World News

Tag: COVID-19

  • Diabetes deaths fall to lowest levels in years, in early CDC figures


    Diabetes deaths in the U.S. have fallen to some of the lowest rates in years, according to new preliminary figures published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reversing a surge in mortality that was seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    There were 26.4 deaths per 100,000 people from diabetes, according to early death certificate data for the third quarter of 2024 published this month by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. 

    Death rates from diabetes peaked in 2021, according to CDC figures, at 31.1 deaths per 100,000 people for that year. Diabetes was the eighth leading cause of death in 2021. The CDC says the link between COVID-19 and diabetes may be to blame for that increase. 

    “Data show an increase in mortality rates for all people during the COVID-19 pandemic, and research shows that people with underlying conditions, including diabetes, are more likely to become very sick from COVID-19 and have a higher risk of hospitalization and death,” Christopher Holliday, head of the CDC’s Division of Diabetes Translation, told CBS News in a statement.

    Holliday added that research shows the pandemic may also have made it harder for Americans to properly manage the disease, ranging from interruptions to physical activity to disruptions to routine medical care diagnosing and treating the disease.

    “While diabetes-related death rates have decreased since 2021, they have not returned to pre-pandemic levels,” Holliday said.

    There were 103,294 deaths from diabetes in 2021, up more than 17% from 87,647 deaths in 2019 before the pandemic. Provisional data reported so far for 2024 have tallied 94,294 diabetes deaths last year.

    Diabetes deaths had been largely falling in recent years before the COVID-19 pandemic, despite an increase in the prevalence of the disease. Those trends were before the introduction of new diabetes treatments like Ozempic and Mounjaro that have seen high demand.

    Nearly 1 in 10 adults had diagnosed diabetes in 2023, according to the CDC’s National Health Interview Survey.

    Experts caution that analyzing long term trends in diabetes deaths is complex for a number of reasons, including changes in the definition of the disease over the past decades and variation in how death certificates record diabetes deaths.

    Also, not all death certificates record diabetes as the main “underlying cause of death” but instead as a contributing factor, which is counted separately. 

    “Diabetes is a more common contributing cause of death, not the primary underlying cause of death. Furthermore, most deaths among people with diabetes are cardiovascular and would be counted among the cardiovascular,” Elizabeth Selvin, director of the Johns Hopkins Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, said in an email to CBS News.

    Selvin said it is up to doctors to choose whether to select diabetes or other underlying health conditions as the cause of a heart attack death.

    “All of this to say, trends in underlying causes of death will reflect awareness of diabetes and coding practices; It is hard to know what role these play in these data,” Selvin said.

    Alexander Tin

    Alexander Tin is a digital reporter for CBS News based in the Washington, D.C. bureau. He covers federal public health agencies.



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  • FDA chief says they’re looking at whether to approve COVID shots for next winter


    The head of the Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that the agency is now looking at whether it will still approve COVID-19 vaccines for next winter, citing a lack of data on booster shots.

    “We’re taking a look. I can’t comment on any particular application. As you know, we have a bunch of applications for those booster shots,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary told CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett.

    Makary said many health care workers did not get the last round of COVID-19 vaccine booster shots, calling it “a bit of a public trust problem.”

    “I think there’s a void of data. And I think rather than allow that void to be filled with opinions, I’d like to see some good data,” Makary said.

    His answer marks a change from during the Biden administration, when FDA officials backed plans to routinely update the COVID-19 vaccines each year.

    Last year, the FDA issued guidance on what strain should be targeted by the shots for the following winter. Updates to Moderna and Pfizer’s COVID shots for the new strain were approved in August.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is also now weighing whether to significantly narrow its recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines.

    Makary’s remarks echo his justification for delaying Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine, which was expected to get full approval on April 1. Novavax said Monday that the FDA had asked the company to commit to another clinical trial of the shot.

    “Today, there is broad population immunity, and the big question is does it provide a benefit? Without a study on the new formulation and product, we can’t give an honest evidence-based answer to that question,” Makary told the newsletter “Inside Medicine” this week.

    Multiple companies are now also being asked “to do clinical studies, a basic clinical study, so we can educate the population and have information to work with,” Makary told CBS News.

    “It’s my general feeling, not with this particular product, which I can’t discuss in depth, but with drugs in general, that we need to know if they work today in order to be able to recommend them,” he said. 

