Although vaccinations to the arm can still prevent serious illness, their ability to ward off infection completely has been diminished. And part of the reason may be the location of the vaccines, which some scientists now want to change by delivering inoculations to the site where the virus first makes contact: the nose. Three separate nasal sprays, now in advanced trials, could trigger stronger immune responses in people who have COVID-19.

How does the diagnostic performance of home antigen tests change during the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection? Symptomatic individuals with an initial negative home antigen test result for SARS-CoV-2 infection should test again one to two days later because test sensitivity seems to peak several days after illness onset.

Cannabis use increases the likelihood that patients will develop several negative health conditions, such as insomnia, anxiety, psychosis, and depression. As such, cannabis use should be prescribed carefully by physicians.

A newly developed prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor (agents that increase endogenous erythropoietin production) holds the promise of improving outcomes for patients with anemia of chronic kidney disease. Randomized controlled trials have found these drugs to be at least as effective as erythropoiesis-stimulating agents.

A new case study that analyzed the correlation between the use of antidepressants and suicide concluded that all patients treated with antidepressants should receive careful monitoring for clinical worsening, suicidality, or unusual changes in behavior.

In this updated analysis of the KEYNOTE-177 study, although pembrolizumab continued to show durable antitumor activity and fewer treatment-related adverse events compared with chemotherapy, there was no significant difference in overall survival between the two treatment groups.