Masks work. Especially respirator-style N95 masks.
Amid an ongoing pandemic and outbreaks of influenza and RSV caused by airborne viruses, arguing over the virus-blocking power of masks remains one of the COVID era’s signature follies. Disconcertingly, despite decades of evidence of their efficacy, some of the disagreement comes from a few in the medical field itself, misusing science and endangering lives.
Comments closedIn a new study, researchers examined the cognitive impacts of COVID-19 on people with dementia. They found that having COVID-19 rapidly accelerated the structural and functional brain deterioration of patients with dementia, regardless of the type of dementia being experienced.
Comments closedComments closedGetting rid of masking means I can’t safely get the care I need. I need regular follow-up care, and because I’m immunocompromised, getting Covid in hospital is a massive risk… Right now, one of my greatest health risks is accessing medical care.
“People with repeat infections were twice as likely to die and three times as likely to be hospitalized, have heart problems or experience blood clots than were people who were infected only once. In a surprising twist, vaccination status didn’t seem to have an impact — although other studies show vaccines to be protective. Whether these results hold true for the general population is up for debate. The Veterans Affairs cohort was made up mostly of older white men, which is not representative of the wider population.”
Comments closedThe COVID-19 XBB.1.5 variant — described as highly transmissible and likely to overtake previous strains of the virus — has been detected in Nunavut.
Comments closedMasks unequivocally mitigate the spread of airborne pathogens. When the havoc being wreaked by COVID is still rampant, it is dumbfounding why universal mandatory masking would be removed in health-care settings — especially acute-care hospitals filled with the vulnerable sick, the immunocompromised, and those with significant pre-existing illness.
Comments closedNewfoundland and Labrador’s online COVID-19 data hub doesn’t always accurately reflect how many people have died of the virus, according to data collected by CBC News.
Comments closedB.C.’s human rights commissioner is criticizing provincial health officials for ending mask mandates in health-care settings, saying it puts the most vulnerable and marginalized people at risk.
Comments closedAbout 86% of people are still wearing masks in public a month after Japan’s guidelines were eased, according to an artificial intelligence system developed by broadcaster NTV surveying people at Tokyo Station.
Comments closedA new study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports, has discovered that infection with SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid) has a significant impact on cognitive function in patients with pre-existing dementia.
Comments closedIt is the turn of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean to be entitled to its clinic to treat people with long COVID. The disease is still poorly understood, but…
Comments closedComments closedWhy can’t I get that help? Why can’t you just give me a little breathing room? I have to fight so many battles already. My daily life is full of fights.
More than 10% of children in Japan who developed acute brain syndrome after infection with COVID-19 have died, results of a nationwide survey recently announced by a health ministry research team has shown.
The survey identified 34 cases of acute encephalopathy associated with COVID-19 infection among those under 18 between January 2020 and May 2022. The team analyzed 31 patients who did not have any underlying illnesses that could be responsible for causing the brain disease.
Comments closedThe NWT government has ended a rule limiting employees to five days of Covid-19 leave per year, effectively completing a climbdown in a dispute over the measure.
Comments closedAn Ontario board of health is asking the province to amend the building code to mandate higher standards for ventilation, in light of the spread of COVID-19.
Comments closedComments closed[I]t appears that, regardless of gender and other demographic factors, COVID-19 infection at baseline is correlated with increased problems with emotion regulation six months later: depression, anxiety and agitation.
Comments closedWe now know that an infection can trigger several heart diseases. There is a clear expectation in the coming years that consultations for various cardiovascular conditions will increase
