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Tag: SARS-CoV-2

Nova Scotia surpasses 1,000 COVID-19 deathsPhoto of a sign over a highway with capitalized red text on a charcoal grey background that reads: "COVID-19 is deadly stop the spread stay home".
Topic: Nova ScotiaView all posts for the topic: Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia surpasses 1,000 COVID-19 deaths

Published December 22, 2023

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Published by: CBC News
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By Richard Woodbury

Nova Scotia has reached a solemn milestone, surpassing 1,000 COVID-19 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.

“A thousand people in a province of a million people is a lot of humans and families that are missing people,” said Dr. Lisa Barrett, an infectious diseases doctor and researcher at Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Data released in the latest weekly respiratory watch report shows an additional nine deaths for the week of Dec. 10-16, bringing the total to 1,004 in the province.

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Topic: MassachusettsView all posts for the topic: Massachusetts

Some hospitals resume mask requirements as respiratory infections rise

Published December 22, 2023

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Published by: The Boston Globe
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By Adam Piore

With COVID-19 cases and other respiratory illnesses rising across the region, some area hospitals have begun to bring back face mask requirements to halt the spread of infections.

Boston Medical Center said Thursday it would resume masking requirements in all patient-care areas beginning Friday. On Monday, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute reinstated its mask requirements in all clinical and public spaces, and the Beth Israel Lahey Health system (BILH) updated its policies to require masking for all health care personnel upon entry to a patient room or bed space.

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Topic: Hamilton RegionView all posts for the topic: Hamilton Region

HHS closes urgent care for two days amid staff shortages, congestion at hospitals

Published December 21, 2023

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Published by: The Hamilton Spectator
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By Joanna Frketich

Staffing shortages will close a Hamilton urgent care centre for two days at the same time city emergency departments are becoming increasingly congested with flu, COVID-19 and RSV patients.

With just 13 per cent of Hamiltonians getting a COVID shot in the past six months, local hospitals are bracing for the viral surge to continue climbing over the holidays.

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Topic: United KingdomView all posts for the topic: United Kingdom

Covid rising in England and Scotland as new variant spreads around world

Published December 21, 2023

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Published by: The Guardian
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By Nicola Davis

Snow might not be swirling in the UK but Covid is in the air this Christmas, data has revealed, with experts warning a new variant is on the rise around the world.

According to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), an estimated 4.2%, or one in 24 people, in England and Scotland had Covid on 13 December compared with 1.8% – or one in 55 – on 29 November.

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COVID test supplier received billions in pandemic contracts after submitting edited resultsPhoto of two white COVID-19 rapid tests, and a green box with the text Rapid Response COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test Device
Topic: rapid testsView all posts for the topic: rapid tests

COVID test supplier received billions in pandemic contracts after submitting edited results

Published December 21, 2023

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Published by: Global News
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By Patti Sonntag

A rapid test importer landed an estimated $2 billion in federal contracts in 2021 and 2022, despite giving regulators incomplete data about its product’s accuracy, Global News has found.

A year-long investigation into federal procurement revealed that BTNX, a small rapid test supplier based outside Toronto, deleted dozens of specimens, or samples, from a study it submitted to Health Canada. That evaluation showed how well the company’s test detected COVID-19.

The deletions made BTNX’s test appear more reliable and sensitive than it really was, according to researchers Global News consulted.

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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

RVH implements universal masking amid rising respiratory illness rates

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: CTV News
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By Kim Phillips

Simcoe County’s largest health centre is taking action to protect patients, visitors and its staff from the increasing rates of respiratory illnesses in the region by returning to universal masking.

On Wednesday, officials with Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) in Barrie announced that visitors would be required to wear a hospital-issued mask upon entry, effective immediately.

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Ottawa-Gatineau community update | 2023‑12‑20Photo of Parliament Hill, the Supreme Court, and the Ottawa River in Ottawa. There is snow on the ground and part of the river is covered with snow and ice. It’s a sunny day, with a blue sky.
Topic: Ottawa-GatineauView all posts for the topic: Ottawa-Gatineau

Ottawa-Gatineau community update | 2023‑12‑20

Published December 20, 2023

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📈 The COVID-19 wastewater viral signal for Ottawa has increased substantially (+1,735%) since a low on July 12, 2023. It is extremely high.

⚠️ The percent positivity is extremely high (16.27% in Ottawa; 27.2% in the Outaouais).

🏥 Confirmed COVID-19 patients in Ottawa hospitals: 158 ( decrease of 6).

In 2023, there have been 131 COVID-19 outbreaks at Ottawa’s hospitals so far, leading to 21 deaths and 1,061 known cases of COVID-19.

