One in Five Post-COVID Patients Have Brain Abnormalities

Calendar January 5, 2023 | Posted by admin

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about one in five adults have a health condition that might be related to having previously been infected with COVID-19. In addition to cardiovascular and respiratory conditions, blood clots and vascular issues, kidney failure, and musculoskeletal conditions, these individuals may also experience changes in their neurological and mental health conditions.

Researchers shared how their use of a special type of MRI revealed brain changes in patients up to 6 months after they have recovered from COVID-19 at the 2022 Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting.

For their study, a team led by researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology used susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) to analyze the effects that COVID-19 has on the brain. Magnetic susceptibility “denotes how much certain materials, such as blood, iron and calcium, will become magnetized in an applied magnetic field,” the authors noted in an RSNA statement summarizing the findings. “This ability aids in the detection and monitoring of a host of neurologic conditions including microbleeds, vascular malformations, brain tumors, and stroke.”

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Woman Gets 3D Printed Ear Transplant Made of Her Own Cells

Calendar June 3, 2022 | Posted by admin

In what the company is calling a “groundbreaking reconstructive procedure,” 3DBio Therapeutics has transplanted a 3D-printed ear made of living cells. The reconstruction is the first in-human phase of the clinical trial for the implant, called AuriNovo, and appears to be the first 3D-printed implant made of living tissues.

The implant is specifically for patients with microtia, a rare congenital ailment where the outer ear is either underdeveloped or doesn’t exist at all. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it’s hard to estimate just how many people are impacted because of the range of the ailment varies, but estimates show that the birth defect impacts about 1 in every 2,000 to 10,000 in the U.S. The cause, in most cases, is unknown, although some cases are caused by genetic changes or the use of isotretinoin, or Accutane medication, during pregnancy.

The patient who received the transplant is a 20-year-old woman from Mexico whose right ear is impacted by the ailment. She received the surgery in March, and will continue to be monitored for five years, a spokesperson for 3DBio said.

Dr. Arturo Bonilla, a pediatric surgeon at the Congenital Ear Institute, the largest pediatric microtia center in North America, led the transplant. In a statement, he said that he’s “inspired” by what the advancement could mean for microtia patients.

Traditionally, doctors have to harvest rib cartilage or use porous polyethylene (PPE) implants to do this kind of transplant, both of which come with a set of challenges. Using rib cartilage, for example, requires a substantial harvest from at least three ribs and typically must be done in at least two separate hours-long procedures. It could result in a chest deformity, and the implants are rigid and can cause discomfort. PPE implants typically requires taking a large section of skin from a patient’s scalp, and because the implant is not made of biological material, there is early risk for infection and later risk of implant changes, discomfort and even a risk of the implant shattering.

Using a patient’s own cartilage cells is less invasive, and according to Bonilla, will allow for a more flexible ear. He also said that for those who have microtia, getting such a surgery can drastically help with their self-esteem. While it is not believed to impact hearing, it does offer an aesthetic relief.

This image shows what the 20-year-old patient’s ear looked like both before and after she received the 3D-bioprinted transplant. 

“An issue that becomes more prominent is bullying or teasing. Children don’t understand that they’re hurting somebody else’s feelings, but it really does affect them in a major way. And that’s usually when they start coming to my office, so that I can start taking care of them and helping them and advising them as far as what are the next options,” Bonilla said. “…The new technology with AuriNovo is exciting. I’ve actually been waiting for this my whole career.”

To create the new appendage, doctors conducted a biopsy on the ear of the patient that was impacted and extracted chondrocytes, the cells that create cartilage. Those cells were then expanded and mixed with what the company calls ColVivo collagen-based bio-ink before being molded with a 3D bioprinter into the size and shape of the patient’s opposite ear.

Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/

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Nearly All COVID Deaths in US Are Now among Unvaccinated

Calendar June 28, 2021 | Posted by admin

Nearly all COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. now are in people who weren’t vaccinated, a staggering demonstration of how effective the shots have been and an indication that deaths per day — now down to under 300 — could be practically zero if everyone eligible got the vaccine.

