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Herpes Zoster Risk Increased by 15% Following COVID-19

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, several case reports have been published describing Herpes Zoster (HZ) cases in COVID-19 patients.
As a SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection can result in T-cell immune dysfunction, it was hypothesized that this could trigger latent HZ reactivation.
A recent peer-reviewed study was the first large, retrospective cohort study designed to investigate the hypothesis that COVID-19 could increase the risk of HZ. 

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Who is Responsible for Vaccine Safety?

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

Disease pandemics have resulted in untold suffering, reductions in population size, and damaged economies throughout human history.
We live in an era when the lowest rates of vaccine-preventable diseases in the history of the U.S. strongly correlate with the highest rates of vaccination, wrote C. Corey Hardin, M.D., Ph.D., Reviews Editor, New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
Excerpts from Dr. Hardin’s Review Article published on April 28, 2022, are inserted below.

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Vaccine-Preventable Disease Outbreaks Increase in Africa

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

Africa has been witnessing a surge in outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases over the past year, announced the World Health Organization (WHO).
Disruptions by the COVID-19 pandemic impaired routine immunization services in many African countries and forced the suspension of vaccination drives.
In 2020, 23 million children missed out on childhood vaccines, the highest number since 2009 and 3.7 million more than in 2019.
One of the diseases is measles.
Twenty African countries reported measles outbreaks in the first quarter of 2022.

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Injectable COVID-19 Treatment Approved for Infants

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced the expanded approval of Veklury® (remdesivir) to include pediatric patients 28 days of age and older weighing at least 3 kilograms with positive results of direct SARS-CoV-2 viral testing.
This FDA action makes Veklury the first approved injectable COVID-19 treatment for children less than 12 years of age.
Under the expanded indication, a three-day Veklury treatment regimen is recommended to help prevent hospitalization in non-hospitalized COVID-19 pediatric patients at high risk for COVID-19 disease progression.

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COVID-19 Confirmed More Costly and Fatal than Influenza

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

According to a recent retrospective cohort study conducted at the Hospital del Mar in Barcelona, Spain, when adults were hospitalized with COVID-19, they were at a greater risk of death than those with influenza.
After accounting for potential confounders, including age, comorbidities, sex, disease severity, pneumonia, and corticosteroid treatment, these researchers found that COVID-19 patients were more than three times as likely to die after being admitted to hospital than influenza patients.

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Hepatitis – Adenovirus Outbreak in 169 Children Becomes Severe

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently confirmed additional reports of cases of acute hepatitis of unknown origin among young children in eleven countries.
As of April 21, 2022, at least 169 cases of acute hepatitis in children have been reported in the WHO European Region and the Americas.
Furthermore, the WHO confirmed seventeen children (one month to 16 years old) had required liver transplantation.
And at least one fatality has been reported.

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Even Raptors Are Losing To Avian Influenza Attacks

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

The United States is experiencing an unprecedented outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in wild birds.
As of April 20, 2022, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) had confirmed HAPI outbreaks in 29 states, impacting about 31 million birds that may have been de-populated.
The University of Minnesota Raptor Center Director recently stated, ‘the 2022 outbreak is unique due to very high levels of HPAI circulating in wildlife.’

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108 Pediatric Hepatitis Cases in the UK With Suspected Linkage to Adenovirus

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

Various United Kingdom (UK) health agencies today reported their hepatitis / adenovirus investigations had identified an additional 34 cases, bringing the total number of cases to 108.
Of these cases, eight children have received liver transplants.
Of the confirmed cases, 79 are in England, 14 are in Scotland, and the 15 remaining children were located in Wales and Northern Ireland.
All the UK children affected presented to health services between January 2022 and April 12, 2022.

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What Do COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters and Fully Vaccinated Have in Common?

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year with millions of people successfully vaccinated, new immunizations terms are being tossed around without much clarity. 
‘People are now confused about what it means to be fully COVID-19 vaccinated', wrote Paul A. Offit, M.D. on April 13, 2022. ‘It is easy to understand how this could happen.’
As of April 17, 2022, the U.S. CDC’s COVID-19 data dashboard indicates that 65.9% of the eligible population is fully vaccinated.

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New York Nurse Practitioners Gain Full Practice Authority

In COVID-19, Latest News by Precision Vaccinations

The State of New York recently secured improved health care access for residents in the state. 
As of April 11, 2022, New York joins 24 other states, the District of Columbia, and two U.S. territories adopting Full Practice Authority (FPA) legislation.
The FPA legislative empowers nurse practitioners (NPs) to provide the full scope of services they are educated and clinically trained to provide.