Media Coverage

“Our findings show neurological manifestations are very common in these patients,” Igor Koralnik, MD, chief of neuro-infectious diseases and global neurology in the Ken & Ruth Davee Department of Neurology at Northwestern Medicine, told ABC News.

“Folks are noticing [seasonal depression] a lot more because of trying to maintain their social distancing and quarantine and follow the rules related to stay-at-home,” said Dorothy Sit, an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.

The double lung transplant surgery for critical COVID-19 patients, which was first performed in the U.S. at Northwestern in June, has now been done seven times at the Chicago hospital by Dr. Ankit Bharat, chief of thoracic surgery and surgical director of the Northwestern Medicine Lung Transplant Program, and a team of surgeons.

“Because passengers may not wear masks properly, or may lower masks to eat and drink, extra space, like an empty middle seat, can still matter,” said Mercedes Carnethon, vice chair of the department of preventive medicine and a professor of epidemiology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.

People who used disposable e-cigarettes were less likely to suffer these symptoms, indicating that part of the problem comes from experimentation with unregulated ingredients and untested devices, said senior researcher Dr. Thanh-Huyen Vu, a research associate professor of epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.

“It’s a very difficult question,” said Dr. Robert Murphy, executive director of the Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “It sounds like it should be so easy, but it’s not easy at all.” Some medical experts say testing could add a layer of protection when combined with quarantining before the holiday.

Surgeons at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago performed this surgery on another patient in June. The patient, a woman in her 20s, was seriously ill when her lungs were replaced with donor lungs. “If she didn’t get the transplant, she would not be alive,” Ankit Bharat, MD, chief of thoracic surgery and surgical director at the Northwestern Medicine Lung Transplant Program, said during a press conference following the procedure.

Mercedes R. Carnethon Ph.D., FAHA, a member of the American Heart Association’s Council on Epidemiology and Prevention Leadership Committee, said the analysis is comprehensive with some concerning trends. “We know food insecurity and other social determinants of health can adversely impact heart and stroke risk factors like high blood pressure and diabetes, and this impact is disproportionately higher among traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic groups,” said Carnethon, the Mary Harris Thompson Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Preventive Medicine in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago.

Karen Weintraub and Elizabeth Weise
Lori Post, director of the Buehler Center for Health Policy and Economics at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, hopes Biden’s actions will resemble Roosevelt’s, who managed to create an office of malaria control even though World War II was raging. Formed in Atlanta, where malaria was then a major problem, the office later became known as the CDC and established the United States as the preeminent source of public health information in the world.

“Unfortunately, there is no risk-free gathering,” wrote Dr. Benjamin Singer, a pulmonary and critical care physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, in an email. But, if you do choose to congregate with loved ones for the holiday season, he suggests keeping groups small and spending most of the time outside. Masks should be worn, said Singer, and social distancing rules should be followed. The risk isn’t gone, but these precautions can “reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19.”