Health Archives - Page 4 of 77

Where did Victoria go so wrong with contact tracing and have they fixed it?

October 14, 2020

Victoria’s contact tracing system has faced criticism in the past for being inefficient, with officials flying to New South Wales in September to learn from that state.

a person in a car: Photograph: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

© Provided by The Guardian
Photograph: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Comparisons are difficult in a pandemic because each outbreak has its own unique characteristics. That said, there are some key features that underpin the differing responses of NSW and Victoria when it comes to contact tracing.

Fundamentally, NSW’s system of decentralised local area health districts meant when the second wave hit, that state was able to draw on teams embedded in their local communities to manage contact tracing. These teams worked independently but also in concert under the mothership of NSW Health.

a person in a car: ‘NSW’s system of decentralised local area health districts meant when the second wave hit, that state was able to draw on teams embedded in their local communities to manage contact tracing.’

© Photograph: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images
‘NSW’s system of decentralised local area health districts meant when the second wave hit, that state was able to draw on teams embedded in their

Johnson & Johnson Paused Trials on Its COVID-19 Vaccine Due to Subject’s “Unexplained Illness”

October 14, 2020

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Update, Oct. 13: Johnson & Johnson announced that it has paused all of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate clinical trials, including a large-scale Phase 3 human trial called “Ensemble” that began in September and aimed to enroll up to 60,000 people across three continents. One of the participants in that trial had an “unexplained illness,” the company said.

The Phase 3 clinical trial was in the process of comparing the efficacy of a single-dose vaccine versus a placebo. A company statement explained that the participant’s illness is currently being reviewed, and no other information has been released about the participant’s condition out of privacy. “Adverse events – illnesses, accidents, etc. – even those that are serious, are an expected part of any clinical study, especially large studies,” the company wrote. “We’re also learning more about this participant’s illness, and it’s important to have all the facts before we share additional information.”

Facebook bans ads discouraging vaccines

October 14, 2020

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Facebook on Tuesday announced a ban on ads that discourage people from getting vaccinated, in light of the coronavirus pandemic which the social media giant said has “highlighted the importance of preventive health behaviors.”

“While public health experts agree that we won’t have an approved and widely available Covid-19 vaccine for some time, there are steps that people can take to stay healthy and safe,” the company said in a statement.

The platform has already banned disinformation and scams as identified by public health institutions like the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

It will continue to allow advertisements either pushing for or against government regulations linked to vaccinations.

And it plans to launch a public information campaign in the United States pushing for people to get vaccinated against seasonal flu.

Coronavirus vaccines are expected to be key to moving beyond the pandemic

Trump praises Barrett’s performance on day one of questioning

October 13, 2020

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President TrumpDonald John TrumpTwo ethics groups call on House to begin impeachment inquiry against Barr Trump relishes return to large rallies following COVID-19 diagnosis McGrath: McConnell ‘can’t get it done’ on COVID-19 relief MORE on Tuesday praised Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett for her performance before the Senate Judiciary Committee and lashed out at Sen. Cory BookerCory Anthony BookerSenate kicks off fight over Trump’s Supreme Court pick Trump pick noncommittal on recusing from election-related cases Debate is Harris’s turn at bat, but will she score? MORE (D-N.J.) in particular for pressing the judge on the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

“I think Amy is doing incredibly well. It’s been a great day,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

The president did not take questions as he departed, but it was apparent he spent a portion of

Positive Virus Tests, Hospitalizations Surge in Colorado | Colorado News

October 13, 2020

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DENVER (AP) — Colorado is experiencing another surge of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, prompting Gov. Jared Polis to plead Tuesday with residents to wear masks, stay home as much as possible, and maintain social distancing practices.

As of Tuesday, Colorado’s three-day average positivity rate — the percentage of total tests coming in positive — was 5.4%, and the state recorded 1,000 newly confirmed cases both Saturday and Monday, the highest daily numbers recorded during the pandemic, Polis said.

About 290 people were hospitalized for COVID-19 on Tuesday, the highest total since May 31, The Denver Post reported.

During a briefing on the pandemic, Polis didn’t suggest he was contemplating renewed mandatory restrictions on business or other activities to stem the surge. But he insisted: “If this continues, our hospital capacity will be in jeopardy.”

The World Health Organization recommends trying to keep the positivity rate below 5% of all tests.

Study: Many older Americans with heart failure take 10 or more meds

October 13, 2020

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When older people hospitalized for heart failure are sent home, they are often given a whopping 10 medications to take for a variety of conditions.

But is this “polypharmacy” practice necessary, or does it just place a bigger burden on already frail patients?

