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☆ Some states are loosening their Covid isolation guidelines, shifting away from CDC recommendations
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Oregon changed its isolation policy in May when the Covid-19 public health emergency lifted, and California followed suit earlier this month. The recent order from the California health department notes that the potential infectious period spans from two days before through 10 days after symptoms or a positive test. Less restrictive isolation policies could allow people to feel more comfortable with testing, which could prompt them to get treatment or feel more comfortable taking other protective measures. Dr. Dean Sidelinger, Oregon’s state health officer, said that equity was a key factor considered in the decision to change isolation policy in the state. Public health policy decisions are rarely black-and-white, experts say, and weighing tradeoffs can be more of an art than a perfect science.

Persons: Tomás Aragón, ”, Jennifer Nuzzo, we’re, Dan Barouch, Sarita Shah, Dean Sidelinger, ” Barouch, –, ” Nuzzo, Shah, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, you’re, ” Shah, “ Organizations: CNN —, US Centers for Disease Control, California Department of Public Health, CDC, Pandemic, Brown University School of Public Health, Center, Virology, Vaccine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical, Emory University, Get CNN, CNN Health Locations: California, Oregon, COVID, hospitalizations, Covid

Nicknamed "Pirola" on social media, the BA.2.86 Omicron subvariant is being tracked by both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As of Aug. 30, CDC said the BA.2.86 variant was detected in at least four U.S. states in people or wastewater. Delaware on Tuesday said it had detected a BA.2.86 infection at a hospital. Moderna on Wednesday said clinical data showed that its retooled COVID vaccine generated a nearly 9-fold increase in human antibodies that can neutralize BA.2.86. Pfizer said on Wednesday that its updated COVID shot showed neutralizing activity against BA.2.86 and EG.5 in studies conducted on mice.

Persons: Emily Elconin, David Dowdy, Dowdy, Dan Barouch, David Ho, Deena Beasley, Julie Steenhuysen, Bill Berkrot Organizations: REUTERS, Moderna, Pfizer, World Health Organization, WHO, U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, EG, Omicron, East, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center, Virology, Vaccine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical, Columbia University, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Thomson Locations: Waterford , Michigan, U.S, Europe, Asia, Delaware, East Coast, Boston, Sweden, China

☆ New Covid variant: EG.5 is on the rise as coronavirus cases and hospitalizations go up
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —There’s a new coronavirus variant topping the leaderboard in the United States: EG.5. And it represents another incremental tweak to the virus rather than a major evolutionary leap like the original Omicron strain. This mutation has appeared in other coronavirus variants before. EG.5 also now has its own offshoot, EG.5.1, that adds a second mutation to the spike. Topol says the US can’t afford to delay its Covid-19 vaccine rollout.

Persons: CNN —, it’s, David Ho, ” Ho, ”, Eric Topol, Anne Hahn, Dan Barouch, virologist, ” Topol, Mandy Cohen, Topol, Dr, Sanjay Gupta Organizations: CNN, EG, US Centers for Disease Control, Columbia University, Scripps, Research, World Health Organization, Yale School of Public Health, Harvard University, US Food and Drug Administration, CDC, CNN Health, FDA Locations: United States, Northeast, FL, Ireland, France, Japan, China, Boston

☆ Myocarditis after Covid vaccine low among teens and young adults, large study finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Berkeley-Lovelace-Jr.Jpg | Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

The incidence of myocarditis and pericarditis after Covid vaccination is low and most patients make a full recovery, a large international study from Nationwide Children’s Hospital found. The findings confirm earlier studies that found myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis, an inflammation of the outer lining of the heart, following Covid vaccination are rare. The review included more than 800 teens and young adults who developed myocarditis and pericarditis following Covid vaccination. The heart-related conditions usually occurred within four days after the second dose of a Covid vaccine, the study found. Daniel Salmon, director of the Institute for Vaccine Safety at Johns Hopkins University, said he would still like to see estimates of myocarditis risk by age, gender, vaccine type and spacing between doses.

