Clinical

As in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people (including healthcare professionals) may be taking false comfort in the fact that the multiple variants of the virus started cropping up “somewhere else.” Also as we saw a year ago, however, that kind of thinking is no protection. Early, yet-to-be published data show that the variant first detected in the United Kingdom is becoming the dominant strain in several countries—and that its occurrence is …

Schools, workplaces, and health clubs have developed screening processes to try to keep their doors open while also minimizing risk to staff and constituents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Questions about shortness of breath, fever, and other symptoms may actually pointless, however, as new research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine reveals that at least one third of patients with COVID-19 may be asymptomatic. On a societal level, this calls into question whether it’s wise …

As time goes on and more is understood about the secondary effects of coronavirus, many patients are shocked to discover that they’re at greater risk than they thought. Some, however, can breathe a sigh of relief upon learning that their situation may not be as dire as they had been led to believe. Patients with asthma fall into the latter category, as new research published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine …

Patients with heart disease were identified early on in the COVID-19 pandemic as a population that was likely at risk for severe disease. At the same time, however, those same patients became less likely to follow through with cardiologists and primary care physicians over misaligned concerns that visiting healthcare professionals exposed them to greater risk of infection. That phenomenon is now being borne out in research. For example, an article published in the Journal of …

As more data on COVID-19 emerge, urgent care patients need to be educated on what to expect not only during acute illness (such as the need for quarantining and when hospitalization may be warranted), but also on the lasting effects of the disease even after it has resolved. The Lancet just published a study revealing that most patients (63%) still complain of fatigue or muscle weakness 6 months post resolution, with over 20% continuing to …

Increasing legal availability, shutdown of many bars and restaurants, and overall anxiety related to the pandemic are likely responsible for significant growth in the U.S. marijuana market in 2020. The cannabis website Leafly reports that sales grew at least 67% last year; it’s now a $17.9 billion industry in this country. While that’s clearly good for that marketplace, it’s safe to say that urgent care centers could see more patients presenting with potentially serious complaints …

Whatever degree of comfort there might have been in knowing variants in the COVID-19 virus occurred far from U.S. shores has disappeared with the news that a new one has been identified in California. It was discovered, independently, by two research teams who were looking for indications that the British variant could have crossed “the pond.” While they did find a few such cases in a couple of southern California counties, the more important discovery …

Fear was high that the arrival of flu season would compound the mass illness and mounting deaths associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. As we reach the midway point, however, influenza has hardly been a blip on the screen. According to the World Health Organization, this is likely due to precautions against the coronavirus also having a protective effect for flu. While COVID-19 deniers scoff at such things, it’s clear that most Americans are in fact …