The period after hospital discharge is a high-risk time for people who use illicit opioids such as heroin, according to new research. Fatal opioid overdoses are four times more likely in the first two days after hospital discharge than at other times, and people who use illicit drugs need extra support when being discharged from…

As if the COVID-19 pandemic isn’t scary enough, the flu season is not far away. How severe will the flu season be as it converges with the COVID-19 outbreak? What can we do to prepare? Dr. Benjamin Singer, a Northwestern Medicine pulmonologist who treats COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit, outlines the best defense…

Forensic scientists have discovered a new way of presenting fragile evidence, by reconstructing a ‘jigsaw’ of human bone fragments using 3D printing. In the first known study of its kind, researchers took fragmented burnt human bones and tested the ability to make 3D models suitable to be shown to a jury in court. In the…

Countries in Africa assessed as being least vulnerable to an epidemic were the worst affected by Covid-19, new research suggests. Nations with more urban populations and strong international travel links were worst affected by the pandemic, the study shows. Mortality rates and levels of restrictions — such as lockdowns and travel bans — were found…

Adolescent marijuana use and binge drinking did not significantly change during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite record decreases in the substances’ perceived availability, according to a survey of 12th graders in the United States. The study’s findings challenge the idea that reducing adolescent use of drugs can be achieved solely by limiting their supply. In contrast…

Researchers have come up with a computer model that mirrors the way misinformation spreads in real life. The work might provide insight on how to protect people from the current contagion of misinformation that threatens public health and the health of democracy. No, it’s not a virus. It’s the contagious spread of misinformation and disinformation…

Self-governing internet communities, in the form of games, social networks or informational websites, create their own rule systems that help groups of anonymous users work together. These self-governing internet communities, in the form of games, social networks or informational websites such as Wikipedia, create their own rule systems that help groups of anonymous users work…

People who did not have a large heart rate response to a stress task surprised researchers later — after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic — when they showed more symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder related to the crisis than others who also did the stress task and COVID-19 stress ratings. Researchers had anticipated that…

Researchers have published new findings that take a first look at the use of SARS-CoV-2 mathematical modeling to inform early statewide policies enacted to reduce the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in Colorado. Among other findings, the authors estimate that 97 percent of potential hospitalizations across the state in the early months of the pandemic…

Rural counties saw 2.4 times more COVID-19 infections per capita compared to urban counties in July and August of 2021 during a surge of the delta variant, a new study finds. Early data suggest omicron is spreading faster in urban areas but causing more hospitalization and death in rural counties where vaccination is lagging. A…