Contagion Editorial Team



This past week has had some very important infectious disease news, especially with the mRNA bivalent vaccine boosters getting authorized. Come see what is happening with the news you may have missed from this past week.

The federal agency's recommendation for both the Moderna and the Pfizer-BioNTech updated bivalent vaccines allows people to get the booster dose this fall.



FDA Authorizes mRNA Bivalent COVID-19 Vaccines as Boosters

This Emergency Use Authorization for the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines done in the middle of the week brought them both one step closer for people to become eligible for these boosters.

PrEP Protection Against HIV is Complicated by Chronic HBV

Reviewers weigh evidence for the benefit of oral PrEP protection from HIV with risk of exacerbating hepatitis B.

Most People with HCV Infection Are Not Treated with Direct-Acting Antivirals

A new CDC report underscores a persistent problem of patients not receiving antivirals despite their high curative rate.

With so much going on in this space in terms of gene editing therapies, investigational vaccines, and other modalities, we have developed our new hepatitis section. This section has stories on vaccines and therapies as well as interviews with providers on clinical care in hepatitis.

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Catch up on all the important news and clinical care topics you may have missed this week.

Infectious Diseases Update: September 3, 2022


This week has brought some important news in the specialty including the Biden Administration declaring monkeypox a national public health emergency, looking at variant-specific boosters, Novavax beginning its trial for its vaccine for the pediatric population, and a virologist talks about why patients and clinicians should not be concerned over the Paxlovid rebound.

 has compiled 5 highlights of our coverage in infectious disease news including video interviews, podcasts, and significant stories from the week ending 

US Declares Monkeypox a National Public Health Emergency


Declaration allows mobilization of funding, resources to address the virus.

Novavax Begins COVID-19 Vaccine Trial for Children 6 Months Through 11 Years


This study looks to identify safety, efficacy of the vaccine in the youngest pediatric populations.

3. 


Omicron-specific vaccine boosters are coming, but just how necessary are they?

4. 

Infectious Disease Virologist: “Nobody Should be Scared of Paxlovid Rebound”


The benefits outweigh the possible rebound of symptoms, according to an investigator who studied the antiviral.

Longer Interval Between COVID-19 Vaccine Doses May Cut Risk of Myocarditis or Pericarditis


The highest rate of myocarditis or pericarditis after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination occurred among young men ages 18 to 24 after receiving a second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

FDA: Pharmacists Can Prescribe Paxlovid to Eligible Patients

FDA Authorizes Expansion for EUAs for mRNA Vaccines for Children as Young as 6 Months

Today, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 

 the Emergency Use Authorizations (EUAs) of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 6 months old. This news comes just 2 days after the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted to recommend amending the EUA of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children 6 months through 5 years of age, and the Moderna vaccine for children 6 months through 5 years of age.

Moderna Will Study COVID-19 Vaccine for Babies

Moderna is planning to study its vaccine in babies 3 months to 6 months old, according to 

. The study is being named BabyCove and is expected to begin recruiting in September and will include up to 700 babies.

Florida Not Ordering COVID-19 Vaccines for Children

The State of Florida is not planning on stocking mRNA vaccines for young children, even after the news the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were authorized today.

At a press conference yesterday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis explained the state’s policy and beliefs on vaccines in the youngest pediatric population.

“I would say we are affirmatively against the COVID vaccine for young kids,” DeSantis said. “These are the people who have zero risk of getting anything.”

“To do an emergency-use authorization for a six month old or a one year old simply to placate anxiety, that’s not the standard when you’re doing this,” he stated inthe same press conference.

GSK Announces its Phase 3 Study for its RSV Vaccine for Seniors

GSK reported its investigational respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine demonstrated it was “statistically significant and clinically meaningful efficacy in adults aged 60 years and above.”

This result comes from its AReSVi 006 phase 3 trial, which is a randomized, placebo-controlled, observer-blind, multi-country study to demonstrate the efficacy of a single dose of GSK's adjuvanted RSVPreF3 OA vaccine in individuals aged 60 years and above. Approximately 25,000 participants were enrolled from 17 countries. 

