Latest news with #Infection
Hans India
7 hours ago
- Health
- Hans India
Study finds potential biomarker for long Covid
US researchers have identified a potential biomarker for long Covid that may help develop better diagnostics and potential treatments for the condition. Currently, clinicians confer a diagnosis of long Covid based upon a collection of symptoms that patients develop after SARS-CoV-2 infection. The study, reported in the journal Infection, details the detection of SARS-CoV-2 protein fragments within extracellular vesicles (EVs) -- tiny, naturally occurring packages that help cells share proteins, metabolites, and other materials. "If a patient arrives in clinic and they relate the persistence of typical signs and symptoms of long Covid, 12 weeks or more after Covid-19 infection, I give them a presumptive diagnosis, but I don't have any blood tests or biomarkers to confirm this diagnosis," said William Stringer, from the Lundquist Institute for Biomedical Innovation at Harbor-UCLA Medical Centre. The new biomarker could be the first specific and quantifiable indicator for confirming long Covid. The researchers collected and analysed blood samples from 14 patients over 12 weeks of aerobic exercise training (56 samples in all) in a clinical trial on long Covid. The team found 65 distinct protein fragments from SARS-CoV-2 inside the EVs. These fragments come from the virus's Pp1ab protein -- an RNA Replicase enzyme which is key to how the virus copies itself and makes other viral particles. This protein is found uniquely in SARS-CoV-2, and not in uninfected human cells, noted Asghar Abbasi, another researcher from Lundquist Institute. Significantly, the researchers found that these viral peptides were demonstrated in each subject, but not in each blood draw, in the EVs of long Covid patients and were not detected in a separate control group of pre-pandemic EV samples. Although the identified peptides originated from one of the virus's largest proteins, the researchers did not detect other comparably large proteins indicative of active viral replication. The peptides contained in the EVs may be just molecular "trash" left over after the formation of new viral proteins, they said. "We haven't run [our tests] on people without long Covid symptoms who are currently, or who were, infected with Covid," said Stringer. "This raises the question: is this just continuing to take out the trash from the Covid-infected cell, or is this really ongoing replication someplace? I think that's the mechanistic issue that needs to be resolved in future studies."
The Star
03-08-2025
- Health
- The Star
DA raises alarm over rising nosocomial infections in Gauteng hospitals
The Democratic Alliance has sounded the alarm over what it calls a 'growing health crisis' in Gauteng's public hospitals, where an increasing number of patients are reportedly contracting new infections due to unsanitary conditions, overcrowding, and neglect. This revelation follows a DA inquiry in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, which revealed that 7,743 patients acquired nosocomial infections while receiving care in public hospitals in 2024, many of them antibiotic-resistant and potentially life-threatening. DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health, Jack Bloom, explained that the infections, known as nosocomial infections, occur when patients contract illnesses during their hospital stay that are unrelated to their original condition. He pointed out that Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Hospital (CMJH) had the highest incidence, with 1,473 out of 12,940 patients in 2024 contracting nosocomial infections, an alarming 11%, meaning roughly one in every ten patients was affected. Bloom also stated that nosocomial infections are more prevalent in higher-level hospitals due to the nature of their work, treating more complex cases, longer patient stays, frequent invasive procedures, and increased antibiotic use. He lamented that many of these infections are easily preventable with proper hygiene and stricter infection control measures. 'I am concerned that many patients are getting infections that can be easily avoided with basic improvements like decent cleaning and adequate linen. Imagine the extra pain and suffering of patients who pick up infections that extend their stay in the hospital and can even be life-threatening.' He also emphasised that linen shortages are a contributing factor, forcing patients to reuse bedding and pyjamas for extended periods. 'Surgical patients, in particular, face increased risks due to the hospital's inability to provide clean linen both before and after operations,' said Bloom. However, Bloom stressed that while a certain number of hospital-acquired infections may occur even in well-managed facilities, urgent intervention is needed at the most affected institutions, particularly Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Hospital. He added that this is yet another reason why the hospital's CEO, Gladys Bogoshi, should be swiftly replaced with a capable and experienced professional. In response to the alarming surge in hospital-acquired infections, Gauteng Department of Health spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said several crucial measures have been implemented to curb the spread of nosocomial infections and enhance patient safety across public hospitals. 