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<ul><li>The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed a new AI model that detects <keyword id="9140539" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="asymptomatic-covid-19-patients">asymptomatic COVID-19 patients</keyword> by analysing the sounds of their coughs. </li><li>The long term plan is to make this AI model accessible on a large scale by incorporating the model into a user friendly app.</li><li>The AI model uses four algorithms to run its analysis and is able to accurately identify 98.5% of coughs from people who were confirmed to have COVID-19 and detected those who didn’t have any symptoms but tested positive with 100% accuracy.</li></ul>The COVID-19 patients who exhibit no symptoms (are asymptomatic) are harder to trace because they don’t know they are sick. However, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (<a href="https://news.mit.edu/2020/covid-19-cough-cellphone-detection-1029">MIT</a>) may have found a way around that using artificial intelligence (AI). MIT’s new AI model can detect who may be carrying the virus, even without any discernible physical symptoms, just by hearing the way a person coughs. The salient differences between the cough of a healthy person and that of one who may be unhealthy is not discernible to the human ear but can be picked up by AI. “Things we easily derive from fluent speech, AI can pick up simply from coughs, including things like the person’s gender, mother tongue, or even emotional state. There’s in fact sentiment embedded in how you cough,” explained co-author Brian Subirana. The long term plan is to make this accessible on a large scale by incorporating the model into a user friendly app. If it receives the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, MIT hopes it can be a free, convenient, and non-invasive screening tool for coronavirus. MIT’s AI model detects asymptomatic COVID-19 patients with 100% accuracy The study, published in the IEEE Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology, used forced-cough recording, submitted by people voluntarily submitted through web browsers, smartphones, and laptops. Using this information, the AI model was trained using tens of thousands of coughs and spoken words. At the end of the experiment, it accurately identified 98.5% of coughs from people who were confirmed to have COVID-19. And detected those who didn’t have any symptoms but tested positive with 100% accuracy. An AI-model backed by four algorithms The AI model is a combination of three machine learning (ML) algorithms or neural networks. ResNet 50 can discriminate between sounds that are associated with different degrees of vocal cord strength. The second ML algorithm was trained to distinguish between different emotional states evident in speech. While certain tones may indicate frustration, others indicate happiness. The final and third neural network is a database of coughs that can discern changes in lung and respiratory performance. All three of these models were combined and one last algorithm was overlaid to filter all analysis and detect muscular degradation. The results showed that together — vocal cord strength, sentiment, lung and respiratory performance, and muscular degradation — were effective biomarkers for diagnosing the disease. “The sounds of talking and coughing are both influenced by the vocal cords and surrounding organs. This means that when you talk, part of your talking is like coughing and vice versa,” explained Subirana. This research was supported, in part, by Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/tata-communications-executive-explains-how-iot-is-expanding-beyond-manufacturing-and-which-sectors-are-showing-the-fastest-growth/articleshow/78924587.cms">EXCLUSIVE: Tata Communications’ IoT head explains how COVID is driving the next wave of Internet of Things</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/isro-is-set-for-its-first-launch-of-the-2020-on-november-7/articleshow/78926817.cms">ISRO's first launch of 2020 will carry 10 satellites aboard its PSLV workhorse rocket on November 7</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/largest-contact-tracing-app-aarogya-setu-in-the-world-comes-under-the-scanner-as-developers-refuse-to-answer-questions-around-its-creation/articleshow/78912462.cms">India's contact tracing app Aarogya Setu comes under the scanner again — three departments fail to explain their role in its development</a>

MIT has a new AI model that can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 patients just by the using the sound of their coughs recorded over phone calls