This past week has been extremely busy in infectious disease with a lot of vaccine news that could impact young children. In addition, GSK reported on its phase 3 study on its RSV vaccine for seniors.

Infectious Disease Update: June 17, 2022


Here is a recap from this week’s biggest infectious news stories.

FDA Vaccine Committee Recommends mRNA Vaccines for Children Under 5

Today, the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) unanimously voted to recommend both the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines for children as young as 6 months old

To read more about these votes and our coverage on the meeting, go 

Vaccine Committee Recommends Moderna Vaccine for Children and Adolescents 6 Years Through 17 Years

Yesterday, The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) panel voted to recommend amending the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of the Moderna COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, mRNA-1273, (Spikevax) to include the administration of the primary series to children and adolescents 6 years through 17 years of age.

The World Health Organization (WHO) plans to rename monkeypox after a letter signed by 30 scientists called for it because it is stigmatizing.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, tweeted yesterday: "WHO is also working with partners and experts from around the world on changing the name of #monkeypox virus, its clades and the disease it causes. We will make announcements about the new names as soon as possible.”

In a different tweet, he said the WHO’s Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations will meet next Thursday, “to assess whether this [monkeypox] outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern.”

The National Institutes of Health announced Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director of the National Institution of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Fauci who has been fully vaccinated and given 2 boosters is reported to be experiencing mild symptoms.

Pfizer Stops Recruiting on Paxlovid Trial

Pfizer announced it has ceased enrollment into the EPIC-SR trial due to low rate of hospitalization or death in the standard-risk population, and they will continue to evaluate treatment in populations with high unmet need.

The study initially enrolled 1153 standard-risk individuals who had (1) a confirmed diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection within five days prior to randomization, (2) onset of symptoms within five days of randomization, and (3) at least one characteristic or underlying medical condition associated with an increased risk of developing severe illness from COVID-19 and were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 OR no characteristics associated with risk of severe COVID-19 and were unvaccinated, according to Pfizer.

“Results from our Phase 2/3 EPIC-HR and EPIC-SR studies, as well as post-authorization experience, support the efficacy and safety profile for Paxlovid in the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients with at least one risk factor for progressing to severe COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, said. “With up to 40-50% of people around the world estimated to be high risk, we believe there remains a significant unmet need for treatment options to help combat this disease, and we will continue to prioritize efforts to advance the development of Paxlovid.”

To read more from our recent coverage of Paxlovid, go 

The FDA VRBPAC votes to recommend mRNA vaccines in youngest children; WHO moves to rename monkeypox; Anthony Fauci is diagnosed with COVID-19; and Pfizer stops recruiting for a Paxlovid trial.

Infectious Disease Update: June 15, 2022

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved GSK’s measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, Priorix, for individuals 12 months of age and older.

“We’re proud to make Priorix available in the US for the first time, adding a choice for providers to help protect patients against these highly-contagious diseases and to further strengthen offerings in our pediatric vaccine portfolio,” Judy Stewart, senior vice president and head of US Vaccines, GSK, said.

The GSK vaccine was studied in 6 clinical trials, in which a total of 12,151 participants (6391 in the US) received at least 1 dose of Priorix: 8780 children (4148 in the US) 12 through 15 months of age; 2917 children (1950 in the US) 4 through 6 years of age; and 454 adults and children (293 in the US) 7 years of age and older. The most commonly reported adverse reactions were pain, redness, swelling, loss of appetite, irritability, drowsiness and fever. The efficacy of Priorix was demonstrated based on immunogenicity data versus the comparator vaccine.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends children get 2 doses of the MMR vaccine beginning with the first dose at 12 through 15 months of age, and the second dose at 4 through 6 years of age.

Priorix currently licensed in more than 100 countries worldwide, including all European countries, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The GSK MMR vaccine is scheduled to be on CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) meeting agenda this month for consideration of formal inclusion into the vaccine schedule and recommendations.

GSK’s Priorix MMR vaccine received the federal agency’s approval which was based from data of 6 clinical trials evaluating its safety.

Contagion Editorial Team

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