In the Press

Today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided data on safety outcomes on 369 patients who receiving the monkeypox antiviral drug tecovirimat (Tpoxx), noting that few adverse events were reported.

After the emergence of the Omicron variant, the rate of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the United States was 10.5 times higher in unvaccinated adults and 2.5 times higher in those who were vaccinated but received no booster than in booster recipients, according to a new study.

Research led by Sanford Burnham Prebys professor Francesca Marassi, Ph.D., is helping to reveal the molecular secrets of macular degeneration, which causes almost 90% of all age-related vision loss. The study, published recently in the Biophysical Journal, describes the flexible structure of a key blood protein involved in macular degeneration and other age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer's and atherosclerosis.

Long-lasting immune cells that specifically recognize the SARS-CoV-2 virus were found in the noses of people who were infected following vaccination. These virus-specific T cells, which were not present in those who had only been vaccinated, are expected to confer an additional layer of protection against COVID-19, according to scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, whose findings were published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

To estimate the proportion and characteristics of patients injured by medical care in New Zealand public hospitals who complain to an independent health ombudsman, the Health and Disability Commissioner (“the Commissioner”).

When one considers the big picture of their health, sufficient sleep may often go overlooked as a keystone element in this picture.

An observational study of 219 unvaccinated long-COVID patients with neurologic symptoms in the Amazon concludes that 64% had a persistently impaired sense of smell, which the authors said could be permanent.

Developmental exposure to airborne particulate matter (PM) may increase children’s risk of developing autism spectrum disorder. We quantified the impact of reducing PM exposure during pregnancy on the development of autistic traits in children. We also assessed associations between indoor fine PM (PM2.5) concentrations during pregnancy and autistic traits.

Sex and age may be risk factors, but researchers are probably missing many others

Healthcare providers and hospitals in several regions of the United States notified the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) during August 2022 about increases in pediatric hospitalizations in patients with severe respiratory illness who also tested positive for rhinovirus (RV) and/or enterovirus (EV). RVs and EVs can have clinically similar presentations and are indistinguishable from one another on multiplex assays often used in clinical settings.