    He also praised his special assistant, Dr. Tracy Beth Høeg, when asked what role she played in the agency’s evaluation of Novavax’s application. 

    “Dr. Høeg is an amazing M.D.-Ph.D. who has joined my staff as a special assistant to the commissioner. And she is involved in reviewing data sets at the agency. And I’m really excited to have her in the process,” Makary said.

    Trade industry publication The Pink Sheet previously reported that Høeg had been asked to step in on Novavax’s application. Høeg was also added to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunizations, in a slot previously filled by a career vaccines official from the FDA.

    Former FDA officials have criticized the agency’s new political leadership for their intervention in vaccine approvals, a process which is usually entrusted to career scientific officials.

    In a commentary published this week, former officials Phil Krause and Luciana Borio called on the FDA to “stick to its normal processes.”

    “Shifting standards and late-stage demands for new data — based on faulty scientific assumptions — erode trust, delay access to important tools, and discourage developers from advancing vaccine innovation,” they wrote.

    Alexander Tin

    Alexander Tin is a digital reporter for CBS News based in the Washington, D.C. bureau. He covers federal public health agencies.



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  • 5 years on, what we learned from the COVID pandemic response

    5 years on, what we learned from the COVID pandemic response




    5 years on, what we learned from the COVID pandemic response – CBS News










































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    It’s been five years since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, driving billions of people indoors and killing more than a million people in the U.S. Dr. Jon LaPook examines what lessons we can take away from that health crisis.

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  • CDC’s airplane testing seeks to prevent another pandemic

    CDC’s airplane testing seeks to prevent another pandemic




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    Five years ago, COVID-19 touched down on U.S. soil when a man from Washington state flew home after a trip to Wuhan, China. But for days, officials didn’t know he was carrying the virus because the U.S. at the time wasn’t testing airplanes. Today, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is trying to catch viral intruders before they spread. Dr. Celine Gounder explains.

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  • White Blood Cell Count May Predict Severe Covid-19 Outcomes In Postmenopausal Women, Study Finds

    White Blood Cell Count May Predict Severe Covid-19 Outcomes In Postmenopausal Women, Study Finds


    New Delhi: A count of white blood cells (leukocytes) may be a crucial indicator for determining debilitating outcomes of Covid-19 in postmenopausal women, according to a new international study on Wednesday. 

    Even months after the initial diagnosis of Covid — caused by the SARs-CoV-2 virus — millions of people worldwide suffer from its ongoing effects. 

    Cognitive impairment and fatigue are the most common lingering symptoms, with cognitive impairment affecting 70 per cent of patients. 

    Older adults — especially women — are the most at risk, said the researchers from the US, and Singapore. “Post-acute sequelae of Covid infection significantly affects quality of life, often leading to severe disability. 

    This effect is particularly pronounced in women, who already experience higher rates of cognitive impairment after menopause,” said Dr. Monica Christmas, associate medical director for The Menopause Society. 

    “By understanding underlying factors, we can better address these challenges and work to mitigate the cascade of symptoms that follow,” she added. 

    The study, led by researchers from Rush University, Harvard Medical School, and Ohio State University, aims to better understand pre-existing risk factors that may make certain adults — especially older postmenopausal women — more vulnerable to more serious ongoing symptoms. 

    Specifically, they examined whether leukocyte count (a widely available clinical marker of systemic inflammation) was associated with Covid disease outcomes. 

    The results, published online today in the journal Menopause, showed that leukocyte count is an independent predictor of Covid symptom severity in postmenopausal women. 

    The findings extend the evidence that low-grade inflammation is not only an outcome of Covid symptom severity but may also precede acute Covid infection. 

    While more research is necessary, the initial work is promising because leukocyte count represents an easily accessible, inexpensive clinical marker, said the team.



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  • Long Covid Symptoms Persist For Two Years In 70% Of Patients, Study Reveals Alarming Trends

    Long Covid Symptoms Persist For Two Years In 70% Of Patients, Study Reveals Alarming Trends


    New Delhi: Nearly 70 per cent of people continue to experience the same Long Covid symptoms in the second year as in the first year after suffering Covid-19 infection — caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. 

    Researchers from Ulm University, Germany, conducted a population-based case-control study on 982 people between the ages 18 and 65 years, who were diagnosed as having self-assessed long Covid.

