A total of 18,738 patients have died in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Wednesday, the Department of Health said, up by 638 from 18,100 the day before.

Doctors today raised "real concern" following a fall in London patients seeking hospital care for heart attack and stroke symptoms.

The Royal Free London, which runs one of the capital's two specialist infectious disease units, announced this week that 517 patients had been discharged home, thanks to the care of "heroic staff". More than 100 more have left the hospital for "step-down" rehabilitation. Kate Slemeck, chief executive of the Royal Free Hospital, said: "Our staff tell us that seeing patients go home gives a great feeling of positivity and pleasure.

Around two-thirds of coronavirus patients who required advanced respiratory support in intensive care have died, according to a study of critical care outcomes.

A swathe of US states were set to reopen businesses this week following mandatory lockdowns that have thrown nearly one in six American workers out of jobs.

The death toll among coronavirus patients in UK hospitals has risen by the lowest one-day total since March 30.

NHS services including cancer care and mental health support which were paused due to the coronavirus outbreak will be restored from Tuesday, Matt Hancock has announced.

Of these, around 70 per cent were outside hospital settings and around 30 per cent were in hospital.

A care home nurse used the knowledge she gained during the swine flu outbreak to help save the lives of 13 dementia patients who were displaying symptoms of the coronavirus.

Some 450 UK coronavirus patients will be recruited to take part in a new trial of a "promising" Covid-19 drug.

An experimental medicine that appears to help coronavirus patients recover faster has been given the green light for emergency use by US regulators.

UK scientists have started testing an experimental Covid-19 drug which they hope will significantly improve the health of coronavirus patients.

Cancer patients are being kept awake during operations to protect them from coronavirus, the Evening Standard can reveal.

Of the 22,049 confirmed reported deaths so far in hospitals in England, 11,575 (52 per cent) were people aged 80 and over while 8,547 (39 per cent) were 60-79.

The hospital trust that treated London's first coronavirus cases almost ran out of oxygen as hundreds of patients fought for their lives, it can be revealed.

Obese people with coronavirus are more at risk of dying, one of the UK's leading scientists has said.

Studies have examined some of the more unusual signs of Covid-19

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The World Health Organization lists the most common symptoms of Covid-19 as fever, tiredness and a dry cough. Others include a runny nose, sore throat, nasal congestion, pain, diarrhoea and the loss of sense of taste and/or smell. But there are also other more unusual symptoms that patients have presented.

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Most are doing their best to avoid other people's germs right now. But for cleaners and those who get rid of that trash, they're coming into contact with COVID-19 every shift.

1. Govt revises discharge rules for Covid-19 patients: All you need to know  Livemint
2. Vikram Chandra decodes geographical concentration of Covid-19 in India  Hindustan Times
3. Coronavirus India Live Updates | Covid-19 Tracker: Total corona cases in India Today Latest News | Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, Telangana  The Indian Express
4. Mint Covid Tracker: Fresh infections, deaths rising faster in India than most countries  Livemint
5. Day 46 of coronavirus lockdown: Ground report from Indian cities  Times of India
6. View Full coverage on Google News

A new study has found that hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug recommended by President Trump as a possible treatment for coronavirus, does not help patients hospitalized with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.

As vulnerable patients arrive at one hospital's psychiatric ward with just the clothes on their back, a support service is ensuring access to free, clean garments of their choice.

A team of scientists studied more than 1,300 patients admitted to a hospital for COVID-19

A recent survey from the George Washington University suggests that patients do not take social media into consideration when looking for a dermatologist and recommend that practitioners should use social media as a tool in engaging and educating patients.

The first study to report use of the rheumatoid arthritis drug anakinra to treat COVID-19 patients found that high-dose anakinra was safe and was associated with respiratory improvements and reduced signs of cytokine storm [1] in 72% (21/29) of patients, according to results from patients studied for 21 days (enrolled from 17 to 27 March 2020) in a Milan hospital, published in The Lancet Rheumatology journal.

New modeling of coronavirus behavior suggests that an intervention strategy based on shield immunity could reduce the risk of allowing the higher levels of human interaction needed to support expanded economic activity.

