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As hospitals give more and more COVID-19 patients albuterol to help them breathe, people with asthma may have a hard time getting an inhaler. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) said some areas of the United States are experiencing shortages of albuterol inhalers, and the shortage may spread. But Dr. Michael Blaiss, executive medical director of the ACAAI, emphasized that it is “nothing to panic about.” Manufacturers are trying to keep up with the unexpected surge in demand, he said. Production issues are not to blame. “No one should panic or hoard albuterol, though since you need a prescription, it’s not possible to hoard like toilet paper. But don’t put your albuterol asthma inhalers on autofill. If your asthma is under optimal control, an inhaler should last you more than a year,” Blaiss said. And, if you can’t get an albuterol inhaler from your pharmacy, Blaiss said it’s important to know there are other options. Patients with COVID-19 infections were initially treated with nebulizers, a common way to treat breathing problems in hospitals, and sometimes at home. But recent research suggested that when aerosolized, the coronavirus could hang in the air for a while, and some nebulizers might aerosolize the virus particles, Blaiss explained. So, out of caution, many hospitals have switched to the use of albuterol inhalers. Albuterol is a medication… read on >

Stressed-out parents should reach out to others for support during the coronavirus pandemic, child health experts say. As the number of coronavirus cases rise and families spend long periods in isolation, parents face unique financial and emotional stresses. Research shows that family stress puts kids at increased risk of abuse, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The academy advises parents and other child caregivers to take time to look after themselves, including eating a healthy diet, exercising and getting enough sleep. It’s also important to maintain connections via phone or video to friends, family and others who can provide support, the AAP said in a news release. “During this time of understandable anxiety, give back and reach out to other parents when they need support,” AAP president Dr. Sara Goza advised. “If someone calls you frustrated about a crying baby or screaming toddler, offer to help.” Kids may display signs of increased stress if they’re isolated at home with their families for a long time, which can increase frustration for the entire family. Dr. Robert Sege, a member of the AAP Council on Child Abuse and Neglect, said, “Sadly, about five children die every day in America from abuse and neglect. No doubt, we are worried about the financial and emotional stress this pandemic is placing on families, especially the most vulnerable.” His… read on >

Could a blood pressure or diabetes medicine make COVID-19 more severe? A proposed new theory says the coronavirus could be binding to angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors in the lower respiratory tracts. Commonly used drugs ACE inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs), often used to control heart failure and blood pressure, can increase the number of ACE2 receptors in the body — making these patients more susceptible to severe COVID-19. Dr. James Diaz, a professor at Louisiana State University’s School of Public Health in New Orleans, warned of the possible risk in a letter to the editor published online March 24 in the Journal of Travel Medicine, based on an analysis of nearly 1,100 COVID-19 patients by Chinese researchers. That analysis found COVID-19 patients with high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes or chronic kidney disease often required treatment in an intensive care unit, were placed on ventilators or died. Diaz wrote these patients all had conditions that probably were treated with ACE inhibitors or ARBs and called for studies to see if these drugs were at least partially responsible for the severe outcomes. Diaz said the Chinese researchers did not include information on whether the patients studied were taking these drugs. However, cardiologists like Dr. David Kass, a professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, are urging that “people who take… read on >

Less than half of patients with a sports-related mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) recover within two weeks, new research shows. “This study challenges current perceptions that most people with a sports-related mTBI recover within 10 to 14 days,” said lead author Dr. Stephen Kara, from Axis Sports Medicine in Auckland, New Zealand. He and his colleagues analyzed recovery time in nearly 600 patients in New Zealand treated during a two-year period for sports-related mTBI. More than 3 out of 4 were male, and their average age was 20. About 7.5% were under age 12. All patients followed a standard protocol. It included 48 hours of “relative rest,” meaning they avoided mental and physical tasks that could aggravate their head injury. They then gradually increased such tasks. After 14 days, 45% of patients had recovered, the study found. Recovery rose to 77% after four weeks and to 96% eight weeks after injury. Recovery time was similar across all age groups. However, current guidelines from the global Concussion in Sports Group (CISG) say that nearly all sports-related concussions resolve within 10 days. U.S. guidelines for youth concussions call for follow-up care from a health care provider after the emergency room visit, then a plan for gradual return to school and play when fully recovered. Each person should be evaluated individually. The study findings appear in the March… read on >

Technology can help you maintain social connections if you’re staying home during the coronavirus pandemic, an expert says. “When using technology to stay connected, prioritize keeping deeper, meaningful connections with people,” said Stephen Benning, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Benning suggests using Skype or other video messaging to see and hear from people who are important to you. An old-fashioned phone call will let you maintain vocal connection, and your favorite social media site’s messaging app will let you keep an individual or group dialog going. “In these deep, close, personalized connections, it’s OK to share your anxieties and fears. Validating that other people are concerned or even scared can help them feel like they are grounded in reality,” he said. But don’t stop there, Benning added. “Use these deep connections to plan out what to do, to take concrete actions to live the lives you want,” he suggested in a university news release. “To the extent possible, share hobbies or other pursuits together if you’re shut off from work or other personal strivings for success.” Hold book clubs on speakerphone or group meetings on Zoom. Find online versions of bridge, board games, role-playing adventures or other diversions. Make a date with friends to watch a show or movie on TV or streaming media, and share your reactions… read on >

