Author: medicalviseAdmin

Last year’s “triple-demic” marked the beginning of what may be a new normal: a confluence of respiratory infections — RSV, influenza, and covid-19 — will surge as the weather cools each year. Like blizzards, the specific timing and severity of these outbreaks are hard to forecast. But their damage can be limited in more ways than ever before. More protective vaccines against influenza are on the horizon. And new vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, were approved this year, as were updated covid vaccines. Although the first days of rollout for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines saw hiccups, with short supplies at some pharmacies and billing confusion with some insurers, the shots now are generally available at no cost. What’s more, after enduring the worst pandemic in a century, people are more attuned to protecting themselves and those around them. Wearing face masks and staying home when sick can stop the spread of most respiratory infections. The rate of flu vaccinations has climbed over the past five years. “It seems like the pandemic reminded them of how important vaccination is,” said Brian Poole, a microbiologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. In a study of college students, Poole and other researchers found that flu vaccination rates have nearly tripled since 2007, from 12% to 31% in the respiratory infection season of 2022-23. Only a minority of students expressed “vaccine fatigue.” There is, however, one dangerous departure from the past. Vaccination has become politicized, with college students and older adults who identify as Republican or conservative being less likely to get covid vaccines, as well as vaccinations against flu. Before 2018, studies found that political affiliation had no influence on vaccine uptake. But as measures to limit covid, such as school and church closures, became controversial, some political leaders downplayed the effects of covid — even as the pandemic’s U.S. death toll soared above 1 million. That messaging has led to a disbelief in public health information. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports data showing that covid hospitalizations nearly tripled in the latest surge, with more than 40,000 hospitalizations in the first two weeks of September compared with about 13,600 in the same period of July. But in a recent KFF poll, half of Republicans did not believe in the surge, compared with just 23% of Democrats. Email Sign-Up Subscribe to KFF Health News’ free Morning Briefing. Messaging to minimize the toll of covid also makes vaccines seem unnecessary, with 24% of Republicans leaning toward getting the updated covid shot versus 70% of Democrats in the KFF poll. A larger share of vaccine-eligible adults said they planned to get, or have gotten, the flu shot and a new RSV vaccine. “It’s important to recognize that the flu, covid, and respiratory viruses still kill a lot of people, and that the vaccines against those viruses save lives,” said David Dowdy, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Flu vaccines prevent up to 87,000 hospitalizations and 10,000 deaths each year in the United States. “I like to highlight that,” Dowdy added, “as opposed to making up terms like ‘triple-demic’ to make people cower in fear.” Dowdy predicted this fall and winter will be better than the past few, when patients with covid, influenza, or RSV filled hospitals. Even so, he estimated that more people will die than in the seasons before covid appeared. About 58,000 people died from the flu last season, and hundreds of thousands more were sickened, staying home from school and work. This year, the flu doesn’t appear to be kicking off unusually early, as it did last year with cases picking up in November, rather than in January. And more people are partially immune to covid due to vaccines and prior infections. The effectiveness of flu vaccines varies depending on how well its formula matches the virus circulating. This year’s vaccine appears more protective than last year’s, which reduced the risk of hospitalization from the flu by about 44% among adults. This year, researchers expect an effectiveness of about 52%, based on data collected during South America’s earlier flu season. Its benefit was higher for children, reducing hospitalizations by 70%. The flu’s toll tends to be uneven among demographic groups. Over the past decade, hospitalization rates due to the flu were 1.8 times as high among Black people in the United States as among white individuals. Just 42% of Black adults were vaccinated against the flu during that period, compared with 54% of white or Asian adults. Other issues, ranging from a lack of paid sick leave and medical care to a prevalence of underlying conditions, probably contribute to this disparity. People who have asthma, diabetes, or cardiovascular issues or are immunocompromised are at higher risk of a severe case of flu. Sean O’Leary, an infectious disease pediatrician and the chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics committee on infectious diseases, urges parents to vaccinate their kids against influenza and covid. Children hospitalized with co-infections of the two viruses last year were put on ventilators — an intense form of life support to allow them to breathe — far more often than those hospitalized for the flu alone. And covid is surging now, O’Leary said. Hospitalizations among children under age 18 increased nearly fivefold from June to September. “Almost all of our kids who have died have been completely unvaccinated” against covid, he said. The FDA greenlighted new RSV vaccines from the pharmaceutical companies GSK and Pfizer this year. On Sept. 22, the CDC recommended that pregnant mothers get vaccinated to protect their newborns from RSV, as well as infants under 8 months old. The disease is the leading cause of hospitalization for infants in the United States. The agency also advises people age 60 and older to get the vaccine because RSV kills between 6,000 to 10,000 older adults each year. Rather than vaccination, the CDC advised a new long-acting antibody treatment, nirsevimab, for children between 8 to 19 months old who are

