Latest healthcare news
COVID-19 and the Effect on Young People
This editorial in The Lancet published November 5 looks at this vexing issue. The editorial suggests that the UK Government's consideration of young people in its COVID-19 response has been inadequate and some eight months into the pandemic it argues that it is...
Facemasks: Myths and Facts
Does wearing a facemask cause a decline in oxygen saturation in adults over 65? An article published by Chan, Lee and Hirsch in the Journal of the American Medical Association, October 30, 2020 looked at this vaccine question. Participants self-measured peripheral...
Can you Catch COVID-19 from Touching Surfaces?
An interesting preprint on Medrxiv looked at this vexing question. Harvey and others look at the longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 RNA on high touch surfaces in a community setting. They conducted longitudinal swab sampling of high touch non-porous...
COVID-19 and the American Presidential Campaign
An interesting preprint published by Miron and others in Medrxiv retrospectively examined COVID-19 incidence in 20 countries that held mass gathering rallies in the USA in August to September 2020. They were compared to the rest of the United States’ counties. ...
Rapid Testing for SARS-CoV-2 – Is this the Way to Reduce the R Number and Infection?
A preprint in Medrxiv by a Dutch group looked at five commercially available rapid antigen essays on samples from 1754 people who had already tested positive for the coronavirus with a standard PCR test, which is sensitive, but slow. The two most sensitive...
SARS-CoV-2 and the COVID-19 Pandemic. Why is there a Notable Difference in Mortality Rates Between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres?
An interesting correspondence by Hernandez published October 22, 2020 in The Lancet looks at the answers to this perplexing question. One of the most striking facts about the COVID-19 pandemic is the notable difference in approach, attitude, control measures,...
The R Number, What does it Mean for COVID-19 Pandemic Control?
An interesting comment by Chris T Bauch in The Lancet Infectious Diseases published October 22, 2020 looked at this point. The basic reproduction number (R0) is the average number of infections produced by a single infectious person in a population with no...
COVID-19 and Suicide
An interesting article by Moutier in the Journal of the American Medical Association Psychiatry October 16, 2020 discusses this topic. Moutier suggests that suicide was a leading cause of death with devastating emotional and societal costs prior to the COVID-19...
COVID-19 Outbreaks and Environmental Factors in the Transmission Rate
An interesting abstract by Poirer in Nature looks at this in detail. Influenza studies have shown that influenza viruses survive longer on surfaces or in droplets in cold and dry air, thus increasing the likelihood of subsequent transmission. A...
Herd Immunity Related to COVID-19
A letter published in The Lancet October 22 by Graham Medley looks at the term which he feels has become layered with political interpretations, label strategies, and feels that they are not clearly defined. It is hoped that at some time shortly there will be a...
