Media Coverage

When it comes to donating organs, Latinos made up 14.6% of all organ donors in 2020. According to Dr. Juan Caicedo, head of Northwestern Medicine’s Hispanic Transplant Program, the program has seen a 74% increase of living kidney transplant donors. The program has bilingual healthcare providers to serve Spanish speaking patients in need of a transplant. They also make efforts to involve a patient’s entire family in decision making, recognizing the importance of family for the Latino community.

The reality is that people are experiencing many different pandemics depending on their job, health, socioeconomic status, housing and access to medical care. According to Mercedes Carnethon, PhD, professor and vice chair of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, “It’s been a tale of two pandemics all along. For some people, the pandemic has been an inconvenience, whereas for other people, the pandemic has led to substantial concerns and loss.”

With cases of the omicron variant BA.2 on the rise across the U. S. and restrictions largely lifted across much of the U.S., parents of children still not eligible for vaccination are wondering when their time might come. Vaccinating the littlest “has been somewhat of a moving target over the last couple of months,” Dr. Bill Muller of Northwestern University, who is helping study Moderna’s pediatric doses, said. “There’s still, I think a lingering urgency to try to get that done as soon as possible.”

New data from the C.D.C. shows that rates of many sexually transmitted diseases continued to climb in 2020. Infections spiked during the pandemic because of a dearth of accessible screening, test kit and lab shortages, and clinic closures. “If you have an encounter and you’re worried about it, getting tested two to four weeks after is the best thing to do,” said Dr. Michael Angarone, an infectious diseases physician at Northwestern Medicine.

BA.2 is now the dominant form of COVID in the U.S. Experts say BA.2 symptoms don’t seem to be that different from Omicron or Delta. According to Dr. Michael Angarone, associate professor of medicine in infectious diseases at Northwestern University, “This is the same virus, SARS Coronavirus 2, so we’re seeing the same symptoms.” These include runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and sore throat.

A woman, who suffered from random seizures, received life-changing treatment from a Northwestern Medicine neurologist. Dr. Stephan Schuele placed tiny needles in her brain – a procedure called steroencephalography. According to Schuele, “At the end of the day the only real cure is removing the area that is abnormal and generates the epilepsy.” Since undergoing the procedure in November 2020, the patient has been seizure free.

As key Covid indicators such as infections, hospitalizations and deaths have gone up, so have the number of officials who have required masks, proof of vaccination or other measures meant to slow the rate of transmission of the virus. Now, as the more contagious BA.2 subvariant spreads, mask mandates have still not returned in most of the country. While the country is better positioned to handle the coronavirus now than when cases rose earlier, thanks to vaccines, boosters and antiviral medications, it’s not realistic to ditch precautions, said physician Dr. Sadiya Khan, an assistant professor of cardiology and epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Heart failure happens when your heart muscle can’t keep up with the demands of its role, and the rest of the body starts failing. Certain medications can potentially damage the heart muscle, Sanjiv J. Shah, MD, director of the Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction Program at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like ibuprofen, can cause water retention, which interferes with blood flow, increasing your risk of heart failure, heart attack and stroke.

Gilbert Gottfried died of an abnormal heart rhythm condition that was a complication from a type of muscular dystrophy. People with myotonic dystrophy type 2, the type Gottfried had, experience muscle weakness that mainly affects the neck, shoulders, elbows and hips. Symptoms typically begin when patients are in their 20s or 30s but can go undiagnosed for a long time. “People can have symptoms for quite a while even before they notice it,” Dr. Elizabeth McNally, the director of Northwestern University’s Center for Genetic Medicine, told NBC News.

Chicago is now averaging more than 400 new COVID-19 cases per day. Dr. Michael Angarone, an infectious disease specialist at Northwestern Medicine, also said it’s likely public health officials will turn to mask mandates again, but the threshold must be determined. Angarone suggests taking precautions in situations when you don’t know who has been vaccinated or what people’s exposures are. This includes keeping your hands clean, not touching your face with your hands and trying to keep yourself distanced from other people.