Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Screening blood samples for COVID-19 using artificial intelligence

A promising new study published in the preprint online journal medRxiv in April 2020 shows the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) for developing a patient classifier that can separate patients likely to be negative for COVID-19 from among a pool of suspected patients visiting an emergency room (ER).

15 Apr 2020

Anosmia (loss of smell) confirmed as a clinical feature of COVID-19

Earlier last month, the association of ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists in the UK issued a public statement advising patients with a sudden loss of smell or taste to get tested for COVID-19. They cited not only their own observations but those from numerous other ENT consultants the world around. A review of multiple papers on the sinus and nasal symptoms and signs related to the diagnosis of COVID-19, published in April 2020, in the journal Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology, reiterates this finding.

15 Apr 2020

New coronavirus possibly circulated within humans before COVID-19 pandemic

Genetic variation analysis and the evidence of recombination events point towards the conclusion that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) might have circulated cryptically among humans for years, as reported by a recent paper on a preprint server bioRxiv.

15 Apr 2020

COVID-19 and type 2 diabetes have shared disease pathways, study finds

Individuals with diabetes are at increased risk for bacterial, parasitic and viral infections. New research published in Endocrine Reviews, a journal of the Endocrine Society, illuminates how intersections of the coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and type 2 diabetes may require new approaches in treatment for hospitalized patients.

15 Apr 2020

China with the world: COVID-19 experts dialogues - the 4th talk transcript

Q (Prof. Singer): What do you think about the comorbidities and the age of the patients in the treatment of COVID-19? Is the mortality higher in elderly patients as it is reported from recent papers?

From Mindray 15 Apr 2020

China with the world: COVID-19 experts dialogues - the 2nd talk transcript

Q: Starting from the patient admission to the hospital, what is your rule for ventilation? Do you start from HFNC, CPAP, NIV or go directly to intubation and invasive ventilation when the conventional oxygen therapy fails?

From Mindray 15 Apr 2020

A desperate scramble as COVID-19 families vie for access to plasma therapy

Stephen Garcia's family is frantic. The auto body worker, just 32 years old, has been on a ventilator in a Los Angeles-area hospital for nearly two weeks, gravely ill with COVID-19, unresponsive — and unaware of the battle they're waging on his behalf.

15 Apr 2020

COVID-19 brings overhaul of military health care to a halt

The agencies that oversee the health of U.S. military personnel and veterans were pushing ahead this spring with the biggest overhaul of their health systems in three decades.

15 Apr 2020

Health agencies urge continuation of life-saving measles vaccinations

The novel coronavirus disease, now officially called COVID-19, threatens the vaccination of millions of children across the globe. With most countries in lockdown and health care workers overwhelmed, many vaccination schedules have been delayed, threatening the welfare of infants and children.

15 Apr 2020

New blood test for antibodies in COVID-19 infected

The COVID-19 disease pandemic is raging across the world, costing tens of thousands of lives. Many countries have enforced widespread, if not universal lockdowns, to prevent the spread of the virus to new areas, carried by infected travelers.

14 Apr 2020

Temple researchers receive NIAID grant to study immunological synapse formation

Switching immune cells on is a critical step in combating infection. In the case of T cells, which are key players in immunity, this happens when dormant T cells circulating in the blood encounter a suspicious agent on the surface of specialized antigen-presenting cells.

14 Apr 2020

In shutting out threat, seniors in continuing care communities feel shut in

With tight restrictions in place at their continuing care retirement community, Tom and Janice Showler are getting on each other's nerves.

14 Apr 2020

Pediatric practices struggle to adapt and survive amid COVID-19

The silence was striking. On a normal day, the well-child waiting room at Berkeley Pediatrics bustles with children playing, infants crying and teenagers furiously tapping on their smartphones.

14 Apr 2020

Predicting the evolution of genetic mutations

Biologists have developed an algorithm able to predict how genetic mutations can make critical proteins change with evolution.

14 Apr 2020

California COVID-19 herd immunity theory debunked

A recent theory suggesting that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was doing the rounds in California as early as November 2019, infecting thousands undetected and leading to herd immunity, was debunked by experts from the scientific community. Antibody testing by a group of Stanford Medicine researchers was linked to the theory.

14 Apr 2020

Smart ring predicts onset of COVID-19 in healthcare workers

As entire countries remain in lockdown due to the sweep of the novel coronavirus across the globe, researchers have found a way to protect those who are perhaps most at risk: healthcare workers.

13 Apr 2020

Sensory loss strongly associated with COVID-19 infection

Loss of smell and taste has been anecdotally linked to COVID-19 infections. In a study published April 12, 2020 in the journal International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology, researchers at UC San Diego Health report the first empirical findings that strongly associate sensory loss with COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

13 Apr 2020

Should infants be separated from coronavirus infected mothers?

Since the novel coronavirus infection emerged a couple of months ago, guidelines about its treatment and precautionary measures are still evolving based on evidence and research. For mothers and infants, there is contradicting information on whether they should be kept together or separated for fear of transmission.

13 Apr 2020

Re-thinking the built environment to limit coronavirus transmission

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) global pandemic has taken a toll on many countries across the globe. The hardest-hit countries are now grappling to contain the spread of various through social distancing measures, while others are now in total lockdown.

13 Apr 2020

How does COVID-19 attack the body?

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) attacks the lungs, leading to pneumonia, and eventually, a cascade of serious complications. But how does COVID-19 kill? Is it the virus itself or the result of the person’s immune system response?

13 Apr 2020