Coronavirus infections in Asia passed 100 million on March 30, according to a Reuters tally, as the region records a resurgence in cases dominated by the BA.2 Omicron sub-variant.

One in four children with COVID-19 symptoms develop “long COVID,” according to data pooled from 21 earlier studies conducted in Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. Also, according to a study reported on March 14 in JAMA Pediatrics, women who wish to pass protective antibodies induced by COVID-19 vaccines to their babies via breast milk should opt for the mRNA shots from Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech.

More than half of the first 21 brains donated to the Australian Sports Brain Bank by former athletes showed signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative disease caused by repeated concussions, a study showed.

According to Johns Hopkins University data, as of November 1, there were 5,000,425 Covid-19-related deaths worldwide.

Vifor Pharma and Travere Therapeutics inked a collaboration and licensing partnership to commercialize sparsentan in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The drug is being developed to treat FSGS and IgAN, which are rare progressive kidney diseases that are leading causes of end-stage kidney disease.

Several Asian nations are quickly ramping up vaccination campaigns from shaky starts to combat growing Covid-19 infections, as supply shipments roll in and people overcome hesitancy in hopes of easing curbs and freeing up travel.

Vaccine developer Novavax Inc. said on Sept. 8 the company initiated an early-stage study to test a combination of the flu shot NanoFlu and the Covid-19 vaccine NVX-CoV2373.

Australian scientists say they have developed the “holy grail” of blood sugar testing for diabetics, a non-invasive strip that checks glucose levels via saliva.

The highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus is surging through Asia, with record numbers of infections in Australia and South Korea, prompting some countries to tighten curbs and others to hasten vaccination.

Next year, people are likely to need an annual Covid-19 vaccination just like they need an annual flu shot. That prediction is made by researchers at six of Australia’s leading medical research institutions, based upon their study of the levels of neutralizing antibodies needed to confer protection against Covid-19.