How 1 Million COVID Victims Have Helped Scientists, Researchers

AP: Nearly 1M Who Died Of COVID-19 Also Illuminated Treatment
The nearly 1 million people around the world who have lost their lives to COVID-19 have left us a gift: Through desperate efforts to save their lives, scientists now better understand how to treat and prevent the disease — and millions of others may survive. Ming Wang, 71, and his wife were on a cruise from Australia, taking a break after decades of running the family’s Chinese restaurant in Papillion, Nebraska, when he was infected. In the 74 days he was hospitalized before his death in June, doctors frantically tried various experimental approaches, including enrolling him in a study of an antiviral drug that ultimately showed promise. (Marchione, 9/27)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 During Pregnancy Not Associated With Complications In Infants
A Swedish study of pregnant COVID-19 patients giving birth at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm from Mar 25 to Jul 24 found a higher likelihood of labor complications, but no significant differences in outcomes in newborns compared with COVID-19–negative women. Published in JAMA this week, the study tested women in labor using reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on nasopharyngeal swabs to identify COVID-19–positive patients. Among 2,682 women, 156 (5.8%) were SARS-CoV-2 positive and 65% of those who tested positive were asymptomatic—meaning they had no symptoms compatible with COVID-19. (9/25)

AP: Tiny Airborne Particles May Pose A Big Coronavirus Problem
At a University of Maryland lab, people infected with the new coronavirus take turns sitting in a chair and putting their faces into the big end of a large cone. They recite the alphabet and sing or just sit quietly for a half hour. Sometimes they cough. The cone sucks up everything that comes out of their mouths and noses. It’s part of a device called “Gesundheit II” that is helping scientists study a big question: Just how does the virus that causes COVID-19 spread from one person to another? (Ritter, 9/26)

CIDRAP: Children, Adolescents Less Susceptible To COVID-19, Meta-Analysis Finds
A systemic review and meta-analysis in JAMA Pediatrics today found that children and adolescents have a significantly lower susceptibility to COVID-19 than adults do. Previous studies have reached similar conclusions, but this study pools data from 32 studies to get a clearer overall picture. Children and adolescents younger than 20 years were nearly half as likely to be infected than adults (odds ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval, 0.37 to 0.85) in the review of studies that involved contact tracing or population screening through Jul 28 and included a total of 41,640 children and adolescents and 268,945 adults. The decreased risk of infection was most pronounced in children younger than 10 to 14 years, "with adolescents appearing to have similar susceptibility to adults," the study authors write. (9/25)

CIDRAP: Demographics, Underlying Conditions Tied To Worse COVID In Health Workers
Today's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) provides updated information from voluntary reports on 100,570 healthcare personnel (HCP) with COVID-19 from February to July that shows variations in risk, including higher death rates in minority workers. The authors analyzed data from standardized case report forms containing HCP demographic characteristics, including newly reported occupation type and job setting, underlying medical conditions, hospitalizations, and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and deaths. (9/25)

In other science and research news —

NPR: How Often Do You Need To Shower? A Doctor Argues, Less Often Than You Think
James Hamblin is tired of being asked if he's smelly. Hamblin, a physician and health reporter, has been fielding the question since 2016, when the article he wrote about his decision to stop showering went viral. The piece outlines compelling reasons why one might want to spend less time sudsing up: Cosmetic products are expensive, showering uses a lot of water, and the whole process takes up valuable time. Perhaps most importantly, bathing disrupts our skin's microbiome: the delicate ecosystem of bacteria, fungi, mites and viruses that live on (and in) our body's largest organ. Most of these microbes are thought to be benign freeloaders; they feast on our sweat and oils without impacting our health. A small number cause harmful effects, ranging in severity from an irksome itch to a life-threatening infection. And some help us out by, for example, preventing more dangerous species from taking up residence. (Vaughn, 9/26)