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TUESDAY, March 9, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- It's that time of year when flowers and trees bloom freely and pollen makes the lives of many miserable. But new research reveals a hidden risk: It could also make you more vulnerable to COVID-19 infection.COVID-19 infection rates waxed and waned with pollen counts in 2020, according to tracking data gathered across 31 countries in every corner of the globe."Airborne pollen can pave the way for viral infections. This is true for allergics and non-allergics," senior researcher Claudia Traidl-Hoffmann, a professor of environmental medicine with the Technical University of Munich in Germany, said during a media briefing Tuesday.Pollen, sometimes influenced by humidity and temperature, explained 44% of the variability in COVID-19 infection rates...

TUESDAY, March 9, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- A new type of surgery offers amputees better control of muscles that remain after surgery, and of their prosthetic limbs, its inventors say.The standard surgical approach to amputation has changed little since the American Civil War, according to developers of the new approach. In their small study, the new procedure also helped curb pain and sensations like the troubling "phantom limb" syndrome."In working with all these patients, that's actually been one of the most rewarding parts of my experience. They have been very receptive and very open to trying this," said Shriya Srinivasan. She is a postdoctoral researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Mass., and lead author of the study."They recognize that there's a...

TUESDAY, March. 9, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- For people with heart disease, eating fish twice a week may be a lifesaver.New worldwide research shows that two 6-ounce servings a week of oily fish, like salmon, might help prevent cardiovascular disease in high-risk people, such as those who have heart disease or who have experienced a stroke."Eating at least two servings of fish each week appears to lower your risk of future cardiovascular events and death if you have preexisting cardiovascular disease," said lead researcher Andrew Mente, an associate professor of health research methods, evidence and impact at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada."If you're generally healthy, there's no clear protection, although fish is probably a safe choice for them as well," he said.This study,...

TUESDAY, March 9, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- A vaginal ring that slowly releases an antiviral medication could protect women against HIV for up to three months, a preliminary trial suggests.It assessed two formulations of a vaginal ring that releases the antiretroviral dapivirine in the vagina over the course of 90 days. One version contained 100 milligrams (mg) of dapivirine and the other contained 200 mg.The trial was conducted at two U.S. sites affiliated with the U.S. National Institutes of Health-funded Microbicide Trials Network (MTN).It included 49 healthy HIV-negative women. They were divided into three groups: one used the 100 mg dapivirine ring continuously for 13 weeks; a second group used the 200 mg ring continuously for 13 weeks; and a third group used a 30-day ring,...