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Adjuvanted Hepatitis B Vaccine Effective Among Healthcare Workers Previously Classified As Nonresponders, Study Finds

Healio (6/26, Stulpin) reports, “A two-dose series of a hepatitis B vaccine with a CpG adjuvant resulted in a more than 90% response rate among health care workers previously classified as nonresponders, researchers found.” Published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, “the study demonstrated that after two doses of HepB-CpG, 43 of 47 health care workers (91%) responded, whereas 41 of 49 health care workers (84%) responded after one dose. Among the 29 health care workers with risk factors for nonresponse, 25 (86%) were responsive.”

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Federal Program To Provide Care For Patients With HIV Facing Budget Constraints

The Washington Post (6/26, Whitehead, Beard) reports, “Researchers say that by the end of the decade, 70 percent of people in the United States living with HIV will be older than 50. Thanks to advances in medicine, the diagnosis is no longer a death sentence.” However, “there’s a catch: People living with HIV are at increased risk for other health problems, such as diabetes, depression and heart disease,” and “as their health needs increase, more is required of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, the comprehensive federal system that provides HIV primary medical care, medications and essential support services for low-income people living with the virus.” A KFF analysis found inflation-adjusted spending for the program “has dropped from a peak in the early 2000s, despite the program serving tens of thousands of new patients.”

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CDC Warns Of Increased Risk For Dengue Fever Infections In US

The Washington Post (6/25, Sun) reports, “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned clinicians, health authorities and the public Tuesday about an increased risk for dengue virus infections in the United States because of the record-breaking global incidence of the mosquito-borne viral disease.” So far in 2024, “countries in the Americas have reported more than 9.7 million dengue cases, twice as many as in all of 2023, exceeding the highest number ever recorded in a single year, the CDC said in a health advisory.” In the US, “Puerto Rico declared a public health emergency because of the unusually high number of cases reported in the winter and spring, the dry season, when dengue cases are typically low.” However, “there is no evidence of a dengue outbreak in the continental United States.” The AP (6/25, Stobbe) reports that nonetheless, “in the 50 states so far this year there have been three times more cases than at the same point last year. Most were infections that travelers got abroad, and officials note there is no evidence of a current outbreak. But they also warn that local mosquitoes pose a threat.” The virus is “spread by a type of warm weather mosquito that is expanding its geographic reach because of climate change, experts say.” NBC News (6/25, Acevedo) reports, “A total of 2,241 cases have been reported so far this year in the U.S., including 1,498 cases in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.” Last year, the CDC reported 3,036 cases. The agency “said it’s also implementing other measures, such as improving and expanding laboratory testing to diagnose cases more effectively, as well as educating the public on the disease and how to prevent it.” Reuters (6/25, Sunny) also reports.

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WHO Urges Action To Combat New Mpox Strain Spreading In DRC

Reuters (6/25, Rigby) reports, “The spread of mpox in Africa needs to be addressed urgently, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, as scientists warned separately of a dangerous strain in the Democratic Republic of Congo.” The new strain “has fatality rates of around 5% in adults and 10% in children.” So far in 2024, “roughly 8,600 mpox cases have been reported in Congo, and 410 deaths, Cris Kacita, the doctor in charge of operations in the country’s mpox control programme, told Reuters last week.” Medications and vaccines to treat the virus “are not available in Congo. The WHO and scientists said efforts were ongoing to address that.”

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Hepatitis C-Exposed Infants More Likely To Be Screened Under Early-Testing Policies, Study Finds

Healio (6/25, Weldon) reports, “When it comes to screening perinatally exposed infants for hepatitis C virus, the earlier the better, a study showed. Specifically, researchers found that exposed infants were more likely to be screened for HCV if their pediatrician’s policy was to test them at 2 months, according to study results published in Pediatrics. The rates [went] down as the length of pediatricians’ testing policies increased.” In the study, “90.9% of infants were tested if the policy was to screen at 2 months, 79.6% if the policy was to screen at 2 to 12 months, 61.9% for a 12-month policy and 58.5% if the policy was 18 months (P < .001).”