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) – In the Bi-State, COVID-19 numbers are rising, but experts say there are likely more infections out there going unreported. In St. Louis County alone, the average number of daily new cases is 148. As this new variant continues to be somewhat unpredictable, some people are getting confused on what they should do to stay safe. Sweta Patel and her family all got COVID for the first time last month. “Our symptoms were like pretty bad,” Patel said. Patel said their initial symptoms were a fever and cough. “It was definitely scary because it was the summertime because you don’t really expect to get sick in the summer,” Patel said. Patel said they’ve all been vaccinated and had a booster shot. However the CDC is warning the new COVID variant can still get people who have been vaccinated sick. “With different variants and more boosters, I feel like it is for the average person to kind of understand it is kind of complicated,” Patel said. That’s what Washington University infectious disease specialist at BJC, Dr. Rachel Presti, is trying to clear up. The CDC said this variant may be more able to cause an infection in people who have had coronavirus or had a COVID-19 vaccine. But Dr. Presti said that’s being misinterpreted. “You might be a little more at risk from this new variant,” Dr. Presti said. “That doesn’t mean you’re more at risk than somebody who is not immune. That means there’s a new kid in town, and you might be a little more likely to be infected with this one. Somehow, that was misinterpreted as people who are immune are more likely to get infected than people who are not immune.” As the virus adapts, it mutates and can get more people sick. Mercy Department of Medicine chair and infectious disease physician Dr. Farrin Manian said it’s the same flu-like symptoms, but people aren’t getting more severely sick with this variant. “We’re looking at a population who has been somewhat experienced in terms of being exposed to these types of viruses,” Dr. Manian said. “What’s changed is that the current variant seems to be kind of evading the immune system enough that even if you’ve the vaccine in the past or the actual infection, you may still get it. But you’re not at any higher risk of getting it.” A new booster vaccine is expected to come out within the next few weeks, specifically tailored to fight against this variant and others that are forming. Copyright 2023 KMOV. All rights reserved.

You or someone you know has likely become infected with COVID-19 in the past few weeks, and many are confused on what to do about it.Medical experts said virus levels in the U.S. have been on the rise for weeks, and it’s hard to tell how worried people should be.Federal data suggests that the current increases have stayed far below earlier surges. The data also shows that there are probably more infections than current surveillance systems can capture.Dr. Miriam Alexander is the medical director of employee health and wellness at Lifebridge Health.”We are seeing more cases in our employees and slightly more cases here at the hospital,” Alexander said.Lifebridge officials said they are also seeing a definite increase in cases at Expresscare locations. Alexander said there is a lot of confusion about the uptick.”Many have home kits so many are testing at home, and that data would not get transmitted by any authority, so that’s some of the confusion. The cases that get reported might just be the tip of the iceberg,” she said.Alexander said, as of now, the public does not need to wear a mask during general activities.”If you’re in tight quarters, some people are masking up again, and if you are in a high-risk population, it may be worthwhile masking up again,” she said.If you test positive for COVID-19, Alexander suggested taking steps to prevent the spread of the virus.”(Lifebridge is) continuing to follow the same protocol. We are having people stay home for five days after they start getting sick, and then after those five days, we then have people mask for another five days,” she said.With constantly changing variants, Alexander said you should be sure to vaccinate and get the latest booster. BALTIMORE — You or someone you know has likely become infected with COVID-19 in the past few weeks, and many are confused on what to do about it. Medical experts said virus levels in the U.S. have been on the rise for weeks, and it’s hard to tell how worried people should be. Advertisement Federal data suggests that the current increases have stayed far below earlier surges. The data also shows that there are probably more infections than current surveillance systems can capture. Dr. Miriam Alexander is the medical director of employee health and wellness at Lifebridge Health. “We are seeing more cases in our employees and slightly more cases here at the hospital,” Alexander said. Lifebridge officials said they are also seeing a definite increase in cases at Expresscare locations. Alexander said there is a lot of confusion about the uptick. “Many have home kits so many are testing at home, and that data would not get transmitted by any authority, so that’s some of the confusion. The cases that get reported might just be the tip of the iceberg,” she said. Alexander said, as of now, the public does not need to wear a mask during general activities. “If you’re in tight quarters, some people are masking up again, and if you are in a high-risk population, it may be worthwhile masking up again,” she said. If you test positive for COVID-19, Alexander suggested taking steps to prevent the spread of the virus. “(Lifebridge is) continuing to follow the same protocol. We are having people stay home for five days after they start getting sick, and then after those five days, we then have people mask for another five days,” she said. With constantly changing variants, Alexander said you should be sure to vaccinate and get the latest booster.