Some <keyword id="11003358" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="hospitalized-patients">hospitalized patients</keyword> with <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="covid-19">Covid-19</keyword> experience non-convulsive seizures, which may put them at a higher risk of dying, suggests a new study. The study, published in the Annals of Neurology, suggests that neurological complications may be an important contributor to the morbidity and mortality associated with Covid-19. "Most of these seizures are not obvious: Unlike seizures that make a person fall down and shake, or convulse, seizures in critically ill <keyword id="6364395" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="patients">patients</keyword> are usually <keyword id="11021594" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="nonconvulsive">nonconvulsive</keyword>," said researcher M. Brandon Westover from the <keyword id="576044" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Massachusetts-General-Hospital">Massachusetts General Hospital</keyword>. "There is increasing evidence that non-convulsive seizures can damage the brain and make outcomes worse, similar to convulsions," Westover added. For the study, the team analyzed medical information for 197 hospitalized patients with Covid-19 who underwent electroencephalogram (EEG) monitoring -- tests that detect electrical activity of the brain using small metal discs attached to the scalp. The EEG tests detected nonconvulsive seizures in 9.6 per cent of patients, some of whom had no prior neurological problems. Patients who had seizures needed to be hospitalized for a longer time, and they were four times more likely to die while in the hospital than patients without seizures -- suggesting that neurological complications may be an important contributor to the morbidity and mortality associated with Covid-19. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/inside-ritesh-agarwals-family-office-aroa-ventures-and-its-early-investments/articleshow/81772098.cms">EXCLUSIVE: Inside Ritesh Agarwal’s family office and its early investments</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/how-to-check-allotment-status-for-barbeque-nation-ipo/articleshow/81771792.cms">Barbeque Nation IPO – How to check allotment status, listing date and more</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/xiaomi-plans-to-enter-the-electric-vehicle-business-with-an-investment-outlay-of-10-billion/articleshow/81772965.cms">Xiaomi forays into the electric vehicle business with a $10 billion subsidiary</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/amazon-is-eyeing-india-startups-as-it-gears-up-for-a-fight-with-asia-richest-man-in-retail/articleshow/81773692.cms">Amazon is eyeing India's startups as it gears up for a fight with Asia's richest man in retail</a>

Hospitalised COVID-19 patients may experience 'not so obvious' seizures that increase the risk of death

<ul><li><keyword id="105572" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="glenmark-pharmaceuticals">Glenmark Pharmaceuticals</keyword> has announced that it has commenced a Post Marketing Surveillance (PMS) study on <keyword id="9431798" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="FabiFlu">FabiFlu</keyword> to closely monitor the efficacy and safety of the drug in 1000 <keyword id="8870383" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="covid-patients">Covid patients</keyword> that are prescribed with the oral antiviral. </li><li>Further, Glenmark has announced a price reduction of 27 per cent for FabiFlu. The new MRP is Rs 75 per tab from the earlier Rs 103 per tab.</li><li>The price reduction has been made possible through benefits gained from higher yields and better scale, as both the API and formulations are made at Glenmark's facilities in India, the benefits of which are being passed on to patients in the country.</li></ul> Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has announced that it has commenced a Post Marketing Surveillance (PMS) study on FabiFlu to closely monitor the efficacy and safety of the drug in 1000 Covid patients that are prescribed with the oral antiviral. Further, Glenmark has announced a price reduction of 27 per cent for FabiFlu. The new MRP is Rs 75 per tab from the earlier Rs 103 per tab. The price reduction has been made possible through benefits gained from higher yields and better scale, as both the API and formulations are made at Glenmark's facilities in India, the benefits of which are being passed on to patients in the country. Glenmark has successfully developed the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and the formulation for FabiFlu through its own in-house R&amp;D team within the country, ensuring self-reliance with regard to long term production and manufacturing. Commenting on these developments, Alok Malik, Senior Vice President &amp; Head  India business, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals said, "We expect this post marketing surveillance study to shed more light on the drug's clinical effectiveness and safety in a large cohort of patients prescribed FabiFlu. Our priority from the start of this pandemic has been to offer patients in India an effective treatment for COVID-19, while also ensuring accessibility to the masses. "Our internal research shows us that we launched FabiFlu in India at the lowest market cost as compared to the cost of Favipiravir in other countries where it is approved. And now we hope that this further price reduction will make it even more accessible for patients across the country." Despite investing significantly in R&amp;D, clinical trials and the manufacturing of FabiFlu (API and formulations), Glenmark has managed to keep the pricing of FabiFlu lower as compared to its price in other countries. FabiFlu in India was originally launched at Rs 103 per tablet, while, its price in Indian Rupees is higher in the remaining countries like Rs 600 in Russia, Rs 378 in Japan, Rs 350 in Bangladesh and Rs 215 in China. On June 20, Glenmark announced that it received manufacturing and marketing approval from India's drug regulator for FabiFlu, making it the first oral Favipiravir-approved medication in India for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19. The manufacturing and marketing approval was granted as part of accelerated approval process, considering the emergency situation of the COVID-19 outbreak in India. The approval's restricted use entails responsible medication use where every patient must have signed informed consent before treatment initiation. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/amazon-reportedly-told-employees-they-have-to-delete-tiktok-from-their-phones-due-to-security-risks/articleshow/76900325.cms">Amazon told employees to delete TikTok from their phones — then walked back the policy and said it was an 'error'</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/photographer-of-the-viral-black-panther-images-from-india-shares-his-story/articleshow/76830618.cms">INTERVIEW: Shaaz Jung opens up about the blood, sweat and years behind the viral images of a rare black panther</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/intel-will-speed-up-mukesh-ambanis-5g-run-power-him-with-ai-and-possibly-a-jio-laptop/articleshow/76780290.cms">Intel will speed up Mukesh Ambani’s 5G run, power him with AI and possibly a Jio laptop⁠— all in return for massive amount of data</a>