Two new omicron subvariants have overtaken BA.5 as the prevailing versions of the coronavirus in the U.S.BA.5 became dominant in July, then consistently accounted for the majority of new Covid infections until last week. The two together make up around 44% of new Covid infections, whereas BA.5 makes up just 30%. BQ.1.1 and BQ.1 cases are also rising in the U.K. and elsewhere in Europe. Both of the subvariants are considered part of the BA.5 family — they're sublineages that evolved from BA.5. "There’s nothing in the signature of the clinical cases that are being reported that suggests that anything is changing in terms of symptoms with these omicron subvariants," Pekosz said.

☆ As Ebola outbreak grows in Uganda, US ramps up preparedness plans
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“All primary and secondary schools in Uganda are directed to close by November 25th, 2022 for third term holidays as a measure to contain Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the country,” Museveni said in a statement. Major US cities get Ebola plans in placeThe CDC estimates that 20% of travelers from Uganda will arrive without a cell phone or US-based phone number. “CDPH continues to work with our hospitals to screen patients for travel history and be alert for symptoms of Ebola virus disease or, more likely, malaria or circulating respiratory viruses. ‘We need to be prepared’The Ebola virus is transmissible – but not as transmissible as some other infectious diseases, like Covid-19. “If we do see any cases in the United States, the hope is that they will be identified quickly before there is further spread,” Barouch said.

☆ FDA says two studies showing omicron boosters weren't much better than old Covid shots were too small to come to any conclusions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The recently authorized booster vaccine protects against the original SARS-CoV-2 virus and the more recent omicron variants, BA.4 and BA.5. The Food and Drug Administration said two studies this week showing that the new omicron boosters weren't that much better than the old shots were too small to come to any real conclusions. The antibody responses were slightly higher with the omicron boosters, though the studies concluded the difference wasn't significant. The studies are of public interest because there's very limited human data on how the omicron BA.5 boosters perform right now. The FDA also looked at data directly on the BA.5 shots that came from animal studies.

☆ New Covid boosters aren’t better than old shots at neutralizing omicron BA.5, early studies find
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The new COVID-19 booster which includes protection for Omicron at AltaMed Health Services in South Gate on Thursday, October 6, 2022. Two studies are raising doubts about whether the new omicron BA.5 booster really will offer better protection against Covid than the first generation shot. Scientists at Columbia University in New York City found the new boosters did not produce a better antibody response in humans against BA.5 than the first-generation vaccines. Hotez said there should also be investigations into how the boosters perform against emerging omicron subvariants such as XBB and BQ.1., as the currently dominant BA.5 declines in circulation. It could be the case that the new boosters perform better against these emerging variants than the first generation shots do, Hotez said.

☆ Updated Covid-19 boosters offer protection, but new studies suggest they don't offer an edge against Omicron
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

Similar immune responsesThe studies have important limitations, and they aren’t the final word on the updated boosters. In Barouch’s study, antibody concentrations were 15 times higher after the original boosters, rising from 184 to 2,829. They were 17 times higher after the updated shots, jumping from 211 to 3,693. After waiting the recommended three months since his last Covid-19 infection, President Joe Biden got an updated booster Tuesday and urged eligible Americans to do the same. Worobey says that when the strains are combined as they are in the updated boosters, they actually end up competing.

Other omicron subvariants that have piqued the interest — and concerns — of scientists read like a viral alphabet soup: BQ.1, BQ.1.1, BF.7. Ever since the omicron variant emerged, it's been omicron all the way down, with omicron subvariants splitting off into their own subvariants. Barouch's study was small, including just 35 people who'd had either the Covid vaccine or an omicron infection. Most, regardless of prior infection, had at least three doses of Covid vaccine. The World Health Organization is tracking more than 300 omicron subvariants worldwide, Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the WHO’s emerging diseases and zoonosis unit, said during a media briefing Wednesday.

☆ Paxlovid: Covid-19 treatment can interact with common heart medications, doctors warn
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Paxlovid can have dangerous interactions with some of the most common medications for cardiovascular disease, including certain statins and heart failure therapies, a new paper warns. The review paper says that interactions between Paxlovid and certain blood thinners can cause an increased risk of bleeding. Interactions between Paxlovid and some cholesterol medications such as statins can be toxic to the liver, and interactions between Paxlovid and certain blood pressure medications could cause low blood pressure, flushing and swelling. For cardiovascular medications that patients could discontinue in order to take Paxlovid, Morgan noted that the Covid-19 treatment is a five-day regimen. “Awareness of the presence of drug-drug interactions of Paxlovid with common cardiovascular drugs is key.

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