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FDA Expands Avian Flu Testing In Dairy Products

Reuters (6/25, Douglas, Steenhuysen) reports the FDA “has begun testing more dairy products for evidence of the bird flu virus as outbreaks spread among dairy herds across the country.” Since March, “more than 120 dairy herds in 12 states have tested positive for bird flu...according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.” Federal authorities “have warned that further spread among dairy cows could heighten the risk of human infections.” Right now, “the risk to the general public from bird flu remains low, federal officials have said,” but “it is higher for workers on dairy farms, who should wear personal protective equipment to reduce the risk of infection.” CNN (6/25, Goodman) reports that in addition to expanded testing by the FDA, the CDC “is partnering with the state of Michigan to begin a highly anticipated study to assess whether workers exposed to infected cattle had themselves become infected.” Both “projects are part of a suite of new research announced by federal agencies on Tuesday to understand the dynamics of H5N1 bird flu, which for the first time jumped from birds to dairy cattle around the beginning of the year.”

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Eli Lilly To Collaborate With OpenAI On Developing Antimicrobials To Treat Drug-Resistant Bacterial Infections

Reuters (6/25, Santhosh) reports, “Eli Lilly said on Tuesday it will collaborate with OpenAI to leverage its generative AI to develop antimicrobials that can be used to treat drug-resistant bacteria.” This collaboration “supports Lilly’s earlier commitment, which started in 2020 when it pledged $100 million to the AMR Action Fund.” Public health authorities “have raised concerns over the thin pipeline of new treatments to tackle antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which they say is not enough to combat the so-called superbugs.”

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Seasonality Of Influenza Transmission Possibly Related To Variations In Human Contact Patterns Associated With Seasonal, Daily Temperature Changes, Study Finds

Pulmonology Advisor (6/24, Stong) reports, “The seasonality of influenza transmission may be related to variations in human contact patterns that are associated with seasonal and daily temperature changes, according to study findings published in Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses.” In the study, “the estimated seasonal trend and daily variation in temperature were associated with a significant decrease in the number of contacts. For each degree increase in seasonal trend, the difference in the logs of the expected number of contacts decreased by 0.013.”

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Lung Composition Of Microbes In People With CF Bronchiectasis Differ From Those With Non-CF Bronchiectasis, Study Finds

Cystic Fibrosis News Today (6/24, Bryson) reports, “Despite some similarities, the lung composition of microbes and their antimicrobial resistance profiles differed between people with bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis (CF) and those with non-CF bronchiectasis, a study found.” These results “suggest ‘the need for customized management strategies for each disease,’ the researchers wrote in the study,” which was published in Respiratory Research.

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New Blood Biomarker Tests May Help Physicians Predict, Manage Preeclampsia

The AP (6/24, Ungar) reports that “at least one in 20 people who are pregnant develop a...complication called preeclampsia, a high blood pressure disorder that kills 70,000 women and 500,000 babies worldwide every year.” Until now, “there was no way to know when it might strike,” but “new blood tests may help doctors predict and manage this dangerous condition.” The diagnostics “measure ‘biomarkers’ for preeclampsia in the blood, objective measures that show what’s happening in an organism at any given moment.”

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Latinos Account For Rising Share Of New HIV Cases, Data Show

The AP (6/24, Reese, Bose, Sánchez) reports, “Overall, estimated new HIV infection rates have declined 23% from 2012 to 2022.” However, “a KFF Health News-Associated Press analysis found the rate has not fallen for Latinos as much as it has for other racial and ethnic groups.” Although “African Americans continue to have the highest HIV rates in the United States overall, Latinos made up the largest share of new HIV diagnoses and infections among gay and bisexual men in 2022, per the most recent data available, compared with other racial and ethnic groups.” Specifically, “Latinos, who make up about 19% of the U.S. population, accounted for about 33% of new HIV infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

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Supreme Court Rejects Two Appeals Related To COVID-19 Vaccines

