A: This is an evolving situation. Actions today could result in great success or tragic loss. Key take aways— B.1.1.7 is in the US. Growing evidence suggests the B.1.1.7 variant spreads more easily than previous variants. New evidence supports the hypothesis that current vaccines are effective against B.1.1.7. Early efforts to contain B.1.1.7 buys time …
Q: The new coronavirus strain is more transmissible than the older strain. Does this mean our usual precautions (masks, 6 foot distance, being outside) are less effective? A: Luckily, no. Virus mutations still don’t defy the laws of physics. But we need to be more vigilant about existing precautions. The new variant is transmitted the …
Q: I heard that the FDA approved several new rapid home test for diagnosis of COVID-19. Are the rapid tests just as good as the others? Can I take this one before I visit family? A: TL; DR: No, rapid tests are not quite as good at picking up positives (someone who really has COVID-19) …
A: “Transmissibility” in infectious disease means how readily it is passed from one person to another, given the peculiarities of a specific time and place (in this case, in the UK this Fall). Transmissibility is measured in numbers with something called R-value. The R-value for the old SARS-CoV-2 variant was hovering right around 1 (in …
In this live Q&A, Drs. Malia Jones & Amanda Simanek will be tackling pandemic questions from our readers. We’ll take questions about the “mutant strain”, which vaccine is best, that rumor about asymptomatic transmission being a phantom, and what we know (and don’t) about whether someone can still spread COVID after being vaccinated. ➡️ Welcome …
P: Con la llegada del clima más frío, ¿hay alguna estrategia que pueda utilizar para reducir el riesgo de transmisión en lugares cerrados? R: Resulta que los principios #eSMART que las Nerdy Girls han estado promoviendo durante meses han resistido la prueba del tiempo y se aplican también a los ambientes cerrados. Para recordarles: eS: …
R: Las personas que trabajan en el sector de salud están en alto riesgo de contraer COVID-19 en el trabajo y también están bajo tremendo estrés por las demandas de enfrentar la pandemia. En los EE.UU., más de 173,000 trabajadores de la salud han contraído COVID-19 y al menos 742 han muerto. Nuestros médicos, enfermeros/enfermeras, …
A: Yes. We don’t yet know whether the vaccines prevent someone from being infectious. The existing COVID-19 vaccine trials focused on a specific endpoint – symptomatic COVID-19 disease. We know that both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were close to 95% efficacious in preventing disease (YAY!!). But wouldn’t we expect the vaccine to also stop …
A: Indoor dining can be risky, even for a short duration & distance beyond 6 feet/2 meters. #StopSwappingAir In a recent study from South Korea, a high school student was infected in a 5-minute window of time and sitting 20 feet away from the “index” case. How do they know this with such precision? While …
R: No existe evidencia de que la infección por SARS-CoV-2 se pueda transmitir a los bebés a través de la leche materna con nuevos hallazgos que sugieren que la leche materna en las madres que han tenido COVID-19 contiene anticuerpos específicos de SARS-CoV-2. En un estudio reciente en leche materna de 15 mujeres que se …