    These were compared with 576 control patients who did not have the condition. Post-exertional malaise, or exercise intolerance, was seen in 35.6 per cent of participants with long Covid, according to the results, published in the journal PLoS Medicine.

    About 11.6 per cent of patients showed symptoms compatible with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. About 67.6 per cent of the 982 participants were considered to have persistent symptoms of long Covid.

    Further, most of the 32 per cent of long-Covid patients who reported an improvement initially did not fully recover. People with long Covid also had significantly lower handgrip strength, maximal oxygen consumption, and ventilatory efficiency (how well the body exchanges oxygen).

    Notably, breathlessness was reported as a moderate-to-severe symptom in almost half of the long-Covid patients.

    “In the majority of patients, Long Covid symptoms did not improve in the second year of their illness and typically continued to include fatigue and measurable exercise intolerance and cognition deficits, but there seems to be no major pathology in laboratory investigations,” said the team led by Raphael S. Peter in the paper.

    Patients with persistent Long Covid symptoms also tend to be more often obese, with higher mean values for body mass index and body fat, and had lower educational status.

    Meanwhile, a separate study, based on a cohort of Italian children, showed that artificial intelligence may be able to detect a “long Covid molecular signature” in the blood of patients.

    Currently, there are no proper diagnoses available for long Covid symptoms. The study, published in the journal Pediatric Research, showed that the AI model, based on protein profiling was able to identify long Covid with an accuracy of 0.93.

    (Also Read: Researchers Discover Promising Drug For Vision Repair In Multiple Sclerosis And Neurological Eye Disorders)



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  • World Health Organization already cutting back on hiring, travel as Trump withdrawal set to hit funding

    World Health Organization already cutting back on hiring, travel as Trump withdrawal set to hit funding


    Geneva — The World Health Organization said Friday it was reviewing its priorities in preparation for the withdrawal of its largest donor, the U.S., and stressed that it provides vital services that protect the country from health threats. President Trump on Monday signed an executive order directing the U.S. to withdraw from the WHO, a body he has repeatedly criticized over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “This announcement has made our financial situation more acute, and we know it has created significant concern and uncertainty for the WHO workforce,” the organization’s chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a letter sent to WHO staff Thursday and seen by AFP on Friday.

    He stressed that the United Nations’ health agency regretted the decision by the leader of the U.S. — by far the agency’s biggest donor — and hoped “the new administration will reconsider it.”

    FILE PHOTO: WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus address a press conference on the Marburg virus outbreak, in Kigali
    World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus addresses a press conference on the Marburg virus outbreak at the Kigali Convention Center in Kigali, Rwanda, Oct. 20, 2024.

    Jean Bizimana/REUTERS


    “We are open to engaging in constructive dialogue to preserve and strengthen the historic relationship between WHO and the USA,” he said.

    WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier stressed to reporters Friday that the U.S. withdrawal would, in the agency’s view, be a mistake.

    “WHO protects the U.S. with a sophisticated health intelligence system that works to detect, characterize and assess threats in real time,” he said. He pointed in particular to the current bird flu outbreak (H5N1), which has infected dozens of people and claimed one life in the U.S.

    “We did have, actually, individuals contacting us already about the concern that this might now be a problem, as data are not coming forward any more and may not be shared,” Lindmeier said.

    Tedros highlighted in his letter that the U.N. agency would now need to seek to identify its “key priorities.”

    “We are reviewing which activities to prioritize with a reduced resource envelope,” he said.

    He highlighted that the WHO had recently expanded its funding base, and would continue to rely on strong support from its member states and other sources.

    But he acknowledged the need to “reduce costs and realize efficiency gains.”

    Among other things, he said the agency was “freezing recruitment, except in the most critical areas,” and was dramatically cutting back on travel expenditures.

    The U.S. withdrawal will take a year to complete, and American funding would remain in place for that period, under the organization’s rules. But Mr. Trump’s order also instructed U.S. federal government staff to stop working with the group — something U.S. health officials do on a wide range of health issues of global concern. 

    On “CBS Mornings Plus” earlier this week, CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook said health experts were already worried about the implications of the U.S. withdrawal. 

    “Public health experts who I’ve spoken to are concerned that we have a world leadership position with this and, if there is, for example, the next pandemic, it would help in terms of communication, to be able to be in communication with everybody around the world,” said LaPook.