Glenmark's Fabiflu will now be available at ₹75 per tab in India

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Three long <keyword id="8764262" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid">COVID</keyword> patients told Insider they felt gaslit by medical professionals.</li><li>Because doctors didn't believe them, the say, the care they got was delayed or didn't fit their cases.</li><li>People of color with long COVID may be most likely to face medical gaslighting.</li></ul>For some long COVID patients, going to the doctor's office requires a clear game plan, extensive research, mental resilience, and physical stamina. That's because they don't expect their doctors to believe them.Patients with other diseases that are poorly understood, like <a href="https://me-pedia.org/wiki/Medical_gaslighting#:~:text=A%20number%20of%20researchers%20who,that%20a%20patient's%20ME%2FCFSFCFS">chronic fatigue syndrome</a> or <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/health-family/medical-gaslighting-the-women-not-listened-to-or-viewed-as-overdramatising-or-catastrophising-1.4386203">fibromyalgia</a>, are familiar with medical gaslighting, a term for situations in which medical professionals undermine or dismiss a patient's symptoms as being caused by stress or anxiety.Three long COVID patients told Insider that they have faced the same issues, and that this gaslighting has taken an emotional and physical toll."From the first doctor's appointment where I saw my primary care doctor, up until one of the final hospital visits I had in July last year, it has been a non-stop roller coaster of being gaslit," Chimére Smith, a long-hauler who says her COVID symptoms lasted almost a year, told Insider. "Especially by doctors who are white and who are male."<h2>'A blame-the-victim response to illness'</h2>Smith calls herself a "first-waver" - she got COVID-19 in March 2020.Estimates suggest that long COVID cases like hers, in which people experience persistent or new symptoms for more than a month, <a href="https://covid.joinzoe.com/post/covid-long-term">occur in</a> at least one in 10 coronavirus infections. Some research suggests it may be <a href="https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/public-health/long-covid-symptoms-could-linger-for-up-to-9-months-study-suggests.html">as many as one in three</a>.Smith, a middle school teacher from Baltimore, said COVID-19 left her with fatigue and on-and-off vision loss in her left eye. She was bed-bound with fibromyalgia, a condition that causes pain all over the body, as well as occipital neuralgia, a type of headache that causes piercing pain to the back of the neck and head. On top of that, brain fog and memory loss have prevented her from returning to work.But Smith said she still struggles to get doctors to believe her symptoms are real."They bypassed my long laundry list of symptoms to try to convince me that what was happening to me was not actually happening to me," Smith said. <div type="image" title="Chimére Smith, a middle school teacher, is in her school in Baltmore, in the background are children." height="1250" width="1666" msid="83808074" hostid="261"></div>The idea of medical gaslighting gained new attention in 2018, after <a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/serena-williams-vogue-cover-interview-february-2018">a Vogue article</a> revealed that Serena Williams struggled to convince her doctors that she was having a pulmonary embolism after giving birth to her daughter. It could have cost Williams her life.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/08/womens-health-care-gaslighting/567149/">Dozens of patients</a>, mostly women, have since come forward to describe gaslighting they've experienced. These instances are particularly common among people with syndromes that are poorly understood and under-researched, like <a href="https://www.flare.com/health/what-is-health-care-gaslighting/">polycystic ovarian syndrome</a> and <a href="https://endometriosis.net/living/gaslighting-doctor">endometriosis</a>.The same has been true for long COVID during most of the pandemic, although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released diagnostic <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/clinical-care/post-covid-index.html">guidelines last week</a> that should help doctors better identify the condition. Rachel M. Robles, a long COVID patient who works with the patient group Body Politik, told Insider that in the face of "mystery illnesses," medical professionals often react one of two ways. In the