Why common sense isn’t so common CLINICAL MATTERS Throughout the pandemic, there were many instances when scientists and doctors were attacked by a mix of anti-science trolls, anti-vaxxers, and Covid-19 denialists. As authorities and healthcare workers raced to save lives using evidence-based...
A new study published on Dec. 6, 2022, in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology details a previously unknown way that the immune system attacks viral intruders inside the nose — and finds it works better when it's warm. (AFP) WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Chilly weather...
CLINICAL MATTERS DR. EDSEL SALVANA It has been more than a month since we shifted to voluntary masking. Full face-to-face classes have been going on for some time now. Despite many misgivings, Covid-19 cases in the Philippines have remained stable. Healthcare utilization remains low. Many are...
Since before Covid-19, infectious diseases experts have been raising the alarm on rising antimicrobial resistance CLINICAL MATTERS DR. EDSEL SALVANA Before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, infectious diseases experts were already raising the alarm on the threat of antimicrobial resistance. In...
DR. EDSEL SALVANA CLINICAL MATTERS It is now over two weeks from the lifting of mask mandates indoors. As expected, cases are up by about 43 percent. This is from less than 1,000 cases a day the week before to 1,296 through the week of Nov. 7 to 13. During this period, there were only six new...
Will we need to get vaccines periodically? CLINICAL MATTERS With the seemingly unending emergence of new Covid-19 variants, many people are starting to question whether the pandemic will truly end. Despite an unprecedented vaccination rollout, daily case numbers remain in the thousands and many...
Monkeypox, Centaurus, and the future of the pandemic CLINICAL MATTERS As an infectious diseases doctor, I know the names of hundreds of pathogens that can kill you in many horrible ways. From brain-eating amoeba to a virus that liquefies your internal organs into a bloody mess, to bacteria that eat...
A trip to put Covid-19 in perspective CLINICAL MATTERS I am writing this column on a train just like the one last week, but this time toward the end of our journey on the way from Seward to Anchorage, Alaska. It is 10 p.m. at night, and daylight is still strong. In this part of the world, the sun...
Reviewing quarantine, isolation, and why these are still important CLINICAL MATTERS After a very quiet few months following the Omicron wave in January, cases are once again on the rise. Many of us were expecting thousands of cases shortly after elections but this never materialized. Indeed, WHO...
A new way of looking at Covid CLINICAL MATTERS Some media outfits and doomsayers continue to bandy the rising Covid-19 numbers and positivity rates in a way that tends to scare people into a panic. Alarmist headlines and overblown pronouncements of alleged impending lockdowns do not help. Covid-19...
How did candidates use the Covid pandemic in their discussions? CLINICAL MATTERS With an apparent landslide victory for former Senator Bongbong Marcos for president, the post-mortems have begun. One of the most important issues during the campaign was the pandemic and whether the Philippines did...
The men and women of science supporting the Philippine pandemic response CLINICAL MATTERS On April 29, 2022, the Department of Health (DOH) held a recognition program for the DOH All Health Experts with the theme: “Looking Back, Marching Forward: DOH All Health Experts Convening from Covid-19 to...
