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Elevated Exposure Levels To Nitrogen Dioxide, Fine Particulate Matter Over 5 Years Increased Likelihood For COVID-19, Study Finds

Healio (4/22, Hornick) reports, “Elevated exposure levels to nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter over 5 years raised the odds for COVID-19, according to” a study. Investigators came to this conclusion after assessing “10,489 individuals (median age, 62.3 years; 70.3% women; 95.6% white) to determine how 5-year exposure to nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 μm (PM2.5) or less are each linked to odds for a SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 symptom severity.” The findings were published in Respiratory Medicine.

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Scientists Criticize Federal Response To Avian Influenza Outbreaks On Dairy Farms

The New York Times (4/20, Mandavilli, Anthes) reported, “In the month since federal authorities announced an outbreak of bird flu on dairy farms, they have repeatedly reassured the public that the spate of infections does not impact the nation’s food or milk supply, and poses little risk to the public.” However, “the outbreak among cows may be more serious than originally believed. In an obscure online update [last] week, the Department of Agriculture said there is now evidence that the virus is spreading among cows, and from cows to poultry.” So far, “the federal response...echoes early missteps during the pandemic...experts said.” In particular, “some experts said the agencies should not have asserted that the milk is safe before they had the data in hand, even though there is only a slim chance of risk to people.”

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Specific Autoantibody Signature Was Seen In Subset Of People With MS Long Before Clinical Symptoms Appeared, Researchers Find

MedPage Today (4/19, George) reported, “A specific autoantibody signature was seen in a subset of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) long before clinical symptoms appeared, blood samples showed.” Investigators found that “a distinct set of autoantibodies emerged in approximately 10% of MS patients up to 5 years before symptoms were seen.” These “autoantibodies appeared to bind to both human cells and common pathogens and were associated with higher levels of serum neurofilament light.” The findings were published in Nature Medicine.

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Study Evaluates Risk Factors For C. Diff Infection

Infectious Disease Advisor (4/19, Chan) reported, “Anemia, coagulation disorders, fluid and electrolyte disorders, and underweight status may be associated with increased risk for Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI), according to study findings published in” Infectious Diseases and Therapy. Other risk factors included older age, “female sex and the presence of various comorbidities, including kidney disease, liver disease, cardiovascular disease, HIV, sepsis, urinary tract infection, and pneumonia.”

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CDC Says Long COVID Prevalence Highlights Need For Ongoing Surveillance

Infectious Disease Advisor (4/19, Barowski) said, “The prevalence of long COVID reported by adults throughout the United States and US territories indicates the importance of ongoing surveillance to support state-level interventions, according to study results published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.” According to the report, “the overall prevalence of long COVID was 6.4%. In the weighted analysis, the lowest prevalence was identified in the US Virgin Islands and the highest prevalence was identified in West Virginia. In 7 states, long COVID prevalence exceeded 8.8%.”

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New Antibiotics Underprescribed For Difficult-To-Treat Infections, Study Finds

Healio (4/19, Rhoades) reported, “More than 40% of patients with difficult-to-treat pathogens were prescribed older, generic agents despite the FDA approval of several new gram-negative antibiotics, findings showed.” In the study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, “patients with DTR pathogens were treated exclusively with traditional generic agents in 41.5% of DTR episodes, including 79.3% of DTR episodes where ‘these older agents were agents with known suboptimal safety and/or efficacy such as polymyxins, aminoglycosides, and tigecycline,’ the researchers noted.”

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WHO Widens Definition Of Airborne Diseases

The New York Times (4/18, Zimmer) says a group of WHO advisers have “published a report laying out new definitions” of airborne diseases “that could have significant implications for countries around the world that depend on the agency to set policies to curb the spread of disease.” The WHO’s “previous stance was that only a handful of pathogens – those that travel in small droplets and spread across long distances, like tuberculosis – could be considered airborne.” However, “the new report suggests broader categories that do not rely on droplet size or distance spread.” These “changes were contentious because they raised the prospect that more diseases might now demand costly control measures, such as hospital isolation rooms and protective gear.” Reuters (4/18, Rigby) reports the WHO “released a technical document on the topic on Thursday. It said it was the first step towards working out how to better prevent this kind of transmission, both for existing diseases like measles and for future pandemic threats.” The report “concludes that the descriptor ‘through the air’ can be used for infectious diseases where the main type of transmission involves the pathogen travelling through the air or being suspended in the air, in line with other terms such as ‘waterborne’ diseases, which are understood across disciplines and by the public.”