An Associated Press analysis of available government data from May shows that “breakthrough” infections in fully vaccinated people accounted for fewer than 1,200 of more than 853,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations. That’s about 0.1%. And only about 150 of the more than 18,000 COVID-19 deaths in May were in fully vaccinated people. That translates to about 0.8%, or five deaths per day on average.

The AP analyzed figures provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC itself has not estimated what percentage of hospitalizations and deaths are in fully vaccinated people, citing limitations in the data.

https://apnews.com/

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Moderna to Trial HIV and Flu Vaccines With mRNA Technology

Calendar June 24, 2021 | Posted by admin

The astonishing success of COVID-19 vaccines may signal a breakthrough in disease prevention technology. Moderna is developing influenza and HIV vaccines using mRNA technology, the backbone of its effective COVID-19 vaccine. The biotech company is expected to launch phase 1 trials for its mRNA flu and HIV vaccines this year. If successful, mRNA may offer a silver lining to the decades-long fight against HIV, influenza, and other autoimmune diseases. Traditional vaccines often introduce a weakened or inactive virus to one’s body. In contrast, mRNA technology uses genetic blueprints, which build proteins to train the immune system to fight off the virus. Since mRNA teaches the body to recognize a virus, it can be effective against multiple strains or variants as opposed to just one.

“The mRNA platform makes it easy to develop vaccines against variants because it just requires an update to the coding sequences in the mRNA that code for the variant,”  said Rajesh Gandhi, MD, an infectious diseases physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and chair of HIV Medicine association.

Future mRNA vaccines have the potential to ward off multiple diseases with one shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Current mRNA vaccines, as demonstrated in their use against COVID-19, already appear to be less susceptible to new variants. “Based on its success in protecting against COVID-19, I am hopeful that mRNA technology will revolutionize our ability to develop vaccines against other pathogens, like HIV and influenza,” Gandhi says.

Moderna’s flu and HIV vaccines are still in early development stages, having yet to undergo their clinical trials. Still, if they prove successful, the mRNA-based treatment could dramatically change health care — both in expediting the route to immunity and by providing a solution to illnesses that have been around for decades. Scientists currently make annual alterations to the typical flu shot to keep up with the viruses in circulation. But a successful mRNA vaccine could provide a far more effective alternative.

An approved mRNA flu vaccine could be administered every other year rather than annually, explained virologist Andrew Pekosz, PhD. This is because mRNA accounts for variants and produces a stronger and longer-lasting immune response than that of the current flu vaccine, he says. The influenza vaccine is similar to the COVID-19 vaccine because the viruses have similar characteristics and necessary treatments, according to Pekosz.

However, a potential concern lies in the level of public immunity prior to receiving a vaccine. Since the flu has been around since the early 1900s, an mRNA vaccine could potentially boost older or less effective antibody responses rather than targeting current strains, Pekosz adds. “There’s no way to answer that question except to do some clinical trials, and see what the results tell us”.

Source: https://www.verywellhealth.com/

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Amazon is now selling COVID-19 tests for customers to use at home

Calendar February 10, 2021 | Posted by admin

The DxTerity COVID-19 Saliva at-Home Collection Kit detects the presence of the virus but does not confirm immunity or detect antibodies. DxTerity‘s molecular-based PCR test received approval from the Food and Drug Administration last month. The test differs from the quicker and less expensive antigen tests, which use a nasal swab or throat swab to detect the virus.

A single COVID-19 testing kit is listed for $110, and a 10-pack bundle is available for $1,000.

Test takers must spit into a tube provided by the kit. The saliva sample is then inserted into a plastic bag and packed back into the box for shipment to one of DxTerity‘s laboratories certified by the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments. Customers are also granted prepaid express return shipping with the test and should expect to receive results within 24 to 72 hours of sample receipt at the laboratory. DxTerity’s test is currently the only COVID-19 testing kit on Amazon.

