Pediatric data show that the increase in long COVID risk was also accompanied by the increased chance of developing a number of other related conditions

A research team working at MedUni Vienna has demonstrated that a specific component of the immune system (PTX-3) remains at significantly higher levels in the blood of patients who have suffered from severe COVID-19, even months after the acute infection has subsided. This study identified PTX-3 as a potential biomarker for existing tissue damage, long-term immune activation and also for complications following COVID-19. The resultswere published in the top-journal "Frontiers in Immunology" and make an important contribution to a better understanding of the consequences of COVID-19. Importantly, they may point to another possible cause of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).

A new study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases involving over 460,000 children and adolescents across 40 paediatric hospitals in the USA suggests that children who were infected with COVID-19 for the second time during the Omicron wave had more than double the risk of developing long COVID.

Children and adolescents were twice as likely to experience long COVID after catching COVID for the second time, compared to their peers with a single previous infection, according to a large study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and published in Lancet Infectious Diseases. These results run counter to the popular perceptions that COVID in children is "mild" and that reinfections with COVID do not carry the same risk of long COVID that initial infections do.

The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly impacted university students, presenting multifaceted challenges including the abrupt transition to virtual learning and significant disruptions to emotional well-being and dietary habits. This study aimed to investigate the dietary and nutritional characteristics associated with academic stress among Mexican university students during the COVID-19 lockdown.

About The Study: This decision analytical model study estimates that COVID-19 vaccination (primarily annual COVID-19 vaccination) during pregnancy will likely continue to yield meaningful public health benefits in the U.S., especially to reduce COVID-19 hospitalizations in infants. COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy has been shown to be safe. While there is global variation in policy recommending COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy, the U.S. has a high risk of severe COVID-19 in newborns, underscoring relevance of maternal COVID-19 vaccination. 

A widely available and affordable drug has been shown to be effective in treating seriously ill COVID-19 patients, according to a new international study led by researchers at the Australian National University (ANU) in collaboration with King’s College London.

Why this matters:

 

Emergency departments, or EDs, are becoming an initial contact for patients to get hospice and palliative care referrals and consultations when presenting to the hospital for care.

In the five years since COVID-19, hospice and palliative care consultations in hospital emergency departments have increased over 170%, although this trend has been growing since 2000.

Increasing access to hospice and palliative care from the ED can enhance quality of life for both patients and their families.

People who suspect that their sense of smell has been dulled after a bout of COVID-19 are likely correct, a new study using an objective, 40-odor test shows. Even those who do not notice any olfactory issues may be impaired.

About The Study: This cohort study examines the presence, severity, and patterns of olfactory dysfunction in U.S. adults with and without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection.

About The Study: An estimated 3 of 4 U.S. children relied on publicly subsidized insurance (Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program [CHIP], or Marketplace) or experienced a period without any insurance by their 18th birthday in the post-Affordable Care Act (ACA), pre-pandemic policy environment. Substantial state heterogeneity in childhood un-insurance underscores the critical role of Medicaid policies.