'A dedicated Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) committee has been established to oversee the implementation of IPC guidelines across healthcare facilities in the province. This committee convenes monthly to identify and address challenges faced by these facilities.' He further stated that Gauteng MEC for Health and Wellness, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, assured that an Infection Prevention and Control Assessment Framework (IPCAF) evaluation was conducted to gauge compliance with infection control measures in healthcare facilities. The results were shared with hospital management, and six facilities were flagged as underperforming during the assessment. "Six healthcare facilities were identified as underperforming during the IPCAF assessment, leading to enforcement letters being issued to the CEOs of those hospitals. The IPC committee conducted follow-up visits to non-compliant hospitals, guiding them to develop Quality Improvement Plans and monitor their implementation," said Modiba. Modiba stressed that the department has rolled out a province-wide monitoring system to track and respond to hospital-acquired infections, with teams conducting regular checks to detect outbreaks early. 'IPC practitioners conduct daily, weekly, and monthly surveillance activities to monitor infection trends and identify microorganisms responsible for HAIs,' Modiba said. Modiba added that Antimicrobial Stewardship teams have been established to ensure antibiotics are used correctly and to curb resistance. He also noted that the department is offering refresher training for Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practitioners. 'This training equips healthcare workers with up-to-date IPC practices, and participants are awarded a certificate of competence upon completion,' he said. Other hospitals with a worrying number of hospital-acquired infections include: Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital (CHBH) - 1796 (6%) out of 31 950 admissions. Edenvale Hospital - 407 (8%) out of 5166 admissions. Kalafong Hospital - 554 (6%) out of 8952 admissions. Tembisa Hospital - 596 (5%) out of 13 116 admissions. Rahima Moosa Hospital - 217 (5%) out of 4320 admissions. Leratong Hospital - 365 (4%) out of 1026 admissions. Pholosong Hospital - 249 (4%) out of 5796 admissions. The Star [email protected]
CBS News
10-03-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Hospital gun-violence prevention programs may be caught in federal funding crossfire
Seven years ago, Erica Green learned through a Facebook post that her brother had been shot. She rushed to check on him at a hospital run by Denver Health, the city's safety-net system, but she was unable to get information from emergency room workers, who complained that she was creating a disturbance. "I was distraught and outside, crying, and Jerry came out of the front doors," she said. Jerry Morgan is a familiar face from Green's Denver neighborhood. He had rushed to the hospital after his pager alerted him to the shooting. As a violence prevention professional with the At-Risk Intervention and Mentoring program, or AIM, Morgan supports gun-violence patients and their families at the hospital — as he did the day Green's brother was shot. "It made the situation of that traumatic experience so much better. After that, I was, like, I want to do this work," Green said. Today, Green works with Morgan as the program manager for AIM, a hospital-linked violence intervention program launched in 2010 as a partnership between Denver Health and the nonprofit Denver Youth Program. It since has expanded to include Children's Hospital Colorado and the University of Colorado Hospital. AIM is one of dozens of hospital-linked violence intervention programs around the country. The programs aim to uncover the social and economic factors that contributed to someone ending up in the ER with a bullet wound: inadequate housing, job loss, or feeling unsafe in one's neighborhood, for example. Such programs that take a public health approach to stopping gun violence have had success — one in San Francisco reported a fourfold reduction in violent injury recidivism rates over six years. But President Trump's executive orders calling for the review of the Biden administration's gun policies and trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans have created uncertainty around the programs' long-term federal funding. Some organizers believe their programs will be just fine, but others are looking to shore up alternative funding sources. "We've been worried about, if a domino does fall, how is it going to impact us? There's a lot of unknowns," said John Torres, associate director for Youth Alive, an Oakland, California-based nonprofit. Federal data shows that gun violence became a leading cause of death among children and young adults at the start of this decade and was tied to more than 48,000 deaths among people of all ages in 2022. New York-based pediatric trauma surgeon Chethan Sathya, a National Institutes of Health-funded firearms injury prevention researcher, believes those statistics show that gun violence can't be ignored as a health care issue. "It's killing so many people," Sathya said. Research shows that a violent injury puts someone at heightened risk for future ones, and the risk of death goes up significantly by the third violent injury, according to a 2006 study published in The Journal of Trauma: Injury, Infection and Critical Care. Benjamin Li, an emergency medicine physician at Denver Health and the health system's AIM medical director, said the ER is an ideal setting to intervene in gun violence by working to reverse-engineer what led to a patient's injuries. "If you are just seeing the person, patching them up, and then sending them right back into the exact same circumstances, we know it's going to lead to them being hurt again," Li said. "It's critical we address