health sciences
-
What Are ‘Comorbidities,’ Anyway?
Rochelle Walensky, the CDC director, recently said it was “encouraging news” that most people who have died of COVID-19 had multiple comorbidities. While I’d disagree with the “encouraging” part, I think it’s important to take a look at what comorbidities really are.
-
How Many COVID Vaccine Shots Do You Need If You’re Immunocompromised?
The CDC has cleared up one of the ambiguities in its recent COVID-19 booster shot recommendations: If you got a third shot of one of the mRNA vaccines because you have a weakened immune system, that third shot is not considered your booster. You can still get a booster, if you fall into one of…
-
How to Make Holiday Plans That Don’t Involve Getting COVID, According to the CDC
Remember holiday season 2020? We argued that the safest move was to have Thanksgiving at home and postpone big Christmas gatherings to next year, when we would hopefully all have vaccines. (The first COVID vaccines were authorised in December, if you’ll recall.) This year, things are different, but we’re not out of the woods yet.…
-
How Vaccine Side Effects Compare to COVID Symptoms
The COVID-19 vaccines have become somewhat notorious for their side effects: fatigue, sore arm, maybe a fever. In a few rare cases, there are more serious complications, like inflammation of the heart. So is it riskier to get a vaccine or to take your chances with COVID itself?