COVID-19

COVID vaccines for children under five: What parents need to know.

— As children under five represent the only age group yet to have a COVID-19 vaccine approved for use, Pfizer and Moderna have both recently reported results for their COVID-19 vaccines in the youngest children.

COVID-19

Haven’t had COVID yet? It could be more than just luck.

— Even taking into account people who have had COVID but didn’t know it, there’s still likely to be a group of people who have never been infected.

Testimony

Long COVID in children is real and serious. There are treatments available... just not in the UK.

— My daughter Jasmin has had long COVID for the past 16 months. I tried for over 6 months to get her research bloods done in the UK. Hitting brick walls, in desperation I took her to Germany in February.

COVID-19

Severe COVID is equivalent to 20 years of ageing.

— A new study finds that the cognitive loss from severe COVID is the same as losing 10 IQ points.

COVID-19 & Government Response

Explosive emails revealed at the High Court describe the UK Government’s COVID testing programme.

— The Government’s shambolic COVID testing programme was described as ‘unlegit’ and ‘no way to do business’ in explosive emails revealed at the High Court yesterday.

What The Experts Say

When it comes to a deadly virus, ignorance is not bliss – Experts.

— The views of experts and health professionals on the consequences of ending free testing, “living with the virus”, the situation with long COVID, and the “herd immunity” myth.

Testimony

COVID in children is not mild.

— Kim Wareham’s daughter is 10. After successfully protecting her against the virus for two years, omicron finally got her. Through her testimony, she wants people to know what her suffering has been like and that COVID-19 for children is not mild.

COVID-19

Research says Omicron lasts much longer on surfaces than other variants – but disinfecting still works.

— We can’t say whether longer Omicron survivability on surfaces relates to a greater risk of infection. But it is of public health significance to know that wiping down surfaces and hand sanitising with disinfectants are effective methods of killing live virus.

COVID-19

Why we can’t ‘boost’ our way out of the COVID-19 pandemic for the long term.

— Whether repeated COVID-19 vaccine injections may lead to a phenomenon called “immune exhaustion” is a possibility that needs further study.

Analysis

Who gets to decide when the pandemic is over?

— We asked over 1,000 people whether the lifting of restrictions in England signals the end of the pandemic – the majority thought it didn’t.

Health

People who’ve had COVID appear more likely to develop diabetes.

— A number of recent studies indicate people who have had COVID are more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes.

COMMENT

COVID-19 is an airborne hazard – we need to treat it as such.

— Focusing mainly on therapeutics and vaccines, without attempting prevention of transmission at a population level, is flawed public health.

COVID-19

Omicron XE is spreading in the UK – A virologist explains what we know about this hybrid variant.

— More than 1,000 cases of omicron XE have been detected in the UK so far. But we shouldn’t be seriously concerned at this stage.

COVID-19

Should we worry about the XE variant? Maybe not yet, but ‘hybrids’ will become more frequent as COVID evolves.

— Our best chance of limiting the emergence of new recombinant COVID variants is to limit the spread of infections, using public health measures to slow and suppress the virus.

COVID-19

New COVID wave a reminder the pandemic is far from over.

— Governments and pharmaceutical companies need to work together in a better way, to deliver vaccines “to every person, everywhere” – not simply in the wealthiest nations — UN chief.

COVID-19

My five-year-old is now eligible for a COVID vaccine – Should I get them immunised?

— Severe COVID disease is rare in children, but high case numbers are seeing more kids being affected. There is no such thing as a “mild hospitalisation”, especially when it’s your child on the ward.