The AP (6/24) reports, “The Supreme Court on Monday rejected two appeals related to COVID-19 vaccines from Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine nonprofit founded by independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.” In one “case from Texas, the group joined parents in objecting to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s authorization to administer coronavirus vaccines to children.” Meanwhile, in a second “case from New Jersey, Children’s Health Defense challenged a Rutgers University requirement, imposed in 2021, for most students to be vaccinated to attend courses on campus, though the school did not force faculty or staff to be vaccinated.” NBC News (6/24, Hurley) reports, “The decision by the justices not to hear the cases leaves in place lower court rulings against the group.” In the first case, “the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that Kennedy’s group did not have legal standing to sue.” Meanwhile, “in the Rutgers dispute, the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that the plaintiffs ‘have not stated any plausible claim for relief.’”

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KP.3 Variant The Dominant Strain Of COVID-19 Circulating In The US, Data Show

USA Today (6/21, Forbes) reported, “Positive cases for the COVID-19 KP.3 variant are rising, according to newly released data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” Over the past two weeks, “the KP.3 variant has risen from accounting for 25% of positive cases to 33.1%. The KP.3 variant has become the new frontrunner after JN.1 held the reigns for several months after making its first appearance in 2023.” The KP.2 variant makes up 20.8%, with the “new variant LB.1 at 17.5%” and JN.1 at “1.6% of positive cases, the data shows.”

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Switching From ART To Single-Tablet Doravirine-Islatravir Noninferior For HIV Suppression, Study Finds

Infectious Disease Advisor (6/21, Nye) reported, “Switching from antiretroviral therapy (ART) combinations to single-tablet doravirine plus islatravir is noninferior for HIV virologic suppression but may lead to reductions in CD4+ cell and total lymphocyte counts. These findings, from 2 phase 3 companion trials, were published in The Lancet HIV.” In the first trial, researchers “observed HIV-1 RNA measurements at or above 50 copies/mL among 0% of patients who switched regimens and 1.5% of those who continued their baseline regimens (mean difference [MD], -1.5%; 95% CI, -3.4 to -0.3), indicating noninferiority.” In the second trial, investigators “observed noninferiority between the groups in the second trial, with HIV-1 RNA measurements at or above 50 copies/mL in 0.6% of those who switched regimens and 0.3% of those who continued their baseline regimen (MD, 0.3%; 95% CI, -1.2 to 2.0).”

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Cases Of STSS Infection On The Rise In Japan

NBC News (6/21, Bendix) reported, “A record-breaking rise in potentially fatal infections in Japan is bringing attention to persistent, unanswered questions about the group of bacteria behind the illnesses.” Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS) “is caused by Group A strep bacteria, the same type that causes strep throat and scarlet fever. In rare cases, Group A strep can enter deep tissue or the bloodstream, as is the case with STSS.” So far in 2024, “Japan has recorded at least 1,019 cases of STSS, according to a report released earlier this week by the country’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases. That’s its highest total ever, already larger than last year’s record tally of 941.”

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Twice-Annual Injectable Lenacapavir Gave Young Women “Total Protection” From Infection, Study Finds

The New York Times (6/21, Nolen) reported researchers and activists in the “trenches of the long fight against H.I.V. got a rare piece of exciting news this week: Results from a large clinical trial in Africa showed that a twice-yearly injection of a new antiviral drug gave young women total protection from the virus.” The randomized controlled trial “tested whether the every-six-months injection of lenacapavir, made by Gilead Sciences, would provide better protection against H.I.V. infection than two other drugs in wide use in high-income countries, both daily pills.” The results were “so convincing that the trial was halted early at the recommendation of the independent data review committee, which said all participants should be offered the injection because it clearly provided superior protection against the virus.”

