Mortality News and Research

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Widespread testing could help stop the spread of COVID-19

The world is now in the grips of a historic pandemic. The death toll from the novel coronavirus has climbed to more than 117,000 in the United States and 448,000 around the world.

18 Jun 2020

Study examines the impact of urban density on spread of COVID-19

A new study suggests that denser places, assumed by many to be more conducive to the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, are not linked to higher infection rates.

18 Jun 2020

Homelessness associated with hospital readmission rates

Patients who are homeless are far more likely than housed individuals to be readmitted to a hospital within 30 or 90 days of their discharge, according to a new multi-center analysis of inpatient data from Florida, Massachusetts and New York.

18 Jun 2020

Convalescent plasma found to be safe for diverse patients with COVID-19

Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators have found investigational convalescent plasma to be safe following transfusion in a diverse group of 20,000 patients. The findings -- from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Expanded Access Program for COVID-19 -- are reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

18 Jun 2020

Throat gargling may be beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers from Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Taiwan, have suggested that throat gargling may have beneficial effects during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

18 Jun 2020

COVID-19 collaborative program reduces mortality in long-term care facilities

A collaborative program developed at UVA Health to work with local long-term care facilities control COVID-19 is saving lives and offers a model for communities across the country, a new scientific paper reports.

18 Jun 2020

Sedentary behavior independently associated with higher risk of cancer mortality

In the first study to look at objective measures of sedentary behavior and cancer mortality, researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found that greater inactivity was independently associated with a higher risk of dying from cancer.

18 Jun 2020

Study finds no evidence of mortality cost for fast early-life growth

When some species are heavily hunted, animal mortality increases and they have fewer offspring in the course of their lives.

18 Jun 2020

Novel biomarkers required to triage and monitor severely ill COVID-19 patients

Diagnostics company SphingoTec GmbH ("sphingotec") announced today the results of a working group meeting of clinical experts that discussed the utility of sphingotec's diagnostic solutions for acute and critical care in supporting the triage, diagnosis, and management of severely ill COVID-19 patients.

18 Jun 2020

Repurposing immunosuppressants to manage COVID-19

It might seem paradoxical to suggest immunosuppression could play a role in managing COVID-19. The seemingly logical therapeutic option for this disease would be an antiviral.

18 Jun 2020

COVID-19 and blood group in aortic valve replacement

The COVID-19 pandemic has been found to cause disproportionate harm in patients with cardiovascular disease, especially among the elderly population, among other risk factors. However, a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 is the first to report its clinical features in patients with aortic stenosis who have had a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

18 Jun 2020

Researchers solve structure of key enzyme critical for biofilm formation in fungal pathogen

Aspergillus fumigatus is a species of fungus that can cause serious illnesses in immunocompromised individuals such as those who are undergoing transplantation or cancer chemotherapy.

17 Jun 2020

Living environment correlated with reaching centenarian status

When it comes to living to the ripe old age of 100, good genes help but don't tell the full story. Where you live has a significant impact on the likelihood that you will reach centenarian age, suggests a new study conducted by scientists at Washington State University's Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine.

17 Jun 2020

Iron fortification of bouillon or stock shows potential for tackling iron deficiency

Iron fortification of food is a cost-effective method of preventing iron deficiency. But finding iron compounds that are easily absorbed by the intestine without compromising food quality is a major challenge.

17 Jun 2020

Researchers take actions to reduce hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19

Infectious disease experts from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and UW Medicine are advocating for earlier actions to reduce hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19.

17 Jun 2020

Nano-bio hybrid systems could deliver tumor therapy

Announcing a new article publication for BIO Integration journal. In this mini-review article the authors Yuhao Chen, Meng Du, Jinsui Yu, Lang Rao, Xiaoyuan Chen, and Zhiyi Chen from The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, Bethesda, MD, USA consider nanobiohybrids in cancer therapy.

17 Jun 2020

Mapping RNA sequences of therapeutic value in the SARS-CoV-2 genome

Now, in new research published on the preprint server bioRxiv European scientists have performed RNA structure probing to obtain a single-base resolution secondary structure map of the full SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus genome.

17 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 mutated spike proteins show variations in cell entry

A new study by Japanese scientists published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in June 2020 shows that the D614g mutation in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein can enhance the infectivity of the virus while leaving it vulnerable to neutralization by antibodies.

17 Jun 2020

How antibodies neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in convalescent patients

A new study by researchers from the United Kingdom and Taiwan and published on the preprint server bioRxiv in June 2020 describes the structural basis for the neutralizing effect of the SARS-CoV-2 antibody on the virus. This also indicates a possible therapeutic molecule by identifying its binding epitope as possibly a major neutralizing site.

16 Jun 2020

TERAVOLT tracks outcomes of people with thoracic cancers affected by COVID-19

New data from TERAVOLT, a global consortium that tracks outcomes of people with thoracic cancers affected by COVID-19, offers clues as to why they experienced a high death rate of 33% when the coronavirus swept across Europe.

16 Jun 2020