Pandemic News and Research

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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.

Warm weather increases human mobility, and SARS-CoV-2 transmission

A recent study published in the preprint server medRxiv in September 2020 shows that the effect of climatic factors such as temperature and humidity is mediated mostly through human mobility. Thus, human behavioral changes are still the mainstay of containment rather than hoping for weather conditions to keep the virus at bay.

9 Sep 2020

COVID-19 in pregnancy doubles odds of preterm delivery

The COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to cause huge social, economic, and health-related costs throughout the world, especially in Spain. Clinicians are still coming to terms with the range of health conditions wrought by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in September 2020 shows that this infection results in fetal and maternal complications.

9 Sep 2020

Vitamin D deficiency can increase risk of COVID-19

Researchers from Israel have found that there could be a link between deficiency of vitamin D and infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Their study titled, “The link between vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19 in a large population,” has been released pre-publication at the medRxiv* server.

8 Sep 2020

AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine trial paused due to suspected adverse reaction

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is rippling across the globe, with over 27.47 million reported cases. With the vast spread of the virus, scientists are racing to gain the approval of candidate vaccines against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of COVID-19 disease and Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).

8 Sep 2020

Comparing COVID-19 spread between cities and the countryside

The new study, which was published in the open-source medRxiv and has not yet been peer-reviewed, shows that superspreaders and population heterogeneity are the core factors explaining the discrepancy of cases.

8 Sep 2020

BU study maps changes in homicide rates across Brazil

A new Boston University School of Public Health study maps changes in homicide rates across Brazil from 2000 through 2014.

8 Sep 2020

SARS-CoV-2 does not pose a food safety risk, health agency says

Now, a new report by the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods (ICMSF) highlights the link between SARS-CoV-2 infection and food safety. ICMSF is a global non-government organization that aims to provide information on food safety and human health.

8 Sep 2020

Memory B cells indicate durable immunity in COVID-19

Now a new study by researchers at SUNY Upstate Medical University and published recently on the preprint server medRxiv in September 2020 shows that memory B cells are upregulated in convalescent COVID-19 patients, correlating with a better immune response and shorter symptom duration.

8 Sep 2020

Scientists develop a rapid, reliable and low-cost COVID-19 antibody test

Robust and widespread antibody testing has emerged as a key strategy in the fight against SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

8 Sep 2020

Study reveals complex immunology behind MIS-C in children with COVID-19

In a recent paper published in the prestigious journal Cell, researchers from Sweden and Italy show that inflammatory response in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children associated with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) differs from the cytokine storm found in severe acute illness, involving autoantibodies at the same time and sharing several features with Kawasaki disease.

8 Sep 2020

Tel Aviv University receives philanthropic grant from 3M for COVID-19 vaccine research

Science-based technology company 3M has awarded a significant philanthropic research grant of $400,000 to the Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research at Tel Aviv University to advance scientific knowledge in the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

8 Sep 2020

Racial disparities could be the key reason for COVID-19 mortality among Black essential workers

Racial disparities among essential workers could be a key reason that Black Americans are more likely than whites to contract and die of COVID-19, according to researchers at the University of Utah.

8 Sep 2020

High levels of blood clotting factor V in severe COVID‐19 associated with worse outcomes

Patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19 infections who have high levels of the blood clotting protein factor V are at elevated risk for serious injury from blood clots such as deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism, investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have found.

8 Sep 2020

Behind the Byline: ‘At least I got the shot’

Although the coronavirus pandemic shut down many organizations and businesses across the nation, KHN has never been busier - and health coverage has never been more vital.

8 Sep 2020

Card-based system to track asymptomatic individuals helps reduce COVID-19 spread

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an adverse impact on the global economy. Researchers around the globe have been working hard to find ways to stop the spread of the disease either in the form of drugs or SOP changes that revolve around guidelines given by the WHO for maintaining hygiene and social distancing norms.

8 Sep 2020

Altered mindsets: Marijuana is making its mark on ballots in red states

When Tamarack Dispensary opened in the northwestern Montana city of Kalispell in 2009, medical marijuana was legal but still operating on the fringes of the conservative community.

8 Sep 2020

Research highlights the effects of confinement due to COVID-19 among pregnant women

Researchers of Medicine and Physical Therapy at the CEU Cardenal Herrera University of Valencia and of the Italian University of Catania, have published the results of the first study on the effects of confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic among pregnant Spanish women.

8 Sep 2020