Tag: vaccines

Published by: CTV News
Published on: March 4, 2024
By Amy Luft

Quebec public health officials are urging people to get themselves and their young children vaccinated for measles, a highly contagious disease that is making a comeback several years after its eradication.

Quebec’s public health director Luc Boileau, Montreal public health director Mylene Drouin, and pediatrician, microbiologist and infectious disease specialist Caroline Quach-Thanh are holding a news conference in Montreal Monday afternoon.

So far about 10 cases have been detected in the province, mainly in Montreal, but Boileau warns that it could be just the beginning.

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British Columbia

1st case of measles reported in B.C. over the weekend: Health Ministry

Published March 4, 2024

Published by: CTV News
Published on: March 4, 2024
By Alyse Kotyk

One case of measles was reported in B.C. over the weekend, the provincial Ministry of Health confirmed in a statement Monday morning.

This weekend’s confirmed case is the first the province has recorded since 2019. As of Feb. 29, nine other cases of the disease have been confirmed across Canada.

B.C.’s Health Ministry announced the case in a statement warning locals to confirm their immunization records, especially before going on spring break trips.

“With measles outbreaks being reported internationally and spring break on the horizon, the provincial health officer, BC Centre for Disease Control and public health officials are reminding people in British Columbia to check their vaccination records before travelling to ensure they are protected,” the statement said.

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vaccines

The mRNA miracle workers

Published March 3, 2024

Published by: CBS News
Published on: March 3, 2024
By Kelefa Sanneh

At the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, Drew Weissman and Katalin Karikó (known as Kati) met by chance at a copy machine in 1998. And though he was admittedly a quiet guy who stuck to himself, they started talking. “We both used to copy a lot of articles to read,” he said.

He was an immunologist studying cells that adapt to mount immune responses against diseases; she was a biochemist working with messenger RNA (known as mRNA), the molecule that teaches cells how to make proteins. “We learned from each other,” said Karikó.

“I joke it’s like the Reese’s commercial where the chocolate and the peanut butter come together and make a new treat,” Weissman said.

And what makes a good scientific team? “Respect each other, listen to each other,” Karikó said. “We didn’t try to overpower each other.”

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Florida

Florida is swamped by disease outbreaks as quackery replaces science

Published March 3, 2024

Published by: The Guardian
Published on: March 3, 2024
By Richard Luscombe

Shortly before Joseph Ladapo was sworn in as Florida’s surgeon general in 2022, the New Yorker ran a short column welcoming the vaccine-skeptic doctor to his new role, and highlighting his advocacy for the use of leeches in public health.

It was satire of course, a teasing of the Harvard-educated physician for his unorthodox medical views, which include a steadfast belief that life-saving Covid shots are the work of the devil, and that opening a window is the preferred treatment for the inhalation of toxic fumes from gas stoves.

But now, with an entirely preventable outbreak of measles spreading across Florida, medical experts are questioning if quackery really has become official health policy in the nation’s third most-populous state.

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measles

Canada’s chief medical officer warns of March break measles risk

Published February 23, 2024

Published by: Ottawa Citizen
Published on: February 23, 2024
By Elizabeth Payne

Canada’s chief medical officer of health is warning people to make sure they have had two doses of measles vaccine, especially if they are travelling. That message, coming just before the heavy travel period of March break, is urgent this year with cases of measles spiking around the world and vaccination rates lagging, including across Canada.

It is also potentially complicated. Many adults are not aware of their vaccination status, and particularly whether they have had one or two measles vaccines. As well, a growing percentage of the population is without family doctors, making it more difficult to access care.

Measles can cause serious illness and even be deadly. Among potential severe complications are pneumonia, deafness and brain damage caused by inflammation of the brain.

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vaccines

Fall COVID-19 vaccine cut illness risk by half overall

Published February 22, 2024

Published by: Globe and Mail
Published on: February 22, 2024
By Kelly Grant

The fall COVID-19 vaccine cut the risk of COVID-19 illness by about half overall, and by 67 per cent for those with a previous infection, according to new research from the Canadian network that has long tracked the performance of the annual flu shot.

This is the first time the Canadian Sentinel Practitioner Surveillance Network, which is comprised of hundreds of primary care providers in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, produced mid-season estimates of the effectiveness of immunization against COVID-19.

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Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia Health to lift COVID-19 immunization requirement for employees

Published February 22, 2024

Published by: CBC News
Published on: February 22, 2024
By Anjuli Patil

Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health are set to lift a requirement for employees, new hires and on-site medical staff to submit proof of primary series COVID-19 immunization beginning Feb. 26, 2024.

In an email to CBC News on Wednesday night, a spokesperson for Nova Scotia Health said the decision was made “in response to evolving evidence regarding COVID-19, Omicron sub-variants, protection from vaccine and a review of vaccination policies across other jurisdictions.”

NSH confirmed the change in policy after a letter to an employee was posted on social media earlier in the day. The letter advises the employee, on unpaid leave for not meeting the COVID-19 immunization requirements, they could return to work as of Monday.

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long COVID

Study shows 43% to 58% lower prevalence of long COVID among vaccinated people

Published February 20, 2024

Published by: CIDRAP
Published on: February 20, 2024
By Stephanie Soucheray

A new study based on 4,605 participants in the Michigan COVID-19 Recovery Surveillance Study shows that the prevalence of long COVID symptoms at 30 and 90 days post-infection was 43% to 58% lower among adults who were fully vaccinated before infection.

The study appeared yesterday in the Annals of Epidemiology.

The 30- and 90-day timeframes were meant to compare two different definitions of long COVID. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines the condition as new or persistent symptoms 4 weeks after infection, while the World Health Organization definition defines it as 12 or more weeks after infection.

