Pregnancy can make women more vulnerable to respiratory viruses. This also applies to the various COVID-19 variants. Scientists are still digging into the new strains, but it's clear that pregnant women infected with COVID-19 face higher risks. Complications can include premature births and health i
In the bustling city of Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, scientists have been looking closely at the levels of certain medicines in wastewater. They're interested in how these drugs change as they go through a wastewater treatment plant. This study is the first of its kind in South Africa to explore
Imagine trying to figure out where all your pocket money goes. Now, replace "pocket money" with "healthcare budget" and "you" with "Australia's healthcare system. " That's what this new study is about. They've come up with a clever method called "cost mining" to dig into the costs of colorectal canc
In the land of the rising sun, where cherry blossoms bloom and typhoons rage, another cycle plays out: the struggle of dry eyes. The eye, our window to the world, is constantly buffeted by the weather outside. Dry eye, a common ailment, sees spikes in treatment during the grim winter months. Researc
Ever wondered how to spot if something's off with the hidden traits in your data? Researchers have come up with a neat way to do just that. They've created what they call the "generalized Hausman test. " This isn't your average test; it's designed specifically for those tricky unidimensional latent
In December 2022, scientists in Botswana found a new sublineage of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, called FN. 1. This variant was discovered in samples from a few places in the Greater Gaborone district. To understand more about this new variant, researchers looked at its spread around the world an
Ever wondered why some bird moms have more boys or girls? It all comes down to their quality and the environment. Carolina wrens, which are loyal to one mate, face this dilemma. If a mom is in good shape, she might have bigger sons who can fight for food. But if she's really high-quality, she might
Have you ever wondered how unique our bodies can be? A recent case study found something extraordinary in a 34-year-old woman's brain. Usually, the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) has a pretty standard path. But not in this case! The right side of her brain had not one, but two PCAs. One was typical
Ever wondered if adding a drug called rivaroxaban to your daily aspirin routine could be cost-effective for heart or leg artery disease? Let's dive into a study that explored just that. The goal was to see if taking both rivaroxaban and aspirin (RIV+ASA) was more bang for your buck compared to just
Did you know that the cost of getting treated in a hospital can differ greatly depending on your insurance? In the US, commercial prices for hospital care are pretty high and vary a lot. Employers and state leaders are looking into something called reference-based pricing (RBP) to set their payment
