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Moderna edges out Pfizer vaccine in head-to-head comparison

Moderna edges out Pfizer vaccine in head-to-head comparison

Compared with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has a slightly lower risk of COVID-19 outcomes, including documented SARS-CoV-2 infection, symptomatic COVID-19, and COVID-19-related hospitalization, intensive care unit admission, and death, over a 24-week period, according to a team of researchers. This pattern was consistent for periods when Alpha or Delta were the … Continued

Repurposing a familiar drug for COVID-19

Every day, hundreds of thousands of new COVID-19 cases and thousands of new deaths are still being reported worldwide, creating a need for drugs that can combat the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. Now, new research led by investigators at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital points to a well-known and widely available drug called … Continued

Potential fixes for COVID-related GI issues

Most of us are familiar with COVID-19’s hallmark symptoms of a loss of taste or smell and difficulty breathing, but a full 60 percent of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 also report gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, and stomach pain. Infection of the gut, which expresses high levels of the ACE2 receptor protein that SARS-CoV-2 … Continued

Pills could prove COVID game changer

Harvard experts in medical therapeutics say the recent development of pills to treat COVID-19 may turn out to be a pandemic game changer for a simple reason: When it comes to treating the ailment, the earlier the better.  

Nearly all severely allergic people tolerate COVID-19 vaccines, study finds

While individuals with severe allergies reported more reactions after receiving a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine than those without allergies, nearly all were able to safely complete the series, according to an Oct. 27 study in JAMA Network Open. Researchers at Boston-based Mass General Brigham and Harvard Medical School used electronic health records of 52,998 employees, of whom … Continued

Majority of unvaccinated Americans are concerned enough about COVID-19 to wear masks

While 29% of Americans are still unvaccinated, nearly two-thirds of this group (19%) are concerned enough about the spread of COVID-19 to regularly wear a mask, and the No. 1 reason for a large majority of them is concern about family members contracting COVID-19. A recent poll by a consortium of universities comprised of Northwestern, … Continued

Fetal sex a factor in COVID-19 immune response, study says

In pregnant women who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, male placentas showed increased immune activation compared with female placentas, according to a new study published in Science Translational Medicine.

Children could be dangerous carriers of virus

By studying 110 children aged two weeks to 21 years who tested positive for COVID-19 at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) or urgent care clinics, researchers confirmed earlier findings that infants, children and adolescents are equally capable of carrying high levels of live, replicating SARS-CoV-2 in their respiratory secretions. The researchers at Harvard-affiliated MGH and colleagues … Continued

Diet may affect risk and severity of COVID-19

Although metabolic conditions such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes have been linked to an increased risk of COVID-19, as well as an increased risk of experiencing serious symptoms once infected, the impact of diet on these risks is unknown. In a recent study led by researchers at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and published … Continued

Researchers at Harvard, BU to study possible links between coronavirus vaccines and changes in menstruation

Harvard Medical School and the Boston University School of Public Health are among a group of institutions awarded funding to study potential links between coronavirus vaccinations and changes in menstruation. Researchers at five institutions were awarded a total of $1.67 million by the National Institutes of Heath (NIH) to look into the question after anecdotal … Continued