An ongoing dialogue on HIV/AIDS, infectious diseases,
November 29th, 2020
Great Questions from Our Course, Infectious Diseases in Primary Care — Plus Bonus Podcast
Going to take a partial break from all things COVID-19 today and recap some of the terrific questions we received in our course, Infectious Diseases in Primary Care. Not surprisingly, there were plenty of COVID-19 questions but also the usual mix of practical queries from everyday practice. Front-line clinicians doing office-based practice attend this course, […]
November 24th, 2020
Some ID Things to Be Grateful for This Holiday Season — 2020 (!) Edition
“Grateful?” some might wonder. “He must be out of his mind.” But even in the cursed year that began shortly after the first report of the disease now known as COVID-19 on (almost) New Year’s Eve, we can still find some things to praise, and to offer our gratitude. Or at the very least, acknowledge […]
November 18th, 2020
Just Another Urgent Plea from Your Friendly ID Doctor for Risk Mitigation as the Holiday Season Approaches
There’s lots in the press about how to have safe holiday gatherings in 2020 as cases of COVID-19 increase pretty much everywhere in this country. How about this simple strategy? Celebrate only with the people you live with already. Bingo. That way Thanksgiving will be no riskier than your daily meals together. End of advice […]
November 15th, 2020
Bamlanivimab for COVID-19 — Hard to Pronounce, Even Harder to Give
The latest COVID-19 treatment made available under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) is bamlanivimab, a monoclonal antibody developed by Eli Lilly. For now, its use will be limited to outpatients who are at high risk for severe disease and/or hospitalization. This EUA is based on the results of the phase 2 BLAZE-1 study, in which the […]
November 10th, 2020
Promising COVID-19 Vaccine Results and Progress on HIV Prevention — All in One Great Day
Monday, November 9, in the bedeviled year 2020, was an astounding day for research on prevention of infectious diseases — really unprecedented. First — we awoke to hear that the Pfizer-BioNTech experimental COVID-19 vaccine was “90% effective” in preventing the disease after the second (of two) doses. This was a planned interim analysis, taking place […]
November 1st, 2020
A Series of Disappointing Results of Immune-Based Therapies for COVID-19
It’s been a tough couple of weeks for immune-based therapies for COVID-19. We know that immune modulation in this disease, especially in its most severe manifestations, can improve outcomes. Favorable results from the RECOVERY study of dexamethasone have made it the standard of care for most hospitalized patients who require oxygen. And we also know […]

