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Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. The study covered in this summary was published in medRxiv.org as a preprint and has not yet been peer-reviewed. Key Takeaways Medication prescribing and dispensing in the United Kingdom were hampered during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not recovered to prepandemic

An estimated 132 million COVID vaccines were given to people in Britain in 2021. Yet despite this, over a year into the UK’s vaccination program, a significant number of people still don’t have any vaccine-based protection against the coronavirus. Around one in ten eligible people in the UK still haven’t had a first COVID vaccine

My respected neurosurgery colleague just ended his career inauspiciously — having had an affair with a resident. While I don’t know the details, I do know that many a male leader, like my friend, has fallen from his perch due to “zipper malfunction.” Had they stronger zippers, maybe they would have kept their sensitive parts

In a meta-analysis of more than 1 million mothers, those who breastfed their children had an 11% to 17% lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), coronary heart disease (CHD), or stroke, and of dying from CVD, in later life than mothers who did not. On average, the women had two children and had breastfed for

An adult brain contains about 86 billion neurons and even more supercomputing power to closely monitor the entire human brain. All those neurons have trillions of synapses — or connection points — that make up the circuitry the brain uses to control everything we do from reasoning to breathing to walking. And scientists with the

After looking closely at the drug-drug interactions listed for Pfizer’s new oral COVID-19 drug ritonavir-nirmatrelvir (Paxlovid), I realized that a large percentage of my patients are taking medications on the list. The antiviral was granted FDA emergency use authorization in late December for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in patients at high risk of severe

The use of unnecessary radiotherapy in patients with metastatic cancer who are near the end of life is still far higher than guidelines suggest it should be, concludes a nationally comprehensive database study. It underscores the need for better adherence to the guidelines, say the authors. The study was published online January 14 in JAMA

Before omicron, people in the UK with COVID symptoms or a positive test had to self-isolate for ten days. But when the new variant of concern arrived, the government changed the self-isolation period to seven days. On the other side of the Atlantic, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that given what

When it comes to antidepressant prescribing, less may be more, new research suggests. A new review suggests antidepressants are overprescribed and that the efficacy of these agents is questionable, leading researchers to recommend that when physicians prescribe these medications, it should be for shorter periods. “Antidepressants have never been shown to have a clinically significant

“We’ve made too many mistakes by sitting on our butts.” — Eric Feigl-Ding, ScD, of the Federation of American Scientists, on the hesitancy to shift toward using both nasal and throat swabs for Omicron testing. “They’re like, ‘I’m out. I’m done. Yes, you can pay me $75 an hour. I still don’t want it.'” —

Fed up with personal attacks on the nation’s top infectious disease expert, scores of leading scientists and physicians have signed an open letter defending Anthony Fauci, MD, for his years of service to the public and his leadership on the pandemic. “We deplore the personal attacks on Dr. Fauci. The criticism is inaccurate, unscientific, ill-founded

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. Commercial and Medicare Advantage insurers are spending an estimated $129.7 million annually on ivermectin prescriptions for COVID-19, even though the antiparasitic drug has not been shown to be effective against the virus, according to a new JAMA study. The researchers analyzed

The 24-hour news cycle is just as important to medicine as it is to politics, finance, or sports. At MedPage Today, new information is posted daily, but keeping up can be a challenge. As an aid for our readers, here is a 10-question quiz based on the news of the week. Topics include death during

The Isotretinoin Products Manufacturers Group (IPMG) reports that most users of the iPLEDGE Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) should now have access to their accounts, one month after a modified program was launched, the Food and Drug Administration announced on Jan. 14. The IPMG has “created a new tool within the system to help resolve account access

The ketogenic diet is a revolutionary low-carb and high-fat eating program that puts your body into ketosis–the state where you burn fat for energy. There are plenty of benefits of undergoing this diet: quick weight loss, better heart health, balanced hormones, lower blood sugar levels, more energy, and a clear and sharp mind. In a

The Food and Drug Administration on Jan. 14 approved two oral JAK-1 inhibitors for patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD) — upadacitinib and abrocitinib — making them the first oral JAK inhibitors available for this indication in the United States. “It’s big news because a few years ago we didn’t have any systemic treatments that are safer

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) voted unanimously to support a recommendation of no change to the physician fee schedule for fiscal year 2023 on Thursday, provoking immediate backlash from the American Medical Association (AMA) and other medical groups. A combination of inflation plus lost revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic sparked concern. Under current law,

Two years into the pandemic, most of us are fed up. COVID case rates are higher than they’ve ever been and hospitalization rates are once again rising rapidly in many countries. Against this bleak picture, we yearn to get back to normal. We’d like to meet friends in a pub or have them over for

Providing detailed informed consent does not appear to improve patients’ comprehension, according to a study published on researchsquare.com as a preprint and not yet peer reviewed. Key Takeaway Patients with cancer are equally likely to understand their treatment when provided long, involved informed consent forms designed for clinical trials and shorter, less comprehensive forms used

A new year is almost upon us and with it come the New Year’s resolutions that we truly hope to keep. If losing weight, getting stronger, or being healthier is part of your 2022 resolutions; The Bitbag team has found 4 workout subscription apps that will help you stay on track for a healthier year

Reaction to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed decision to restrict coverage of the controversial and expensive Alzheimer’s disease (AD) drug aducanumab (Aduhelm) has been swift and polarized. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the drug on June 7 set off a firestorm of controversy, including a federal investigation

Flu vaccines prevented the majority of critical and life-threatening influenza cases among children during the 2019-2020 season, a case-control study found. Vaccine effectiveness was 63% (95% CI 38-78%) against “critical influenza” and 75% (95% CI 49-88%) against “life-threatening influenza,” reported Manish Patel, MD, of the CDC, and colleagues in Clinical Infectious Diseases. CDC Director Rochelle

Many people nowadays turn to CBD products to help them cope with different aspects in life. Some people take these products to manage pain, while others take them to relax or sleep better. But what exactly is CBD? What is CBD? Cannabidiol or CBD is a chemical compound found in the cannabis sativa plant that

A transplant offers a chance of a cure from leukemia, but when the transplant is not successful, such patients are left with few other options and a poor prognosis. But the management of such patients has been improving, and over the past 20 years, this has led to a steady improvement in survival rates for

Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center. As COVID cases in the United States have skyrocketed to what seems like new records every other day — mostly due to Omicron — speculation is rising among some experts and scientific novices alike that infection for many seems unavoidable. In

The FDA issued a warning over possible dental problems — including tooth decay, cavities, oral infections, and loss of teeth — with orally dissolving medications containing buprenorphine used for the treatment of opioid use disorder and pain. However, the agency noted that the “benefits for use outweigh these risks and oral care can help.” In

Scientists are seeing signals that COVID-19’s alarming omicron wave may have peaked in Britain and is about to do the same in the U.S., at which point cases may start dropping off dramatically. The reason: The variant has proved so wildly contagious that it may already be running out of people to infect, just a

When the pandemic started two years ago, public health experts were keen on having everyone wear face coverings regardless of whether they were made of fabric to regulate and even prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Flash forward to 2022, and experts are now discouraging the public from using cloth face masks if they