Research News and Research

RSS

California shies away from calls to eliminate restrictions on nurse practitioners

As the demand for health care workers surges with the coronavirus case count, many states are rushing to lift restrictions on nurse practitioners, who provide much of the same care as doctors do.

17 Apr 2020

The COVID-19 bailout that’s left every hospital unhappy in its own way

In the throes of the novel coronavirus outbreak in early April, Kenneth Raske, president of the powerful Greater New York Hospital Association, took his case for needing billions in federal relief funding to another New Yorker, well placed in the White House.

17 Apr 2020

URMC launches new coronavirus study to examine immune response

The University of Rochester Medical Center is launching a new study to understand how the body's immune system responds to COVID-19, including if and when a person could be re-infected with the virus and whether some people have pre-existing immunity.

17 Apr 2020

As ventilators become crucial in saving lives, repair roadblocks remain

For years, manufacturers of ventilators and other medical equipment have kept a tight grip on the ability of hospitals to service and repair those products, prompting lawsuits and under-the-table sharing of repair manuals and software passwords.

17 Apr 2020

Elderly patients underestimate the danger of pneumonia

Elderly patients who are hospitalised with pneumonia are twice as likely to die as those hospitalised with hip fractures.

17 Apr 2020

Scientists predict how the novel coronavirus spreads in a typical household

A team of scientists recently carried out a study on the transmissibility of the virus in households. Simply put, they’re trying to predict how the virus spreads in a typical family: if one person gets sick, how many others get sick? How sick? How long would it take the family to recover? These are the practical questions this study tries to answer.

17 Apr 2020

Gimsilumab trial starts in first US patient with ARDS and COVID-19

The first American patient with COVID-19 and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) has been put on the drug gimsilumab at Temple University Hospital, as part of the BREATHE clinical trial. The trial, sponsored by Roivant Sciences, will evaluate the effectiveness of intravenous gimsilumab in preventing death in patients with COVID-19 and ARDS.

16 Apr 2020

Random testing key to a safe exit from COVID-19 lockdown

The coronavirus disease (COVID019) global pandemic has placed many countries and regions in lockdown. There are thousands of cases reported daily, with the global infection toll topping 2.15 million. How can nations shift from lockdown back to normal daily routines while ensuring there won’t be a second wave of viral infection?

16 Apr 2020

Experts explain how to decontaminate N95 masks from SARS-CoV-2

Amid the coronavirus global pandemic, the world is facing a shortage of medical supplies, especially those intended to protect health workers. With the high demand for personal protective equipment (PPE), including surgical masks and N95 masks, many people are left with no choice but to try and decontaminate this equipment for extended use. Now, a new study by experts shows how N95 masks can be adequately decontaminated for further use.

16 Apr 2020

Supercomputer helps find 64 compounds as potential inhibitors of the COVID-19 protease

A new study published in Chemrxiv in April 2020 describes the identification of 64 compounds that could potentially be inhibitors of replication of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is causing the current COVID-19 disease pandemic. The research was carried out using a pharmacophore model of an essential viral enzyme, mining data from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) database of conformations of approved drugs.

16 Apr 2020

Six novel coronaviruses found in bats

While the world grapples with the pandemic, which has spread to 185 countries and territories, infecting more than 2.15 million people and killing more than 143,000 people, a team of researchers at the Smithsonian's Global Health Program has found six novel coronaviruses in bats in Myanmar.

16 Apr 2020

Research shows speed of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 transmission in Boston homeless shelter

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is straining healthcare resources across the globe, prompting countries to impose social distancing measures to reduce the transmission of the virus. The problem is, the virus can spread even if the infected person has no symptoms, making contact tracing and isolation measures more difficult. Now, a new study reveals the rapidity of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 transmission that occurred in a Boston homeless shelter.

16 Apr 2020

Are overactive immune cells causing COVID-19-related deaths?

While the COVID-19 pandemic is devastating many regions, the world over, a new paper published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine in April 2020 describes the possibility that the critical or very severe cases of COVID-19 are due to the production of neutrophil extracellular traps (NET) due to hyperactivated immune cells.

16 Apr 2020

Pregnancy and fetal outcomes with COVID-19

A new study published preprint in the non-peer-reviewed journal medRxiv in April 2020 provides a systematic review of maternal and fetal outcomes in pregnancy affected by COVID-19, as well as the risk of vertical transmission of the virus.

16 Apr 2020

Gold-containing drug auranofin kills 95% of SARS-CoV-2 virus in 48 hours in lab conditions

A drug called auranofin, approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, effectively inhibits severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in laboratory conditions, as described in a new study by Georgia State University researchers.

16 Apr 2020

Mental health may be significantly impacted by COVID-19-related social distancing and isolation

A study conducted by a team of psychologists and social scientists has revealed that the social distancing and isolation measures introduced in the UK as a result of COVID-19 may already be having significant negative impacts on people's mental health and well-being.

16 Apr 2020