Researchers at the University of Oxford have launched a human challenge trial to look at what kind of immune response can stop people from becoming re-infected. The team, led by the NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre Director Professor Helen McShane (pictured right), also want to find out ... READ MORE
COVID-19 News
National study looks at long-term lung damage from COVID-19
A new national study involving researchers from Oxford will investigate the long-term effects of lung inflammation and scarring from COVID-19. The study, launched with £2 million of funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), aims to develop treatment strategies and prevent ... READ MORE
Risk of severe COVID-19 from asthma and other respiratory diseases may be only modestly increased, new analysis suggests
An analysis of 8.3 million health care records in England shows that people with asthma have only a small increased risk of developing severe Covid-19. The study, led by University of Oxford researchers, examined routine patient data collected between January and April 2020 to generate risk ... READ MORE
Oxford researchers release cheap, quick COVID-19 antibody test
An international research team led by Oxford University scientists has developed a portable test for antibodies that fight the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The test, which spots the presence of virus-fighting antibodies rather than a coronavirus infection, can be adapted to work on ... READ MORE
New study finds strong immune response following COVID-19 vaccination
A new study has found that 99% of people generate a robust immune response against COVID-19 after just one dose of the Pfizer vaccine, and that after two doses levels of protection were even stronger. The PITCH (Protective Immunity from T cells to COVID-19 in Health workers) study, led by ... READ MORE
Seven in ten patients hospitalised with COVID-19 not fully recovered five months after discharge
A majority of survivors who left hospital following COVID-19 had not fully recovered five months after discharge and continued to experience negative impacts on their physical and mental health, as well as their ability to work, according to results released by a major national study into the ... READ MORE
Two doses of vaccine offer same protection from COVID as prior infection, study finds
Two doses of either the Pfizer or Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine offer similar protection against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection to that coming from natural immunity after infection, an ongoing study of healthcare workers has found. None of the 1,456 healthcare workers at Oxford University ... READ MORE
Oxford study reveals public attitudes to vaccine roll-out programmes
An international study led by University of Oxford health economists and political scientists has found that there is much greater consistency in public attitudes across a number of countries about who should be prioritised for COVID-19 vaccination than there is in national policies. The study, ... READ MORE
Oxford study shows high level of readmissions and death after COVID-19 discharge
Some 30% of patients discharged after being admitted to hospital with community-acquired COVID-19 had been readmitted or died within 60 days, a study by Oxford researchers has shown. In a paper published in the European Journal of Public Health, they found that, as anticipated, rates of ... READ MORE
Oxford-led technology to help those at high risk from Covid-19
More people in England at high risk from Covid-19 will get priority access to vaccines thanks to new technology developed by a University of Oxford-led team of researchers that can identify those who may be most vulnerable to the virus. Research led by Professor Julia Hippisley-Cox in the ... READ MORE
Oxford University extends COVID-19 vaccine study to children
The University of Oxford coronavirus vaccine team has launched the first study to assess the safety and immune responses in children and young adults of their ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine. The study, which will be conducted with partner sites in London, Southampton and Bristol, builds on previous ... READ MORE
Tocilizumab found to reduce deaths in hospitalised COVID-19patients
The RECOVERY Trial, the world’s largest randomised trial of potential COVID-19 treatments, has found that the anti-inflammatory drug, tocilizumab, reduces the risk of death when given to hospitalised patients with severe COVID-19. The trial, which received core funding from the NIHR Oxford ... READ MORE
Lateral flow devices found to be useful in screening OUH staff for coronavirus
Infection prevention and control clinicians and researchers at Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) have been outlining the OUH’s experience of deploying self-administered home-based lateral flow testing of its staff. In a letter published in the Journal of Infection, they said that 46,503 ... READ MORE
Drug trial that could improve respiratory recovery from COVID-19 under way
A clinical trial has begun to test whether the drug Almitrine can help people who are seriously ill with COVID-19 recover from the disease. Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of three centres taking part in the trial. Patients suffering from COVID-19 pneumonia often ... READ MORE
Common asthma treatment reduces need for hospitalisation in COVID-19 patients, study suggests
Early treatment with a medication commonly used to treat asthma appears to significantly reduce the need for urgent care and hospitalisation in people with COVID-19, researchers at the University of Oxford have found. The STOIC study found that inhaled budesonide given to patients with COVID-19 ... READ MORE
Oxford coronavirus vaccine shows sustained protection between doses
Researchers at the University of Oxford have revealed that the efficacy of the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine is higher at longer prime-boost intervals, and that a single dose of the vaccine is 76% effective from 22 to up to 90 days post-vaccination. In their findings, published in ... READ MORE
Fewer colorectal cancer diagnoses reported during COVID-19
University of Oxford researchers from the UK Colorectal Cancer Intelligence Hub have been investigating how the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer patients has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The NIHR Oxford BRC-supported researchers at the Nuffield Department of Population ... READ MORE
Lateral flow devices detect most infectious COVID-19 cases, study shows
Researchers from the University of Oxford, working with Public Health England, have used NHS Test and Trace data to find out why some individuals pass COVID-19 on to their contacts more easily than others, and if lateral flow tests are sufficient in detecting those who are most ... READ MORE
COVID-19 ‘matching service’ increased public involvement in research, HRA finds
The Health Research Authority (HRA) has found that levels of public involvement in COVID-19 research increased following the introduction of a public involvement matching service, in a report published last week. A group of public contributors from the NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre took ... READ MORE
Oxford study confirms medium-term impact of COVID-19
A study looking at the longer-term impact of COVID-19 has found that a significant proportion of COVID-19 patients discharged from hospital reported symptoms of breathlessness, fatigue and depression and had limited exercise capacity several weeks after leaving hospital. The University of ... READ MORE