Coughs or sneezes may not be the only way people transmit infectious pathogens like the novel coronavirus to one another. Talking can also launch thousands of droplets so small they can remain suspended in the air for eight to 14 minutes, according to a new study. The research, published Wednesday in The Proceedings of the…
A couple of years ago, long before the novel coronavirus was a threat, my son started calling out to us soon after we tucked him in at night. Sometimes he would ask for an extra kiss, back rub or drink of water. All normal for a 5-year-old. But occasionally, he would report that his room…
Wuhan, the Chinese city where the coronavirus pandemic began, has announced an ambitious plan to test all of its 11 million residents for the virus in the coming days, a campaign that will be closely watched by governments elsewhere. The testing drive, which is likely to require the mobilization of thousands of medical and other…
Closed offices and restaurants. Shuttered stores and museums. Darkened schools and theaters. The current pandemic means that millions of Americans have lost their jobs or are working fewer hours. Those who are fortunate can work from home, or are slowly returning to work. Vocational psychologists, who study the links between jobs and mental health, say…
I need a floor lift for my son. Well, I actually need a floor lift for me because, at 11 years old and over 100 pounds, my son has outgrown my strength and ability to safely help him from the floor mat where we do his physical therapy to his wheelchair. As New York is…
A clinical trial has begun to evaluate whether the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, given together with the antibiotic azithromycin, can prevent hospitalization and death from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, is sponsoring the trial, which is being conducted by the NIAID-funded…
It has been nearly two decades since the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), together with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, made the landmark recommendation that cystic fibrosis (CF) become the first target of pan-ethnic universal carrier screening, with ACMG identifying a core panel of 23 pathogenic variants to be tested.…
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Many heart diseases are linked to oxidative stress, an overabundance of reactive oxygen species. The body reacts to reduce oxidative stress — where the redox teeter-totter has gone too far up — through production of endogenous antioxidants that reduce the reactive oxygen species. This balancing act is called redox homeostasis. But what…
WASHINGTON – The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) today issued a position statement on the performance of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs). The document was published in SCAI’s official journal, Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions. Earlier this year, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) began reimbursement for PCI…
Scientists from the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research joined partners at Duke University, Florida Atlantic University and Montana State University to publish a study providing clear evidence that malaria’s characteristic cycle of fever and chills is a result of the parasite’s own influence–not factors from the host. What regulated that cycle, the result of…