COVID-19 Vaccines Saved Over 240,000 American Lives in Just 6 Months, Study Finds

COVID-19 vaccines saved nearly 241,000 lives in the United States and prevented more than 1 million virus-related hospitalizations in the first six months of the country’s inoculation program, according to a new research model.    A research letter, published Tuesday in the peer-reviewed medical journal JAMA Network Open, found coronavirus vaccinations also prevented more than 14 … Read more

‘Deltacron’ Hybrid Virus Almost Certainly Doesn’t Exist, Scientists Say

Experts said Monday that an alleged hybrid coronavirus mutation dubbed “Deltacron” reportedly discovered in a Cyprus lab is most likely the result of a lab contamination, and not a new worrying variant.   Cypriot media reported the discovery Saturday, describing it as having “the genetic background of the Delta variant along with some of the … Read more

Omicron testing: new covid guidelines, LFT results and everything else you need to know

With omicron infections surging around the world, many countries are changing their coronavirus testing guidelines to better deal with the new variant and the huge number of cases it is causing. Here’s what you need to know. Health 10 January 2022 By Clare Wilson Lateral flow tests may be less likely to detect the omicron … Read more

World Health Organization’s Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on the actions that will change the pandemic

What will it take to bring the pandemic under control? Vaccine equality, social measures and supporting the health workforce, says the head of the World Health Organization Health 4 January 2022 Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is director general of the World Health Organization REUTERS/Alamy To change the course of the covid-19 pandemic, the international community must demonstrate a … Read more

Covid-19 pandemic in 2022: What will happen this year?

In the third year of the coronavirus pandemic, expect more variants, lower death rates and some continuing restrictions Health 4 January 2022 By Michael Le Page, Clare Wilson and Helen Thomson Theme park visitors show their covid passes in France, July 2021 SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS/AFP via Getty Images While the pandemic is unlikely to fully end in 2022, … Read more

2022 news preview: What will the coronavirus do next?

By Michael Le Page The delta variant, viewed using an electron microscope Steve Gschmeissner/Science Photo Library WE HAVE been watching evolution in action as one coronavirus variant after another emerges and triggers further waves of infections around the world. There is every reason to think this will continue during 2022 – and there is no … Read more

Two years of covid-19: How the pandemic has unfolded so far, what we’ve learned, and the questions that remain

It’s now been two years since Chinese authorities first informed the World Health Organization about an unknown virus in Wuhan. How has our understanding of the virus changed since then and where does that leave us? Health 31 December 2021 By Helen Thomson A new hospital was rapidly built in Wuhan, China, in early 2020 … Read more

Treatments like sotrovimab, molnupiravir, Paxlovid and Evusheld could lead to a new strategy in 2022: tackling covid-19 soon after infection to prevent severe symptoms from developing

By Clare Wilson Prescriptions of pills that can be taken at home could help prevent people developing severe covid-19 Backyard Productions / Alamy People in the UK who are at higher risk for covid-19 can now help trial the first antiviral pill for this infection that can be taken at home, while those who are … Read more

Covid-19: Cuba’s home-grown vaccines have massively cut case numbers

Four months after hospitals collapsed in Cuba due to skyrocketing covid-19 case numbers, the country has rolled out its own vaccines and cases are down to 5 for every 100,000 people Health 23 December 2021 By Luke Taylor Abdala is one of Cuba’s covid-19 vaccines YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images Four months after Cuba reported … Read more

Biggest science news of 2021: Learning the pros and cons of working from home during the covid-19 pandemic

The covid-19 pandemic has forced millions to participate in one of the biggest social experiments of our time. Nearly two years in, it’s time to take stock: what happens when workers abandon offices? Humans 15 December 2021 By Alice Klein Working from home has led to rises in productivity for some Experience Interiors/iStock THE covid-19 … Read more