Health & Medicine
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Health & MedicineThe U.K. approved the world’s first COVID-19 human challenge trial
Dozens of young, healthy volunteers will be deliberately exposed to the coronavirus to find out how much virus it takes to get someone sick.
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Health & MedicineThe COVID-19 death toll sent U.S. life expectancy plunging in 2020
Estimates show that American’s overall life expectancy declined by a year, but for Black Americans, the drop was almost three years.
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Health & MedicineSome Neandertal genes in people today may protect against severe COVID-19
Neandertal DNA on chromosome 12 may affect genes involved in a biochemical chain reaction that ends with the destruction of viral RNA.
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PsychologyIn the social distancing era, boredom may pose a public health threat
Boredom contributes to pandemic fatigue and may account for why some people don’t follow social distancing rules.
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Health & MedicinePfizer’s vaccine appears to reduce coronavirus transmission
People who carry low amounts of the coronavirus in their bodies are less likely to spread COVID-19. Pfizer’s shot appears to help reduce viral loads.
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Health & MedicineMaking masks fit better can reduce coronavirus exposure by 96 percent
Double masking, rubber bands and other hacks can produce a tighter fit and prevent aerosol particles that can carry coronavirus from getting through.
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Health & MedicineHow coronavirus variants may drive reinfection and shape vaccination efforts
New coronavirus variants could infect people who have already recovered from COVID-19 or been vaccinated, but there are still many unknowns.
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Health & MedicineThe animals that ticks bite in the U.S. South can impact Lyme disease spread
Ticks in the north primarily attach to mice, which do a good job of infecting them with Lyme bacteria, setting up the spread to people.
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Health & MedicineNearly half a million U.S. children missed out on lead tests in early 2020
A big drop in routine lead tests, which can identify children with elevated blood levels, is another troubling sign of the pandemic’s toll.
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Health & MedicineCOVID-19 precautions may be reducing cases of flu and other respiratory infections
The same efforts to prevent COVID-19’s spread can keep other respiratory infections at bay. But once we go back to normal, outbreaks could be larger.
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Health & MedicineDiabetes during pregnancy is tied to heart trouble later in life
Gestational diabetes may increase a woman’s risk of having hardened arteries later in life, a long-term study finds.
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Health & MedicineThe antidepressant fluvoxamine could keep mild COVID-19 from worsening
Newly infected patients who chose to take fluvoxamine quickly recovered, while 12.5 percent who didn’t wound up hospitalized.