General Interest
CDC Guidance for schools says students can now stay 3 feet apart, rather than 6
21 Mar, 2021 | 22:07h | UTCCommentaries: CDC Says Schools Can Now Space Students 3 Feet Apart, Rather Than 6 – NPR AND CDC updates COVID school guidance, OKs 3-feet distancing – CIDRAP
Related: Cohort study: Effectiveness of three vs. six feet of physical distancing for controlling spread of COVID-19 among primary and secondary students and staff (study and commentary)
Commentaries on Twitter
CDC: Children in elementary schools don't need to be kept 6-feet apart. In a major policy revision, federal health officials said only 3 feet of distance is required between young children in classrooms https://t.co/UBvES1T6ps
— delthia ricks 🔬 (@DelthiaRicks) March 19, 2021
Very happy CDC now recommending 3 feet spacing in schools: "The change is momentous .because many schools.. operate on part-time or hybrid schedules in order to reduce class sizes. A 3-foot rule would allow many more schools to open in person, full time."https://t.co/wR88jdUBgM
— Monica Gandhi MD, MPH (@MonicaGandhi9) March 19, 2021
Bioethics | “Europe’s Vaccine Ethics Call: Do No Harm and Let More Die?”
21 Mar, 2021 | 21:50h | UTCEurope’s Vaccine Ethics Call: Do No Harm and Let More Die? – The New York Times (free registration may be required)
Related opinion: Covid-19 vaccine adverse events: balancing monitoring with confidence in vaccines – The BMJ Opinion
See also: European Medicines Agency finds AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and benefits outweigh the risks (Statement and commentaries) AND Statement of the WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) COVID-19 subcommittee on safety signals related to the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine – World Health Organization AND Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca (statement and commentaries)
Commentary on Twitter
Many bioethicists have a problem with how Europe halted use of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Keeping the vaccine available would have allowed people “to consensually protect themselves from a big risk by taking a very small one.” https://t.co/qctELhfFGI
— NYT Health (@NYTHealth) March 20, 2021
Modeling Study: Vaccination alone is unlikely to contain COVID-19 infections in UK
21 Mar, 2021 | 21:46h | UTCCommentaries: Risking further COVID-19 waves despite vaccination – The Lancet Infectious Diseases AND Vaccination alone is unlikely to contain COVID-19 infections in UK – The Lancet
Commentary on Twitter
Vaccination alone is unlikely to contain #COVID19 infections in UK, suggests modelling study in @TheLancetInfDis—gradual release of control measures, high vaccine uptake, and high efficacy vaccine essential to minimise future waves. https://t.co/zpbPsYVHS2 pic.twitter.com/v47v6ux4r6
— The Lancet (@TheLancet) March 19, 2021
European Medicines Agency finds AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and benefits outweigh the risks
19 Mar, 2021 | 08:37h | UTCCommentaries: Restoring confidence after the covid-19 Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine pause will be an uphill battle – The BMJ Opinion AND European Medicines Agency: AstraZeneca Vaccine Safe – Benefits Outweigh Risks – Despite Possible Rare Events – Health Policy Watch AND Expert reaction to announcement from EMA on Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots – Science Media Centre AND European regulators say AstraZeneca vaccine safe, but can’t rule out rare events – CIDRAP AND AstraZeneca vaccine safe, but rare risk of blood clots not ruled out, EU regulator says – LiveScience AND European Medicines Agency Finds AstraZeneca Vaccine Safe And Effective – NPR
Video: Coronavirus Update with Carlos del Rio and Preeti Malani
19 Mar, 2021 | 08:24h | UTCCoronavirus Update With Carlos del Rio and Preeti Malani – JAMA
Perspective | Five reasons why COVID herd immunity is probably impossible
19 Mar, 2021 | 08:19h | UTCFive reasons why COVID herd immunity is probably impossible – Nature
Opinion | “’It’s a very special picture.’ Why vaccine safety experts put the brakes on AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine”
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:14h | UTC‘It’s a very special picture.’ Why vaccine safety experts put the brakes on AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine – Science (a few articles per month are free)
Related: Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca (statement and commentaries)
WHO Statement | The benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh its risks – vaccinations should continue
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:17h | UTCWHO statement on AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safety signals – World Health Organization
Related: Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca (statement and commentaries)
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
At this time, WHO considers that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh its risks and recommends that vaccinations continue.
Full statement on AstraZeneca #COVID19 vaccine safety signals:
👉 https://t.co/9J6MtxXWK8 pic.twitter.com/fWGzqbjMuE— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) March 17, 2021
Opinion | “The zero-risk mentality stifling Europe is now killing its people”
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:11h | UTCThe zero-risk mentality stifling Europe is now killing its people – The Sidney Morning Herald
Related: Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca (statement and commentaries)
Opinion | “Oxford-AstraZeneca Vaccine Safety: Reports of blood clots after receiving the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine are very likely just background events.”
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:09h | UTCRelated: Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca (statement and commentaries) AND What is Going on With the AstraZeneca/Oxford Vaccine? – Science Translational Medicine
Just How Do Deaths Due to COVID-19 Stack Up?
