Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
Top scientists join forces to study leading theory behind long COVID
Top scientists from leading academic centers are banding together to answer a key question about the root cause of long COVID – whether fragments of the coronavirus persist in the tissues of some individuals. The effort, known as the Long Covid Research Initiative, aims to streamline research and quickly pivot to clinical trials of potential treatments. By sharing diverse skill sets and resources, the group hopes to uncover the scientific underpinnings of the disease and use that to design evidence-based trials.
U.S. starts enrollments in trial testing smaller dosage of monkeypox vaccine
The National Institutes of Health said on Thursday it had started enrollments in a trial testing an alternative method of administering Bavarian Nordic’s monkeypox vaccine, Jynneos, which requires smaller dosages. U.S. health regulators last month authorized injecting the shot intradermally in adults, meaning between layers of the skin rather than below the skin, in an effort to stretch out low vaccine supplies.
For many weary Chinese, lockdown dread trumps fear of COVID
When COVID-19 case numbers started ticking up in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen last week, Robin Chen got in his car and fled to nearby Huizhou. It wasn’t because he feared the virus – many of his friends overseas had caught it and recovered – but he didn’t want to lose his freedom again as speculation swirled that Shenzhen was headed for its second lockdown in six months.
FDA receives reports of cancer linked to breast implants
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received several reports of certain types of cancers in the scar tissue that forms around breast implants, the agency said in a safety notice on Thursday. As of Sept. 1, 2022, the FDA had received 10 reports about squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer, and 12 reports about various lymphomas related to breast implants.
FDA warns of potential clip lock issue with Abbott’s heart valve repair device
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday alerted healthcare providers about a potential clip lock issue with Abbott Laboratories’ MitraClip device used to stop heart valve leakage. The medical device treats mitral regurgitation, a condition in which the mitral valve of the heart does not close properly, causing blood leakage that can lead to stroke, heart attack or even death. MitraClip was first approved in 2013.
Long COVID’s link to suicide: scientists warn of hidden crisis
Scott Taylor never got to move on from COVID-19. The 56-year-old, who caught the disease in spring 2020, still had not recovered about 18 months later when he killed himself at his home near Dallas, having lost his health, memory and money.
Kim Jong Un suggests that N.Korea may begin COVID vaccinations
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has suggested that the isolated country could begin COVID-19 vaccinations in November, state media reported on Friday. In a speech on Thursday to the North Korean national assembly, Kim cited World Health Organization warnings that the winter could see a resurgence in coronavirus infections.
U.S. orders 100 million COVID tests, White House says more needed
The United States will boost its stockpile of at-home COVID-19 tests, ordering more than 100 million tests from domestic manufacturers, the White House said on Thursday but warned it was a short-term solution. President Joe Biden’s administration has repeatedly and unsuccessfully asked Congress for more pandemic money. It said last week it would request $22.4 billion in emergency funding for COVID-19 relief ahead of a potential case surge in autumn.
China’s financial hub Shanghai to extend free COVID testing services
China’s financial hub Shanghai will extend free regular COVID-19 testing services to Oct. 31 to further consolidate the results of their epidemic prevention efforts, the city government said on Friday. Citizens are required to take at least one PCR test each week until the end of October, the city government said on its Wechat account.
South Carolina Senate moves to further restrict access to abortions
The South Carolina Senate on Thursday approved a bill tightening an abortion ban that is blocked by the state’s highest court, following two days of fierce debate between anti-abortion Republicans and more moderate lawmakers from both parties. The bill the Senate approved would cut exceptions for rape and incest to the first trimester of pregnancy, not 20 weeks as the existing law provides. Like the existing ban, the bill would also permit abortions if the fetus receives a fatal diagnosis, but it would require diagnoses from two doctors, not one, as the blocked law requires.
(With inputs from agencies.)
