Disease/Infection News

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Is it safe for SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers to breastfeed?

Even as the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus continues to cause thousands of cases every day, with many deaths, life continues to move on regardless. Births occur as usual, and in many countries, mothers prefer to breastfeed their babies, at least for the first few months of life.

2 Jun 2020

Study looks at delirium in critically ill COVID-19 patients

A new study published on the online preprint server medRxiv in May 2020 reports on the high incidence of delirium in COVID-19 patients in intensive care. This highlights the urgent need to predict, prevent, and manage delirium and to cut it short in patients with COVID-19.

2 Jun 2020

A vectored vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2

The current pandemic of COVID-19 is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a betacoronavirus similar to that which caused the SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV earlier. Scientists are pursuing therapeutic drugs and vaccines to counter the relentless spread of the virus, but so far, none has been established to be effective. However, several are in clinical trials in various parts of the world.

2 Jun 2020

Early diagnosis of pulmonary embolism could enhance treatment in COVID-19 patients

Researchers at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit say early diagnosis of a life-threatening blood clot in the lungs led to swifter treatment intervention in COVID-19 patients.

2 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 can adversely affect cardiac cells and heart function

A research group from Germany demonstrated a direct toxic effect of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on cardiac cells in their paper published on the bioRxiv* preprint server. The finding warrants an in-depth analysis of cardiac tissue in certain coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients, as well as close monitoring for any direct cardiomyocyte injury.

2 Jun 2020

Cats resistant to SARS-CoV-2 reinfection

Researchers at Colorado State University have made important discoveries about domestic cats infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that could address concerns about human-to-animal transmission and the role domestic pets might play in spreading the virus.

2 Jun 2020

Ozone disinfection of respirator masks for front-line workers coping with COVID-19

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine and collaborators have successfully used ozone to disinfect the respirator masks used by healthcare workers to protect against respiratory diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

2 Jun 2020

Scientists to develop device to identify neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 infection

A Texas A&M University team of scientists and engineers is leading the development of a device that can be used to rapidly identify antibodies produced by human B cells that can neutralize infection by SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19.

2 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 infected patients who undergo surgery experience worse postoperative outcomes

Patients undergoing surgery after contracting coronavirus are at greatly increased risk of postoperative death, a new global study published in The Lancet reveals.

2 Jun 2020

Study investigates outcome of COVID-19 infection in blood cancer patients

One of the first studies to investigate the outcome of COVID-19 infection in patients with blood cancer has been conducted by clinical researchers from Queen Mary University of London and Barts Health NHS Trust.

2 Jun 2020

SFU and Providence Health Care collaborate on AI tool to aid quicker COVID-19 diagnosis

Simon Fraser University researchers and Providence Health Care are collaborating on a new artificial intelligence tool that will help diagnose COVID-19 quicker.

2 Jun 2020

George Mason University researcher wins NSF RAPID grant to model virus spread

How a computer virus spreads gave George Mason University researcher Cameron Nowzari insight into how human viruses, like the coronavirus, spread.

2 Jun 2020

Approach used against influenza epidemics could benefit COVID-19 drug development

A new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Austin has found that some antivirals are useful for more than helping sick people get better -- they also can prevent thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of virus cases if used in the early stages of infection.

2 Jun 2020

Rapid patient identification could help combat COVID-19

In a peer-reviewed commentary published in npj Digital Medicine, experts from Regenstrief Institute, Mayo Clinic and The Pew Charitable Trusts write that matching patient records from disparate sources is not only achievable, but fundamental to stem the tide of the current pandemic and allow for fast action for future highly contagious viruses.

2 Jun 2020

A new tool to help biomedical scientists better understand COVID-19 virus

Biomedical scientists working with COVID-19 have a new tool to help them better understand the virus and feel confident about the structural models they are using in their research.

2 Jun 2020

Preliminary report of Favipiravir Observational Study in Japan released

Favipiravir Observational Study Group (principal investigator: Dr. Yohei Doi, Fujita Health University) released a preliminary report of the Favipiravir Observational Study in Japan on the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases website.

2 Jun 2020

Could the next pandemic be 100 times worse than COVID-19?

As the world tries to cope with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Dr. Michael Herschel Greger has claimed that worse could be yet to come. The American nutrition expert has claimed in his latest book that the next pandemic could be due to virus emanating from poultry farms.

2 Jun 2020

Data provides a baseline understanding of the eating habits of older adults before COVID-19

Most people in their 50s and older were capable home cooks just before COVID-19 struck America, but only 5% had ordered groceries online, according to a new national poll.

2 Jun 2020

Spleen plays a dual role in malaria vivax

Plasmodium vivax is the most widely distributed human malaria parasite, mostly outside sub-Saharan Africa, and responsible for millions of clinical cases yearly, including severe disease and death. The mechanisms by which P. vivax causes disease are not well understood.

2 Jun 2020

Hiring a diverse army to track COVID-19 amid reopening

As a contact tracer, Teresa Ayala-Castillo is sometimes asked whether herbal teas and Vicks VapoRub can treat COVID-19. These therapies aren't exactly official health guidance, but Ayala-Castillo isn't fazed. She listens and then suggests other ideas — like getting rest and drinking plenty of fluids.

2 Jun 2020