COVID-19

Reeyan Ahmed is among the patients treated at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt who developed MIS-C following COVID-19 infection.
March 7, 2022

Teen shares his battle with MIS-C following COVID-19 infection

Reeyan Ahmed is among the patients treated at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt who developed MIS-C following COVID-19 infection.

By Christina Echegaray
Crystal Wix, RN, foreground, and care partner Carolyn Forgac work with a patient in the COVID intensive care unit in September 2021.
March 3, 2022

COVID-19: two years of challenges, lessons, victories

Two years ago this week, the cataclysmic coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 arrived in Middle Tennessee.

By Bill Snyder
VUMC’s ECMO program has expanded to areas outside of the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit.
February 25, 2022

Study shows young, healthy adults died from COVID-19 due to ECMO shortage

Vanderbilt research found that nearly 90 percent of COVID-19 patients who qualified for, but did not receive, ECMO due to a shortage of resources during the height of the pandemic died in the hospital, despite being young with few other health issues

By Craig Boerner
Amya Elliott, 9, talks with Bonnie Pilon, RN, prior to receiving her COVID-19 vaccination at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. The hospital began mass vaccination for children ages 5-11 on Monday, Nov. 8.
February 24, 2022

MIS-C diagnosis rare in vaccinated children with no previous COVID-19 diagnosis

A Vanderbilt study found that children who received the COVID-19 vaccine who had not previously been diagnosed with COVID infection are unlikely to be diagnosed with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).

By Kylie Avery
February 17, 2022

Pandemic leads to broader use of monoclonal antibodies

Antiviral drugs and coronavirus-fighting monoclonal antibodies, including those discovered at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, remain crucially important in the continuing fight against COVID-19.

By Bill Snyder
February 16, 2022

Above and beyond to fight the pandemic: Blood Bank director Jennifer Andrews, husband, Chris, and daughter Ella each were volunteers in VUMC vaccine research.

“I needed to help the situation in any way possible. I felt really lucky to be included in the clinical trial,” Andrews said.

By Kristin Smart
February 9, 2022

Vanderbilt and CDC research shows third vaccine dose key to preventing omicron hospitalization

Vanderbilt research shows that two doses of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine result in lower effectiveness for preventing hospitalization for the omicron variant than previous variants. However, importantly, a third (“booster”) vaccine dose significantly improves protection against omicron hospitalization up to 86%.
By Kristin Smart
February 7, 2022

Study shows lifesaving benefit of baricitinib for ventilated COVID patients

Vanderbilt research shows that critically ill COVID-19 patients on a mechanical ventilator or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation lived more often when randomized to receive baricitinib.
By Craig Boerner
February 4, 2022

A memoir of the COVID years: a Vanderbilt ICU nurse remembers patients who died, families who wept, and discovers the importance of hearing “thank you” and caring for herself

"I realized that my mechanism of avoiding and ignoring death in the workplace had taken its toll on me."
By Rebecca Tucci
February 3, 2022

Advanced Practice Grand Rounds explores COVID’s impact

The recent VUMC Advanced Practice Grand Rounds explored the impact the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is having on the nursing workforce.
By Matt Batcheldor
January 24, 2022

Vanderbilt recruiting children to study allergic responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines

Vanderbilt is conducting a clinical trial to determine risk and mechanisms of allergic reactions to COVID-19 Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccine among children.
By Jessica Pasley
January 20, 2022

Omicron evades some but not all monoclonal antibodies: study

A new study found that several, but not all, of the human monoclonal antibodies used clinically to prevent patients from becoming severely ill from COVID-19 may not be protective against the Omicron variant now sweeping across the United States.
By Bill Snyder
January 6, 2022

Grant boosts vaccine effectiveness research

By Nancy Humphrey