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“We have demonstrated the reliability and quality of our COVID-19 testing solution with big business and now we want to expand access to customers at home and small businesses,” said Bob Terbrueggen, founder and CEO of DxTerity, when he first announced the collaboration with the company last month. “Amazon is the perfect partner for expanding access to millions of U.S. customers.”

The test may not be valid for all travel purposes because sample collection is unsupervised, according to the product description. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends saliva specimens should be collected under supervision.

Amazon joins other retail giants in offering at-home COVID-19 saliva tests. Costco offers both regular and those approved for travel requirements to Hawaii, Bermuda and some other destinations for $129.99 and $139.99, respectively. However, the test has several dozen one-star reviews, with most complaining about delayed shipping and poor customer service from provider AZOVA.

Source: https://eu.usatoday.com/

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The U.S. has vaccinated just 1 million people out of a goal of 20 million for December

Calendar December 24, 2020 | Posted by admin

Just over 1 million people in the U.S. have received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine as of Wednesday morning, a far cry from the federal government’s goal of inoculating 20 million Americans by the end of the year.

Now that two Covid-19 vaccines have been approved for emergency use, the biggest hurdle to  the pandemic in the U.S. is getting the doses to the roughly 331 million Americans across the country. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 1,008,025 shots had been administered as of Wednesday at 9 a.m. ET.

https://www.cnbc.com/

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Mask-wearing Protects You, Not Just Those Around You.

Calendar November 11, 2020 | Posted by admin

Breaking from its tentative recommendations on mask use thus far, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday that using masks benefits wearers, which is a step beyond its previous declaration that said wearing masks would only protect those around them.

“Experimental and epidemiological data support community masking to reduce the spread” of the virus, the C.D.C. said in a document that details scientific evidence supporting mask use. “Individual benefit increases with increasing community mask use,” it said.

The unequivocal statements are a departure from the agency’s previous language, which suggested that “the latest science may convince” Americans to wear masks and that mask use could prevent an infected person from spreading the virus to others. “The main protection individuals gain from masking occurs when others in their communities also wear face coverings,” it said.

The agency also offered an economic argument, saying that increasing the proportion of people who wear masks by 15 percent could prevent the need for lockdowns and cut associated losses of up to $1 trillion, or about 5 percent of gross domestic product. The document also referred to a study of 124 Beijing households in which mask use significantly cut transmission of the virus, and an outbreak aboard the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt in which face coverings appeared to have reduced risk of infection by 70 percent.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/

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Covid-19 : Close Contact With Someone To Include Cumulative Exposure

Calendar October 22, 2020 | Posted by admin

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its definition of a close contact with a Covid-19 patient to include multiple, brief exposures, director Dr. Robert Redfield said Wednesday.

The new definition includes exposures adding up to a total of 15 minutes spent six feet or closer to an infected person. Previously, the CDC defined a close contact as 15 minutes of continuous exposure to an infected individual.

The agency changed the definition after a report from Vermont of a corrections officer who became infected after several brief interactions with coronavirus-positive inmates – none of them lasting 15 minutes, but adding up over time.

“As we get more data and understand the science of Covid, we are going to incorporate that in our recommendations,” Redfield said at a news conference held at CDC headquarters in Atlanta. “Originally, contact that was considered to be high risk for potential exposure to Covid was someone within six feet for more than 15 minutes.”

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/

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Speak Is Sufficient To Spread Coronavirus

Calendar May 14, 2020 | Posted by admin

Tiny droplets of saliva that are sprayed into the air when people speak may be sufficient to spread coronavirus, according to US government scientists who say the finding could help control the outbreak. Researchers at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Maryland found that talking released thousands of fine droplets into the air that could pose a risk to others if the speaker were infected with the virus.

The scientists used laser imaging and high-speed videography to show how thousands of droplets that are too small to see with the naked eye are emitted in normal speech, even in short phrases such as “stay healthy”. The work is preliminary and has not been peer-reviewed or published, but in a report the scientists claim the findings may have “vital implications” for containing the pandemic.