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S. Aureus Screening Program Paired With Genomic Sequencing, EHR Data Helps Identify Hospital Transmissions, Study Finds

Healio (4/18, Stulpin) reports, “A Staphylococcus aureus screening program paired with genomic sequencing and electronic health data improved a New York hospital’s ability to identify transmissions and patients at high risk, according to a study.” The screening program “identified 424 plausible S. aureus hospital transmissions – 75% of which they believe would have been missed without the screening cultures.” The results were presented at the Society of Healthcare Epidemiologists of America Spring Conference.

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Protein-Based COVID-19 Vaccine Has Similar Efficacy To mRNA, Vector-Based Vaccines, Study Finds

Infectious Disease Advisor (4/18) reports, “NVX-CoV2373, a protein-based COVID-19 vaccine, has high initial efficacy against pre-Delta and Delta strains of the virus and a durability profile similar to that of mRNA and vector-based vaccines, according to findings published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.” However, the study found “protection conferred by 2 doses of NVX-CoV2373 against Delta strains significantly waned over time (P =.007). The vaccine efficacy of NVX-CoV2373 against Delta strains was 88% at day 40, 82% at day 120, and 77% at day 180.”

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WHO Approves Updated Version Of Cholera Vaccine

The AP (4/18) reports, “The World Health Organization has approved a version of a widely used cholera vaccine that could help address a surge in cases that has depleted the global vaccine stockpile and left poorer countries scrambling to contain epidemics.” The organization “authorized the vaccine, made by EuBiologics, which also makes the formulation now used, last week. The new version, called Euvichol-S, is a simplified formula that uses fewer ingredients, is cheaper, and can be made more quickly than the old version.”

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Merck Production Issues Mean Around 1.5M Teenage Girls In Poor Countries Likely Will Never Receive HPV Vaccination

The New York Times (4/18, Nolen) reports, “Nearly 1.5 million teenage girls in some of the world’s poorest countries will miss the chance to be protected from cervical cancer because the drugmaker Merck has said it will not be able to deliver millions of promised doses of the HPV vaccine this year.” The company “has notified Gavi, the international organization that helps low- and middle-income countries deliver lifesaving immunizations, and UNICEF, which procures the vaccines, that it will deliver only 18.8 million of the 29.6 million doses it was contracted to deliver in 2024, Gavi said.” This “means that more than 10 million girls will not receive their expected HPV shots this year – and 1.5 million of them most likely will never get them because they will be too old to qualify for the vaccine in subsequent years.”

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Dengue Outbreaks In Americas An “Emergency Situation,” PAHO Chief Says

Reuters (4/18, O’Boyle) reports, “Dengue cases have created an ‘emergency situation’ in the Americas, although cases in hotspots Argentina and Brazil appear to have stabilized, the head of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said on Thursday.” The agency “has confirmed more than 5.2 million cases of dengue across the Americas this year, an over 48% jump from the 3.5 million cases the group reported late last month.” Over “1,800 people have died from the mosquito-borne viral illness, up from over 1,000 deaths reported last month in the year through March.”

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Longer-Acting HIV Drugs May Revolutionize Prevention, Treatment In Coming Years

The New York Times (4/17, Mandavilli) reports, “A pill taken once a week. A shot administered at home once a month. Even a jab given at a clinic every six months.” Over the course of the next decade, “these options may be available to prevent or treat H.I.V. Instead of drugs that must be taken daily, scientists are closing in on longer-acting alternatives – perhaps even a future in which H.I.V. may require attention just twice a year.” In addition to being easier to adhere to for patients, long-acting “drugs may ease the stigma of the disease, itself an obstacle to treatment.”

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Cases Of Whooping Cough Rising Across The World

NBC News (4/17, Sullivan) reports cases of whooping cough are on the rise globally. Although the disease “is largely under control in the U.S.” due to widespread vaccination, “breakthrough cases, which are usually mild, do happen in people who are vaccinated.” However, whooping cough can pose a risk to babies, and “the CDC recommends babies start their DTaP vaccine series...starting at 2 months old.” Another vaccine, Tdap, “is recommended for kids age 11 and older who have not had a DTaP series, or adults who may need a booster.” The agency “advises women to get a booster with every pregnancy.”

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RSV Subtype A More Severe Than Subtype B In Young Children And Infants, Study Finds

Infectious Disease Advisor (4/17, Kuhns) reports, “The severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease in young children and infants is higher among those infected with subtype A compared with those infected with subtype B, but both subtypes are associated with medically attended illness and hospitalization. These findings were published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.” According to the study, “overall, infection with RSV-A was significantly associated with increased risk for hospitalization in children younger than 5 years and in those younger than 1 year. Children with RSV-A were also more likely to require supplemental oxygen.”