the social determinants of health and then try to change the equation." That might mean providing alternative solutions to gunshot victims who might otherwise seek retaliation, said Paris Davis, the intervention programs director for Youth Alive. "If that's helping them relocate out of the area, if that's allowing them to gain housing, if that's shifting that energy into education or job or, you know, family therapy, whatever the needs are for that particular case and individual, that is what we provide," Davis said. AIM outreach workers meet gunshot wound victims at their hospital bedsides to have what Morgan, AIM's lead outreach worker, calls a tough, nonjudgmental conversation on how the patients ended up there. AIM uses that information to help patients access the resources they need to navigate their biggest challenges after they're discharged, Morgan said. Those challenges can include returning to school or work, or finding housing. AIM outreach workers might also attend court proceedings and assist with transportation to health care appointments. "We try to help in whatever capacity we can, but it's interdependent on whatever the client needs," Morgan said. Since 2010, AIM has grown from three full-time outreach workers to nine, and this year opened the REACH Clinic in Denver's Five Points neighborhood. The community-based clinic provides wound-care kits; physical therapy; and behavioral, mental and occupational health care. In the coming months, it plans to add bullet removal to its services. It's part of a growing movement of community-based clinics focused on violent injuries, including the Bullet Related Injury Clinic in St. Louis. Ginny McCarthy, an assistant professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Colorado, described REACH as an extension of the hospital-based work, providing holistic treatment in a single location and building trust between health care providers and communities of color that have historically experienced racial biases in medical care. Caught in the Crossfire, created in 1994 and run by Youth Alive in Oakland, is cited as the nation's first hospital-linked violence intervention program and has since inspired others. The Health Alliance for Violence Intervention, a national network initiated by Youth ALIVE to advance public health solutions to gun violence, counted 74 hospital-linked violence intervention programs among its membership as of January. The alliance's executive director, Fatimah Loren Dreier, compared medicine's role in addressing gun violence to that of preventing an infectious disease, like cholera. "That disease spreads if you don't have good sanitation in places where people aggregate," she said. Dreier, who also serves as executive director of the Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education, said medicine identifies and tracks patterns that lead to the spread of a disease or, in this case, the spread of violence. "That is what health care can do really well to shift society. When we deploy this, we get better outcomes for everybody," Dreier said. The alliance, of which AIM is a member, offers technical assistance and training for hospital-linked violence intervention programs and successfully petitioned to make their services eligible for traditional insurance reimbursement. In 2021, President Joe Biden issued an executive action that opened the door for states to use Medicaid for violence prevention. Several states, including California, New York, and Colorado, have passed legislation establishing a Medicaid benefit for hospital-linked violence intervention programs. Last summer, then-U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared gun violence a public health crisis, and the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act earmarked $1.4 billion in funding for a wide array of violence-prevention programs through next year. But in early February, Mr. Trump issued an executive order instructing the U.S. attorney general to conduct a 30-day review of a number of Biden's policies on gun violence. The White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention now appears to be defunct, and recent moves to freeze federal grants created uncertainty among the gun-violence prevention programs that receive federal funding. AIM receives 30% of its funding from its operating agreement with Denver's Office of Community Violence Solutions, according to Li. The rest is from grants, including Victims of Crime Act funding, through the Department of Justice. As of mid-February, Mr. Trump's executive orders had not affected AIM's current funding. Some who work with the hospital-linked violence prevention programs in Colorado are hoping a new voter-approved firearms and ammunition excise tax in the state, expected to generate about $39 million annually and support victim services, could be a new source of funding. But the tax's revenues aren't expected to fully flow until 2026, and it's not clear how that money will be allocated. Trauma surgeon and public health researcher Catherine Velopulos, who is the AIM medical director at the University of Colorado hospital in Aurora, said any interruption in federal funding, even for a few months, would be "very difficult for us." But Velopulos said she was reassured by the bipartisan support for the kind of work AIM does. "People want to oversimplify the problem and just say, 'If we get rid of guns, it's all going to stop,' or 'It doesn't matter what we do, because they're going to get guns, anyway,'" she said. "What we really have to address is why people feel so scared that they have to arm themselves." KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.
