Protein subunit vaccines work by injecting people with a tiny portion of a virus. In the case of the COVID-19 vaccine, that tiny portion is the spike protein that the coronavirus uses to enter cells.
If the Food and Drug Administration authorizes use of the drug, called molnupiravir, it would be the first oral COVID-19 treatment that could be taken at home.
The FDA is considering new pills that could treat people in early stages of COVID. Here's what to know about how they work, how effective they are and the impact they could make on the pandemic.
Service dogs have long helped veterans with vision or mobility problems. Now the PAWS Veterans Therapy Act will help connect specially trained dogs to some veterans with symptoms of traumatic stress.
Scientists have begun to find abnormalities in the immune systems of some long-COVID patients that might help explain the syndrome, at least in some people. But there is still much more to learn.
Kids who need hormone-blocking drugs to prevent premature puberty — or delay it if they're trans — have lost a more affordable option. The remaining nearly identical drug costs eight times more.
A concussion can make it difficult to converse in a noisy room. Scientists say that's because the injury has impaired the brain's ability to process sounds.
Hospitals and doctors are facing more demands for ivermectin as a Covid-19 treatment, despite no proof it works. In some Republican-dominated states, lawmakers and attorney generals are weighing in.
The companies studied a 10 microgram vaccine dose in children 5 to 11, a third of the dose used for adults, to minimize side effects and because it still prompts a strong immune response.
The Food and Drug Administration also gave an OK to boosters that differ from the vaccine originally used to immunize people against COVID-19. A mix-and-match approach could ease the booster rollout.
A panel of experts voted to recommend that the Food and Drug Administration authorize a booster dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine at least two months after the first shot.
The recommendation applies to people 65 years and older, those 18 to 64 who are at high risk of severe COVID and those whose work or institutional exposure puts them at high COVID risk.
Should people who get a COVID booster get a different vaccine from their original shot? The results of a highly anticipated study suggest that in some cases the answer may be yes.
