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If you have a COVID-19 infection, it’s important to isolate yourself to avoid spreading the virus. Key Takeaways According to the CDC, mild to moderate cases of COVID-19 remain infectious no longer than 10 days after symptom onset.If you test negative on a rapid antigen test, make sure to get tested again a few days later to ensure you don’t get a false negative.Experts recommend that you continue isolating or limiting contact if you still test positive....

Most healthcare providers will ask you for your Social Security number when you are seeking medical care. They often require this so that they can collect payment for healthcare services and verify your identity when it comes to looking up your health records. You may be concerned about identity theft, and protecting your Social Security number is part of that concern. Why Your Healthcare Provider Requests Your Social Security Number Healthcare providers, hospitals, imaging facilities, and other medical testing sites ask for Social Security numbers for a number of reasons....

The Department of Justice and the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals seesawed last week on the enforcement of the Texas abortion ban. Although medical providers in Texas resumed performing abortions after a federal judge ruled that the ban was unconstitutional, it was reinstated by the Court of Appeals within two days. Key Takeaways On October 6, U.S. a federal judge granted an emergency request from Department of Justice to halt the Texas abortion ban....

If you have ever had a stomach bug for more than a few hours, you may have noticed that you drop a few pounds. Not eating and vomiting everything you have eaten for the past day or so will do that. But does that weight actually stay off? Causes of Weight Loss When you have gastroenteritis (more often called the stomach flu), the most common symptoms are vomiting and diarrhea. You may also experience nausea, fever, stomach cramps, and exhaustion....

On December 11, the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine was granted emergency use authorization (EUA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), making it the first widely-available vaccine to use mRNA technology. Moderna’s vaccine, which was granted an EUA by the FDA a week later, will also use the same technology. But mRNA vaccines use a process a bit different than the traditional vaccines we’re used to. To trigger your immune system, many vaccines inject a weakened or inactivated germ from the virus into our bodies....

Many people complain of eye allergies during the spring season. Eye allergies can be extremely bothersome but are usually manageable. However, atopic and vernal keratoconjunctivitis are two types of eye allergies that can be much more severe and can actually threaten your sight. Atopic Keratoconjunctivitis Atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC) is a severe form of allergic eye disease that tends to worsen and then have periods of remission. AKC can sometimes be worse in the winter....

Skin boils are a common condition caused by an infected hair follicle. A skin boil, also known as a furuncle, presents as a swollen and painful red bump. If bacteria infect a hair follicle on the breast, a breast boil can form. An improperly fitting bra with excessive rubbing, as well as sweating, can increase the chances of developing a breast boil. This article will review the symptoms, causes, and treatment of breast boils....

Bright light therapy consists of regular exposure to a light anywhere from five to 30 times brighter than typical office lights. The light is placed in a box with a screen that diffuses it. The person receiving bright light therapy is asked to sit in front of the light source for a set amount of time each day. Originally intended for people struggling with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), bright light therapy has also been used to treat circadian problems, where people have trouble sleeping well at night....

Many have suggested that certain diets can reduce the risk of COVID-19, including Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman, who proposed controversial “health mandates” and taxes on processed foods and refined sugar as a solution to the pandemic. Key Takeaways Recent studies have shown that following a plant-based diet may reduce the risk and severity of COVID-19.Researchers said the connection is likely due to healthy gut bacteria that feed off plant foods and keep the immune system strong....

Umcka (Pelargonium sidoides) is a geranium plant native to South Africa. Long used in traditional African medicine, umcka (short for “umckaloabo”) has recently become popular in other parts of the world, particularly as a remedy for colds and cough. Can Umcka Help? To date, few studies have explored umcka’s efficacy in the treatment of health problems. Existing research suggests that umcka may help manage the following conditions: Colds: For a report published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews in 2013, researchers sized up 10 previously published clinical trials comparing the effects of umcka to those of a placebo in the treatment of acute respiratory tract infections....

Chronic proctalgia is a term that has been discontinued. In the past, it was defined as a condition in which a person experiences recurrent rectal pain of at least 20-minute duration, with no identifiable structural or associated health condition to account for the pain. This term was in use until it was eliminated in the Rome IV Criteria for Colorectal Disorders in 2016. However, it can still be seen in diagnoses and classifications that use older criteria....

You are not alone if you avoid fireworks on July 4th or frequently find yourself telling your children that their loud voices are giving you a headache. In fact, noise is a commonly reported headache trigger for people who are prone to headaches. Let’s take a closer look at the relationship between noise and headaches, and how you can cope with them. The Science Behind Noise as a Headache Trigger Noise is a scientifically proven potential headache trigger for people who have migraines or tension-type headaches....

The greatest threat to Ukraine at this moment, of course, is the advancing Russian army. But collateral threats in this war include hunger, damaged healthcare infrastructure, and COVID-19 outbreaks. Key Takeaways COVID-19 vaccination rates were lower in Ukraine than in many other countries before the war began, putting many people at risk for contracting and transmitting the virus. Because of Russian attacks, important infrastructure, like hospitals, have been damaged or destroyed....

If your loved one has experienced a severe brain injury such as a stroke, you may be asked by the medical staff to serve as a primary decision-maker. Most decisions to be made are not overwhelming or controversial (for example, can we get your consent to place an intravenous line to deliver fluids?), but some decisions can be particularly difficult to make. One difficult decision is whether or not a family should allow the medical staff to place a permanent feeding tube for their loved one....

Rubbing alcohol does not help with acne and may actually make it worse. Applying rubbing alcohol to your face or other acne-prone areas can strip natural oils from the outer layer of the skin and undermine the skin’s barrier function, allowing bacteria easier access to pores and breaks in the skin. This article describes the effect of rubbing alcohol on the skin and why it may cause more harm than good....

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday granted full approval for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for people aged 16 and above. Adolescents as young as 12 years old can still receive the vaccine under emergency use authorization. Key Takeaways The FDA and American Academy of Pediatricians warns against the off-label use of the vaccine for children younger than 12 years.The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is now approved for people 16 years and older, and authorized for adolescents 12 to 16 years old....

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the combination of bamlanivimab and etesevimab as a treatment for COVID-19 in all children, including newborns. Key Takeaways The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended its emergency use authorization (EUA) for the combination of two monoclonal antibody drugs to treat COVID-19 in all children, including newborns. The combination of drugs—bamlanivimab and etesevimab—is authorized to treat mild-to-moderate COVID in children who are at high risk of becoming severely sick....

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), also called pure hypercholesterolemia, is an inherited condition that affects the body’s ability to effectively get rid of extra LDL cholesterol, resulting in high levels of LDL in the blood. This can significantly increase the risk of heart disease. FH is usually treated with a combination of medications and healthy lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise. Home Remedies and Lifestyle High cholesterol in people who don’t have FH is usually caused by lifestyle and can often be resolved or controlled with lifestyle changes....

The Omicron variant is now the dominant COVID-19 strain in the United States, with the subvariant BA.2 accounting for the majority of current cases. Key Takeaways Studies suggest that Omicron infections can last in the body for up to 10 days. This is the same timeframe observed during the Delta wave, but slightly shorter than the two week endurance of the initial COVID-19 strain.Whether changes in duration of infection are a result of variant characteristics or the public’s vaccination status is unclear....

Serosorting is a common practice among men who have sex with men (MSM). While it’s perceived to lower the risk of getting HIV, it may actually do the opposite. Let’s gain a better understanding of serosorting and why it might not be a good practice to adopt. Serosorting is the practice of choosing sexual partners based on their HIV status. In other words, people “sort” their potential partners according to whether they are HIV positive or HIV negative....