Are kids in schools driving community transmission of COVID-19, or is it the other way around? This uncertainty could be clarified by conducting cluster randomized trials when students return to class, according to a new publication from an international team of...
Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry
Molecule found in green tea may block negative effects of chronic cannabis use
Since the legalization of medical and recreational cannabis in Canada, experts have sounded the alarm on the negative effects of THC on adolescents’ developing brains. This main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis can have long-term cognitive and behavioural effects...
Vaccine and cure remain focus on World AIDS Day
Jimmy Dikeakos, PhD, understands why virologists like himself quickly pivoted their focus to COVID-19 when the global pandemic struck earlier this year: Vaccines and treatments were needed and the international research community responded. The issue, he said, is that...
Liver cancer ten times more likely in men with common genetic disorder haemochromatosis
Men who have haemochromatosis, one of the most common genetic disorders in North America, are ten times more likely to develop liver cancer, according to a new study. Led by a team at the University of Exeter in collaboration with Dr. Paul Adams from Western...
Expert Explainer: Dr. Nitin Mohan on Circuit Breaker Lockdowns
Some experts in Canada are considering a ‘circuit breaker lockdown’ to help control the surging case counts of COVID-19. Dr. Nitin Mohan, Assistant Professor at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, is a physician epidemiologist who teaches...
Expert Explainer: Greta Bauer, PhD, on celebrating a COVID-19-safe Halloween
As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise across Ontario, parents are grappling with how and if they can continue with Halloween traditions in a safe way. Greta Bauer, PhD, Professor at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry is an epidemiologist...
Global study finds ‘COVID-19 free’ hospital areas could save lives after surgery
Millions of surgeries around the world were cancelled during the first wave of the pandemic, for fear patients might contract COVID-19 in hospital. As the second wave peak approaches, a new global study suggests hospitals should set up ‘COVID-19 free’ areas for...
‘Inside-the-box’ technology solves organ and vaccine transportation problem
Following a fatal car crash, a registered organ donor could save the lives of many patients critically awaiting heart, kidney, liver, lung or pancreas transplantation. Once doctors successfully remove vital organs, they are carefully placed in what are essentially...
Expert Explainer: Dr. Nitin Mohan on the Second Wave
As daily new case counts of COVID-19 climbed across the country in late September, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada was now in the second wave of the pandemic. Dr. Nitin Mohan, Assistant Professor, Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine...
Stroke can be the first presenting symptom in younger patients with COVID-19
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers have been working to better understand and characterize the varied symptoms of the disease. One of the most concerning symptoms is the development of large blood clots that can cause blockages in the arteries that...
Researchers unravel two mysteries of COVID-19
A team from Lawson Health Research Institute and Western University has made significant steps forward in understanding COVID-19 through two back-to-back studies published this week in Critical Care Explorations. In one study, the team has identified six molecules...
Experts available to comment on reopening schools
During the past two weeks, provincial governments have been announcing plans to bring students back to school in September. Western University experts Dr. Michael Silverman and Dr. Saverio Stranges, co-authors of “Ethics of COVID-19 related school closures,” a...