Twenty different COVID-19 variants were effectively identified and neutralised after the third booster, according to the new study for which the University of Surrey provided the crucial antigenic map of variants of concern. While the study’s results suggested that immunity decreases 20 weeks after vaccination, the third booster (of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, in the case
Two trials show no differences between patients who received enoxaparin vs standard of care The routine use of antithrombotic therapies to prevent thromboembolic complications provided no benefit for symptomatic outpatients with COVID-19, according to the results of two randomized trials. In the OVID trial, the 30-day risk of hospitalization and death was similar among patients who
Thousands of people experiencing the debilitating symptoms of long covid are traveling abroad to seek costly but unproven treatments such as “blood washing”, according to an investigation carried out by The BMJ and ITV News released today. Patients are traveling to private clinics in Cyprus, Germany and Switzerland for apheresis – a blood-filtering treatment normally
Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil analyzed data from 43 scientific articles describing the effects of COVID-19 on athletes and concluded that while the disease was asymptomatic or mild in the vast majority of cases (94%), about 8% of the subjects concerned had persistent symptoms affecting their performance and potentially preventing
The U.S. COVID-19 vaccination program slashed the coronavirus’ expected death rate by as much as 58%, saving hundreds of thousands of lives during the first two waves of the pandemic, a new study says. Computer models estimate that vaccines prevented 235,000 COVID deaths in the United States between December 2020 and September 2021, blunting the
Convalescent plasma, widely given to severely ill patients hospitalized with COVID-19 during the pandemic, does not improve their ability to survive or recover, according to a national clinical trial led by Vanderbilt University Medical Center and published in the journal CHEST. The multicenter blinded, randomized placebo-controlled, Passive Immunity Trial for our Nation (PassITON), looked at the
When the coronavirus causing COVID-19 infects human cells, the cell’s protein-processing machinery makes modifications to the spike protein that render it more flexible and mobile, which could increase its ability to infect other cells and to evade antibodies, a new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign found. The researchers created an atomic-level computational model
Findings could give insight into long-term neurological symptoms of COVID-19 A study from the National Institutes of Health describes the immune response triggered by COVID-19 infection that damages the brain’s blood vessels and may lead to short- and long-term neurological symptoms. In a study published in Brain, researchers from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and
With around 1,14,475 active cases of COVID-19 in India, the sudden surge in the cases has made scientists express concern over the spread of Omicron’s sub-variant BA.2.75 which may be the reason behind the sudden surge. The sub-variant has an 18 per cent growth advantage over others of its kind. Scientists across the world have
Research findings pave way for targeted treatment These scans show what a healthy lung looks like (left) and lungs of patients after having COVID-19 (last three). The images also show where air flows in the lungs. (credit: Alexander Matheson) Many who experience what is now called ‘long-COVID’ report feeling brain fog, breathless, fatigued and limited