    While there are other avenues for communication, such as the outreach of medical societies and individuals, LaPook said “it’s nice to have a coordinated effort.”

    The White House said in a statement Monday night that the U.S. was withdrawing from the WHO “due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states.”



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  • Human Metapneumovirus In India: Can HMPV Be As Fatal As COVID-19? Check Symptoms, Prevention And More

    Human Metapneumovirus In India: Can HMPV Be As Fatal As COVID-19? Check Symptoms, Prevention And More


    The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has confirmed two Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) cases in Karnataka, identified through routine surveillance for respiratory viral pathogens. The HMPV has been in the news for some weeks as photos and videos of people wearing masks in hospitals in China emerged on social media platforms, with the local reports mentioning the outbreak of HMPV. This raised concerns in people as the scenes mirrored those of COVID-19, which went on to become a global pandemic eventually, leading not only to mass-scale hospitalisations but millions of deaths globally. 

    But what exactly is Human Metapneumovirus and how dangerous can it be? Dr Diksha Goyal, Senior Consultant – Internal Medicine, Marengo Asia Hospitals Gurugram, shares her insights.

    What Is Human Metapneumovirus And Who Is At Risk

    HMPV is a respiratory virus primarily affecting the lungs and airways. Dr Diksha Goyal shares, “It can cause the same symptoms as the common cold, which include cough, fever, nasal congestion, and also wheezing; however, it most commonly occurs in young children, elderly individuals, and those whose immune systems are weakened.” 

    Talking about how the virus spreads, Dr Goyal adds, “The infection is spread through respiratory droplets, so it is contagious. Although the majority of the cases are not severe, severe infections lead to pneumonia or bronchiolitis, especially in high-risk groups.”

    Human Metapneumovirus: Symptoms

    Some of the key symptoms of Human Metapneumovirus include:

    – Persistent Cough

    – Fever, mostly mild to moderate

    – Sore throat and/or body aches

    – Nasal congestion or runny nose

    – Shortness of breath

    Kerala Health Minister Veena George was quoted by ANI saying that the HMPV is more likely to affect children and the elderly, so they, as well as those with other serious illnesses and people receiving palliative care, should be more cautious.

    Why Is There A Sudden HMPV Scare 

    Several factors are responsible for the recent increase in HMPV cases across several countries. Dr Goyal explains, “Seasonality is shifting: Colder weather keeps people indoors more and brings individuals together in proximity, increasing close contact, through which respiratory viruses spread.” 

    Dr Goyal also shares that weakened immunity following long periods of self-isolation because of the COVID-19 pandemic may have caused people to become more susceptible to infections such as HMPV, particularly for vulnerable populations.

    This year, HMPV is receiving significant attention because there is an atypical rise in cases with increased infections compared to previous expectations in various countries, says Dr Goyal. 

    So if the virus has been in existence for decades, why the sudden scare? Dr Goyal says, “Despite the existence of HMPV for decades, the sudden outbreak is particularly concerning as it hits a greater proportion of the population, including the healthy adult population, compared to other years when only high-risk groups were affected. These changes in virus behaviour and continuous global health problems are making HMPV so prominent.”

    HMPV: Prevention And Precaution

    To prevent HMPV, you should maintain hygiene practices, like frequent hand washing, avoiding contact with the person who has contracted the infection, and coughing and sneezing with your mouth and nose covered. “Frequently disinfect common places that people come into contact with. In case you get the virus, stay at home to not spread it around, rest much, hydrate, and take medication for fever and congestion. Seek medical care if symptoms are severe or associated with difficulty breathing or persistent high fever, particularly in high-risk individuals,” says Dr Goyal.

    Also Read: Live Updates | HMPV Cases in India: Are We Staring At A New Virus Outbreak?

    HMPV vs COVID-19: Myths Surrounding Human Metapneumovirus

    Dr Goyal says that there are also several myths revolving around HMPV, one being that it could be as fatal as Covid-19. “True, HMPV can indeed cause severe respiratory illness, and it is always worse in some vulnerable individuals; however, its mortality rate or prevalence is less compared to that of COVID-19. Mostly, HMPV causes a mild to moderately severe illness for most people affected, with such severe cases commonly occurring in infants, the aged, or otherwise immunocompromised. HMPV is not as transmissible as Covid-19 or even as virulent for the general population,” says Dr Goyal.



