COVID-19: Challenging Clinical Questions

In October 2020 when Annals of Internal Medicine and the American College of Physicians hosted the first COVID-19 forum, we did not anticipate that the pandemic would continue through 2021 and there would be a need for continuing this forum series over a year later. Unfortunately, SARS-CoV-2 is a stubborn virus, an alphabet of variants has emerged, testing remains suboptimal, and pandemic fatigue and reliance on misinformation have resulted in too many people choosing not to adhere to recommendations for vaccination and other public health measures. The body of knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 that researchers have amassed since early 2020 is remarkable. Yet, as we learn more, new questions emerge. This is particularly the case in light of the recent recognition of the Omicron variant in late November 2021 and the emergence of promising antiviral therapies. On 8 December 2021, Annals and ACP convened 3 infectious disease experts to address current challenging clinical questions. Panelists included Dr. Sabrina A. Assoumou from Boston University; Dr. Judith S. Currier from University of California, Los Angeles; and Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo from University of Alabama at Birmingham.