COVID-19 (Page 16)

Schira/Shutterstock A recent investigation published by the British Medical Journal revealed that long COVID patients are travelling abroad to seek expensive “blood washing” treatment. This experimental treatment – the medical name for which is apheresis – involves taking blood from the body and “filtering” it. Essentially, when blood is spun quickly in a centrifuge, it separates into layers. You can then either filter out specific components or remove some layers and replace these with more desirable fluids. The blood is then returned to the body through another vein. Apheresis can be effective for some conditions like sickle cell disease, where abnormal red blood cells can be removed, and leukaemia, where the patient can have white cells removed and even receiveContinue Reading

Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock A new COVID variant has recently been detected in several countries including the UK, US, India, Australia and Germany. Called BA.2.75, it’s a subvariant of omicron. You might have also heard it called “Centaurus”, the name of a constellation and given to BA.2.75 by a Twitter user. The World Health Organization has classified BA.2.75 as a variant of interest, rather than a variant of concern. This means it’s being monitored but there’s not yet evidence it will cause problems. The numbers of BA.2.75 infections are still relatively low. Most infections in the UK remain driven by the omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5. BA.5 in particular is similarly dominant in other countries where BA.2.75 has been detected. However, BA.2.75Continue Reading

After COVID, people are at increased risk of being diagnosed with diabetes. Ahmet Misirligul/Shutterstock Since the pandemic began, we’ve learned a great deal about the disease behind it. We now regard COVID-19 as not just a respiratory disease, but a multi-system condition. Many studies have reported on complications that can occur as an immediate result of a serious COVID infection, such as heart failure or the worsening of existing diabetes. Heart disease and diabetes fall under a group of common but often preventable conditions called cardiometabolic diseases. While these immediate complications remain a priority, we also know the virus can affect people’s health many months after initial infection. Findings from the databases of the US Department of Veterans Affairs identifiedContinue Reading

FabrikaSimf/Shutterstock COVID has affected countless aspects of our lives. For many people who menstruate, one of the pandemic’s effects has been on periods. People have reported changes to their menstrual cycles after having COVID, from the timing of their period, to its duration, to bleeding (a heavier or lighter flow). Meanwhile, many people have reported changes to their menstrual cycles after COVID vaccination. The largest study yet on this topic has just been published, finding that 42% of people who regularly menstruate reported a heavier period after COVID vaccination. The researchers, based in the US, launched an online survey in April 2021, which was advertised through multiple channels, including TV news, Twitter, blogs and radio. The survey asked for demographicContinue Reading

Rapid tests are no longer free in the UK for most people. Photoroyalty/Shutterstock You’ve got a sore throat and feel like you might be coming down with something. A year ago, you would likely have taken a rapid test from your stash, and tested for COVID. But what about now? In many countries you are no longer legally required to self-isolate if you test positive. In the UK and other places, tests are no longer free and many governments have adopted a policy of “living with COVID”. Add to that, you’ve got a jam-packed weekend of summer social engagements you don’t want to miss. While self-isolation is not mandatory, you wouldn’t go out and about if you knew you hadContinue Reading

Lucem_mecul/Shutterstock Through the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become clear that an effective response to an emergency of this nature goes beyond the health system. While strengthening health infrastructure such as surveillance, testing and hospitals is key, we’ve also seen the use of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face masks, school closures and lockdowns. Some of the most important public health interventions, such as income protection schemes, have not come from the health sector at all. So to prepare for and respond to pandemics, countries must be able to strengthen collaboration and investment across the whole of government, and engage all sections of society. To better understand the role of governance in pandemic response, we designed a study to investigate the link betweenContinue Reading