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Costs of caring for U.S. gunshot survivors come to about $2.5 billion in the first year after their injuries, according to a Harvard study of a topic on which research was long relatively silent because of federal funding restrictions. Monthly direct medical costs for the gun-wounded increased from the year before the injury by almost $2,500, researchers at Harvard Medical School found. Costs for people with severe harm like brain injuries might last for years to come, said Zirui Song, an associate professor of health care policy and Massachusetts General Hospital primary-care doctor who led the study. (Adegbesan, 4/4)

Survivors of gun violence and their families see a spike in medical costs and the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and substance use disorders in the months following an injury, according to a new study from Harvard Medical School researchers. The research, published this week in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, was based on patient records over 10 years. It included information from 6,498 survivors of firearm injuries, matched to 32,490 control individuals, and 12,489 family members, including significant others, parents and children of survivors of gun violence injuries, compared to 62,445 control individuals. It also included survivors’ records from one year before a firearm injury through one year after. (Pitofsky, 4/4)

It is a belief that helped drive a historic rise in U.S. firearms sales and first-time gun owners during the COVID-19 pandemic: Having a handgun at home for personal protection will make you safer. Groundbreaking new research conducted over a 12-year period in California shows that the opposite is true. Between October 2004 and the end of 2016, adults in the state who didn’t own a gun but took up residence with someone who did were much more likely to die a violent death than people in households without a handgun, researchers from Stanford University found. (Healy, 4/4)

A third of U.S. adults reported gaining weight during the COVID-19 pandemic, a study released Monday shows — and researchers found that people who reported higher weight also said they began drinking more during that time.  While obesity is a complex health issue that can be caused by a multitude of factors, the study used national surveys to show a possible link between the unhealthy habits. (Jones, 4/4)

After waiting 218 days, 8-month-old Elodie Carmen Baker received a new heart last week. Elodie, who was diagnosed with a rare heart disease called dilated cardiomyopathy at around 2 months old, spent over 200 days on the waitlist for a heart. Finally, on March 27, she underwent a successful transplant at The Heart Center at Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago. "The fortitude and the strength that she's shown in the last seven months constantly amazes us. And we know that she's destined to do remarkable things," Elodie's mom, Kate Baker, told USA TODAY. (Grantham-Philips, 4/4)

“On a pain scale of one to 10, it was a 10,” Scott Shirley recalled. “The worst pain I’ve ever felt.” It was June 2020, and Shirley, a winemaker in Paso Robles, Calif., knew something was terribly wrong. He was going about his daily business when he doubled over with severe abdominal pain and a 103-degree fever. A doctor in the emergency room told him his left lung had collapsed. But what ailed Shirley, now 50, wasn’t COVID-19: It was valley fever. Officially known as coccidioidomycosis — or “cocci” for short — valley fever is a fungal infection that is transmitted in dust. In the United States, it has mostly plagued humans and animals in Arizona and California’s San Joaquin Valley, where the illness was first described as “San Joaquin Valley fever” more than a century ago. (Smith, 4/4)

At Whitman-Walker Health, David Fessler and his staff administer high-dose influenza vaccine to all HIV-positive and senior patients. Although the vaccine is roughly three times as expensive as the standard flu vaccine, it seems to do a better job at protecting those with weakened immune systems — a major focus of the nonprofit group’s Washington clinics. At the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, meanwhile, Melissa Martinez runs a drive-through clinic providing 10,000 influenza vaccines each year for a community made up largely of Black and Hispanic residents. It’s open to all comers, and they all get the standard vaccine. (Allen, 4/4)

Want to live longer? Take a hike — a shorter one than you’ve been told. Mortality risk was reduced by 50% for older adults who increased their daily steps from around 3,000 to around 7,000, according to new medical research. 7,000 is the new 10,000, in terms of steps you should shoot for, The Lancet medical journal reports. This is all it takes for those 60 and older to dramatically increase their lifespans. (Pandey, 4/4)

KHN: Losing Sleep Over The Pandemic? Work Flexibility May Be A Boon For Night Owls’ Health 

Many so-called night people feel that, when it comes to society’s expectations about when the workday should start, they drew the short straw. Research shows that “night owls” are hard-wired to sleep later, yet 9-to-5 work schedules force them to battle their physiology and wake up early. Research also has shown that conventional timetables leave them vulnerable to physical and mental health issues. (Sharma, 4/5)

Disney-branded hand sanitizers featuring Mickey Mouse and Star Wars' The Mandalorian have been recalled over the presence of benzene and methanol. Best Brands Consumer Products is recalling The Mandalorian Hand Sanitizer Ethyl Alcohol 68%, available in green and blue, and Mickey Mouse Hand Sanitizer Ethyl Alcohol 68%, available in blue, according to a release from the Food and Drug Administration. FDA testing found the presence of benzene in The Mandalorian hand sanitizer, while the presence of methanol was found in the Mickey Mouse-branded hand sanitizer. (Molina and Tyko, 4/4)