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Appeals Court Refuses To Block Mandate Requiring Insurers To Cover Certain Preventive Care Services, But Exempts Certain Companies

Reuters (6/21, Pierson) reported that the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday “refused to block a federal mandate requiring health insurers to cover preventive care services like cancer screenings and HIV-preventing medication at no extra cost to patients, but ruled against the government on a key legal issue that leaves the mandate’s future in doubt.” The unanimous panel of the court “agreed with a group of Christian businesses suing to challenge the mandate that claimed that the way services were chosen for coverage violates the US Constitution.” However, it also “found that US District Judge Reed O’Connor...had gone too far by blocking the mandate nationwide in March 2023, and instead blocked its enforcement only against the businesses that brought the lawsuit.”

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Research Links Gene Mutation To Obesity

CNN (6/20, Holcombe) reports, “Obesity isn’t just a matter of food and exercise – it may be in your genetic code, according to... research” published in Med. Investigators looked at data from the UK Biobank, comparing “data from people with two faulty copies of a particular gene (SMIM1) and those who did not have the two faulty copies.” The researchers found that “women with the gene mutation weighed an extra 4.6 kilograms (10.14 pounds), and men with the variant weighed an extra 2.4 kilograms (5.29 pounds).”

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Las Vegas Officials Warn About Record-Breaking Number Of Mosquitoes Carrying West Nile Virus

NBC News (6/20, Sharma) reports, “A record-breaking number of mosquitoes in and around Las Vegas are carrying West Nile virus, sparking warnings from local health officials who say the public should take precautions to avoid getting bit.” Recently, “169 of over 24,000 pools of mosquitoes tested for West Nile virus returned positive – meaning at least one insect in the pool carried the disease – across 25 southern Nevada ZIP codes.” Both “the number of mosquitoes recorded and the tally of positive pools this early in the season break the area’s records for both metrics, set in 2019.”

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South Africa Receives First Batch Of Mpox Antiviral Tecovirimat Amid Rising Cases

Behind a paywall, Bloomberg (6/20, Vanek, Subscription Publication) reports, “South Africa received its first batch of antiviral drugs to treat mpox as the number of cases almost doubled.” The therapy, tecovirimat, “will be used to treat patients who have severe health complications while those mild cases will continue to be managed with supportive treatment, the Department of Health said in a statement on Thursday.”

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Adjuvanted Hepatitis B Vaccine Effective Among Healthcare Workers Previously Classified As Nonresponders, Study Finds

Federal Program To Provide Care For Patients With HIV Facing Budget Constraints

CDC Warns Of Increased Risk For Dengue Fever Infections In US

WHO Urges Action To Combat New Mpox Strain Spreading In DRC

Hepatitis C-Exposed Infants More Likely To Be Screened Under Early-Testing Policies, Study Finds

FDA Expands Avian Flu Testing In Dairy Products

Eli Lilly To Collaborate With OpenAI On Developing Antimicrobials To Treat Drug-Resistant Bacterial Infections

Seasonality Of Influenza Transmission Possibly Related To Variations In Human Contact Patterns Associated With Seasonal, Daily Temperature Changes, Study Finds

Lung Composition Of Microbes In People With CF Bronchiectasis Differ From Those With Non-CF Bronchiectasis, Study Finds

New Blood Biomarker Tests May Help Physicians Predict, Manage Preeclampsia

Latinos Account For Rising Share Of New HIV Cases, Data Show

Supreme Court Rejects Two Appeals Related To COVID-19 Vaccines

KP.3 Variant The Dominant Strain Of COVID-19 Circulating In The US, Data Show

Switching From ART To Single-Tablet Doravirine-Islatravir Noninferior For HIV Suppression, Study Finds

Cases Of STSS Infection On The Rise In Japan

Twice-Annual Injectable Lenacapavir Gave Young Women “Total Protection” From Infection, Study Finds

Appeals Court Refuses To Block Mandate Requiring Insurers To Cover Certain Preventive Care Services, But Exempts Certain Companies

Research Links Gene Mutation To Obesity

Las Vegas Officials Warn About Record-Breaking Number Of Mosquitoes Carrying West Nile Virus

South Africa Receives First Batch Of Mpox Antiviral Tecovirimat Amid Rising Cases