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Evidence Suggests Link Between COVID-19 Infection And Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders

Endocrinology Advisor (4/17, Nye) reports, “Although previous studies have returned mixed findings regarding the relationship between COVID-19 and thyroid function, an emerging body of evidence suggests a link between COVID-19 and autoimmune thyroid disorders. However, the association between long-term risk for thyroid dysfunction and COVID-19 infection remains unclear.” A new study published in Thyroid found that 12 months after infection, COVID-19 “remained associated with elevated risks for: thyroid dysfunction; thyrotoxicosis; and hypothyroidism.”

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Blood Tests Could Help Catch Difficult-To-Detect Cancers

The Washington Post (4/16, Cimons) reports that many experts believe blood tests to detect cancer, “which analyze substances in the blood that might indicate cancer, represent a remarkable new chapter in cancer detection.” These diagnostics “may be especially useful finding ‘silent’ cancers – such as pancreatic or ovarian cancer – which often don’t cause symptoms until the disease is advanced and more difficult to treat.” Some examples are Grail’s Galleri test, Guardant’s Shield test, and Exact Sciences’ Cancerguard.

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Experimental Chlamydia Vaccine Returns Promising Results In Early-Stage Trial

MedPage Today (4/16, Haelle) reports, “An investigational vaccine against chlamydia (CTH522) induced neutralizing antibodies in all participants who received it, and with no major safety concerns, results of a phase I trial showed.” According to a study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, “a 100% fourfold seroconversion rate occurred in all groups receiving CTH522, a recombinant vaccine containing the major outer membrane of Chlamydia trachomatis, with no seroconversion in placebo recipients, reported” researchers.

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Prolonged Virus Shedding, Detection Common In Healthy Children With Respiratory Viral Infections, Study Finds

Infectious Disease Advisor (4/16, Kuhns) reports, “Prolonged viral shedding and detection was found to be common among a cohort of healthy children with respiratory viral infections, particularly in those infected with bocavirus or rhinovirus/enterovirus, according to study results published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.” According to the study, “factors associated with prolonged detection included first lifetime infection with each specific virus and codetection of another respiratory virus.”

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Dead Beavers In Utah Test Positive For Disease That Can Also Affect Humans, Authorities Say

USA Today (4/16, Hauari) reports, “Nine beavers have been found dead over the last few weeks across multiple counties in Utah, and three have tested positive for” tularemia, “a disease that state wildlife officials say can also affect humans.” USA Today adds, “The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is asking the public to take caution by not touching the animals and to report any dead beavers to DWR officials.”

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Elevated Exposure Levels To Nitrogen Dioxide, Fine Particulate Matter Over 5 Years Increased Likelihood For COVID-19, Study Finds

Scientists Criticize Federal Response To Avian Influenza Outbreaks On Dairy Farms

Specific Autoantibody Signature Was Seen In Subset Of People With MS Long Before Clinical Symptoms Appeared, Researchers Find

Study Evaluates Risk Factors For C. Diff Infection

CDC Says Long COVID Prevalence Highlights Need For Ongoing Surveillance

New Antibiotics Underprescribed For Difficult-To-Treat Infections, Study Finds

WHO Widens Definition Of Airborne Diseases

S. Aureus Screening Program Paired With Genomic Sequencing, EHR Data Helps Identify Hospital Transmissions, Study Finds

Protein-Based COVID-19 Vaccine Has Similar Efficacy To mRNA, Vector-Based Vaccines, Study Finds

WHO Approves Updated Version Of Cholera Vaccine

Merck Production Issues Mean Around 1.5M Teenage Girls In Poor Countries Likely Will Never Receive HPV Vaccination

Dengue Outbreaks In Americas An “Emergency Situation,” PAHO Chief Says

Longer-Acting HIV Drugs May Revolutionize Prevention, Treatment In Coming Years

Cases Of Whooping Cough Rising Across The World

RSV Subtype A More Severe Than Subtype B In Young Children And Infants, Study Finds

Evidence Suggests Link Between COVID-19 Infection And Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders

Blood Tests Could Help Catch Difficult-To-Detect Cancers

Experimental Chlamydia Vaccine Returns Promising Results In Early-Stage Trial

Prolonged Virus Shedding, Detection Common In Healthy Children With Respiratory Viral Infections, Study Finds

Dead Beavers In Utah Test Positive For Disease That Can Also Affect Humans, Authorities Say