N95 and KN95 masks, also known as a respirators, apparently offer the best protection against COVID-19, including the Omicron variant, according to the newly updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) consumer mask website. People at higher risk for...
The BA.2 subvariant of Omicron appears 33% more transmissible than the more common BA.1 Omicron coronavirus variant, according to preprint findings published in a Danish study. Researchers calculated the probability for spreading an infection within a household was...
Some of the human monoclonal antibodies (used clinically to prevent patients from becoming severely ill from COVID-19 disease) may not be protective against the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 now spreading across the United States, researchers reported January 19, 2022...
Several sources of real-world data from across the globe indicate the Omicron coronavirus variant produces a less severe form of COVID-19 disease. In South Africa, where Omicron was identified in November 2021, a private health insurance administrator reported in...
COVID-19 saliva tests appear more effective at detecting the Omicron variant, a recently posted pre-print paper says. Researchers in South Africa tested 382 people who were not sick enough to be hospitalized but still had COVID-19 symptoms. They found that in those...
Updated Booster Guidance for 16-and-17-year-olds On December 9, the Food and Drug Administration authorized third booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for 16-and-17-year-olds. Hours later CDC Director Walensky signed off on third shots for the age...
Study Findings A small study out of South Africa published online on December 7th offered a first look at how well people immunized with Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine might fare against the new Covid variant, Omicron. After testing Omicron against blood samples from...
With the arrival of the Delta and Omicron variants, we are not just yet finished with the COVID-19 pandemic. Sure, the wide distribution of vaccines has greatly helped in our fight to slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease. But as...
Omicron COVID-19 variant possibly looks more like the common cold. It looks like Omicron may have caught a cold. Seriously, researchers say the Omicron variant may have acquired at least one of its mutations from another virus, more likely the common cold, or possibly...