HEALTH & WELLNESS

Random testing in Indiana shows COVID-19 is 6 times deadlier than flu, and 2.8% of the state has been infected

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Random testing in Indiana shows COVID-19 is 6 times deadlier than flu, and 2.8% of the state has been infected

Since day one of the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. has not had enough tests. Faced with this shortage, medical professionals used what tests they had on people with the worst symptoms or whose occupations put them at high risk for infection. People who were less sick or asymptomatic did not get tested. Because of this, many infected people in the U.S. have not been tested, and much of the information public health officials have about the spread and deadliness of the virus does not provide a complete picture. Short of testing every person in the U.S., the best way to get accurate data on who and how many people have been infected with the coronavirus is to test randomly. I am a professor of health policy and management at Indiana University, and random testing is exactly what we did in ...

Could employers and states mandate COVID-19 vaccinations? Here’s what the courts have ruled

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Could employers and states mandate COVID-19 vaccinations? Here’s what the courts have ruled

A safe and effective vaccine could end the coronavirus pandemic, but for it to succeed, enough people will have to get inoculated. Recent polls suggest that the U.S. is far from ready. Most surveys have found that only about two-thirds of adults say they would probably get the vaccine. While that might protect most people who get vaccinated, research suggests it may be insufficient to reach herd immunity and stop the virus’s spread. As a law professor who has written about the legal questions around vaccination laws, employment discrimination and religious exemptions, I see four possible approaches that governments and employers can take to ensure enough Americans are immunized against COVID-19. Which ones are legal might surprise you. Can governments require vaccinations? The most intr...

Is telehealth as good as in-person care? A telehealth researcher explains how to get the most out of remote health care

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Is telehealth as good as in-person care? A telehealth researcher explains how to get the most out of remote health care

COVID-19 has led to a boom in telehealth, with some health care facilities seeing an increase in its use by as much as 8,000%. This shift happened quickly and unexpectedly and has left many people asking whether telehealth is really as good as in-person care. Over the last decade, I’ve studied telehealth as a Ph.D. researcher while using it as a registered nurse and advanced practice nurse. Telehealth is the use of phone, video, internet and technology to perform health care, and when done right, it can be just as effective as in-person health care. But as many patients and health care professionals switch to telehealth for the first time, there will inevitably be a learning curve as people adapt to this new system. So how does a patient or a provider make sure they are using telehealth...

A new anti-platelet drug shows potential for treating blood vessel clots in heart attacks, strokes and, possibly, COVID-19

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS, SCIENCE

A new anti-platelet drug shows potential for treating blood vessel clots in heart attacks, strokes and, possibly, COVID-19

Clots obstruct blood vessels and can be deadly. They cause heart attack, stroke and are also a major problem in severe cases of COVID-19 patients. Treating clots with available drugs, however, can cause blood vessel leaking and bleeding, which can also be deadly in some circumstances. To address this problem, my colleagues and I have engineered a new anti-platelet drug designed to prevent vessel-blocking blood clots without causing bleeding. This drug shows promise in treating heart attack and may also be useful for other severe conditions caused by clots, such as stroke and COVID-19 patients with clots and blood vessel leaks. As a scientist studying the biology of blood cells and vessels, I am particularly interested in understanding how platelets – a kind of blood cells important in cl...

Chief Justice John Roberts’ recent fall underscores the vulnerability of people 65 and older to falling

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Chief Justice John Roberts’ recent fall underscores the vulnerability of people 65 and older to falling

Chief Justice John Roberts often makes headlines for his legal opinions, but the 65-year-old recently made news for a different – and dangerous – reason. As thousands of older people do each year, Roberts fell. The fall occurred on June 21, 2020 at a Maryland country club. Roberts cut his head and was hospitalized. The event, which had two precedents, was reportedly due to dehydration. Roberts is reportedly recovered and fine. But the issue of falls, which are the leading cause of accidental death in people 65 and older, is growing more pressing each day. More adults than ever – 46 million – are 65 and older, and their numbers are increasing rapidly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in four older adults will fall each year. Besides being the leading cause...

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Yes, Keep Wearing Masks. Here’s Why

With the advent of an infectious disease outbreak, epidemiologists and public health officials quickly try to forecast deaths and infections using complex computer models. But with a brand-new virus such as the one that causes COVID-19, these estimates are complicated by a dearth of credible information on symptoms, contagion, and those who are most at risk. My team at the Goldenson Center for Actuarial Research has developed a free, user-friendly computer model with a different goal. It demonstrates how infections and deaths progress daily over a three-month period depending on how people behave in the outbreak. This model allows the public to input data that demonstrate how changes in safety measures in their communities, including wearing face covering and social distancing, can signif...

How Racism Hinders Care And Costs Lives Of African Americans In US Health System

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

How Racism Hinders Care And Costs Lives Of African Americans In US Health System

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the U.S., the virus hit African Americans disproportionately hard. African Americans are still contracting the illness – and dying from it – at rates twice as high as would be expected based on their share of the population. In Michigan, African Americans are only 14% of the population, but account for one-third of the state’s COVID-19 cases and 40% of its deaths. In some states the disparities are even more stark. Wisconsin and Missouri have infection and mortality rates three or more times greater than expected based on their share of the population. Speculation has suggested these disproportions are due to several factors: African Americans are more likely to live in poor neighborhoods, work at riskier occupations, and have more underlying health...

COVID-19 is laying waste to many US recycling programs

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

COVID-19 is laying waste to many US recycling programs

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the U.S. recycling industry. Waste sources, quantities and destinations are all in flux, and shutdowns have devastated an industry that was already struggling. Many items designated as reusable, communal or secondhand have been temporarily barred to minimize person-to-person exposure. This is producing higher volumes of waste. Grocers, whether by state decree or on their own, have brought back single-use plastic bags. Even IKEA has suspended use of its signature yellow reusable in-store bags. Plastic industry lobbyists have also pushed to eliminate plastic bag bans altogether, claiming that reusable bags pose a public health risk. As researchers interested in industrial ecology and new schemes for polymer recycling, we are concerned about challenges f...

Being Black in the U.S. Makes People More Vulnerable to Chronic Stress and COVID-19 and Other Diseases

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Being Black in the U.S. Makes People More Vulnerable to Chronic Stress and COVID-19 and Other Diseases

Racism is a chronic, uncontrollable, and unpredictable stress that can wreak havoc on the mind and body. The COVID-19 pandemic and the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery are two major catastrophes that shine a light on longstanding social inequities and injustices toward African Americans. Emerging research in the field of social genomics demonstrates how social stress, such as racism and discrimination, can shift the body’s biological resources toward a state that increases risk for disease. For example, our research group has found that racial discrimination may be affecting the way genes are expressed, leading to increased levels of dangerous stress hormones. These differences were found even when social determinant factors such as poverty and other forms of stress were accounte...

Coronavirus deaths and those of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery have something in common: Racism

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Coronavirus deaths and those of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery have something in common: Racism

The COVID-19 pandemic and the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery are two major catastrophes that shine a light on longstanding social inequities and injustices toward African Americans. Emerging research in the field of social genomics demonstrates how social stress, such as racism and discrimination, can shift the body’s biological resources toward a state that increases risk for disease. For example, our research group has found that racial discrimination may be impacting the way genes are expressed, leading to increased levels of dangerous stress hormones. These differences were found even when social determinant factors such as poverty and other forms of stress were accounted for. Hence, racial discrimination experiences may also explain why African Americans continue to remain...