best-case scenario, doctors become "curious and helpful," she said. They try experimental treatments or refer the patient to a specialist."Others become skeptical and do not want to give out any resources to someone who, in their mind, is a hypochondriac," Robles said. Harriet Washington, a medical ethicist and author of the book "Medical Apartheid" told Insider the latter approach is "essentially a blame-the-victim response to illness." <div type="image" title="Lisa McCorkell, a long COVID patient, standing in front of a rose bush." height="1500" width="2000" msid="83808079" hostid="261"></div><h2>Long COVID has the hallmarks of a disease vulnerable to gaslighting</h2>Patients with long COVID present a huge <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/12-signs-long-covid-doctor-symptoms-2021-5">variety of symptoms</a>."No patient is like another, the combination of symptoms is so variable," Fidaa Shaib, a pulmonologist who works in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/recovery-clinics-for-long-haulers-opening-up-and-offering-hope-2021-2">a long COVID clinic</a> at Baylor College of <keyword id="44641" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="medicine">Medicine</keyword>, told Insider."I think physicians try to do their best," Shaib added, "but there was no unifying structure to put their findings together."Some long COVID symptoms, like heart problems, can be measured directly. But many of the most commonly reported symptoms, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/covid-19-long-haulers-brain-fog-neurological-disorders-2021-5">such as brain fog or memory loss,</a> depend on the patient's perception."A lot of our tests are coming back normal. When that happens, I think it's easiest for doctors to say that it's in our head or that it's anxiety," Lisa McCorkell, a long COVID patient, told Insider. McCorkell leads the Patient-Led Research Collaborative, a long COVID research group.The fact that statistically, four of every five <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/most-coronavirus-long-haulers-women-immune-response-2021-3">COVID long-haulers are women</a> doesn't help. "There's still this pervasive belief in the medical community that anytime a woman complains about her health, it's either related to her hormones or all in her head," Stephanie Trentacoste McNally, a gynecologist at the Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York, wrote <a href="https://www.northwell.edu/katz-institute-for-womens-health/articles/gaslighting-in-womens-health">in a blog post</a>.Reports of pain are more frequently dismissed among women. <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1553-2712.2008.00100.x">A 2008 study</a> found that women who went to the emergency room with severe stomach pain had to wait, on average, 33% longer than men with the same symptoms.<h2>The consequences of gaslighting can be physical and financial</h2>Smith and Robles both said their efforts to seek medical treatment were especially difficult because they didn't initially get tested for COVID-19."The biggest population that is having trouble are the folks who don't have a positive test, or who were unable to be tested, particularly at the beginning of the pandemic," McCorkell said. "They're continuing to face gaslighting from doctors, both for their symptoms now and even just being told that they never had COVID-19 to begin with." <div type="image" title="Rachel Robles, wearing a blue tank top, holds up a medal from Popular Brooklyn Half Marathon she ran in 2019. In the background are other runners sitting on the ground." height="1379" width="1838" msid="83808082" hostid="261"></div>Shaib said that for each patient, she needs about an hour to discuss all the symptoms of long COVID. That's time some primary care doctors don't have, she added."I really would think it's better for patients to go right away into a specialty multidisciplinary clinic, rather than going from one physician to another," Shaib said.There is no treatment for long COVID, but some symptoms can be managed.In Robles' case, she was diagnosed with <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/05/22/996533041/after-months-of-a-racing-heart-and-burning-feet-a-covid-long-hauler-gets-a-diagn">postural tachycardia syndrome </a>- a condition that affects involuntary nervous-system functions like heartbeat and blood flow - about five months after getting COVID-19. Until then, she said, doctors brushed aside her fatigue, dizziness, and racing heart, suggesting the symptoms were caused by anxiety.But now her