You went jogging and developed a cough. You did some yard work and now you’re wheezing. Maybe your throat is scratchy. Your first thought is: Do I have COVID-19? The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has posted a new coronavirus self-checker on its website that might ease your mind and steer you toward any medical help you might need. The worst part about the coronavirus pandemic is the way the admittedly vague symptoms of the infectious disease plays tricks on your mind, experts say. “There’s a lot of symptoms here that are going to be nonspecific, as with any upper respiratory infection, and the fact is that many cases of coronavirus are very mild,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar with the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security in Baltimore. “You’re going to have people who don’t know what to do.” The CDC’s website has a tracker to help figure out if you have anything to worry about. The web tool first asks if you are ill or caring for someone who’s ill, and where you are located. It gathers basic information such as age and gender. The tracker then asks about a series of life-threatening symptoms, including some that aren’t at all related to COVID-19. These include gasping for air, blue-colored lips or face, severe pain or pressure in the chest,… read on >

Fostering a shelter animal during the coronavirus pandemic could benefit both of you, an animal welfare group says. “Shelters are swamped in the best of times, and with more and more staff in every sector of American life self-quarantining and falling ill, animals already abandoned and without homes are going to be increasingly vulnerable,” said Robin Ganzert, president and CEO of American Humane. “At the same time, so many of us, especially the elderly, are coping with the loneliness, stress and anxiety that comes with isolation and the sheltering in place so necessary during a pandemic,” she said in an organization news release. “Why be home alone when you can snuggle up with a loving new buddy? You might save a life, improve your own during these trying times, and end up with a new best friend.” Each year, 4 million to 6 million animals end up in U.S. shelters and more than 1.5 million are euthanized. As shelter workers are hit by the coronavirus and false rumors spread about its transmission from pets to people, shelter animals will need help more than ever, according to American Humane. The benefits of fostering a shelter animal go both ways, the association said. Engaging with animals has been shown to reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol and to lower blood pressure, according to the U.S. National… read on >

With bogus information about the new coronavirus spreading fast online, how can you separate fact from fiction? A communications expert at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg said identifying reliable and useful sources of information is key. Here’s her advice: “Be skeptical of social media posts about the COVID-19 virus, even those that have the superficial look of news items, and check their sources and accuracy,” said Adrienne Ivory, associate professor of communication at Virginia Tech. “If you are not sure whether a source of information can be trusted, check multiple news sources to see if the information is consistent across them.” Always check social media claims about coronavirus prevention and treatment against official sources such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And, Ivory added, pay attention to summary information in news stories, instead of individual anecdotes. “Interesting examples of people and events related to the COVID-19 virus may be true, but not typical,” she said in a Virginia Tech news release. “In addition to reading stories about individuals, pay attention to general information summarizing more broad populations (numbers of cases, rate of growth, hospitalization rates by age group) because it may be more relevant and representative.” Ivory suggested seeking out information that helps you and others stay healthy, not information that worries you. “Much of the most ‘viral’ news you encounter in social… read on >

In a bit of good news about the novel coronavirus, one expert says it looks like livestock and poultry don’t appear to be at risk from COVID-19. The coronavirus most likely jumped from an animal species into humans and mutated into a virus that mostly affects people, said Jim Roth, director of the Center for Food Security and Public Health at Iowa State University. “If livestock were getting the virus and getting sick we’d most likely know that from what’s gone on in other countries,” Roth said in a university news release. “It does seem to be pretty species-specific to people,” said Roth, a professor of veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine. Researchers are examining the possibility that livestock might develop minor infections or carry the coronavirus, but the virus is still too new for any firm conclusions at this time, he explained. The low level of risk to livestock and poultry is good news for U.S. livestock producers, meat packers and consumers, who could use some stability as uncertainty about the coronavirus restricts many normal daily activities, Roth noted. However, he added that the coronavirus could disrupt the U.S. food supply by causing workforce shortages for the meat packing industry. Meat packing, processing and distribution occurs around the clock, and fresh meat has a limited shelf life, so if a significant portion of meat packing… read on >

It has spread across the globe in just a few short months, sickening hundreds of thousands, but the new coronavirus has the dubious distinction of not really being a living organism, biologists say. “Viruses aren’t considered alive — in class, I call them pseudo-alive,” said Eric Mendenhall, an associate professor of biological sciences at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. “They require a host to even begin to function. However, since they use DNA or RNA to pass information to the next round of viruses the cell makes for them, they are subject to some of the same principles of evolution and selection that alive organisms are subject to,” he explained in a university news release. “A virus usually enters the cell through a protein our cells have on their surface. COVID-19 — and SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome] before that — use a protein called ACE2, which is on the surface of the cells in our lung, throat and intestinal tract,” Mendenhall said. Coronaviruses are a category of viruses that typically infect mammals and birds; there were only six that could infect humans before COVID-19 showed up. “Four cause mild symptoms, like a cold,” Mendenhall said. “SARS was quite famous in 2003 but not seen since 2004, I believe, and MERS [Middle East respiratory syndrome], which is also deadly and is found in camels… read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Another Coronavirus Health Threat: Too Few Asthma Inhalers

A Parent’s Guide to Fighting Coronavirus Stress

Common Heart Drugs’ Risk With COVID-19 Unproven, Experts Say

Recovery From Mild Brain Trauma Takes Longer Than Expected: Study

Staying at Home During the Pandemic? Use Technology to Stay Connected

Cough, Fever, Fatigue? Head to CDC’s Online Coronavirus Symptom Checker

Shelter Animals Need Your Help During the Pandemic

An Expert’s Guide to Fact-Checking Coronavirus Info Online

Livestock, Poultry Safe From Coronavirus: Expert

Coronavirus Isn’t Even ‘Alive,’ But Expert Explains How It Can Harm