Not only have asthma attack rates decreased during the pandemic, evidence suggests people with asthma are not at increased risk of severe outcomes from COVID.
Most children today receive the chickenpox vaccine as a routine part of childhood immunizations.
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Chickenpox has largely disappeared from the public’s memory thanks to a highly effective vaccine. But the virus’s clever life cycle allows it to reappear in later adulthood in the form of shingles.
Recent computer modeling shows the upcoming flu season might see a surge in cases. Coupled with COVID-19’s continued threat, doctors are again urging Americans to get their shots.
The 2,000-line poem by Scottish physician John Armstrong was written during a time of pandemic, war and increasing public disinformation. What can readers learn from it today?
The requirement to wear masks in airports lowers the risk of air travel.
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Parents face tough choices since young kids can’t yet get COVID-19 vaccinations. An infectious diseases expert offers guidance on navigating summer activities.
Marios Koutsakos, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
Scientists around the world are trying to come up with universal coronavirus vaccines to combat the emergence of variants. But what are these vaccines and are they even possible?
Americans were tired of social distancing and mask-wearing. At the first hint the virus was receding, people pushed to get life back to normal. Unfortunately another surge of the disease followed.
Sheena G. Sullivan, WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza e Kanta Subbarao, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
Decades of experience with influenza offers insights into how we should handle new SARS-CoV-2 variants, and the threat they pose to vaccine effectiveness.
You need a new shot every year because current flu vaccines provide limited and temporary protection. But researchers’ new strategy could mean a one-and-done influenza vaccine is on the way.
Ernest Hemingway, July 1918, American Red Cross Hospital, Milan, Italy.
Buckley, Peter, Ernest, Dial Press, New York, 1978
Hemingway’s response to death and disease was very different from the parody that circulated earlier this year.
Viruses spread easier during the winter than other times of the year, but being outside isn’t the main cause of transmission.
Christopher Kimmel via Getty Images
Going out in the cold won’t necessarily lead to you getting a cold. But cold weather in general is more hospitable to viruses, so it’s wise to take steps to keep your immune system strong.
Will England be going into lockdown 3 in February?
Antibiotics do not shorten or reduce the severity of colds or flu, but they could produce adverse effects that make you feel even worse.
(Pexels/Andrea Piacquadio)
Resistant bacteria aren’t the only risk posed by overprescribing antibiotics. A more immediate risk is side-effects and reactions, which a new review shows are surprisingly frequent and often severe.