PM2.5 particles are tiny enough to enter the bloodstream and lodge in the lungs, where they contribute to respiratory problems such as asthma. They also can prompt heart attacks and strokes. And they have been linked to diabetes, obesity and dementia and may exacerbate COVID.
Comments closedTag: research
Inside long COVID’s war on the body: Researchers are trying to find out whether the virus has the potential to cause cancer
Long COVID is no stranger to either patients or those immersed in studies of its effects. In the U.S., one in 7 adults–about 14% of the adult population–has experienced symptoms that lasted three months or longer after first contracting the virus. The worldwide estimate for long COVID is 65 million people.
What is less clear–because it’s still so early in the process–is the impact of some of SARS-CoV-2’s most dangerous characteristics on those hit by long COVID. But some researchers are warily watching for the worst: a potential connection to cancer.
Comments closedMRI study spotlights impact of long COVID on the brain
A new study comparing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images of patients with long COVID, fully recovered COVID-19 survivors, and healthy controls shows microstructural changes in different brain regions in the long-COVID patients. The findings will be presented next week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.
Comments closedUK primary care costs nearly 45% higher among long-COVID patients, analysis finds
Long-COVID diagnoses and long-term symptoms among nonhospitalized adults were tied to 43% and 44% increases in the costs of primary care, respectively, in the United Kingdom, according to a study published yesterday in BMC Primary Care.
Comments closedA Lot of Deer Carry COVID. Should That Worry People?
COVID hasn’t just colonized billions of humans. The virus has entered North America’s white-tailed deer populations, transforming one of the largest remaining wild mammal populations on Earth into another rapidly evolving reservoir for COVID.
Comments closedSubstantial decrease noted in severe respiratory illness during first 2 years of pandemic
Compared to the 3 years prior to the pandemic, children with medically complex conditions and otherwise healthy children saw decreases in severe non-COVID respiratory illnesses in 2020 and 2021, the authors of a study yesterday note in JAMA Network Open.
The cross-sectional study, based on 139,078 respiratory hospitalizations in Canada, shows that the mitigation efforts used during the first several months of COVID-19 likely prevented serious outcomes from respiratory illness complications, including hospitalizations, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and death.
Comments closedCOVID increased gender life expectancy gap in US
For more than 100 years, American women have outlived American men, largely due to differences in rates of cardiovascular disease and lung cancer. Now COVID-19 has widened the gendered life expectancy gap, according to a research letter published yesterday in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Comments closedHow our memories of COVID-19 are biased — and why it matters
Our view of the effectiveness of past pandemic responses is influenced by our present vaccination status. Public inquiries and future research must take this factor into account.
Comments closedCan’t Think, Can’t Remember: More Americans Say They’re in a Cognitive Fog
There are more Americans who say they have serious cognitive problems — with remembering, concentrating or making decisions — than at any time in the last 15 years, data from the Census Bureau shows.
The increase started with the pandemic: The number of working-age adults reporting “serious difficulty” thinking has climbed by an estimated one million people.
Comments closedWhat Tony Fauci Told Me About Long COVID and Other Postviral Illnesses
Too many people are suffering from long COVID and other postviral syndromes. Anthony Fauci says we need to step up funding and research now.
Comments closedStudy finds prenatal vaccination protects infants from COVID
Infants as old as 6 months were protected from COVID‑19 infections only when mothers were vaccinated prenatally, and not before pregnancy, according to a new study in JAMA Network Open.
Comments closedWe Interrupt This Mood of Denial to Update COVID’s Threat
Although many Canadians act as though the pandemic has ended, the airborne virus that causes COVID-19 continues to evolve at an amazing pace with devastating consequences for both individuals and the public at large.
Comments closedLoss of smell, taste after mild COVID improves within 3 years, study shows
Mild COVID-19 infections can cause a loss of taste and smell, but a study today in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery suggests that almost all cases resolve within 3 years of initial infection.
Comments closedNew study suggests gargling with salt water may be associated with lower COVID hospitalization
A new study being presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting in Anaheim, California determined that both a low- and high-dose saline regimen appeared to be associated with lower hospitalization rates compared to controls in SARS-CoV-2 infections.
Comments closedLong COVID linked to allergies in new study
In an analysis of 13 published prospective studies of people of all ages with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection who were followed up for at least 12 months, pre-existing allergic conditions were linked to higher risks of experiencing long COVID, according to a study today in Clinical & Experimental Allergy.
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