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  • Air Pollution And Covid-19: How PM2.5 Might Increase Transmission And Long Covid Risk

    Air Pollution And Covid-19: How PM2.5 Might Increase Transmission And Long Covid Risk


    New Delhi: While the rapid spread of Covid-19 can be attributed mainly to the high transmissibility of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, a new study has linked the high incidence and mortality rates with environmental factors, particularly with PM2.5. 

    Researchers from the National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan proposed the theory that PM2.5 influenced the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and the subsequent severity of the disease.

    Many previous studies have demonstrated a correlation between the morbidity of Covid-19 and air pollution levels. The studies hinted that PM2.5 may act as an environmental carrier facilitating the transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

    The novel research, published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials, in mice, found that PM2.5 instillation induced the protein abundance of ACE2 — the receptor for SARS-CoV-2 — and then increased SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus infection in vitro and in vivo.

    “Our current results provide the first in vitro and in vivo evidence that PM2.5 exposure increased ACE2 expression and deteriorated SARS-CoV-2 infection. PM2.5 instillation dysregulated the expression of RAS proteins, increased the protein abundance of ACE and ACE2 in the lungs of mice, and upregulated the morbidity of SARS-CoV-2,” the team said in the paper.

    Another recent study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, linked air pollution with longer duration of long Covid symptoms like fatigue, breathlessness, and cognitive issues.

    Researchers from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) in Spain showed that air pollution can impact the severity of acute infection. As a result, exposure to PM2a.5 and PM10 can raise the risk of persistent long-Covid symptoms.

    While air pollution was not directly responsible for long-Covid, it could increase the severity of the initial infection, which, in turn, raises the risk of long Covid, the researchers noted.



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  • Many more seniors are getting COVID shots this year, CDC reports

    Many more seniors are getting COVID shots this year, CDC reports


    Nearly 4 in 10 seniors have gotten a COVID-19 vaccine so far this year, new survey data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests, marking a steep increase in vaccination rates compared with the same time last year. 

    The data from the CDC’s National Immunization Survey estimates that 37.6% of Americans ages 65 and older had gotten a shot of this season’s updated COVID-19 vaccine by Nov. 2, compared with 22.6% of older adults by the same week in 2023.

    Younger adults are also outpacing last year’s rollout of COVID-19 shots, though not by the same large margin. 

    By contrast, uptake of influenza vaccines this fall among seniors – 55.3% by Nov. 2 – is almost the same as at this time last year. 

    Nearly all states are seeing COVID-19 vaccination rates in adults this year that are similar or better than this time last season, except for Idaho, the CDC’s survey data suggests.

    Rates among nursing home residents getting a COVID-19 vaccine are also better this year: 27% were reported “up to date” on this season’s shots through Nov. 3, compared with 21% by around the same time in 2023.

    More data on COVID-19 vaccinations among seniors is expected later this fall, as the CDC analyzes records gathered from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

    Health officials had been hoping for improved COVID-19 vaccination rates this year, after authorities worked to launch this year’s COVID shots closer to when the annual flu shot is also shipped out to doctor’s offices and pharmacies.

    Last year’s round of COVID-19 vaccines did not get off the ground in many places until late September, long after providers had already begun offering flu shots. CDC officials said that led to confusing messaging and logistical fumbles that may have hampered vaccination rates.

    “Weekly comparisons to previous season should take into account differences between seasons in vaccine availability dates. 2023–24 COVID-19 vaccines were first available mid-September 2023, and 2024–25 COVID-19 vaccines were first available at the end of August 2024,” according to a statement on the CDC website.

    November is a key milestone in the fall vaccination campaign every year, given that health authorities generally recommend most people get their flu shot by the end of October before infections start to climb. 

    People not yet vaccinated are still recommended to get a shot, as long as viruses could still be infecting people for the season.

    The CDC says that rates of COVID-19 and flu remain low nationwide, ahead of a wave that the agency’s disease forecasters expect could reach peak hospitalizations worse than those in this past summer’s COVID-19 wave.

    Alexander Tin

    Alexander Tin is a digital reporter for CBS News based in the Washington, D.C. bureau. He covers the Biden administration’s public health agencies, including the federal response to infectious disease outbreaks like COVID-19.



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