A recent JAMA Network Open study determines whether the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic influenced the increase of neonatal mortality in the United States. Study:  Social Distancing During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Neonatal Mortality in the US . Image Credit: Jessica Montgomery / Shutterstock.com How did the pandemic affect prenatal care? The…

In a recent study posted to the bioRxiv preprint* server, researchers in Japan evaluated the virological characteristics of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) KP.3.1.1 variant. SARS-CoV-2 BA.2.86.1.1, viz., the JN.1 variant, has outpaced XBB lineages by the start of 2024. It emerged from the BA.2.86.1 variant with an L455S substitution within the…

In a recent study published in the journal BMJ, researchers conducted a registry-based study comprising 343,066 infants across Denmark, Sweden, and Norway to investigate if COVID-19 infections or vaccinations during the first trimester were associated with increased risk of congenital anomalies. Of the 11 anomaly subgroups investigated, 10 had adjusted odds ratios (aORs) …

A recent study published in the journal Nature Reviews Microbiology reviewed malaria vaccines and their successes and failures. Nearly half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria, with pregnant individuals and young children being the most vulnerable. Females and children develop partial immunity over time, which suggests the possibility of vaccines. Malaria often…

In a recent study published in the journal Allergy, a team of researchers in Austria conducted a longitudinal analysis among individuals who had not been vaccinated against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to understand the changes in humoral and cellular immunity over ten months after the first severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. …

A recent PLOS ONE study investigates the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on food quality and diversity in households in the United States of America. Study:  Pandemic-induced changes in household-level food diversity and diet quality in the U.S. Image Credit: ANRproduction / Shutterstock.com Did the COVID-19 pandemic…

No talk of Obamacare. Or abortion. At the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week, where delegates officially nominated Donald Trump as the party's 2024 presidential candidate, health care issues received little attention from prime-time speakers. The silence is surprising, given health care makes up the largest chunk of the federal budget, nearly $2 trillion,…

A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine evaluated the burden and risk of post-acute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (PASC) during the pre-Delta, Delta, and Omicron periods. PASC, also known as long COVID, affects several organ systems. Its risk increases with the severity of infection and preexisting conditions but decreases…

The host Julie Rovner KFF Health News @jrovner Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News' weekly health policy news podcast, "What the Health?" A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book "Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z," now…

Peek inside the human genome and, among the 20,000 or so genes that serve as building blocks of life, you'll also find flecks of DNA left behind by viruses that infected primate ancestors tens of millions of years ago. These ancient hitchhikers, known as endogenous retroviruses, were long considered inert or 'junk' DNA, defanged of…