Disease Prevention

COVID is surging again. Here’s the latest on new variants, updated vaccines, and masking | AAMC The latest, highly contagious subvariants are driving infections, but new vaccines expected this fall may help stem the tide of another wave. AAMC

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The reason COVID-19 cases are increasing this summer is likely because people who haven’t been recently vaccinated or infected have fewer antibodies at the ready to fight off the first sign of the virus and are more likely to experience its symptoms, including fever, chills, sore throat, cough, congestion, body aches, gastrointestinal issues, and fatigue.

Florida’s RSV Season Has Started, and It’s Coming Soon to the Rest of US. Here's a Primer. - KFF Health News Florida’s RSV season begins earlier and runs longer than anywhere else in the U.S., according to the University of Florida’s Emerging Pathogens Institute. New vaccines can help, but most older adults, who are vulnerable to RSV, haven’t gotten them yet. khnkit KFF Health News

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Healthy pre-COVID lifestyle may protect against severe infection A University of Oxford-led study links a healthy pre-infection lifestyle to a 36% lower risk of long COVID, a 41% lower odds of death, and 22% lower chance of hospitalization. CIDRAP

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The researchers assessed the association of modifiable lifestyle factors (eg, smoking, alcohol use, body mass index, physical activity, time spent in sedentary activities, sleep duration, diet) with long COVID, death, and hospitalization among 68,896 adults in the UK Biobank cohort who tested positive for COVID-19 from March 2020 to March 2022.

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