HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

March 27, 2021 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Some long-haul covid-19 patients say their symptoms are subsiding after getting vaccines (Washington Post)
• Experts weigh in on how COVID vaccines may help long-haulers (ABC News)
• Nursing home residents can get hugs again, feds say (NBC San Diego) 
• CDC says it's safe for vaccinated people to do these activities (NPR)
• This new test can detect 50 types of cancer from a single blood draw (Healthline)
• France, Germany suspend use of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine ((NPR)
• Study finds wildfire smoke more harmful to humans than pollution from cars (NPR)
• WHO points to wildlife farms in s. China as likely source of pandemic (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Clearview AI uses your online photos to instantly ID you. That’s a problem, lawsuit says (LA Times)
• Big tech CEOs face lawmakers in House hearing on social media’s role in extremism, misinformation (Washington Post)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

Some long-haul covid-19 patients say their symptoms are subsiding after getting vaccines (Washington Post)

Arianna Eisenberg endured long-haul covid-19 for eight months, a recurring nightmare of soaking sweats, crushing fatigue, insomnia, brain fog and muscle pain. But Eisenberg’s tale has a happy ending that neither she nor current medical science can explain. Thirty-six hours after her second shot of coronavirus vaccine last month, her symptoms were gone, and they haven’t returned.

Experts weigh in on how COVID vaccines may help long-haulers (ABC News)

Long-haulers are COVID sufferers whose symptoms last for months.

Nursing Home Residents Can Get Hugs Again, Feds Say (NBC San Diego) 

The CMS guidance moves back in the pre-COVID-19 direction, saying that nursing homes "should allow indoor visitation at all times and for all residents, regardless of vaccination status" 

CDC Says It's Safe For Vaccinated People To Do These Activities (NPR)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued new guidance for vaccinated people, giving the green light to resume some pre-pandemic activities and relax precautions that have been in place.

This New Test Can Detect 50 Types of Cancer from a Single Blood Draw (Healthline)

Galleri is a new blood test that has the ability to detect 50 types of cancer through a single blood draw. Select U.S. health systems will begin using it this year.

France, Germany Suspend Use Of AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine : Coronavirus Updates ((NPR)

France, Germany, the Netherlands and Ireland have joined a number of other European nations in temporarily suspending administration of a COVID-19 vaccine made by AstraZeneca after reports of abnormal blood clotting in several people.... / The move comes after countries including Italy, Austria, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Latvia suspended, delayed or limited rollout of the vaccine over safety concerns.

Study Finds Wildfire Smoke More Harmful To Humans Than Pollution From Cars (NPR)

Tens of millions of Americans experienced at least a day last year shrouded in wildfire smoke…as unprecedented wildfires tore across the Western U.S., causing increases in hospitalizations for respiratory emergencies and concerns about people's longer-term health.  A new study finds those concerns are well founded. Researchers with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego say that the tiny particles released in wildfire smoke are up to 10 times more harmful to humans than particles released from other sources, such as car exhaust.

WHO Points To Wildlife Farms In Southern China As Likely Source Of Pandemic (NPR)

A member of the World Health Organization investigative team says wildlife farms in southern China are the most likely source of the COVID-19 pandemic. China shut down those wildlife farms in February 2020, says Peter Daszak, a disease ecologist with EcoHealth Alliance and a member of the WHO delegation that traveled to China this year…the WHO team found new evidence that these wildlife farms were supplying vendors at the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan with animals.

SCIENCE AND TECH

Clearview AI uses your online photos to instantly ID you. That’s a problem, lawsuit says (LA Times)

Clearview AI has amassed a database of more than 3 billion photos of individuals by scraping sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google and Venmo. It’s bigger than any other known facial-recognition database in the U.S., including the FBI’s.... This technology appeals to law enforcement agencies across the country, which can use it in real time to help determine people’s identities.  It also has caught the attention of civil liberties advocates and activists, who allege in a lawsuit … Clearview AI “engages in the widespread collection of California residents’ images and biometric information without notice or consent.”

Big tech CEOs face lawmakers in House hearing on social media’s role in extremism, misinformation (Washington Post)

Lawmakers interrogate the chief executive officers of Google, Facebook and Twitter on the role their companies have played in promoting extremism and spreading misinformation.