Vaccinating a substantial portion of society has been found to be the best way to bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control, but the pace of vaccination has slowed down since the vaccines were first made available to the public in December 2020. As of May 2022, only 66% of the

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Doctors have been treating diabetes with insulin since 1922. A century later, about 1 in 5 of the 37 million Americans living with diabetes take this medication – a hormone that helps cells absorb sugar from the blood. This medication helps avert a host of medical problems including heart disease,

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On Jan. 3, 1865, the Kingdom of Hawaii, then a sovereign state, enacted “An Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy.” Any person suspected of having the ancient disease – which is mentioned as far back as the Bible – would be inspected and, if deemed incurable, permanently exiled to

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A leaked draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito suggests the Supreme Court is on the brink of overturning two rulings, including Roe v. Wade, that guarantee the right to abortion in the U.S. The Supreme Court confirmed that the document, obtained and first reported on by Politico, is real,

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The mRNA vaccines developed against COVID-19 owe a lot to the work of Robert Langer, a pioneer in the delivery of mRNA. Langer, who is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology David H. Koch Institute Professor and director of the Langer Lab, helped lay the foundation for the underlying delivery mechanism

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When most people hear the term palliative care, they look worried or confused. Introducing myself to patients and families as a palliative medicine physician, I commonly hear things like, “Does this mean I am dying?” or “I am not ready for hospice.” I respond by acknowledging these common fears, but

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The U.S. Senate approved the Sunshine Protection Act in March 2022, with the goal of making daylight saving time permanent starting in November 2023. If that happens, the U.S. will never again “spring forward” or “fall back.” Following the Senate’s vote and a recent hearing in the House Subcommittee on

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The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea The total treatment costs for American Indian and Alaska Native older adults with dementia are US$2,943 higher than for those without dementia because of higher hospitalization costs, according to our new study published recently in the

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted emergency use authorization to AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 antibody drug Evusheld on Dec. 8, 2021. Infectious disease physician Patrick Jackson of the University of Virginia explains how it works, who’s eligible and why some patients are having difficulties accessing it. 1. What is Evusheld, and

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Few things are more challenging than trying to vaccinate a terrified and uncooperative child. I have seen children wedge themselves into a corner and refuse to budge. I have seen them thrash and yell. And I have seen them sit perfectly still, but cry the entire time. I’m an associate

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