November 16, 2020 Allergy/Immunology Study shows ten percent of people, mostly men, with severe COVID-19, develop an autoimmune response that attacks interferons (part of the immune system) thereby reducing the host’s ability to defend against the virus.
November 10, 2020 Clinical Research Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine news is a press release not a study. No raw data to review, limited transparency, basic questions unanswered, 94 cases, and an overreaction focusing on the claim of 90% efficacy. Validated evidence required to justify the hype.
November 5, 2020 Clinical Research Another (small) study confirms that face masks do not reduce oxygen saturation during vigorous exercise for healthy individuals. You can get yourself an inexpensive pulse oximeter and prove it to yourself.
November 3, 2020 Clinical Research The vaccine development process is still beholden to clinical trial realities and barriers that are beyond our control. Predicting when we will have a Covid-19 vaccine is a mug’s game. Could be tomorrow, could be next year.
October 30, 2020 Allergy/Immunology Study reports that people who had mild to moderate #COVID-19 have protective stable antibody levels five months after their infection. This finding and further studies to follow can help with public policy and vaccine development programs.
October 29, 2020 Allergy/Immunology Vulnerable populations to be the focus in a new Canadian COVID-19 antibody study.
October 28, 2020 Clinical Research Unpublished non-peer-reviewed short-term study on possible COVID-19-induced cognitive decline used self-reported unverified data with no baseline controls or knowledge of the patients cognitive status prior to infection.
October 21, 2020 Clinical Research Researchers are doing their job when clinical trials are put on hold. Data and safety monitoring are part of the process. There are no shortcuts even for the Covid-19 vaccines in development.
October 20, 2020 Clinical Research Purposefully infecting vaccine-study volunteers with coronavirus to speed up the development and approval process is unethical and fraught with the law of unintended consequences.
September 9, 2020 Clinical Research Vaccine trial suspension is an expected response after reports of a single adverse event. It shows that proper protocols are being followed to determine if it is related to the vaccine. Phase 3 trials are designed to determine how larger and more diverse population groups respond.