treatment regimen involves increasing her water and salt intake and wearing compression garments. Robles thinks her recovery would have been quicker had she gotten a diagnosis sooner. "You can't fix a problem until you identify it," she said.McCorkell said that in some cases, recommendations from incredulous doctors can even make long COVID symptoms worse. For example, patients struggling with fatigue might benefit from learning not to go beyond a finite "energy envelope." But instead, some have been told to exercise and push through their fatigue, according to McCorkell. "If people pace, they can prevent permanent disability and being bedbound for decades," she said, but added that pushing too hard "is just disastrous for patients with chronic fatigue syndrome."Smith said that one of the biggest challenges of medical gaslighting has been financial. "We need disability benefits, money, because many of us are struggling to keep things like bills and keeping utilities running. We need employers to understand with compassion that our diagnosis of disability is genuine and real," she said. <h2>People of color are generally at higher risk of gaslighting</h2>Washington said that although there isn't yet data to determine whether people of color have had their long COVID symptoms dismissed more than white patients, she wouldn't be surprised. "There are many complaints of people who went to the hospital with symptoms of COVID, seeking healthcare and were turned away," she said, referring to Black Americans in particular. "The symptoms got worse later - when they came back to the hospital, they were extremely ill."Washington pointed to the case of<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/26/black-doctors-death-becomes-a-symbol-of-racism-in-coronavirus-care"> Dr. Susan Moore</a>, a Black medical internist who documented on social media the ways in which her COVID-19 symptoms were not being dealt with. Moore later died.There is a <a href="https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/people-are-rightly-outraged-at-this-racist-nonsense-published-in-a-recent-medical-textbook/">long history </a>of Black Americans' reports of pain being dismissed, she said."They tend to be sent home without treatment and have their pain categorized as drug-seeking," she said.Smith, who is Black, said she, too, experienced inequity in her medical treatment."I watched doctors tell other patients in the rooms, white patients, that they were presumed positive, and I couldn't even get that same type of treatment," she said, adding, "it's heartbreaking because it's a constant reminder of how broken the healthcare system is."<div type="image" title="Chimére Smith, a long COVID patient, is testifying at a Congressional Hearing on Long Covid remotely. She's in a roo, with a fairly neutral background." height="1157" width="1542" msid="83808083" hostid="261"></div><h2>'Because I have been gaslit, I don't seek care anymore'</h2>In April, Reps. Don Beyer and Jack Bergman introduced a bill to Congress that would give <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nearly-100m-in-long-covid-funding-introduced-in-congress-301301363.html">$100 million to support long COVID patients</a>. About $30 million of that would go to educating health professionals and the public about the syndrome. Beyer <a href="https://cnycentral.com/news/local/covid-19-long-haulers-is-there-any-action-in-state-or-federal-government-to-help">told NBC3 News at 7</a> that he is hopeful that it will become law in the next few months.But for some patients, it's too late."Personally, because I have been gaslit, I don't seek care anymore," McCorkell said, adding that her research has indicated that's the case for many other long COVID patients."Who would want to go back to seek care and be gaslit again? People are not going to be getting the care that they need and will have to be incentivized to return to the doctor for probably decades to come," she said.Smith has become a long-COVID patient advocate focussing on Black people in urban communities, and she testified at a <a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/hearing-on-the-long-haul-forging-a-path-through-the-lingering-effects-of">Congressional hearing on long COVID</a> in April. But she's not holding her breath for government funding - she's applying for grants to turn her church building into a long COVID support center. "I want to provide those medical resources, those personal consultations, education information, and especially mental health support to Black long COVID patients," Smith said.

