Tag: PUBLIC HEALTH INFORMATION

3 Common Long COVID Symptoms, Low-Cost Remedies Recommended by Doctors

Nearly three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, experts are trying to understand the lingering symptoms of what is commonly called long COVID, who is most at risk, and how the symptoms can best be treated. A cross-sectional study of over 16, 000 individuals found 15 percent of U.S. adults with a prior positive COVID-19 infection reported…


Merck’s COVID-19 Antiviral Drug Doesn’t Reduce Hospitalization or Death in High-Risk Vaccinated People: Study

The COVID-19 antiviral drug Molnupiravir helps speed up recovery from the virus but does not reduce the hospitalization or death rate in higher-risk vaccinated adults, a new study has found. Molnupiravir, from Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and Merck & Co. is used to treat mild to moderate COVID-19 and can be taken at home, twice a day for five days, within…


Is the White House’s Push for Paxlovid Evidence-Based?

The Biden administration and government agencies continue to push Pfizer’s COVID-19 emergency use authorization product, Paxlovid, even with insufficient new trial data showing effectiveness in the current population. Pfizer’s initial clinical trial for Paxlovid in 2021, which earned it an emergency use authorization (EAU) by the FDA, seemed quite promising. Results showed a relative risk reduction of progression…


The More Physical Exercise One Gets, the Less Severe COVID-19 Is: Study

People who were more physically active before they became infected with COVID-19 had a lower risk of developing severe symptoms, a new study of more than 190,000 adults suggests. The study, published last week in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, sought to determine if there is an association between physical activity and less-severe COVID-19…


FDA Approves Monoclonal Antibody to Treat COVID-19 for First Time

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has, for the first time, approved a monoclonal antibody to treat COVID-19 in hospitalized patients. Healthcare company Roche’s Actemra (tocilizumab) intravenous (IV) was approved by the FDA to treat severe COVID-19 in adults, the company announced on Wednesday. Specifically, the drug is approved in cases where the patient is hospitalized and is receiving…


Vaccinated at Higher Risk of COVID-19 Infection: Studies

People who have received COVID-19 vaccines are more likely to get infected than the unvaccinated, according to two new studies. In one paper (pdf), from Cleveland Clinic researchers, each successive dose heightened the incidence of infection. The lowest incidence was among the unvaccinated. In the other study, researchers in Indiana found that vaccinated people had…


Vaccinated Seen at Higher Risk of COVID-19 Infection: Studies

People who have received COVID-19 vaccines are more likely to get infected than those who are unvaccinated, according to two new studies. In one paper (pdf), from Cleveland Clinic researchers, each successive dose heightened the incidence of infection. The lowest incidence was among the unvaccinated. In the other study, researchers in Indiana found that vaccinated…


What Is Long COVID Really Like?

Life has been on a steady downward slope for Hannah Camp Johnson, an intelligent, once-healthy 26-year-old woman from Alabama. In August 2020, she contracted COVID-19. She experienced severe symptoms, including coughing, fever, and crippling fatigue; her oxygen levels fell, and she needed to take breathing medicine. She lost her ability to walk due to muscle…


Both COVID-19 and Vaccines Can Lead to Higher Risk of Heart Condition, Study Says

A new study suggests that both COVID-19 infection and vaccination against the virus can increase the risk of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a condition that causes the heart to beat abnormally fast. In a healthy person, the nervous system automatically tightens blood vessels and causes a moderate increase in heart rate to make sure…


Paxlovid, Advertised for Mass Use, Has Contraindications With Hundreds of Drugs

One of the most robustly campaigned and well-known drugs for treating COVID is Paxlovid. Yet the drug’s limited clinical studies and numerous drug interactions raise questions of safety for COVID patients. Approved for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) in December 2021 and promoted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), health officials, and politicians alike, Paxlovid…