UCLA In the News lists selected mentions of UCLA in the world’s news media. Some articles may require registration or a subscription to view. See more UCLA In the News.
Don’t call it ‘social distancing’ | CNN Opinion
(Commentary written by UCLA’s Cecilia Menjívar, Jacob Foster and Jennie Brand) It is important for us all to realize that when they recommend “social distancing” — a phrase that has rapidly entered the public lexicon — what health experts are really promoting are practices that temporarily increase our physical distance from one another in order to slow the spread of the virus. They are not recommending social disconnection, social exclusion, or rampant individualism.
Coronavirus adds new anxieties for pregnant women | Los Angeles Times Column
Dr. Neil Silverman, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has heard similar questions at his practice from many worried mothers-to-be. “It’s all about the fact that there’s so many things in the setting of a pregnancy that women have no control over,” Silverman said during a recent phone interview. “Women, especially in their first pregnancy, are understandably concerned in general about all the things that cannot go according to plan.” (UCLA’s Dr. Karin Nielsen-Saines is also quoted.)
Does air pollution make you more susceptible to coronavirus? | Los Angeles Times
“To the extent that it’s behaving like another pneumonia, yes, I think there’s going to be some elevated risk that’s associated with being in higher air pollution, but we don’t know enough about the biology of this particular virus to know how it’s going to respond,” said Michael Jerrett, a professor of environmental health science at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
Kindness during coronavirus? Yes, and it’s contagious | Orange County Register
That sense of usefulness is no small matter in times like this, according to Merritt Schreiber, a psychologist at UCLA Medical Center who specializes in mental health during emergencies. The Laguna Niguel resident spoke by phone from the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, in San Diego, where he’s been deployed as Americans have been quarantined there due to the coronavirus. “When people offer things like food or child care, and others are receptive to that, it validates them and they feel important,” Schreiber said. “Especially in a context like this, in a pandemic, where people can very, very easily feel powerless.”
How long COVID-19 remains infectious on various surfaces | Science Daily
“This virus is quite transmissible through relatively casual contact, making this pathogen very hard to contain,” said James Lloyd-Smith, a co-author of the study and a UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. “If you’re touching items that someone else has recently handled, be aware they could be contaminated and wash your hands.”
California’s new rules to stop the spread of the virus | MSNBC’s “The 11th Hour With Brian Williams”
“What we really need to be doing right now, what I like to say – we’re pulling together by staying apart. That’s what the state of California is really trying to do. That’s what our mayor, Eric Garcetti, put forward today. I think this is a really smart thing,” said UCLA’s Dr. Anne Rimoin. (Rimoin was also interviewed on CNN International and CNN.)
The coronavirus and mental health | KTTV-TV
“If you haven’t heard from someone that you care about, if you know they live alone… This is a time when we’re all kind of at an elevated risk for depressive symptoms and anxiety. Airing on the side of caution and being more proactive is really important,” said UCLA’s Dr. Jena Lee.
Is surfing OK under coronavirus restrictions? | Orange County Register
Dr. Matthew Waxman, associate clinical professor of emergency medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA who also works with Los Angeles County officials, said he believes surfing falls into the recreational activities allowed — so long as surfers can successfully distance themselves in the water. “I’d pick a less crowded spot, ride alone in the car and make it a small family or solo trip,” he said. “Big key would be to keep the distance in the water and not being tempted to chat in the line up.”
The show won’t go on | KPCC-FM’s “The Frame”
“We work in a season at the Center for the Art of Performance. All of the programming now, that would end through… up until June, completes our season. I’ve had to postpone all of the projects that were going on there,” said UCLA’s Kristy Edmunds (approx. 1:15 mark.)
Hopes for coronavirus treatment | KABC-TV
“Plenty of research is actually being done right now, and in a quick manner. I know there is a lot that’s going around regarding medications. It’s really important to understand that these medications have still not been cleared by the FDA to be used for treatment,” said UCLA’s Dr. Anu Seshadri.
More testing required for antiviral remdesivir | Xinhua
“The current tests of remdesivir in Japan and the United States seem promising. It is feasible to apply the drug as ‘compassionate medicine’ to patients infected with COVID-19,” said Zhang Zuofeng, professor of epidemiology and associate dean for research at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles. “However, due to the lack of randomized double-blind clinical trials data, the effects of the drug is not scientifically convincing.”
Could Trump declare national coronavirus shutdown? | The Hill
“I assume that he would do this by executive order invoking the state of national emergency and the fact that he’s treating this as essentially as being at war with a virus, with emergency conditions traditionally being associated with more expansive presidential powers,” said Miranda Yaver, an expert in both presidential powers and public health at the University of California at Los Angeles.
Ibuprofen and COVID-19 | Healthline
Dr. Otto O. Yang, a professor of medicine in the infectious diseases division at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, told Healthline there’s no evidence that ibuprofen causes worsening of COVID-19, “although there is circulating misinformation to that effect.”
Some hospitals continue with elective surgeries | Kaiser Health News
Gerald Kominski, a professor at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, was among the experts interviewed who found it troubling that hospitals would continue to perform elective surgeries in the face of the coronavirus threat, both because of the toll on scarce national supplies and because it puts staff and patients at unnecessary risk of exposure. “It seems unconscionable, regardless of the motive, in my judgment,” Kominski said. “[Hospitals] are ignoring the restrictions on unnecessary public interactions, placing their staff and patients at greater risk.”
Which electrolyte drinks hydrate you best when you’re sick? | MEL Magazine
As for the ranking, well, [UCLA’s Dana] Hunnes specifically notes Pedialyte and coconut water, both of which deliver plenty of electrolytes without the same sugary explosion as drinks like Gatorade and Powerade (which she says can be okay, too, if you really just need some liquid in you), as good choices. Among the bad choices, she specifies that Propel “has fake sugar,” which is generally thought to be terrible for you and should be avoided at all costs.
Beards carry a host of bacteria — but not much more than clean-shaven skin | Insider
“It’s really no different than what we already have on our skin. I think beards get a bad reputation,” says Sara Hogan, MD, MHS, Dermatologist and Health Sciences Clinical Instructor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “We have a complex microbiome on our skin. Everything’s always in flux, and it’s a very complex microenvironment.”