Long COVID patients say they feel gaslit by doctors that still don't believe them

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Long COVID increasingly looks like an autoimmune disease.</li><li>Research <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0257016#pone.0257016.ref001">suggests</a> that one auto-antibody in particular may lead to harmful inflammation in long COVID patients.</li><li>These antibodies attack the body's own proteins and are a hallmark of many autoimmune diseases. </li></ul>Long COVID patients may finally get an answer as to why they're still sick.The National Institutes of Health announced Wednesday that it's kicking off a $470 million study to figure out why <keyword id="12118171" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19-symptoms" source="Orion">COVID-19 symptoms</keyword> persist for so long among many patients.Already, research has started to coalesce around a theory: The virus may set off an autoimmune reaction that causes lingering symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, loss of smell, muscle aches, or brain fog."We can't say for sure that it's an autoimmune disease now, but it's really starting to look like it," John Arthur, a researcher at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, told Insider.In a <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0257016#pone.0257016.ref001">study</a> published this month, Arthur and his colleagues suggested that some people who get COVID-19 develop "auto-antibodies" that attack their own proteins - a hallmark of many autoimmune diseases. That process leads to inflammation that could trigger long COVID."Everything is sort of fitting together so far - we're just not quite totally there yet in terms of our understanding," Arthur said.If the theory proves true, it would have implications for COVID-19 treatments. Certain blood-pressure medications, for instance, could be used to stifle the harmful cascade of inflammation. And there's already some evidence that <keyword id="11907020" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="vaccines" source="Orion">vaccines</keyword> help alleviate long COVID symptoms - perhaps because the shots help regulate the antibody response.<h2>One particular auto-antibody could lead to inflammation in long COVID patients</h2><div type="image" title="coronavirus long hauler" height="4480" width="6720" msid="86300944" hostid="261"></div>One-third of <keyword id="11893194" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus" source="Orion">coronavirus</keyword> patients have at least one persistent symptom for 12 weeks or more, according to a <a href="https://spiral.imperial.ac.uk/handle/10044/1/89844">recent study</a> that hasn't yet been peer reviewed. Scientists have wrestled with the mystery of why that happens for more than a year. "I see a lot of younger patients with chronic COVID symptoms and many of them have not even had any lung problems before COVID," Dr. Dixie Harris, a pulmonary physician at Intermountain Healthcare in Utah, told Insider. "They go from totally active, running marathons, to now on oxygen."What scientists do know is that when a person gets infected, their body develops antibodies to neutralize the coronavirus. But some people's immune systems mistakenly identify those antibodies as a foreign threat themselves, so they produce auto-antibodies to fight them. That appears to be the case for many long COVID patients.Arthur's team analyzed blood samples from 32 COVID-19 patients who donated plasma to the University of Arkansas, and another 15 who'd been hospitalized there. Around 81% of the plasma donors and 93% of the hospitalized patients had developed a particular auto-antibody that inhibited their ACE2 enzymes. These enzymes serve as ports of entry for the coronavirus to invade our cells - but they're also vital to calming the immune system down.When not enough ACE2 is present, the immune system can produce too much inflammation."It's the inhibition of that ACE2 enzyme that basically is plugging up the system," Arthur said. "It's like if you've got a bunch of hair in the drain and the water starts to accumulate on top."But more research is needed to determine for sure whether these ACE2 antibodies cause long COVID. Researchers also aren't sure yet whether severe infections produce more auto-antibodies than mild ones. A <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03631-y">May study</a> found that to be the case, but Arthur noted that long COVID is also common among people whose infections were initially mild.<h2>Scientists are eyeing blood-pressure medication as a potential treatment</h2><div type="image" title="blood pressure medication" height="1412" width="2000" msid="86300945" hostid="261"></div>Arthur's study offers some evidence that medications used to treat high blood pressure could be effective as long COVID treatments.ACE2 normally helps regulate blood pressure by a converting a chemical that raises blood pressure into one that enhances blood flow. Long COVID may prevent that conversion process, allowing that first chemical to produce harmful levels of inflammation. But high blood pressure medications can blunt this inflammatory response. Arthur's study also suggests that vaccines could balance the levels of coronavirus antibodies and auto-antibodies among long COVID patients. A <a href="https://3ca26cd7-266e-4609-b25f-6f3d1497c4cf.filesusr.com/ugd/8bd4fe_a338597f76bf4279a851a7a4cb0e0a74.pdf">UK survey</a> from March that hasn't been peer reviewed found that 57% of people with long COVID saw their symptoms improve after getting vaccinated."That's one of the things that we're going to look at in the next stage," Arthur said, "to see what vaccine status does to the abundance of these ACE2 antibodies."

