Scientists Discover Airborne Virus Droplets But It’s Unclear If The RNA Could Actually Cause Infections
One of the big questions surrounding the novel coronavirus is whether it is airborne in a way that would cause infection if someone breathed in the lingering droplets. In other scientific news: the virus's lethality, the susceptibility of cancer patients, the effects in pregnant women and more.
The New York Times:
Airborne Coronavirus Detected In Wuhan Hospitals
Adding to growing evidence that the novel coronavirus can spread through air, scientists have identified genetic markers of the virus in airborne droplets, many with diameters smaller than one-ten-thousandth of an inch. That had been previously demonstrated in laboratory experiments, but now Chinese scientists studying real-world conditions report that they captured tiny droplets containing the genetic markers of the virus from the air in two hospitals in Wuhan, China, where the outbreak started. Their findings were published Monday in the journal Nature. (Chang, 4/28)
The Washington Post:
Covid-19 Appears Far More Lethal Than Flu Based On Antibody Test Results
Results from coronavirus antibody tests have started to trickle in, and they bolster the consensus among disease experts that the virus is significantly more lethal than seasonal flu and has seeded the most disruptive pandemic in the past century. “I think it is the worst pandemic since 1918,” said Cecile Viboud, an epidemiologist at the National Institutes of Health’s Fogarty International Center, alluding to the “Great Influenza” pandemic that claimed an estimated 675,000 lives in the United States. (Achenbach, 4/28)
The Washington Post:
Cancer Patients Are Nearly Three Times More Likely To Die Of Covid-19, Study Says
Cancer patients — especially those with blood or lung malignancies, or tumors that have spread throughout the body — have a higher risk of death or other severe complications from covid-19 compared with those without cancer, according to a study published Tuesday. The study, which involved 14 hospitals in the Hubei province in central China, where the pandemic emerged, included 105 cancer patients and 536 non-cancer patients of the same age — all of whom had covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. (McGinley, 4/28)
CIDRAP:
COVID-19 Not Linked To Poor Outcomes In Pregnant Women, Study Finds
Pregnant women hospitalized with COVID-19 had similar clinical illness and outcomes as nonpregnant women of reproductive age and did not pass the virus to their newborns, according to a retrospective study published yesterday in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases.The researchers studied the electronic medical records of 28 infected pregnant women and 54 nonpregnant peers hospitalized in the Central Hospital of Wuhan, China, from Jan 15 to Mar 15. (4/28)
WBUR:
As Patients Recover From Coronavirus, Doctors Wonder About Long-Term Health Impacts
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting nearly 1 million known cases of COVID-19 in the United States. Of those, about 139,000 are listed as recovered. But experts are warning of possible long-term effects for patients after they’ve survived the coronavirus. Doctors know now that the disease attacks many systems within the body — from the lungs and heart to the liver and kidneys, says Yale cardiologist Dr. Harlan Krumholz. (Young and Raphelson, 4/28)
PBS NewsHour:
The Dangerous Global Flood Of Misinformation Surrounding COVID-19
Misinformation and conspiracy theories about COVID-19 have spread rapidly online, creating what some experts are now calling an “infodemic.” Health officials across the globe are scrambling to refute a flood of bogus claims, some of which could have harmful consequences. (Yang, Lane and Fritz, 4/28)
