COVID-19

Administered 6 months after the 2-dose regimen of BNT162b2, boosting with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine shows a substantial increase in antibody and T-cell responses.

Nakia Eldridge, PharmD, MPH, senior manager of health care quality, safety, and information at US Pharmacopeia (USP), and Lindsey Clawson, MBA, USP’s lead of COVID-19 vaccine strategy, discuss the latest updates in USP’s COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit.

The investigators compared blood test results from a total of 186 paramedics, some of whom received their second dose less than 4 weeks after receiving the first, whereas others received second doses after 6 to 7 weeks.

Pharmacy utilization, patterns of utilization among hypothesized treatments for COVID-19, and medication utilization patterns were all impacted by the pandemic.

Sotrovimab demonstrated ongoing activity against all tested COVID-19 variants of concern and interest, as defined by the World Health Organization.

Studies support the use of a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose to increase protection among immunocompromised individuals.

Jaime Bridges, opioid outreach coordinator at Orlando Health Orlando Regional Medical Center, and Kris Smith, PharmD, clinical pharmacy specialist for internal medicine at Orlando Health Orlando Regional Medical Center discuss how COVID-19 has affected the opioid crisis and what opioid-free pain management options are available as alternatives.

Experts from the Infectious Diseases Society of America recommend enhanced protection measures against the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

A few key points differentiate between the symptoms of a cold, flu, or possible COVID-19 infection.

The researchers said these results reinforce the importance of a third booster dose of the vaccine.

Study results show that fetal cognitive development in the assessed areas was age-appropriate and there was no indication of infection.

The long-term implications of post-COVID-19 myocardial injury detected by cardiac MRI are still unknown.

Individuals taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, particularly fluoxetine (Prozac), were less likely to die of the virus than those in a matched control group, study results show.

Obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes were the most common comorbidities.

The best protection against all variants of COVID-19 continues to be vaccination, including a booster shot for eligible individuals.

The study used affective priming, which is an indirect behavioral measure of implicit attitude, to evaluate feelings toward COVID-19.

The investigators note that this is the largest annual decrease in 2 decades of reporting.

The results of a study show the chance of death for those with cancer taking rituximab was more than double that of medically similar people.

According to the researchers, almost half of the caregivers surveyed responded that the people they are caring for rely on them more than ever before, with 94% of respondents indicating that they put the needs of the person they care for above their own during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sotrovimab found not inferior to intravenous administration for the early treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in high-risk, non-hospitalized patients 12 years of age and older.

Non-classical monocytes, a type of innate immune cell that signals molecule to alert other immune cells to threats, could be potential target for COVID-19 therapies.

The model could help researchers and public health officials interpret the significance of existing variants and design tailored public health responses for various scenarios based on a variant’s characteristic.

The results showed that one 300 mg dose of AZD7442 reduced the risk of developing symptomatic COVID-19 by 83% and one 600 mg dose reduced the risk of developing severe COVID-19 or death (from any cause) by 88% compared to the placebo.

Among participants who had been infected with SARS-CoV-2, heart rate was reduced during physical exertion, and recovery was delayed after the exertion.

The analysis found that vaccination rates increased from 36% to 60% between January 2021 and April 2021 but then slowed, reaching just 70% as of September 2021.

Under the agreement, the government would acquire 10 million treatment courses to be delivered by Pfizer beginning later this year and concluding in 2022.

Rita Wise, DEd, MSN, RN, program director of the Masters in Nursing Education and Nursing Administration programs at Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences, discusses her hopes for how the country and health systems will respond to the national nurse staffing crisis.

However, many say that they would reconsider if local COVID-19 cases begin to spike at their destination, poll results show.

This follows the FDA’s decision to expand the emergency use authorization for Pfizer and Moderna booster vaccines to all individuals 18 and older.