Infectious Disease

Why the Sean Combs trial is a wake-up call for HIV prevention

Conditions
August 16, 2025

We are now waiting for sentencing in the Sean (P. Diddy) Combs trial. Onlookers reading about the trial could have various thoughts. Thoughts about how power corrupts behavior. Thoughts about how men manipulate women through violence and sex. There could be schadenfreude. There could be prurience. Me, I think about HIV preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

You heard correctly, PrEP. When I hear testimony about multiple partners and escorts, my concern is for …

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COVID-19 was real: a doctor’s frontline account

Conditions
August 9, 2025

Once upon a time there was a pandemic, despite what the “deniers” and conspiracy theorists say. This rare disease outbreak shook every corner of the globe, yet brought out the best in people, people who put their lives on the line to care for the sick and dying.

But to this day, I still hear and read about folks who are convinced the COVID-19 pandemic was blown out of proportion and …

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Mumps orchitis still causes infertility years after childhood

Conditions
July 27, 2025

As a reproductive endocrinologist, I see countless patients who walk through my doors with quiet stories of loss—sometimes the loss of hope, sometimes the loss of time. But every year, there’s a particular group of gentlemen who share a strikingly similar history.

They come from different countries. Many grew up in regions where the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine was unavailable or inconsistently administered. They had mumps as children, recovered, and thought nothing …

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Confronting the return of measles and vaccine misinformation [PODCAST]

Podcast
July 24, 2025
YouTube video

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Infectious disease physician Janet A. Jokela discusses her article, “Measles is back: Why vaccination is more vital than ever.” Recounting her own experience diagnosing a case in the 1990s, Janet contrasts that …

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Nurse-initiated protocols for sepsis: a strategic imperative for patient care and hospital operations

Conditions
July 24, 2025

Sepsis continues to pose a serious threat to patients and a significant challenge to hospital systems. Despite advances in awareness and clinical guidelines, delays in diagnosis and treatment remain common and costly. Sepsis is the leading cause of death in U.S. hospitals and costs the U.S. health care industry $62 billion annually.

The ripple effects of sepsis extend far beyond the bedside, impacting everything from …

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Meeting transgender patients where they are: a health care imperative

Physician
July 22, 2025

An excerpt from Pandemics, Poverty, and Politics: Decoding the Social and Political Drivers of Pandemics from Plague to COVID-19.

Many transgender (TG) people live with the constant threat of violence. International research documented a total of over 2,000 murders of TG humans between January 2008 and April 2016.43 (These findings are likely greatly underreported.) Even more widespread is nonlethal violence against TG communities. A national U.S. study indicated that 35 …

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How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

Conditions
July 17, 2025

We thought we had moved on from diseases like rubella. But as measles makes a comeback, rubella may not be far behind, and this time, it could harm the next generation before it’s even born. Most people today have never seen a baby born with congenital rubella syndrome, a condition that causes blindness, deafness, heart defects, and developmental delays. That’s not because it stopped happening—it’s because vaccination kept rubella from …

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How oral health silently affects your heart, brain, and body

Conditions
July 7, 2025

The mouth is connected to the body by blood vessels, lymphatic pathways, and the immune system. Ignoring oral health means risking more than a toothache — it could mean risking your life.

When most people think of oral health, they think of teeth, cavities, brushing, flossing, maybe the occasional root canal. But the truth is, what’s happening in your mouth can have a ripple effect throughout your entire body. This is …

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Why working in Hawai’i health care isn’t all paradise

Physician
July 2, 2025

Most people could think of several good reasons to move to Hawai’i and work in health care. It’s a beautiful gem of a place with welcoming people and Aloha Spirit. Why save up for an occasional Hawaiian vacation when you could be enjoying sunny beaches, warm waters, and lush jungles year-round? The problem is that entry into Hawai’i’s health care system has largely become a revolving door of those who …

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A world without vaccines: What history teaches us about public health

Conditions
June 28, 2025

What would a world without vaccines even look like?

Well, it turns out that we do not have to wonder since accurate historical records allow us to distinctly see and learn for ourselves. This is in keeping with our Secretary of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) recent guidance to Do Your Own Research.

What we actually need, individually and as a nation, is clear and consistent science-based advice when it comes …

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Why congenital CMV should be on every parent and doctor’s radar

Conditions
June 9, 2025

My son was born with a congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection.

Unless you specialize in prenatal care, infectious disease, or pediatric audiology, you’ve probably never heard of it.

That’s the first part of the problem.

And, even if you have heard of it, unless you’re a public health advocate or a parent (or both, like me), you probably don’t know enough about it—at least, not in the ways that matter most to patients.

That’s the …

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How collaboration across medical disciplines and patient advocacy cured a rare disease [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 3, 2025
YouTube video

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Patient advocate Tami Burdick discusses her article, “How collaboration saved my life from a rare disease doctors couldn’t diagnose.” Tami shares her personal and arduous journey with granulomatous mastitis (GM), a rare …

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Bird flu’s deadly return: Are we flying blind into the next pandemic?

Conditions
May 29, 2025

Scientists have known about bird flu (H5N1) for decades as a virus that primarily affects birds. Until suddenly, one day, it didn’t. In March 2024, H5N1 showed up somewhere very unexpected—in dairy cows in Texas (and their milk). And then, the virus started jumping to other mammals—goats, domestic cats, and even dolphins—and to humans who interacted with these animals. While there was no evidence …

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Antimicrobial resistance: a public health crisis that needs your voice [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 21, 2025
YouTube video

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Health care public relations leader Melanie Doupé Gaiser discusses her article, “Antimicrobial resistance needs a publicist.” She highlights antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as an urgent and deadly public health crisis that is not …

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Why ruling out sepsis in emergency departments can be lifesaving

Conditions
May 15, 2025

It’s a common scenario in the emergency department (ED). Peak cold and flu season brings in patients complaining of fever and chills, with increased heart rates and elevated white blood cell counts. Too many patients, not enough beds. As emergency medicine providers, we have to make quick, challenging decisions at triage, prioritizing the sickest patients based on their vitals and symptoms and getting them on the right care pathway.

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When America sneezes, the world catches a cold: Trump’s freeze on HIV/AIDS funding

Policy
May 1, 2025

On the 20th of January 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that initiated a freeze on foreign aid, including the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This abrupt suspension of funding has triggered a global health crisis, undermining decades of progress in combating HIV/AIDS and endangering millions of lives across the globe.

PEPFAR and its global success

Launched in 2003 under …

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The heartbreaking pandemic story I will never forget

Conditions
April 22, 2025

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the world five years ago, and the world seems to be contemplating that history lately. Numerous articles reflect on that time now that we are passing that first major milestone. In many ways, we are still struggling with the fallout and will be for the foreseeable future.

In mid-2021, things started returning to “normal” in the health care setting. The absolute jubilation of having a vaccine available …

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Antimicrobial resistance needs a publicist

Conditions
April 4, 2025

The mass layoffs at federal health agencies, combined with the recent flurry of federal government announcements—paused communications, stop-work orders, and canceled meetings—have the health care and life sciences communities on edge. One announcement I found quite concerning was the cancellation of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria meeting scheduled for January 28. This was supposed to be a gathering of experts focused on the growing threat of antimicrobial …

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Why hand washing isn’t enough to stop infections in hospitals [PODCAST]

Podcast
March 30, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Emergency physician W. Frank Peacock discusses his article, “What if a doctor didn’t wash their hands between patients?” He explores the critical role of hand hygiene in preventing hospital-acquired infections while exposing …

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