epidemic

Coronavirus FAQ: What does endemic mean — and are we there yet?

4:35pm March 11, 2022

by Sheila Mulrooney Eldred

Two years ago, on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic. Now there's talk that we may be approaching a new stage for SARS-CoV-2. Let's unpack the word "endemic."

"We need to get out ahead of this and do everything we possibly can here in Massachusetts — through and in the aftermath of the surge," said Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, in announcing his state's public health initiative April 3.

Health & Safety

Massachusetts Recruits 1,000 'Contact Tracers' To Battle COVID-19

9:42pm April 13, 2020

by Martha Bebinger

"I know we will succeed somewhat and we will fail somewhat," says one of the plan's chief architects. "We won't be able to find every single person — but we will hopefully prevent a lot of deaths."

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In a widely shared graphic, a tan curve represents a scenario without social distancing measures and where the U.S. hospital system becomes inundated with coronavirus patients.

Flattening A Pandemic's Curve: Why Staying Home Now Can Save Lives

7:21pm March 13, 2020

by Maria Godoy

From school closures to event cancellations, the disruptions are real — and vital. It's all to slow the spread of coronavirus, so hospitals don't get so overwhelmed that they can't treat the sickest.

Early symptoms of COVID-19 are much the same as those of the flu or a cold. Don't panic. Call your doctor to check in, if you're worried, but treating mild or moderate symptoms at home until you're well will protect you and help stop the spread of whateve

You Have A Fever And A Dry Cough. Now What?

2:16pm March 11, 2020

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Whether your mild or moderate symptoms mean you have a cold, the flu, or COVID-19 doesn't change the medical advice right now. Stay home, rest, and call or email your doctor if symptoms worsen.

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President Trump signs an $8.3 billion emergency spending bill in the White House Friday. That's significantly more than he originally requested from Congress.

Where That $8.3 Billion In U.S. Coronavirus Funding Will And Won't Go

1:33pm March 07, 2020

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

President Trump and Congress Friday authorized a package of emergency funding to help and treat and slow the spread of COVID-19. About $950 million is designated for state and local response.

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Viral particles are colorized purple in this color-enhanced transmission electron micrograph from a COVID-19 patient in the United States. Computer modeling can help epidemiologists predict how and where the illness will move next.

How Computer Modeling Of COVID-19's Spread Could Help Fight The Virus

9:40am March 04, 2020

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

As the world watches the outbreak of a novel coronavirus, epidemiologists are watching simulations of that outbreak on their computers to try to predict what might happen next.

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This building at University of Nebraska Medical Center/Nebraska Health in Omaha has 41 isolation beds, some now used to treat patients who have COVID-19.

Lessons From U.S. Hospitals Caring For COVID-19 Patients

4:06pm March 02, 2020

by Patti Neighmond

To keep the new coronavirus from spreading in the U.S., hospitals say they need new and sustained funding for good epidemiology as well as more masks, gowns and gloves.

"It's not going to be transported on a box," Dr. Michael Ison, an infectious disease specialist at Northwestern University, says of your chances of contracting the novel coronavirus from packages shipped from China.

No, You Won't Catch The New Coronavirus Via Packages Or Mail From China

6:01pm February 03, 2020

by Allison Aubrey

Experts in infectious disease say viruses such as the novel coronavirus don't survive long on surfaces, and there's no evidence from similar outbreaks that anyone got infected by handling a package.

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Science

Massive Starfish Die-Off Is Tied To Global Warming

3:16pm January 30, 2019

by Rebecca Hersher

Sea stars along the Pacific Coast are dying in the largest disease epidemic ever documented in a wild marine species. New research suggests warmer water is making the disease even more deadly.

A skull discovered at a sacred Aztec temple. A new study analyzed DNA extracted from the teeth of people who died in a 16th century epidemic that destroyed the Aztec empire, and found a type of salmonella may have caused the epidemic.

Salmonella May Have Caused Massive Aztec Epidemic, Study Finds

11:13am January 15, 2018

by Rebecca Hersher

The 16th century epidemic, likely set off or exacerbated by European invaders, was one of the most deadly in human history. New evidence traces it to a type of salmonella that causes a deadly fever.