The U.S. government confirmed on September 25, 2020, that it donated 50 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Guatemala to assist its fight against COVID-19. The ventilators, produced by Vyaire Medical, reflect cutting-edge, in-demand medical technology. They are compact and deployable, providing Guatemala with flexibility in treating patients affected by the virus.
Coronavirus Breaking News
The coronavirus disease COVID-19 is currently reaching pandemic levels in various countries.
Sep 28, 2020 • 6:41 pm CDT
The National Institutes of Health COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel published an update in the Annals of Internal Medicine on September 25, 2020, which says 'Taking everything into account, the Panel has determined that currently, the data are insufficient to recommend for or against convalescent plasma for treating COVID-19.'
'Although providers have access to this therapy, the Panel cannot recommend it as a standard of care for treating COVID-19 at this time.'
Sep 28, 2020 • 1:32 pm CDT
In order to provide evidence-based recommendations on strategies and practices to reduce the public health risks of flying during the COVID-19 pandemic, faculty at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health announced on September 3, 2020, they are conducting industry-sponsored research to improve understanding of measures that reduce risks of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the aviation system.
“As we study different aspects of the aviation system, we are identifying steps being taken by airlines, manufacturers, and airport operators that can reduce risks of SARS-CoV-2 transmission,” said Dr. Leonard Marcus, in a press statement.
“The effort to reduce risks requires a layered approach, including ventilation, mask-wearing, disinfection, and how people move through the aviation system. What is unique about this project is that we are engaging directly with major manufacturers, airlines, and airports across the aviation ecosystem to ensure that we develop a comprehensive, science-based approach.”
However, the U.S. CDC website stated on September 17, 2020: 'Travel increases your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19. Staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19.'
Sep 28, 2020 • 1:06 pm CDT
New research presented at the ESCMID Conference on Coronavirus Diseases on September 23, 2020, suggests that the poor outcomes and higher death rates in cancer patients with COVID-19 could be due to them generally being older and having more underlying conditions, rather than due to cancer itself. This study is by Dr. Maria Rüthrich, Jena University Hospital, Germany, and colleagues.
Medical Review by
Sep 28, 2020 • 10:20 am CDT
An inflammation syndrome in some children exposed to COVID-19 may serve as a warning to vaccine developers, a University of Virginia researcher and his colleagues said to the DailyProgress on September 27, 2020.
New research findings of the multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, known as MIS-C, show that children with the condition have elevated levels of antibodies that their bodies created to fight the proteins the COVID-causing virus uses to infect a body. Furthermore, these researchers say it’s important that the findings be considered as labs everywhere race to bring a vaccine to market.
The exact cause of MIS-C and whether the increased antibodies are a cause or an effect of the condition is not known, says the U.S. CDC.
Separately, a study published by The Lancet on September 4, 2020, reviewed 39 observational studies and concluded saying 'MIS-C is a new pediatric disease associated with SARS-CoV-2 that is dangerous and potentially lethal. With prompt recognition and medical attention, most children will survive but the long-term outcomes from this condition are presently unknown.'
Medical Review by
Sep 28, 2020 • 9:26 am CDT
UK scientists at the University of Bristol may be weeks away from finding out how long the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus can survive in the aerosol particles people exhale, reported The Guardian on September 25, 2020.
Prof. Jonathan Reid, who is leading the Bristol team, told The Guardian: “We know that when bacteria or viruses become airborne in respiratory droplets they very quickly dry down and can lose viability, so that’s an important step to understand when assessing the role of airborne transmission in COVID-19.”
Prof Denis Doorly, at Imperial College London, who is not involved in the research, stated: “There is now huge interest in what it could take to mitigate the risk of infection in enclosed spaces, in terms of enhanced natural ventilation, or air-scrubbing systems, or UV-C lighting – but this all depends on knowing how much viable virus remains suspended in the air."
Medical Review by
Sep 28, 2020 • 9:07 am CDT
California-based Eiger BioPharmaceuticals announced on September 28, 2020, results of an investigator-sponsored study of Peginterferon Lambda-1a (Lambda) in outpatients with mild and uncomplicated COVID-19. The study was co-led by Stanford University School of Medicine researchers Upinder Singh, M.D., and Prasanna Jagannathan, M.D., with the primary endpoint duration of viral shedding. The study's secondary endpoint was reducing the duration of symptoms and hospitalization in patients with mild COVID-19.
