Author Archives: ceopate

It should be concerning to everyone that is paying attention that we are experiencing disease outbreaks in the US of diseases that we generally shouldn’t see outside of international travel. In some cases, these are the emergence of diseases that are endemic to other countries of the world, but not the US, and frustratingly, othersContinue reading “The emergence of new infectious diseases and the resurgence of others in the U.S.”

If we were to ask Americans what disease outbreaks the world has experienced in the past 3 years, I suspect almost everyone would be able to identify COVID-19 (caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus). Probably a large number, but certainly less would also be able to name influenza, likely by using its colloquial name of theContinue reading “Could this family of viruses that you have never heard of cause our next pandemic?”

I have been preparing for pandemics for more than two decades in my roles as a leader of a major teaching hospital in the Texas Medical Center and subsequently as the President and CEO of the largest health system in Idaho. In pandemic planning, I have found it useful to consider past outbreaks, epidemics andContinue reading “Just when you thought it was safe to come out again”

If you would have asked me this question a year ago, I would have said that I think it is one of two likely answers: (1) it might, but I suspect it will be a relatively minor contribution among a whole host of factors that determine your risk, or more likely, (2) it is notContinue reading “Does your blood type impact your SARS-CoV-2 infection risk?”

I have previously written about the issues surrounding and the evidence-to-date in the public realm as to the origins of SARS-CoV-2. There has been much mystery, intrigue and debate as to the origins of the virus, and while there are relatively minor variations as to specifics, most who have an opinion on this fall intoContinue reading “COVID-19 Pandemic Origins”

We have only eradicated one virus from the world – smallpox. We were so close to eradicating poliovirus, but like the old saying: ”close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.” Poliovirus causes asymptomatic infection in most people (~70 – 75%). There is wide-ranging potential illness in the 25 – 30% who become symptomatic. TheContinue reading “Poliovirus – You may need to be careful if travelling to other countries”

A new study (Trends in Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Reinfections and Associated Hospitalizations and Deaths Among Adults Aged ≥18 Years — 18 U.S. Jurisdictions, September 2021–December 2022 | MMWR (cdc.gov)) examines the epidemiological trends of SARS-CoV-2 reinfections and the association with severe outcomes. The investigators report that during the time period of September 2021 (Delta) to DecemberContinue reading “SARS-CoV-2 Reinfections”

For the First Time Ever, there will be an RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) Vaccine Available this Fall for Older Americans Respiratory Syncytial (pronounced “sin-sish-uhl”) Virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that for most people is little more than a bad cold resolving on its own within a week or two, but for infants (andContinue reading “Respiratory Syncytial Virus – Some Good News”

Transmission and Infectivity Our knowledge and understanding of this novel coronavirus that has caused the COVID-19 pandemic continues to grow and evolve. I am going to weave together the results of three recent studies that give us a much better understanding regarding the transmissibility and infectivity of this virus. While I characterize these new findingsContinue reading “More Surprises about the SARS-CoV-2 Virus”

There has been concern that we may be seeing the development of high blood pressure (hypertension) as yet another long-term health consequence of COVID-19. If true, this would be concerning for many reasons. First, I have written previously that people are at increased risk of quite a number of cardiovascular signs, symptoms and conditions forContinue reading “New Onset Hypertension After COVID”