Category Archives: Uncategorized

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”

We know that SARS-CoV-2 not only attacks the lungs in COVID-19, but is essentially a vascular virus resulting in (1) dysfunction of the cells that line blood vessels and (2) a propensity for the development of blood clots, strokes and heart attacks, even in the year following the apparent recovery from seemingly mild COVID-19. AContinue reading “Why Some People Suffer from Cardiovascular Events and Symptoms following COVID-19       “

We have long known that certain viruses have the potential to infect the brain (e.g., the measles, polio, and herpes simplex viruses), but we have not understood why this happens in some patients and not in others, and in most cases, we don’t yet have a complete understanding of how viruses do this (fortunately, ourContinue reading “Our Understanding of how SARS-CoV-2 Causes Neurological Complications Continues to Increase”

Some people on social media and in conversations can often be heard to say that they can tell which variant they or someone else was infected with by the symptoms that dominated their illness. I have been skeptical of that claim, and recently, studies in adults have demonstrated that there has not been a statisticallyContinue reading “Do COVID Symptoms in Children vary by Variant?”