Yesterday 4,085 Americans died of COVID-19, a bleak record in the year-long pandemic. In total, the US reported 274,403 new cases, an uptick from the 200,000 daily average seen through the beginning of the month, and one that likely represents a holiday-related increase. According to the dashboard maintained by Johns Hopkins University, the country has 21,776,072 cases and 367,635 [...]

Drug supply chain vulnerabilities have achieved greater visibility with the COVID-19 pandemic, but they have increasingly plagued countries in the past few years. A survey published in Health Policy‘s December issue found that 20 of 24 countries used drug registries to combat them, 20 simplified regulatory procedures during shortages, 18 regularly talked with stakeholders, and 15 [...]

In July 2020, the Florida Department of Health was alerted to three Candida auris bloodstream infections and one urinary tract infection in four patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who received care in the same dedicated COVID-19 unit of an acute care hospital (hospital A). C. auris is a multidrug-resistant yeast that can cause invasive infection. Its ability to [...]

A trio of new studies demonstrate low risk of COVID-19 infection and spread in schools, including limited in-school COVID-19 transmission in North Carolina, few cases of the coronavirus-associated multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in Swedish schools, and minimal spread of the virus from primary school students in Norway. Infection-control policies, transparency In the first study, published today [...]

Although more patients are surviving severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there are limited data on outcomes after initial hospitalization. We therefore measured the rate of readmission, reasons for readmission, and rate of death after hospital discharge among patients with COVID-19 in the nationwide Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system. We identified index hospitalizations for COVID-19 [...]

When scientists began seeking a vaccine for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in early 2020, they were careful not to promise quick success. The fastest any vaccine had previously been developed, from viral sampling to approval, was four years, for mumps in the 1960s. To hope for one even by the summer of 2021 seemed highly optimistic. But [...]

Many of us strive to hang onto the parts of our lives outside of our idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) diagnosis because it helps us remember that we’re more than a “chronically-ill patient”. Or at least, this is how I feel. I want the other aspects of my identity to shine through, and never want to [...]

Background/objectives Influenza is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, particularly for older adults. Persistent functional decline following hospitalization has important impacts on older adults’ wellbeing and independence, but has been under‐studied in relation to influenza. We aimed to investigate persistent functional change in older adults admitted to hospital with influenza and other acute respiratory illness (ARI). [...]

Question  Among patients with recent myocardial infarction or hospitalization for heart failure, is high-dose trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine more effective than standard-dose quadrivalent inactivated influenza vaccine for reducing all-cause mortality or hospitalizations for cardiac or pulmonary causes? Findings  In this randomized clinical trial that involved 5260 adults and was conducted over 3 influenza seasons, there was [...]

Stanford found itself in hot water last week after deploying a faulty Covid-19 vaccine distribution algorithm. But the fiasco offers a cautionary tale that extends far beyond Stanford’s own doors — and holds crucial lessons as the country prepares to confront complex decisions about who gets the vaccine, when, and why. At the center of the [...]