No difference was demonstrated in the duration of SARS-CoV-2 viral shedding and time to symptom resolution when compared with placebo. The median time to cessation of viral shedding in both study groups was 7-days. Lambda was found well-tolerated with few adverse events, which included elevated transaminases which self-resolved.
Medical Review by
Sep 28, 2020 • 3:57 am CDT
In a meta-analysis published in the JAMA on September 25, 2020, there is preliminary evidence that children and adolescents have lower susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2, with an odds ratio of 0.56 for being an infected contact compared with adults.
However, this study provides no information on the infectivity of children, and the role that children play in the transmission of this coronavirus remains unclear.
Medical Review by
Sep 27, 2020 • 11:27 am CDT
The U.S. CDC reported on September 26, 2020, that there have been 109,520,237 coronavirus diagnostic tests reported during the COVID-19 pandemic 2020. The types of tests most often discuss are RT-PCR, the nasal-swab test that detects viral RNA, and various antibody tests, that detect if you have an immune response due to past exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Sep 27, 2020 • 11:12 am CDT
According to TASS reporting on September 27, 2020, over 3,000 residents of the Russian Federation's capital city of Moscow have already been vaccinated against the coronavirus, the mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin said on Rossiya 1 TV channel. 'I myself went through this vaccination procedure and you see - nothing happened to me, although several months have already passed.'
The Sputnik V vaccine was conditionally launched in Russia during August 2020.
Mayor Sobyanin's personal blog stated on September 25, 2020: 'I ask you to strictly observe the mask and glove regime in transport, in shops and other public places. And, by all means, show special attention to the elderly and chronically ill people who must stay at home again.'
Medical Review by
Sep 27, 2020 • 10:53 am CDT
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged at the United Nations on September 26, 2020, that India’s vaccine production capacity would be made available globally to fight the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic.
“As the largest vaccine-producing country of the world, I want to give one more assurance to the global community today,” Modi said in a video posted on YouTube. “India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting this crisis.”
Sep 27, 2020 • 4:53 am CDT
The U.S. FDA issued an updated FDA COVID-19 Response At-A-Glance Summary on September 25, 2020, which provides a quick look at facts, figures, and highlights of the agency's response efforts during the coronavirus pandemic.
Sep 27, 2020 • 3:13 am CDT
California based Biomed Industries, Inc. announced on September 4, 2020, the initiation of a Phase 3 study with 3,600 participants to evaluate the efficacy and safety of oral polio vaccine and NA-831™ for prophylaxis and treatment of early onset of COVID-19.
Both poliovirus and coronavirus are positive-strand RNA viruses and they may induce and be affected by common innate immunity mechanisms. Recent reports indicate that COVID-19 may result in suppressed innate immune responses.
"We believe that a drug combination of NA-831™ with an oral polio vaccine could offer a safe, efficacious, and low-cost prevention and treatment for COVID-19," stated Lloyd L. Tran, CEO of Biomed.
Sep 26, 2020 • 5:00 pm CDT
A new, non-peer-reviewed study published on September 23, 2020, found COVID-19 infections may have spread widely across the city of Tokyo, despite the very low fatality rate. The seropositivity rate increased from 5.8% at the beginning of the study to an unexpectedly high 46.8 % by the end of the summer of 2020.
Given the temporal correlation between the rise in seropositivity and the decrease in reported COVID-19 cases that occurred without a shut-down, herd-immunity may be implicated in Japan's capital city.
Sep 26, 2020 • 3:44 pm CDT
Despite aggressive efforts by health departments, many COVID-19 patients do not report their close contacts, and many contacts cannot be reached, according to the U.S. CDC announcement on September 25, 2020. As an example, during periods of high COVID-19 incidence in North Carolina, 48% of COVID-19 patients reported no close-contacts, and 25% of contacts were not reached in Mecklenburg County.
The CDC stated 'improved timeliness of contact tracing, community engagement, and community-wide mitigation are needed to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission.'
Medical Review by
