By: Anna Boyd 

COVID-19 is still affecting thousands of people daily. Since the vaccines have been out and approved, they have been authorized for emergency use. The CDC has since reported tens of millions first doses and people fully vaccinated. 

The Pfizer vaccine was the first vaccine to be approved by the FDA, they began shipping the vials on December 14h. The next vaccine approved was another two-dose developed by Moderna, these began shipping on December 20^th. The final vaccine approved by the FDA was a single dose administered by Johnson and Johnson that was sent out on February 27^th.  

 NBC news has created a tracker to see how many people are fully vaccinated in the US by following daily reports.  

Even though many states are beginning to place stricter vaccination laws, there are still many hot spots across the US. Medical personals are working continuously to contain the pandemic the number of cases are growing at different rates. There are many different factors contributing to the spread, such as testing capabilities and different stay-at-home orders.  

Within the years of COVID many different health problems in Americans have increased. Americans have not been able to keep their blood pressure at healthy levels since the beginning in 2020. This could be due to people either being afraid to go see their physicians or because of their offices being closed.  

High blood pressure does not take long to cause damage to the body. Left unmanaged this is a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and plenty of other outcomes like kidney disease.  

In 2021, the cumulative effects are being accelerated by pandemic, and are being apparent to doctors. The combination of blood pressure issues and other pandemic-related lapses are leading to a sicker patient overall. These patients are in need of intensive care that is stretched extremely thin at hospitals. Patients are beginning to show up to the hospital in renal failure due to severe hypertensive.  

Hypertension is a dramatic increase in blood pressure. Blood pressure is measured by two numbers, the bottom number being the diastolic pressure and the top number being the systolic pressure. Systolic is the pressure in someone’s arteries when the heart beats. Diastolic is the pressure in the arteries as the heart is resting between beats.  

The Mayo Clinic performed a study by examining health records from 24 different health care systems. They noted a drop-off number of patients who returned to their doctors after a high blood pressure diagnosis by 31%. These spikes are more than likely caused by patients gaining weight, becoming sedentary, or smoking.  

The COVID-19 Pandemic does not have an end in sight. It is causing problems inside and outside of the symptoms of the Corona Virus. Vaccinations rates are increasing but not enough in many states. The CDC is still recommending masks to be worn in public settings whether you are vaccinated or not.