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:03h | UTCJust How Do Deaths Due to COVID-19 Stack Up? – Think Global Health
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
The Americas and Europe accounted for 80% of COVID-19 deaths globally, even though they represent only a quarter of the world's population. @ThinkGlobalHlth launches a tracker of COVID as a cause of death globally and the factors driving those trends 1/https://t.co/t6xp2yAWA4 pic.twitter.com/SJ9DRdlu1e
— Tom Bollyky (@TomBollyky) March 17, 2021
Why Opening Windows Is a Key to Reopening Schools
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:02h | UTCWhy Opening Windows Is a Key to Reopening Schools – The New York Times (free registration may be required)
Commentary on Twitter
https://twitter.com/trishgreenhalgh/status/1372180956094865409
Population Study: Past Covid-19 confers 80.5% protection against reinfection, which decreases to 47.1% in those aged 65 years and older
18 Mar, 2021 | 09:06h | UTCCommentaries: Risk of SARS-CoV-2 reinfection after natural infection – The Lancet AND COVID-19 Reinfection: More Common Than We Think? – MedPage Today (free registration required)
Commentary on Twitter
NEW—Most people who have had original #COVID19 strain are protected from catching it again for at least 6 months—but those ≥65 years are more prone to reinfection, suggests first large-scale study of its kind. Read https://t.co/250Yv0a9BZ pic.twitter.com/BTjhcMzXwT
— The Lancet (@TheLancet) March 17, 2021
UC secures landmark open access deal with world’s largest scientific publisher
17 Mar, 2021 | 02:33h | UTC
Commentary on Twitter
Good to see that the University of California and Elsevier has reached an agreement in which "all research with a UC lead author published in Elsevier’s extensive portfolio of hybrid and open access journals will be #openaccess by default"
— Robert Kiley (@robertkiley) March 16, 2021
WHO points to wildlife farms in southern China as likely source of pandemic
17 Mar, 2021 | 03:02h | UTCWHO Points To Wildlife Farms In Southern China As Likely Source Of Pandemic – wbur
WHO: New research highlights risks of separating newborns from mothers during COVID-19 pandemic
17 Mar, 2021 | 03:04h | UTC
‘Then the world caved in’: 11 experts describe the day they realized Covid-19 was here to stay
17 Mar, 2021 | 02:49h | UTC
RCT: Little benefit from osteopathic manipulative treatment on activity limitations in patients with nonspecific subacute and chronic low back pain
16 Mar, 2021 | 01:39h | UTCEffect of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment vs Sham Treatment on Activity Limitations in Patients With Nonspecific Subacute and Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial – JAMA Internal Medicine (free for a limited period)
Visual abstract: Effect of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment vs Sham Treatment on Activity Limitations in Patients With Nonspecific Subacute and Chronic Low Back Pain
Update on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca
16 Mar, 2021 | 02:35h | UTCUpdate on the safety of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca
Related: Countries should continue AstraZeneca rollout: WHO – MedicalXpress AND Expert reaction to news that Germany has halted vaccinations with the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine – Science Media Centre AND AstraZeneca finds no evidence of increased blood clot risk from vaccine – Reuters AND Data suggest no increased risk of blood clots from the AstraZeneca vaccine. Australia shouldn’t pause its rollout – The Conversation
Commentary on Twitter
As of March 8th, Around 17 million people in the EU & UK received the vaccine , there have been 15 events of DVT & 22 events of pulmonary embolism reported among those given the vaccine,This is much lower than would be expected to occur naturally in a general population
Please RT https://t.co/tnn4brxwpp— Antibiotic Steward Bassam Ghanem 🅱️C🆔🅿️🌟 (@ABsteward) March 14, 2021
B.1.1.7 variant linked to 55% higher mortality compared to other strains of SARS-CoV-2
16 Mar, 2021 | 02:32h | UTCOriginal study: Increased mortality in community-tested cases of SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.1.7 – Nature
Related: Death rate 64% higher with B117 COVID variant, study finds (study and commentary)
Commentary on Twitter (thread – Click for more)
https://mobile.twitter.com/_nickdavies/status/1371441682089132032
Cartoons that explain how the COVID vaccines work
16 Mar, 2021 | 02:13h | UTCCartoons that explain how the COVID vaccines work – KevinMD
More than half of COVID-19 patients report depressive symptoms months later, study finds
16 Mar, 2021 | 02:11h | UTCOriginal study: Association of Acute Symptoms of COVID-19 and Symptoms of Depression in Adults – JAMA Network Open
Commentary on Twitter
Survey study finds 52% of individuals with prior #COVID19 met criteria for moderate or greater symptoms of depression; more likely in younger, male, and those with more severe #COVID19 @royperlis @HarvardMed @Ognyanova @RutgersU @NorthwesternU @dellavolpe https://t.co/4krNvFb29T
— JAMA Network Open (@JAMANetworkOpen) March 13, 2021
Revisiting the Ten Commandments of Emergency Medicine: A Resident’s Perspective
14 Mar, 2021 | 20:26h | UTCRevisiting the Ten Commandments of Emergency Medicine: A Resident’s Perspective – Annals of Emergency Medicine (free for a limited period)
Commentary: Ten Commandments of Emergency Medicine Revisited – Journal Feed
Perspective | New lung cancer screening guideline comes with many caveats
14 Mar, 2021 | 20:23h | UTCNew lung cancer screening guideline comes with many caveats – Lown Institute
Original Guideline: USPSTF Statement: begin screening for lung cancer at age 50 years instead of 55 years for patients at risk (article and commentaries)
Perspective | School reopening without robust COVID-19 mitigation risks accelerating the pandemic
14 Mar, 2021 | 20:51h | UTCSchool reopening without robust COVID-19 mitigation risks accelerating the pandemic – The Lancet