“If speaking and oral fluid viral load proves to be a major mechanism of Sars-CoV-2 [the official name of the virus] transmission, wearing any kind of cloth mouth cover in public by every person, as well as strict adherence to social distancing and handwashing, could significantly decrease the transmission rate and thereby contain the pandemic until a vaccine becomes available,” the researchers write.

The results will fuel the ongoing debate over whether or not healthy people should wear face masks in public. Recent advice from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called for members of the public to wear cloth face covers when they visit places where it is hard to maintain physical distancing, such as pharmacies and grocery stores.

But the US advice contrasts with that from the World Health Organization, which reviewed its stance on face masks last week. In updated guidance published on Monday it restated that there was no evidence wearing a mask in public prevented people from picking up respiratory infections such as Covid-19.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/

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Bacteria trapped — and terminated — by graphene filter

Calendar October 8, 2019 | Posted by admin

Airborne bacteria may see what looks like a comfy shag carpet on which to settle. But it’s a trap. Rice University scientists have transformed their laser-induced graphene (LIG) into self-sterilizing filters that grab pathogens out of the air and kill them with small pulses of electricity. The flexible filter developed by the Rice lab of chemist James Tour may be of special interest to hospitals. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, patients have a 1-in-31 chance of acquiring a potentially antibiotic-resistant infection during hospitalization. The device described in the American Chemical Society journal ACS Nano captures bacteria, fungi, fungi, prions, endotoxins and other biological contaminants carried by droplets, aerosols and particulate matter. The filter then prevents the microbes and other contaminants from proliferating by periodically heating up to 350 degrees Celsius (662 degrees Fahrenheit), enough to obliterate pathogens and their toxic byproducts. The filter requires little power, and heats and cools within seconds.

LIG is a conductive foam of pure, atomically thin carbon sheets synthesized through heating the surface of a common polyimide sheet with an industrial laser cutter. The process discovered by Tour’s lab in 2014 has led to a range of applications for electronics, triboelectric nanogenerators, composites, electrocatalysis and even art. Like all pure graphene, the foam conducts electricity. When electrified, Joule heating raises the filter’s temperature above 300 C, enough to not only kill trapped pathogens but also to decompose toxic byproducts that can feed new microorganisms and activate the human immune system. The researchers suggested a single, custom-fit LIG filter could be efficient enough to replace the two filter beds currently required by federal standards for hospital ventilation systems.

Seen in an electron microscope image, micron-scale sheets of graphene created at Rice University form a two-layer air filter that traps pathogens and then kills them with a modest burst of electricity

“So many patients become infected by bacteria and their metabolic products, which for example can result in sepsis while in the hospital,” Tour said. “We need more methods to combat the airborne transfer of not just bacteria but also their downstream products, which can cause severe reactions among patients.

“Some of these products, like endotoxins, need to be exposed to temperatures of 300 degrees Celsius in order to deactivate them,” a purpose served by the LIG filter, he added. “This could significantly lessen the transfer of bacteria-generated molecules between patients, and thereby lower the ultimate costs of patient stays and lessen sickness and death from these pathogens.”

The lab tested LIG filters with a commercial vacuum filtration system, pulling air through at a rate of 10 liters per minute for 90 hours, and found that Joule heating successfully sanitized the filters of all pathogens and byproducts. Incubating used filters for an additional 130 hours revealed no subsequent bacterial growth on the heated units, unlike control LIG filters that had not been heated.

“Bacteria culturing experiments performed on a membrane downstream from the LIG filter indicated that bacteria are unable to permeate the LIG filter,” said Rice sophomore John Li, co-lead author of the paper with postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford. Stanford noted the sterilization feature “may reduce the frequency with which LIG filters would need to be replaced in comparison to traditional filters.” Tour suggested LIG air filters could also find their way into commercial aircraft.

Source: https://news.rice.edu/

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