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By Amanda Torres  Queens Voice July 8, 2025 An infectious disease expert shares information on NB.1.8.1, which has caused a surge in COVID infections in parts of Asia.     This article originally appeared in NewYork Presbyterian Health Matters. NEW YORK - The new COVID variant known as NB.1.8.1, nicknamed Nimbus, has emerged globally and is beginning to spread in the United States. Nimbus accounted for an estimated 37% of cases in the U.S., during a two-week period ending June 7, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  What sets NB.1.8.1 apart is how quickly it spreads,” explains Dr. Magdalena Sobieszczyk, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. “It has a genetic advantage: mutations that make it easy for it to bind to receptors on human cells. The mutations could allow NB.1.8.1 to spread faster and...

By Dr. Steven Angelo, Chief Medical Officer, Medicare & Retirement, UnitedHealthcare of New York  Queens Voice  July 1, 2025   NEW YORK - Experts are forecasting that 2025, especially this summer, will be particularly hot, which may pose heightened health risks for older adults, according to a University of Southern California study. Seniors may be more susceptible to heat-related illnesses like heat stroke as well as complications from chronic conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure that are worsened by extreme heat.   How older adults can stay cool Plan ahead – Follow local weather reports to ensure you have enough food, prescription medications and other home “staples” to get through a heat wave. Stay hydrated – Drink plenty of water, even if you are not thirsty. Limit caffeinated and alcoholic beverages. Drinks with elect...

  Dr. Krystal L. Cleven, Pulmonologist  Queens Voice  May 12, 2025 QUEENS  - May means warmer weather and beautiful blooming flowers. And with this beauty comes a lot more pollen circulating in the air. Pollen is a common trigger of asthma, a chronic condition that causes airway inflammation in the lungs. Dust, pet hair, air pollution, cockroaches, mice, smoke, and weather changes can also trigger asthma episodes. Shortness of breath, coughing, chest tightness, and wheezing are well-known asthma symptoms.  Asthma in the Bronx In New York City, approximately 14% of adults and children have asthma but the rates in the Bronx are higher at 21%. Emergency room visits and hospitalizations due to asthma are also about twice as high in the Bronx compared to the rest of New York City. Although outdoor air pollution may be a factor for people living near busy roads and highways, most areas of the Bronx have...

Home Care Nurses:  The Beating Heart of Community Health  File Photo By Constance Washington, RN, Care Coordinator VNS Health Health Plans  Bronx Voice  May 5, 2025 NEW YORK - Many people might think that for nurses the workplace would be a hospital, clinic, or doctor’s office. But for the 180,000+ New York home care nurses who provide care to people at home, the “workplace” could be a basement apartment, a 30-floor high-rise, a house with a 2-car garage, a park bench, or just about anywhere someone actually lives. In my 19 years as a Home Care Nurse and Care Coordinator with VNS Health, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit home- and community-based health care organizations, I’ve pretty much seen it all. And one thing I know—home is where people want to be if they can when they’re recovering from surgery, illness or other health conditions. This special group of frontline heroes is the “beating heart” of community he...