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vaccines

Canadian data show moderate to good vaccine efficacy against COVID, flu

Published February 19, 2024

Published by: CIDRAP
Published on: February 19, 2024
By Mary Van Beusekom

The Canadian Sentinel Practitioner Surveillance Network (SPSN) data reveal mid-season vaccine effectiveness (VE) against the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron XBB.1.5 variant of 47% against medically attended outpatient COVID-19 and 67% among previously infected people.

The same test-negative case-control study reports that the flu vaccine is 63% effective against medically attended outpatient infection with the influenza A H1N1 strain and 40% against H3N2.

The researchers enrolled patients with new or worsening cough that is characteristic of acute respiratory illness (ARI) who sought care within 7 days of symptom onset from community-based sentinel practitioners in Alberta, British Columbia (BC), Ontario, or Quebec.

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New Zealand

Covid-19: Vaccines saved thousands of lives during Omicron outbreak, study estimates

Published February 9, 2024

Published by: RNZ
Published on: February 10, 2024

A new study estimates vaccines prevented between 4000 and 12,000 deaths during the Omicron phase of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The paper, published in the medical journal Vaccine, models scenarios with different levels of vaccine coverage in the 18 months from January 2022.

The authors say the elimination strategy meant most people were able to be vaccinated before being exposed to the virus.

The researchers say it meant there were between 34,000 and 56,000 fewer hospitalisations over the period.

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vaccines

COVID-19 vaccines in pregnancy found safe for infants

Published February 7, 2024

Published by: CIDRAP
Published on: February 7, 2024
By Stephanie Soucheray

A new study of almost 200,000 newborns in Sweden and Norway shows that maternal receipt of the COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy poses no risk to…

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convoy occupation

Lawsuit against convoy organizers moves forward

Published February 6, 2024

Published by: CBC News
Published on: February 6, 2024
By David Fraser

There is evidence that certain plaintiffs were subjected to what they contend to have been extreme amounts of noise, horn honking, incessant diesel fumes and other pollution, blockage of the streets and intimidation. There is evidence that plaintiffs had difficulty accessing their properties and that business was disrupted, reservations cancelled, and revenue negatively impacted.

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vaccines

New estimates show latest COVID vaccine cuts risk of symptomatic infection

Published February 1, 2024

Published by: CIDRAP
Published on: February 1, 2024
By Stephanie Soucheray

Today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers published findings showing adults who received an updated 2023-24 COVID-19 vaccine were 54% less likely to have symptomatic infection than those who didn’t, and the vaccine was found to protect against JN.1 and other circulating variants.

This is one of the first studies to update 2023-24 COVID vaccine effectiveness (VE) data. The monovalent (single-strain) booster vaccine derived from XBB.1.5 was approved for use in all Americans 6 months and older on September 12, 2023, but uptake has been low. Moreover, the XBB strains of the virus, which the vaccine was based on, are no longer the dominant strains in the United States, having been replaced by JN.1 in December 2023.

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long COVID

Study: COVID-19 vaccine tied to lower risk of long COVID in kids

Published January 16, 2024

Published by: CIDRAP
Published on: January 16, 2024
By Stephanie Soucheray

A study today in the journal Pediatrics from researchers at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia suggests COVID-19 vaccines have a moderately protective effect in kids against long COVID.

The authors of the retrospective study mined electronic health records from 17 healthcare systems to assess whether the vaccine protected children from long COVID, which has been less common in kids than in adults. The study began in October 2022.

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Toronto

Toronto may be past its flu peak, but COVID-19 remains high, public health agency says

Published January 16, 2024

Published by: CBC News
Published on: January 16, 2024
By Lane Harrison

Toronto likely reached its influenza season peak in December, but according to Toronto Public Health’s latest respiratory illness update, COVID-19 infections are expected to remain high for now.

The percentage of positive influenza tests dropped to 6.6 per cent the week of Dec. 31 to Jan. 6, down from 15.6 per cent the week prior, Toronto Public Health (TPH) told the city’s Board of Health Monday. When it comes to COVID-19, positivity dropped only slightly to 17.6 per cent for the week of Dec. 31 to Jan. 6 from 18.6 per cent the week before.

But getting over the influenza peak doesn’t mean there aren’t still high levels of the illness in the city.

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vaccines

A spring COVID-19 booster? NACI has released updated guidelines

Published January 15, 2024

Published by: Global News
Published on: January 15, 2024
By Katie Dangerfield

Canadians may be in the thick of winter, but the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recently unveiled guidelines for an extra dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for the upcoming spring.

On Friday, NACI released updated guidelines on the COVID-19 boosters for spring 2024.

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vaccines

Older, immunocompromised people may get COVID-19 vaccine dose in spring, NACI says

Published January 12, 2024

Published by: CTV News / The Canadian Press
Published on: January 12, 2024

Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization says some groups of people vulnerable to severe illness from COVID-19 should be eligible for another dose of vaccine in the spring.

The recommendation issued Friday says people aged 65 and older, residents of long-term care homes and seniors living in other congregate settings may get another shot of the vaccine targeted to the XBB.1.5 variant.

It also says children and adults aged six months and older who are moderately to severely immunocompromised due to an underlying condition may also get the booster.

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JN.1

Holiday gatherings and a new variant have driven up COVID cases globally, the UN health agency says

Published January 10, 2024

Published by: The Associated Press
Published on: January 10, 2024

The head of the U.N. health agency said Wednesday holiday gatherings and the spread of the most prominent variant globally led to increased transmission of COVID-19 last month.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said nearly 10,000 deaths were reported in December, while hospital admissions during the month jumped 42% in nearly 50 countries — mostly in Europe and the Americas — that shared such trend information.

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