TB vaccination increases coronavirus immune response, Omicron related to increase in croup in newborns

The following is a synopsis of some recent COVID-19 research. They contain research that need more investigation to confirm the conclusions and has not yet been validated by peer review.
New evidence suggests that the Omicron version of the coronavirus is associated to an increase in instances of croup in kids. Croup is a serious respiratory ailment that affects babies and toddlers.

Croup occurs when viruses induce swelling in the respiratory system, making it difficult to breathe, and generates a characteristic barking-like cough and high-pitched noises when patients inhale. Emergency physicians at Boston Children’s Hospital treated 75 children with croup from the start of the pandemic through mid-January 2022, all but one of whom had COVID infections.

The majority of the youngsters were given steroids and went home, but a few needed to be sent to the hospital. The youngsters required larger treatment dosages in general than children with croup caused by other viruses, according to the experts. In a statement, research leader Dr. Ryan Brewster stated, “There was a very clear separation between when Omicron became the prevalent form to when we started observing a jump in the number of croup patients.” While several viruses can cause croup, parents should be aware that their kid may have COVID-19 and should consider having themselves and other family members tested, according to the researchers.
The tuberculosis vaccination boosts the immune system’s response to the coronavirus. A new study reveals how a TB vaccination might protect against COVID-19.

People who had the so-called BCG vaccination as children had decreased rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection early in the epidemic, according to research. Animals vaccinated with BCG had less pneumonia caused to COVID-19 and lower amounts of the coronavirus in their lungs, according to new research in hamsters. Doctors at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore discovered significant variations in lung cells in SARS-CoV-2 infected rats who had or did not get the BCG vaccination, according to a paper published on bioRxiv on Tuesday.

When the BCG-treated animals were infected with the coronavirus, antibodies arrived considerably faster, lung repair mechanisms kicked in much faster, and tissue-damaging inflammation was reduced, according to coauthor Dr. William Bishai. Researchers in India published a tiny study earlier this month on the effects of BCG on recipients of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine. They reported on Research Square https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-1395683/v1 that the 21 participants who had received the TB vaccination had much “more powerful” antibody- and T-cell assaults against the coronavirus than the 13 people who had not. prior to peer review The Johns Hopkins researchers believes that combining BCG and COVID-19 vaccinations might provide “synergistic protection.”

Critically sick COVID-19 patients generally take far longer to regain consciousness than the normal patient after being removed off a mechanical ventilator, according to researchers. During the first two surges of the pandemic, they looked at data on 795 people who were hospitalised with severe COVID-19 at three medical centres. They were all unconscious for at least six days while on mechanical ventilation. 72 percent of those who were removed from respiratory support ultimately regained awareness, although 25% took at least 10 days to wake up, and 10% took 23 days or more. The researchers found in Annals of Neurology that patients who had undergone the most bouts of oxygen deprivation took the longest to regain consciousness.

In a statement, Dr. Jan Claassen of New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center said, “Our findings suggest that for patients with severe COVID, the decision to withdraw life support should not be based solely on prolonged periods of unconsciousness, as these patients may eventually recover.” In a statement, Classen’s colleague, Dr. Brian Edlow of the Massachusetts General Hospital, stated, “These findings provide us with more precise information to help families who are contemplating whether to continue life-sustaining care in unaware COVID-19 patients.”