Scientists are getting closer to classifying long COVID as an autoimmune disease

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Florida's Jackson Health System said half its <keyword id="8764262" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid" source="Orion">COVID</keyword> patients were admitted for "non-COVID reasons."</li><li>These types of patients test positive for the <keyword id="11893194" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus" source="Orion">coronavirus</keyword> after being admitted.</li></ul>About half of the patients listed as being in the <keyword id="6358650" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="hospital" source="Orion">hospital</keyword> with <keyword id="11893994" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19" source="Orion">COVID-19</keyword> were admitted for "non-COVID reasons," a health authority in Florida said."Jackson Health System hospitals currently have 439 patients who have tested positive for COVID-19," <a href="https://twitter.com/JacksonHealth/status/1478004127615569924?t=ksrSfI3DxL8ttIb0bOBEmQ&amp;s=19">the Jackson Health System said in a tweet on Monday.</a>"Of those, 220 patients — or 50% — are admitted to the hospital primarily for non-COVID reasons."The post was a relatively rare snapshot of the prevalence of so-called incidental COVID in the US.Anthony <keyword id="11933279" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fauci" source="Orion">Fauci</keyword>, the White House chief medical advisor, recently warned that COVID-19 hospitalization data should be taken with a grain of salt, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/some-hospital-with-covid-incidental-fauci-south-africa-england-2021-12">Insider previously reported</a>.He said in a Wednesday interview that focused on admissions in children, that some would be admitted for "a broken leg, or appendicitis, or something like that," and only later turn out to have COVID-19.COVID-19 cases like that can make up a substantial proportion of <keyword id="11921652" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="hospital-admissions" source="Orion">hospital admissions</keyword>.These made up about <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/some-hospital-with-covid-incidental-fauci-south-africa-england-2021-12">a third of the 8,321 COVID-positive cases in England on December 28</a>, according to data from the UK National Health Service.In separate press conferences on Monday, <a href="https://www.wrvo.org/2022-01-03/watch-gov-kathy-hochul-holds-covid-19-briefing-january-3-2022">New York Gov. Katy Hochul</a> and <a href="https://wsvn.com/news/local/desantis-gives-update-on-states-efforts-to-tackle-omicron-as-long-lines-continue-at-south-florida-testing-sites/">Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis</a> warned that incidental cases could be making up a good proportion of hospitalized cases their states."Beginning tomorrow, we're going to be asking all hospitals to break out for us how many people are being hospitalized because of COVID symptoms [and] how many people … happen to be testing positive," Hochul said.<a href="https://twitter.com/doctor_oxford/status/1476665476428226562?s=20">Experts have warned</a> against underestimating COVID-19 hospitalization data because of these incidental cases. Mark Kline, Senior Vice President of the Children's hospital in New Orleans, <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkWKlineMD1/status/1478067624588283906?s=20">said in a tweet</a> that last summer "78% of 915 kids" at six hospitals were hospitalized "not just with, but because of COVID." He didn't name the hospitals in question.Having COVID-19 can also worsen whatever problem the person was admitted for, said David Strain, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Exeter medical school, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/29/how-can-we-measure-the-true-scale-of-uk-covid-hospital-admissions">in an interview with The Guardian</a>."We [have] seen many other people who have been otherwise stable [with] chronic diseases such as heart failure, ulcerative colitis etc that caught COVID and had a rapid deterioration," he said."Although they are regarded as 'incidental Covid', this sudden deterioration in otherwise stable disease can be attributed to the virus," he said.

