CDC Tells Docs to Be on the Lookout for Bird Flu Cases
The CDC wants clinicians and health departments to consider potential infections with the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus, commonly known as bird flu, in people with exposure to potentially infected animal sources. The health advisory alert comes on the heels of Monday’s announcement by the CDC and the Texas State Department of Health […]
Novel Hepatitis E Vaccine Protects for at Least a Decade
A three-dose vaccine regimen prevented hepatitis E virus (HEV) infections with high efficacy in adults over the course of 10 years, a phase III trial from China found. The HEV239 vaccine, sold under the name Hecolin outside the U.S., had an efficacy rate of 83.1% (95% CI 69.4-91.4) in the study’s modified intention-to-treat analysis and […]
Shorter Antibiotic Course Noninferior for UTI Recurrence in Kids
Five days of oral antibiotic treatment for febrile urinary tract infections (UTIs) in kids was noninferior to the standard 10-day course, the randomized controlled STOP trial showed. The recurrence rate of all UTIs — febrile and non-febrile — within 30 days of treatment with oral amoxicillin-clavulanate acid was 2.8% in the short-term group compared with […]
Rare Bacterial Infections Reported in Wyoming – Wyoming Department of Health
Rare Bacterial Infections Reported in Wyoming September 15, 2023 A rare, potentially serious bacterial infection known as leptospirosis has been recently diagnosed in several dogs and one human in Laramie County, according to the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) and the Wyoming Livestock Board. The human case is believed to be the state’s first on […]
CDC: Dialysis Patients Carry Heavier COVID Burden
Patients on maintenance dialysis had somewhat higher rates of SARS-CoV-2 infections and related deaths than seen in the general U.S. population, although immunization mitigated some of the excess risk, the CDC reported. From June 30, 2021, to Sept. 27, 2022, the overall infection rate per 10,000 patient-weeks was 30.47 among maintenance dialysis patients, with a […]
CDC: Children’s Brain Infections Rose Last Winter, But Remained Rare
Pediatric intracranial infections spiked recently and were associated with significant morbidity but remained rare, according to CDC researchers monitoring cases across the country. Hospitalization data through March 2023 from 37 hospitals in 19 states and the District of Columbia showed a “higher-than-expected number” of pediatric intracranial infections, particularly those caused by Streptococcus bacteria, beginning in […]
Second RSV Vaccine Lands Approval for Older Adults
The FDA has approved a second respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine for preventing lower respiratory infections in adults 60 and over, Pfizer announced on Wednesday. Approval of the unadjuvanted, bivalent RSV prefusion F protein vaccine (Abrysvo) follows an endorsement in March from FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC). Advisors voted 7-4 in […]
Safety Data on Maternal RSV Vaccine ‘Favorable,’ FDA Staff Says
A maternal respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate prevents infections in infants and comes with “generally favorable” safety data, said FDA staff in briefing documents released ahead of an advisory committee meeting this week, but the reviewers “noted potential uncertainty based on the numerical imbalance in premature deliveries.” On Thursday, members of the Vaccines and […]
Sublingual Vaccine Shows Promise in Women With Recurrent UTIs
CHICAGO — A sublingual vaccine not only reduced the risk of recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) in women, it also appeared to enable a significant number of these women to be completely UTI-free, according to a North American study. Among 67 women with three or more UTIs per year, 40.6% of those receiving a 3-month […]
Extensively Drug-Resistant Shigellosis on the Rise in the U.S.
Healthcare professionals should be on the lookout for an increase in extensively drug-resistant (XDR) Shigella infections (shigellosis) and should report cases to local or state health departments, the CDC said in a health advisory Friday. Given that Shigella bacteria are easily transmissible (through as few as 10-100 organisms) and antimicrobial treatment options are limited, the […]