It’s not a question so much of the quantity of the medications, but whether the medications patients are taking are the right ones for them, said senior study author Dr. Parag Goyal, a geriatric cardiologist at NewYork-Presbyterian in New York City.

“It’s not just that we’re not starting the right medications, there may be situations where we’re not stopping the wrong medications as well,” Goyal said. “I think we need to look at the medication that older adults with heart failure take in a more holistic fashion.”

For the study, Goyal’s team examined the medical charts of 558 adults aged 65 and older who were hospitalized in

As Dr. Javaid Perwaiz faces trial, the women he treated question decades of care

October 13, 2020

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CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The last time Brittni DuPuy-German saw her trusted gynecologist, she once again explained that the stabbing, mystery pain in her abdomen had not gone away.

It first appeared two years earlier, after she said her doctor, Javaid Perwaiz, surgically tied her tubes. To fix it, he had proposed more surgery — three additional procedures in nine months that she said included a hysterectomy when she was 29. But the pain persisted.

So on Nov. 8, 2019, at his private-practice office, Perwaiz and DuPuy-German discussed the possibility of yet another surgery, she said. He scheduled an ultrasound for just days later, a sign of the efficiency that DuPuy-German had come to expect from her family’s longtime gynecologist. He was her mother’s doctor, her sister-in-law’s doctor, her best friend’s doctor. Perwaiz had delivered DuPuy-German and delivered her children.

Which is why, when her phone buzzed the day after her

California releases guidelines for private gatherings with friends

October 13, 2020

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Ahead of the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays, California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly addressed new guidelines the state released this week allowing private outdoor gatherings with friends if specific conditions are met.

Ghaly said attendees must be from no more than three separate households and gatherings should last no more than two hours.

Gatherings “should be and must be done outside,” he added. People are also expected to take safety precautions, including wearing masks, practicing physical distancing and washing hands.

In the past, the state discouraged any gatherings outside of a single household.

Ghaly said the guidelines are meant to recognize that many close friends and relatives have been apart a long time and increasingly want to be together, especially with the holidays ahead.

The intention of the guidelines is not to encourage gatherings, but to inspire people to socialize safely when they do.

“Guidance here does

Are Antibody Infusions Safe? Eli Lilly Pauses COVID Treatment Trial

October 13, 2020

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KEY POINTS

Eli Lilly did not say what symptoms the ill patient developed
President Trump was given an antibody cocktail as part of his COVID treatment
AstraZeneca earlier paused it’s vaccine trial but has since restarted it in the U.K.

Eli Lilly (LLY) on Tuesday paused its coronavirus antibody trial because of a potential safety concern just one day after Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) paused its COVID-19 vaccine trial because of an unexplained illness.

The New York Times reported emails between Lilly and federal government officials concerned the trial testing the benefits of the antibody therapy on hundreds of hospitalized COVID-19 patients. All study patients also were receiving Gilead’s (GILD) trial remedy Remdesivir.

The Times said no details were provided on the number of volunteers who fell ill or any details about their illnesses.

Last week, Lilly reported just two test subjects had serious infusion reactions.

President Donald Trump received

J&J says review of illness that led to coronavirus vaccine trial pause could take days

October 13, 2020

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By Carl O’Donnell and Manas Mishra

(Reuters) – Johnson & Johnson said on Tuesday it would take at least a few days for an independent safety panel to evaluate an unexplained illness of a study participant that led to a pause in the company’s COVID-19 vaccine trial.

J&J shares fell more than 2% following news of the pause and safety review. Rival AstraZeneca Plc’s U.S. trial for its coronavirus vaccine candidate – which uses a similar technology – has remained on hold for more than a month after a participant in the company’s UK trial fell ill.

J&J, whose vaccine effort is among the high profile attempts to fight the coronavirus pandemic, said on Monday the illness was being reviewed by an independent data and safety monitoring board as well as by its own clinical and safety team.

The data board, which is also reviewing AstraZeneca’s U.S. trial, is required

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Category: Health

Where did Victoria go so wrong with contact tracing and have they fixed it?

Johnson & Johnson Paused Trials on Its COVID-19 Vaccine Due to Subject’s “Unexplained Illness”

Facebook bans ads discouraging vaccines

Trump praises Barrett’s performance on day one of questioning

Positive Virus Tests, Hospitalizations Surge in Colorado | Colorado News

Study: Many older Americans with heart failure take 10 or more meds

As Dr. Javaid Perwaiz faces trial, the women he treated question decades of care

California releases guidelines for private gatherings with friends

Are Antibody Infusions Safe? Eli Lilly Pauses COVID Treatment Trial

KEY POINTS

J&J says review of illness that led to coronavirus vaccine trial pause could take days