Never before have so many coronavirus particles been found in the wastewater as now. Coronavirus variant watcher Josette Schoenmakers reports this on X. At the time of writing, the national government’s coronavirus dashboard has not yet been updated with the most recent data.
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Topic: cognitive issuesView all posts for the topic: cognitive issues
Small study finds brain alterations after COVID Omicron infection
Researchers in China report thinning of the gray matter and other changes in certain parts of the brain in 61 men after COVID-19 Omicron infection.
For the study, published late last week in JAMA Network Open, the researchers evaluated 61 men before and after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in January 2023. The men had been part of a larger cohort who had undergone magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychiatric screenings before infection in August and September 2022. Average age was 43 years.
Comments closedTopic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines
Study estimates 2 COVID vaccine doses 40% effective against emergency, hospital care in young kids
Two doses of a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine were 40% effective against emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalization in preschool-aged children during a period of Omicron variant predominance, estimates a test-negative, case-control study using data from the New Vaccine Surveillance Network (NVSN).
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Cancer patients with COVID at higher risk of death, hospitalization amid Omicron
A study from Israel finds that adult solid-cancer patients had a higher risk of death and hospitalization after COVID-19 infection than infected patients without cancer during a period of Omicron variant predominance and that vaccination lowered that risk.
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Two new COVID-19 variants quickly gaining traction across Canada are already dominant in New Brunswick.
So far, HV.1 and HK.3, related to Omicron EG.5, do not appear to cause more severe disease than other recent variants, said Colin Furness, an infection control epidemiologist and assistant professor at the University of Toronto.
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Topic: variantsView all posts for the topic: variants
WHO upgrades BA.2.86 to COVID-19 variant of interest as US proportions grow
The World Health Organization (WHO) last week reclassified the Omicron BA.2.86 variant—and its offshoots, including JN.1—as a variant of interest as global proportions grow, including in the United States, where it now makes up about 9% of circulating viruses, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today.
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‘It’s here’: COVID subvariant HV.1 growing in Canada. What to know so far
A new COVID-19 subvariant called HV.1 is gaining traction across Canada, but whether or not it is more contagious than past variants remains to be seen, according to health experts.
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Canada has ‘sufficient supply’ of new COVID-19 vaccines amid ‘pandemic amnesia,’ experts say
As doctors recommend new COVID-19 vaccine doses to combat the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant, a mutation of COVID-19 that has continued to spread despite misconceptions that the virus is in the past, officials say Canada has sufficient supply.
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Study suggests mass vaccination programs cut COVID cases in Japan 65%
The population benefit of COVID-19 vaccination via direct and indirect effects was substantial in Tokyo in early 2022 during Omicron, with an estimated 65% reduction in the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections, according to a new model that compared risks between unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals.
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Study: Regardless of variant, half of long-COVID patients fail to improve after 18 months
More than 50% of long-COVID patients failed to improve 1.5 years after their initial diagnosis, according to a new study based on cases seen at a Danish post-COVID clinic, both before and after the Omicron variant period.
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Is the Novavax COVID Vaccine Better than mRNA Vaccines? What We Know So Far
As the updated COVID vaccines roll out around the country, one more competitor has joined the mix. In early October the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized a new booster shot made by the company Novavax. Like the mRNA-based Pfizer and Moderna shots, it targets a SARS-CoV-2 variant, XBB.1.5, which is a descendant of Omicron.
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Appointments for new Moderna COVID-19 vaccine now available in N.S.
Appointments are now available in Nova Scotia for a new monovalent Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, which the provincial government says provides the best protection against the latest strain of the virus.
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Health Canada authorizes updated Pfizer-BioNTech COVID vaccine
Health Canada has authorized Pfizer-BioNTech’s updated COVID-19 vaccine for people six months and older.
The mRNA vaccine targets the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant that is circulating in Canada.
Comments closedTopic: AustraliaView all posts for the topic: Australia
COVID-19 third leading cause of death in Australia in 2022
Last year, COVID-19 killed 9,859 Australians, behind only heart disease and dementia (including Alzheimer’s) as the leading causes of death in the country.
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With flu season on the horizon, we answer your COVID-19 questions
After 3½ years of COVID-19, many Canadians have learned how to make decisions around living with the virus. But as Canada heads into another cold…
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Health Canada approves Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine
Health Canada has approved Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine for all Canadians who are six months of age and older — while two other options for fall shots remain in the regulatory pipeline.
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Moderna’s updated COVID vaccine targeting XBB.1.5 approved in Canada
Health Canada has given the green light to an eagerly anticipated fall COVID-19 booster shot in hopes of bolstering the nation’s defence against the virus as the fall season approaches.
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