Search Results for coronavirus

The World Health Organization doesn’t recommend ivermectin as a COVID-19 treatment; the drug’s safety and effectiveness remains uncertain in COVID-19 patients

Repurposing existing drugs is a helpful strategy that can accelerate the approval of new treatments against a disease. However, simply because a drug works against one disease isn’t evidence that it will work for another. Therefore, even existing drugs used for one disease still need to demonstrate that they are safe and effective in the context of another disease. While some studies suggest that ivermectin might have a beneficial effect in COVID-19 patients, they don’t provide sufficient evidence to recommend ivermectin as a COVID-19 treatment due to potential biases and small sample sizes.

Infectious diseases are caused by microorganisms; other factors may determine an individual’s susceptibility to infection, but the microorganism is still the cause

Factors like nutrition, genetics and age can influence an individual’s susceptibility to a microorganism, such as a virus or a bacteria. These factors make individuals more or less likely to develop infections after they were exposed to a microorganism. That being said, even individuals who are young and healthy can develop infectious diseases because the cause of infectious diseases is still the microorganism.

Scientific evidence supports the use of face masks to reduce COVID-19 spread, mainly by preventing infectious liquid particles from reaching uninfected people

Evidence indicates that contact with infectious liquid particles is the main mode of COVID-19 transmission. Masks act as a simple physical barrier to reduce the dissemination of these liquid particles generated by people when they cough, sneeze, or speak. Several published studies showed that face masks reduce the spread of viral infectious diseases like COVID-19. Wearing masks outdoors is also important if spending prolonged periods of time in close contact with other people.

Clinical trials and post-trial monitoring show that COVID-19 vaccines reduce the spread and occurrence of the disease

The COVID-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have demonstrated their safety and effectiveness at preventing the disease. Estimations for the lethality of a disease cannot be extrapolated to individuals, since the probability of an individual dying from a disease depends on their own characteristics, such as age and preexisting conditions.

COVID-19 related deaths are indeed caused by COVID-19 and not by contributing health conditions

Underlying cause of death is defined as a medical condition that triggers a chain of clinical events that leads to the death of a patient. Contributing medical conditions can either be a consequence of that underlying cause of death or a pre-existing condition that weakens a patient’s resistance to injuries or diseases and indirectly contributes to their death. COVID-19 is the underlying cause of death in the large majority of recorded COVID-19 related deaths.

The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines aren’t operating systems, and won’t transform the human body into a virus-making factory

The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are substances that stimulate the immune systems of vaccinated individuals to recognize and respond to infections with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. COVID-19 mRNA vaccines aren’t computer operating systems. mRNA vaccines are unable to stimulate the production of the virus that causes COVID-19, since they only carry information to produce the spike protein, which is present on the surface of SARS-CoV-2.

COVID-19 vaccines don’t hamper the function of the immune system and are likely to limit the generation of variants; no evidence that they produce more lethal variants

Data from clinical trials showed that COVID-19 vaccines are effective and safe. The available evidence indicates that people vaccinated against COVID-19 are protected from the disease and maintain functional immune systems. Virus variants emerge as the virus infects more people and acquires new mutations during the process of making more copies of itself. Because COVID-19 vaccines can prevent individuals from viral infections, they prevent the virus from spreading and limit the opportunity for new variants to emerge.

COVID-19 vaccines received Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA after clinical trials demonstrated that they are safe and effective; COVID-19 vaccines aren’t experimental

Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) is a fast-track process for approving vaccines and drugs when their benefits outweigh the potential risks to a population. EUA is well-suited for addressing ongoing global health threats, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Three COVID-19 vaccines received EAU from the FDA, after clinical data showed they were effective at protecting vaccinated individuals against the disease and had few risks for the general population. Continued monitoring of vaccinated populations is a standard procedure to increase our knowledge about a vaccine’s benefits and risk in a real world setting.

Going vegan may lead to fewer pandemics, but it won’t eliminate them completely

Zoonotic pathogens are microbes that jump from animals into humans and some zoonotic diseases do lead to global pandemics. However, because there are many routes that these pathogens can take to get into human populations, going vegan will not completely eliminate pandemics. It may lead to fewer pandemics, but a vegan world will not be a pandemic-free world.

Clinical trials showed that the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is safe; its side effects are mostly mild

The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine may cause mild and short-lived side effects such as fever, headache or fatigue. None of these effects have long-lasting consequences. Severe allergic reactions to the vaccine may occur, but these are rare and can be treated. Vaccination has been effective in eradicating polio from the vast majority of developing countries, preventing an estimated 16 million cases and 1.5 million deaths worldwide. While vaccine-derived polio cases do occur, they are very rare and can be avoided by improving sanitation and vaccine coverage in vulnerable communities.