Olanzapine, a generic drug used to treat nervous, emotional and mental conditions, also may help patients with advanced cancer successfully manage nausea and vomiting unrelated to chemotherapy. These are the findings of a study published Thursday, May 7, 2020 in JAMA Oncology.

A new antigen test for detecting COVID-19 can return results within 15 minutes. Researchers who evaluated the assay, which was developed by a biotech company in Belgium, say it could help with patient diagnostics in areas hardest hit by the pandemic. While not as sensitive as tests that use viral RNA to detect the presence of an antigen, the COVID-19 Ag Respi-Strip test could be a useful tool in slowing the spread of the virus.

A Texas A&M AgriLife Research team has good news for patients with copper-deficiency disorders, especially young children diagnosed with Menkes disease.

Hospitals in London and Birmingham have been supplied with fourteen units of convalescent plasma to see if it helps people who are battling

As a medical oncologist in Connecticut, Dr. Justin Persico was all too aware of the people he treats, who would be at greater risk for exposure to the virus.

Une étude rapporte que les patients cancéreux sont jusqu’à 6 fois plus à risque de développer des complications sévères et de décéder de la Covid-19.

(MedPage Today) -- You make the call

(MedPage Today) -- Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 who received a combination therapy with three antivirals -- protease inhibitor lopinavir-ritonavir (Kaletra), nucleoside analogue ribavirin, and injectable interferon beta-1b (Betaseron...

The coronavirus pandemic is threatening Mexico's fragile public health infrastructure.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, many healthcare facilities around the world are inundated with critically ill patients, and resources such as equipment and staff are stretched thin. Shortages of critical equipment, such as ventilators, can mean the difference between life and death for patients, and the need to keep critically ill patients comfortable and alive […]

VitalConnect announced that it has received FDA Emergency Use Authorization status for use of its VitalPatch to detect changes in the QT interval of hospitalized patients undergoing drug treatment for COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, used to treat some COVID-19 patients, are associated with risk of prolonged QT interval that can lead to life-threatening arrhythmias. VitalPatch allows […]

HealthBeacon, a medication adherence technology company, has launched a new Covid-19 support offering for patients on injectable therapies.

The companies are committing to find ways to use their businesses to help patients with cancer.

Two different groups of researchers have shown that electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, combined with months of intense training, can allow some people who have been paralyzed to regain some walking ability.

I hope you are staying healthy and are managing to navigate your work-at-home mandates.

Last week, I tapped the collective insights of the Drug Channels’ audience. Nearly 700 readers shared their perspectives and projections for how the coronavirus pandemic could ultimately affect behavior, policy, and industry structure. Thank you to everyone who took the time to respond.

I will share the results over three articles this week:

• Today, in Part 1, I will review the responses relating to patient behavior, pharmacies, and wholesalers. 
• In Part 2 (tomorrow), I’ll focus on expectations for pharmaceutical manufacturers and third-party payment. 
• In Part 3 (Thursday), I’ll examine how the coronavirus may affect the public perception of the industry’s participants.

P.S. A special shout out to the respondent who hoped that the coronavirus would not impact the quality of Drug Channels memes. Never fear, dear readers: Drug Channels will remain the internet’s top destination for pharmaceutical-related humor!
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Today’s guest post comes from David Holladay, President of CoverMyMeds and Austin Raper, Healthcare Writer at CoverMyMeds.

First, David discusses how CoverMyMeds supports medication access. Then, Austin highlights key findings from CoverMyMeds’ 2020 Medication Access Report. This new report includes industry research, patient interviews, novel survey data, and strategies for boosting patients’ medication access.

Read on for David’s and Austin’s insights.
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Today’s guest post comes from Miranda Gill, Senior Director of Provider Network at CoverMyMeds.

Miranda reviews how the pandemic affects the ability of healthcare workers to complete administrative responsibilities like prior authorization. She then outlines how electronic automation is helping patients get needed medications while face-to-face interactions are restricted.

Learn more about healthcare IT solutions for providers and patients in CoverMyMeds’ 2020 Medication Access Report, or schedule a virtual meeting.
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The FDA has released a safety communication reiterating the need for doctors to closely monitor COVID-19 patients who are treated with either hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine.