Adult Vaccinations

The shifting of resources and disruption of healthcare caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is being blamed for an increase in deaths due to tuberculosis, the first in over a decade, according to a recent global report from the World Health Organization (WHO). It's estimated that 1.5 million people died of TB in 2020, including 214,000 HIV-positive people; in 2019, an estimated 1.4 million people died, according to the Global Tuberculosis Report, released October 14. Experts fear that the pandemic-related challenges of diagnosing and treating the disease are causing many cases of TB to go undetected and undiagnosed; the number of newly diagnosed cases and government-reported cases fell from 7.1 million in 2019 to 5.8 million in 2020. TB has been killing millions of people for thousands of years, says Jeff Starke, MD, the director of the Children's Tuberculosis Clinic at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston and a member of the WHO Childhood Tuberculosis Roadmap Committee. "I...

Antibiotics are a common, important group of medicines that treat bacterial infections. Some antibiotics attack or break down the cell walls of bacteria, while others inhibit their protein production. This kills the bacteria or keeps it from reproducing and spreading. Oral antibiotics are available in liquid, tablet, and capsule form. Topical antibiotics include skin creams, sprays, and ointments. Eye ointments, eye drops, and ear drops are also available. Severe infections may require injected or intravenous antibiotics. Healthcare professionals prescribe different antibiotics to treat conditions such as strep throat, bronchitis, and inner ear infections. In this case, these infections are moderate to severe and have not improved with other treatments. Antibiotics do not treat viral illnesses, such as a cold, the flu, or mono. These drugs are grouped according to their antibacterial activity and chemical structure. Specific antibiotics fight certain bacteria, which makes it important ...

A major local medical group says masks aren't needed, even with the delta variant, inside businesses whose employees are 100% vaccinated and where all customers are required to prove they've gotten shots, too. The Chicago Medical Society is advocating for lifting Illinois' indoor mask mandate in those situations, although it emphasizes that in no circumstances should unvaccinated people go maskless indoors. But in communities where virus transmission rates are low and COVID-19 vaccination rates are high, masks no longer are necessary for everyone, said Dr. Vishnu Chundi, chair of the medical group's COVID-19 task force and an infectious disease specialist. "Masking gives you time — it's a mitigation measure," Chundi said. "Vaccines are the solution for the pandemic." The Chicago Medical Society's plan would reward businesses for requiring employees to get vaccinated and incentivize more companies to follow suit, Chundi said. Custome...

Q: We just heard a story on the news about a man who got bitten by a bat and then died of rabies a few weeks later. We see bats in our area a lot, so we're worried. Why didn't the rabies treatment work? What is rabies, anyway? A: You're referring to a case that occurred last August in a community just north of Chicago (Spring Grove). An 87-year-old man woke up to find a bat on his neck. The bat, which was captured, tested positive for rabies. Despite urgent warnings that he needed immediate preventive care, the man refused. Treatment for rabies consists of an initial injection of a medication known as rabies immunoglobulin, which is made up of antibodies against the rabies virus. It is given in the vicinity of the bite to stave off infection. This is followed by a series of four shots given in the arm over the course of two weeks. The medication in these shots teaches the immune system to recognize and fight off rabies infection....

[unable to retrieve full-text content] Current malaria infection, previous malaria exposure, and clinical profiles and outcomes of COVID-19 in a setting of high malaria transmission: an exploratory cohort study in Uganda    The Lancet

Gut health encompasses much more than simply maintaining a healthy diet and balance on gut bacteria. Studies have found connections that link our gut to our immune system and mental wellbeing, making the complex system of our gastrointestinal (GI) tract harder to navigate. Ranging from mild to severe, there are a number of varying digestive disorders associated with gut health, with symptoms including bleeding, pain, bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, and more. When signs of digestive disorders begin to appear, but tests show little evidence, it can be difficult to understand exactly what is going on. Furthermore, we can experience digestive disorders without having any symptoms, leaving the underlying cause to affect other parts of our bodies. Falling under two categories, gastrointestinal disorders are considered to be structural – caused by...

Streamlined pneumococcal vaccine recommendations, and recombinant zoster vaccine (Shingrix) for immunocompromised adults, were endorsed by the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in unanimous votes on Wednesday. ACIP voted 15-0 for a revised age-based recommendation and 15-0 for a revised risk-based recommendation for pneumococcal vaccines. All adults ages 65 and up and adults ages 19-64 with certain underlying medical conditions or other risk factors who have not previously received a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine or in whom previous vaccine history is unknown should receive one of the pneumococcal vaccines, PCV20 (Prevnar 20) or PCV15 (Vaxneuvance). If PCV15 is used, this should be followed by the polysaccharide vaccine, PPSV23 (Pneumovax 23). However, an amendment proposed earlier in the meeting to knock the age-based recommendations down to 50 did not pass in a 4-11 vote. The rationale for rejecting the amendment was the lack of efficacy data on the...

A beneficiary receiving a dose of the Covid-19 vaccine in Mumbai Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and national task force members have said the country should focus on completing adult population vaccination rather than booster doses. Senior scientist and head of Pune's ICMR epidemiology and communicable diseases division, Dr Samiran Panda, told TOI on Saturday that even as there are discussions on booster doses, completion of schedule of the two doses of currently administered intramuscular injection preparation of Covid vaccines under the ongoing immunisation programme will yield the necessary protection against advancement of infection or severe form of the disease that may require hospitalization. "The priority should be to complete both doses for eligible adults first and then the plan for children can be firmed up through critical analysis of age group and comorbidities,''said Dr Panda. With the country having touched 1 billion vaccine doses on Thursday,...

[unable to retrieve full-text content] Voice of the People 10/27/21 | Letters To Editor | leadertelegram.com    Leader-Telegram

Getty Images Rare neurological conditions may occur after Covid vaccination, but the risk is far higher in people who catch Covid, new research suggests. Doctors say the landmark UK study provides further reassurance that being vaccinated offers the best protection for overall health. The investigators examined the NHS records of 32 million adults in England to assess any rare adverse events linked to Covid vaccines. The study appears in Nature Medicine. The scientists, from the Universities of Oxford and Edinburgh, compared the levels of neurological conditions seen within a month of having a first Covid jab, to those seen within a month of a positive coronavirus test. One thing they looked for was a rare condition called Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) known to be associated with certain infectious diseases and linked to some other vaccines. GBS causes inflammation of the nerves and can lead to numbness, weakness and pain, usually in the feet, hands and limbs and can spread to the che...

The CDC has found reduced vaccine effectiveness in people who are immunocompromised compared with people who are not. It now advises that certain people who are immunocompromised can get a fourth vaccine dose. One reason for these new guidelines is that vaccine efficacy has been shown to drop over time, placing certain groups at increased risk. About 3 percent of U.S. adults, or about 7 million people, are immunocompromised. In updated guidelines released this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said certain people who received the Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine will be eligible for a fourth dose. "Moderately and severely immunocompromised people aged ≥18 years who completed an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine primary series and received an additional mRNA vaccine dose may receive a single COVID-19 booster dose (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Janssen) at least 6 months after completing their third mRNA vaccine dose," the CDC wrote. The CDC has found reduced v...

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin condition. It is very common in infants, sometimes appearing before 6 months. It typically results in patches of dry, itchy, and inflamed skin. In babies, AD most commonly appears on the face and cheeks. AD is a type of eczema. This refers to a group of conditions that result in irritated, inflamed, and often itchy skin. Eczema is a prevalent skin condition in infants, with AD being the type that most commonly affects infants and children. There is currently no cure for AD in infants. However, using treatments and home remedies can help control symptoms and help relieve pain and discomfort. In this article, we will discuss the prevalence, symptoms, and treatments for AD in infants. AD is very common in children. A 2014 report suggests that AD has a prevalence of at least 10% in the pediatric population of the United States. It also states that AD primarily affects children, with onset occurring before the ages of 1 and 5 years in 65...

We've had two light years in a row, which some experts worry could mean we'll be in for a rough few months. One silver lining of the last two winters is that the flu, which typically sends hundreds of thousands of Americans to the hospital each year and causes tens of thousands of deaths, was not as severe as it has been in years past. Peter Palese, a microbiologist and flu expert at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, said there were 100 times fewer infections, hospitalizations and deaths from influenza last season than in average flu seasons. But when compared with last fall, life is more back to normal — kids are in classrooms, workers are in offices and more people are planning to travel over the holidays. This is raising questions about how bad this flu season could get. To help you prepare and know what to expect, we asked two infectious disease physicians, a microbiologist and a pediatrician to weigh in. Here's what you need to know: Do we k...