Respiratory Infections News

Most U.S. public schools implemented lower cost ventilation strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic, like moving activities outdoors, but far fewer implemented higher cost strategies like replacing HVAC systems, a survey found.

Moderna said Wednesday that its bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster candidate elicited a superior antibody response against the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 compared with the original vaccine.

An FDA advisory committee on Tuesday recommended that Novavax’s two-dose COVID-19 vaccine be made available in the United States under an emergency use authorization.

Although favipiravir showed significant antiviral effects in two phase 3 influenza trials, the clinical efficacy results differed between the trials “for unclear reasons,” researchers reported in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

Receiving hormone replacement therapy within 6 months of a COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with a reduction in mortality, according to researchers.

American Indian and Alaska Native people living in Alaska are at an increased risk for COVID-19 illness, hospitalization and death compared with white people living in the same area, researchers reported in MMWR.

Children with asthma were not at increased risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection when compared with children without asthma, a study reported.

HIV was an independent risk factor for severe COVID-19 at hospital admission and in-hospital mortality in a study that included nearly 200,000 patients from dozens of countries.

Researchers said they found “compelling evidence” that the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 may cause croup in children.

COVID-19 survivors face a significantly higher risk than control patients for developing conditions affecting major system of the body, according to a study of nearly 2 million patients.