol samples of COVID-19 patients.

4 Jun 2024

COVID-19 may increase risk of pregnancy complications through placental DNA changes

DNA changes consistent with life-threatening pregnancy complications have been found in the placentas of pregnant women infected by COVID-19, according to University of Queensland researchers.

8 Feb 2024

Gut microbiome may hold key to fighting common respiratory viruses

The composition of microbiota found in the gut influences how susceptible mice are to respiratory virus infections and the severity of these infections, according to researchers from the Center for Translational Antiviral Research in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.

30 Jan 2024

Impact of nirsevimab immunization on pediatric RSV-related hospitalizations in Luxembourg

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the main reasons leading to hospitalization among young children worldwide and each year, an estimated 101,000 children below the age of 5 years die due to RSV infections.

30 Jan 2024

Large UK study highlights gaps in COVID-19 vaccine coverage

The first research study of the entire UK population highlights gaps in COVID-19 vaccine coverage. Between a third and a half of the populations of the four UK nations had not had the recommended number of COVID vaccinations and boosters by summer 2022.

16 Jan 2024

JN.1 variant's spread not due to enhanced immune escape, study suggests

Study finds the JN.1 variant of SARS-CoV-2 may not have increased immune escape ability compared to its predecessor BA.2.86, suggesting other factors for its rapid spread.

14 Jan 2024

Study: Respiratory syncytial virus directly infects nerve cells and causes inflammation

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common infection in children and senior adults, can also infect nerve cells and trigger inflammation leading to nerve damage, according to a new Tulane University study.

10 Jan 2024

Stapled lipopeptides show promise as broad-spectrum antiviral agents

Compounds that obstruct the "landing gear" of a range of harmful viruses can successfully protect against infection by the virus that causes COVID-19, a study published today and led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists shows.

5 Jan 2024

RSV vaccines would dramatically reduce disease burden if widely adopted like flu shots

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines recently approved for people 60 and older would dramatically reduce the disease's significant burden of illness and death in the United States if they were widely adopted like annual influenza vaccines, a new study has found.

2 Jan 2024

New study reveals how travel patterns shaped COVID-19 transmission

Elucidating human contact networks could help predict and prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and future pandemic threats.

15 Dec 2023

Hospitalized influenza patients can also suffer long-term, negative health effects

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, extensive research has emerged detailing the virus's ability to attack multiple organ systems, potentially resulting in a set of enduring and often disabling health problems known as long COVID.

14 Dec 2023