Continue readingOttawa-Gatineau community update | 2023‑12‑20
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Topic: NunavutView all posts for the topic: Nunavut

Be cautious as trio of illnesses circulate in communities, Nunavummiut warned

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: Nunatsiaq News
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By Kierstin Williams

With winter increasing the spread of three illnesses across the territory, Nunavut’s chief public health officer is urging people to take steps to protect themselves.

There are 75 confirmed cases of flu; 16 cases of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus; and 12 cases of COVID-19 in Nunavut, Dr. Sean Wachtel said Tuesday.

But the actual number of people sickened is probably higher than that, he said.

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Topic: long COVIDView all posts for the topic: long COVID

Long COVID changes heart rate variability, study suggests

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: CIDRAP
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By Stephanie Soucheray

According to a small case-control study today in Scientific Reports, long COVID can affect heart rate variability (HRV) at rest and during deep breathing, adding to the evidence that persistent symptoms of the virus can be associated with cardiac and dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system (dysautonomia). This system regulates involuntary functions like heartbeat, blood pressure, and sweating.

The study, conducted by Brazilian researchers, included 21 patients with long COVID and 20 controls. Long COVID—defined by the authors as new or persistent symptoms experienced 12 or more weeks after infection—has been associated with heart palpitations, orthostatic intolerance (difficulty staying upright), dizziness, and syncope.

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Topic: United StatesView all posts for the topic: United States

States are trashing troves of masks and pandemic gear as huge, costly stockpiles linger and expire

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: The Associated Press
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By Jennifer Peltz, David A. Lieb

When the coronavirus pandemic took hold in an unprepared U.S., many states like Ohio scrambled for masks and other protective gear. Supplies were so limited in 2020 that the state bought millions of medical gowns from a marketing and printing company and spent about $20 million to try to get personal protective equipment made in-state.

Three years later, as the grips of the pandemic have loosened, Ohio and other states are now trying to deal with an excess of protective gear, ditching their supplies in droves.

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Topic: researchView all posts for the topic: research

COVID contact-tracing study suggests length of exposure biggest factor in disease spread

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: CIDRAP
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By Mary Van Beusekom

An analysis of 7 million contacts of COVID-19 patients in the United Kingdom estimates that most transmissions resulted from exposures lasting 1 hour to several days and that households accounted for 40% of spread from spring 2021 to early 2022.

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Topic: long COVIDView all posts for the topic: long COVID

Vaccines reduce the risk of long COVID in children

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: Nature
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By Shannon Hall

Vaccinated children are less likely than unvaccinated children to develop long COVID, the myriad of symptoms that can last for months to years following a SARS-CoV-2 infection, according to a forthcoming US study1.

“This is really important data,” says Jessica Snowden, a paediatric infectious-disease specialist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. She says that in the United States, COVID-19 vaccines are recommended for children as young as 6 months old. But uptake has been low. “This will demonstrate to families how important it is that we protect our kids, not just from acute COVID, but from the longer-term impacts of COVID as well.”

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Topic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines

Just 15% of Canadians got updated COVID vaccines this fall, new figures show

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: CBC News
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By Lauren Pelley

Canadians raced to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in the first years of the pandemic, but data suggests there’s far less of a rush to get the latest shots available this fall.

Federal figures show only 15 per cent of the population aged five and up had received an updated vaccine by Dec. 3. And while older age groups had higher uptake rates, more than half of higher-risk older adults still hadn’t gotten a dose by early December, either.

Continue readingJust 15% of Canadians got updated COVID vaccines this fall, new figures show
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Topic: AustraliaView all posts for the topic: Australia

Australia’s mortality rate is more than 6pc higher than expected, new Australian Bureau of Statistics report reveals

Published December 20, 2023

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Published by: ABC News
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By Brianna Morris-Grant

COVID-19 is still a “key contributor” to higher death rates as new data reveals Australia’s nationwide mortality rate is sitting at more than six per cent higher than expected.

The national excess mortality rate for the first eight months of 2023 shows deaths are estimated at 6.1 per cent above expected levels.

It marks a drop from 14.1 per cent higher than expected mortality rates during the same period in 2022, according to data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Continue readingAustralia’s mortality rate is more than 6pc higher than expected, new Australian Bureau of Statistics report reveals
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Topic: antiviral drugsView all posts for the topic: antiviral drugs

Early Paxlovid for COVID-19 halved death, hospitalization in new study

Published December 19, 2023

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Published by: CIDRAP
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By Mary Van Beusekom

Starting the antiviral drug nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (Paxlovid) 0 or 1 day after COVID-19 symptom onset halved 28-day all-cause death and hospitalization rates compared with waiting 2 or more days, University of Hong Kong researchers report in Nature Communications.

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