Respiratory News and Research

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Will 'old faithful' tuberculosis BCG vaccine work against COVID?

All over the world, except in China, the place where it all began, the COVID-19 pandemic is making its relentless way through the population. So far, it has caused nearly 34,000 deaths – and the situation in the US is still worsening with over 142,000 cases and 2,489 deaths. In Australia, the number of cases has climbed to 4,093, with 16 fatalities.

29 Mar 2020

Gene that could affect the progress of ALS discovered

Researchers from the Zuckerman Institute at Columbia University have successfully found a gene that could work towards accelerating the progression of ALS or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The study titled, "The loss of TBK1 kinase activity in motor neurons or in all cell types differentially impacts ALS disease progression in SOD1 mice," was published in the latest issue of the journal Neuron.

29 Mar 2020

COVID-19 and its effects on the cardiovascular system

Researcher have reviewed the evidence showing the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 or novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) on the cardiovascular system. Their study titled, “Potential Effects of Coronaviruses on the Cardiovascular System: A Review,” was published in the latest issue of JAMA Cardiology.

29 Mar 2020

Tackling unhealthy lifestyle factors could increase life expectancy of people with severe mental illness

Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study showed that tackling unhealthy lifestyle factors would provide the greatest benefit in increasing life expectancy among those with SMI.

27 Mar 2020

Researchers enlist the help of citizen scientists to design new drugs against coronavirus

The best thing most of us can do to fight COVID-19 is stay home, to curb the respiratory disease's spread. But anyone with a computer can pitch in more actively too: by helping scientists design drugs to combat the virus now responsible for hundreds of thousands of infections worldwide.

27 Mar 2020

Protect the lives of healthcare workers fighting against disease outbreaks

Protect healthcare workers from dying from disease outbreaks while in the line of duty, urges Ifeanyi M. Nsofor. The continuing Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is a reminder that healthcare workers are in the line of fire when responding to infectious disease outbreaks and we must ensure that they are protected.

27 Mar 2020

UC Davis launches two clinical trials to evaluate treatments for COVID-19

UC Davis Health has two clinical trials underway for hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.

27 Mar 2020

COVID-19 patients can be infectious even after their symptomatic recovery, study shows

In a new study, researchers found that half of the patients they treated for mild COVID-19 infection still had coronavirus for up to eight days after symptoms disappeared.

27 Mar 2020

Not so fast using CPAPs in place of ventilators. They could spread the coronavirus.

The limited supply of ventilators is one of the chief concerns facing hospitals as they prepare for more COVID-19 cases. In Italy, where hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients in respiratory failure, doctors have had to make difficult life-or-death decisions about who gets a ventilator and who does not.

27 Mar 2020

Help wanted: Retired doctors and nurses don scrubs again in coronavirus fight

Laura Benson retired from nursing in 2018, but this week she reported for work again in New Rochelle, New York, where the first cluster of COVID-19 cases occurred a few short weeks ago.

27 Mar 2020

Outcomes of mothers giving birth during COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers from Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China have looked at the outcomes of pregnant mothers with COVID-19 and their newborns. Their study titled, “Clinical features and obstetric and neonatal outcomes of pregnant patients with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: a retrospective, single-center, descriptive study” was published in the latest issue of the journal The Lancet, Infectious Diseases.

26 Mar 2020

Is sex safe during COVID-19 pandemic?

It is not unimaginable that with so many couples locked down within the confines of their homes 24/7, that close physical proximity could result in increased sexual activity, giving rise to questions regarding how safe sex is during these troubled times. COVID-19 disease or infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus has gripped the world and has taken the form of a pandemic affecting 175 nations and territories across the globe.

26 Mar 2020

Robots and drones can help curb the coronavirus pandemic

Can robots provide an effective method to combat the COVID-19 pandemic? A team of robotic leaders, including Henrik Christensen, the director of UC San Diego’s Contextual Robotics Institute, believes that healthcare systems can use robots for a variety of purposes.

26 Mar 2020

Reusable respirators may be a viable alternative to disposable N95 respirators

Shortages of respiratory protective devices for healthcare personnel are major concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic.

26 Mar 2020

New studies investigate role of COVID-19 in breast milk and pregnancy

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine are launching a pair of studies to answer critical questions regarding the roles COVID-19 may play in breast milk and pregnancy.

26 Mar 2020

FDA approves immune-modulating therapy for treatment of multiple sclerosis

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved ozanimod, an immune-modulating therapy invented at Scripps Research, for the treatment of adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis.

26 Mar 2020

Model that sheds light on severe Duchenne muscular dystrophy could pave the way for new therapies

Researchers have developed an experimental model of severe Duchenne muscular dystrophy that offers insight into the disease.

26 Mar 2020

Could FeNO breath testing provide an early indicator of Covid-19?

As of Tuesday 24th March, the number of global Coronavirus cases rose to 398,834 with 6,650 confirmed cases in the UK alone.

From Bedfont® Scientific Ltd 26 Mar 2020

What happens when COVID-19 and cardiovascular diseases mix?

The world has been brought to a stand-still by the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected 197 countries, areas and territories, infected 467,594, and killed 21,181 individuals as of today. COVID-19 disease is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a single-stranded RNA virus, contagious in humans.

25 Mar 2020

Transmission of COVID-19 among cancer patients in China

Researchers from Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University in China in collaboration with those from the National Cancer Centre Singapore, have come up with a study that reveals the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 or novel coronavirus among patients with cancer in China.

25 Mar 2020