covid-19

The spread of coronavirus is undoubtedly intertwined with the spread of speculation around its origins. In the face of ambiguity and great uncertainty, the world turned to college professors with no evidence or training in virology and anonymous social media users, posing as high-level intelligence…

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, the supply and demand for N95 have been largely stabilized; however, there are still dramatic discrepancies in the allotted number of masks across different states. Why is that after a year of battling the virus, warehouses in Texas are drowning in…

Less than a year since the beginning of the pandemic in the United States, 500,000 people have died as a result of the coronavirus. For comparison, Brazil has the second-highest number of COVID-related deaths: about 247,000 people. These high occurrences of death exhaust healthcare workers who see…

With the pandemic being around for almost a year, cases of "Long Haul COVID" continue to rise. Significant percentages of previous COVID-19 patients report symptoms, even nine months after their initial infection. Over 100 different symptoms of Long Haul COVID have been reported, making the…

Pulse oximeters are portable devices used to measure blood oxygen levels. Recently, people have been using them to monitor COVID-19 which is often characterized by low blood oxygen levels. However, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that Black patients had almost three…

It has been ten months since Jodee Pineau-Chaisson, a 55-year old woman without pre-existing conditions, contracted COVID-19. Now, she is unable to work due to a myriad of symptoms. She experiences body pain, heart murmurs, memory problems, depression, and chronic fatigue. Many long-haulers also…

A new study by the National Institute of Health's National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) found that masks increase the humidity of inhaled air. Humidity promotes removal of mucus from the lungs and encourages the production of proteins which help fight against…

Worries continue to grow over new COVID-19 variants based in the United States. These mutations affect the spike protein of the virus. As of late, their prevalence in U.S. genomic sequences has increased since late 2020. One variant called the Pelican was found in 28% of samples in Louisiana and…

COVID-19 transmission in colleges and universities has been a problem for schools across the country, both large and small. It is clear that repeated and consistent testing is the most robust and efficient way to identify and isolate potential vectors of transmission. Moreover, it was found that,…

Though the entire world has been battling the coronavirus pandemic for over a year now, there is still a lot to learn about how long immunity lasts from natural infection. New variants of the virus are appearing throughout the globe and many are starting to believe that having COVID-19 previously…

The COVID-19 pandemic has lasted over a year now and still today, hundreds of thousands of people still seem to be suffering from long-haul symptoms that have left some permanently impaired. Individuals with symptoms that persist beyond the disease’s initial onset have become known as COVID-19…

In response to President Biden's executive order on promoting COVID-19 safety, the CDC requires masking for travelers into, within, or out of the United States. As of February 2nd, this applies to airplanes, ships, ferries, trains, subways, buses, taxis, and ride-shares. While non-essential travel…

Johnson and Johnson's announcement of a 72% efficacy may seem underwhelming compared to the stats we have on the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. However, Dr. Fauci points out that these numbers do not reflect the vaccine's ability to prevent severe disease, which was 85%. Opting to take a "lower…

In an effort to reopen schools, governor Newsom has proposed a $2 billion plan to incentivize them to create reopening plans by February 1st. So far some Texas, Florida, and New York  schools have reintroduced classroom instruction. But teachers unions in California have called this deadline…