Warmer weather is helping drive a surge in diseases transmitted via mosquitos, ticks and fleas in the US, which have more than tripled in the US in recent years, according to the CDC.
April 30, 2018
Bill Gates announced Friday a $12 million Grand Challenge to speed up development of a universal flu vaccine, aiming for clinical trials by 2021. The seasonal flu vaccine is a guessing game in matching strain to vaccine that takes 6 months. That timeline leaves us ill-…
April 26, 2018
The WHO says it will decide by 2019 whether to recommend routine antibiotics for infants in poor countries after a large study—known as the Mordor trial—revealed that receiving 2 annual doses of antibiotics reduced infant mortality by as much as 25%.
April 24, 2018
The first-ever dengue vaccine had been considered safe in recent years despite concerns that it could worsen the disease in those not previously infected. Then that theory became a reality, and last week the WHO’s expert group, known as the SAGE, recommended reserving…
April 24, 2018
To get you in the spirit for World Immunization Week, UNICEF bundled up a dozen vaccination facts. In case you want to test yourself first here’s a sampling:
April 20, 2018
The first-ever dengue vaccine should be reserved “exclusively or almost exclusively” for those previously infected with the disease, the WHO confirmed.
April 19, 2018
n 2011, journalist Lise Barnéoud and her 2-month-old contracted measles during the Die, France epidemic linked to “anti-vaxxers.” After both survived, Barnéoud (among the hapless patients not fully vaccinated as children) dug into the outbreak’s impacts in her book…
April 18, 2018
The International Vaccine Access Center helps inform global vaccine policies and implementation but their assessments have to include more than just a measure of efficacy to determine the full benefit of vaccine programs. This includes evaluating things like economic…
April 13, 2018
Brazil’s yellow fever outbreak, with 1,900+ cases and at least 560 deaths since 2016, caught the country off guard and under-vaccinated—especially in rural areas. Now, officials are trying to play catch-up during a global vaccine shortage so severe that in February, “a gang…
April 3, 2018
Vaccines are a touchy subject. For some, vaccine mandates symbolize government overreach and prompt anxiety and avoidance, according to Heidi Larson. Add in cultural and religious complexities, and the potential of vaccine programs is limited. Amazing progress has occurred…