Florida hospital system says 50% of its COVID patients are mainly there for other reasons

New Delhi, <keyword id="8873995" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="COVID-19-patients">COVID-19 patients</keyword> admitted to <keyword id="59079" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Intensive-Care">intensive care</keyword> in the early months of the pandemic experienced a higher burden of <keyword id="693065" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="delirium">delirium</keyword> and coma than is typically found in those hospitalised with acute respiratory failure, according to the largest study of its kind to date. The research, published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal, tracked the incidence of delirium and coma in over 2,000 <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="covid-19">COVID-19</keyword> <keyword id="6364395" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="patients">patients</keyword> admitted before April 28, 2020, to 69 adult intensive care units across 14 countries. According to the scientists, led by those at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the US, the choice of sedative medications and curbs on family visitation played a role in increasing acute <keyword id="21916" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="brain-dysfunction">brain dysfunction</keyword> for these patients. They said ICU delirium is associated with higher medical costs and greater risk of death and long-term ICU-related dementia. Nearly 82% of the patients in the study were comatose for a median of 10 days, and 55% were delirious for a median of three days. The scientists noted that acute brain dysfunction lasted for an average of 12 days. "This is double what is seen in non-COVID ICU patients," said study co-author Brenda Pun from VUMC. The scientists believe COVID-19 could predispose patients to a higher burden of acute brain dysfunction. However, they also noted that patient care factors, some of which are related to pressures posed on health care by the pandemic, also appear to have played a significant role. With respect to COVID-19, the scientists believe there has been widespread abandonment of newer clinical protocols that are proven to help ward off the acute brain dysfunction that usually affects many critically ill patients. "It is clear in our findings that many ICUs reverted to sedation practices that are not in line with best practice guidelines and we're left to speculate on the causes," Pun said. "Early reports of COVID-19 suggested that the lung dysfunction seen required unique management techniques including deep sedation. In the process, key preventive measures against acute brain dysfunction went somewhat by the boards," she added. Analysing patient characteristics from electronic health records, and care practices and findings from clinical assessments, the scientists found that about 90% of patients tracked in the study were invasively mechanical ventilated at some point during hospitalisation, and 67% on the day of ICU admission. Patients receiving benzodiazepine sedative infusions were at 59% higher risk of developing delirium, they added. In comparison, the patients who received family visitation were at 30% lower risk of delirium, the study noted. "There's no reason to think that, since the close of our study, the situation for these patients has changed," said study senior author, Pratik Pandharipande. "These prolonged periods of acute brain dysfunction are largely avoidable. ICU teams need above all to return to lighter levels of sedation for these patients, frequent awakening and breathing trials, mobilisation and safe in-person or virtual visitation," Pandharipande added. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-s21-series-mobile-available-on-pre-orders-checkout-expected-price-of-this-smartphone/articleshow/80168058.cms">Samsung Galaxy S21 series now up for pre-orders ⁠— expected to be priced around ₹75,000</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/tcs-ongc-tata-power-punjab-national-bank-nhpc-and-other-top-stocks-to-watch/articleshow/80164057.cms?upcache=2">TCS’ market share, ONGC’s borrowing, Tata Power gets new territories⁠— these and other top stocks to watch</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/employment-opportunities-in-the-telecom-sector-are-expected-to-grow-by-20-in-2021/articleshow/80183579.cms">Fiber layers and field engineers to researchers ⁠— telecom jobs may see a 20% spike in 2021 as India leaps into the 5G era</a>

You Searched For "covid patients" and got 7 results

MIT has a new AI model that can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 patients just by the using the sound of their coughs recorded over phone calls

Prabhjote Gill

Hospitalised COVID-19 patients may experience 'not so obvious' seizures that increase the risk of death

IANS

Glenmark's Fabiflu will now be available at ₹75 per tab in India

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Long COVID patients say they feel gaslit by doctors that still don't believe them

Marianne Guenot

Scientists are getting closer to classifying long COVID as an autoimmune disease

Aria Bendix

Florida hospital system says 50% of its COVID patients are mainly there for other reasons

Marianne Guenot

COVID-19 ICU patients at risk of acute brain dysfunction, says study

PTI

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