News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – US and Russian researchers report that peak death rates from heart disease seemed to coincide with peak influenza activity in a Russian population over an 8-year period, suggesting that flu contributes to heart attacks.

(CIDRAP News) – Bavarian Nordic, a Danish company, announced this week that the US government plans to buy 20 million doses of the company's Imvamune smallpox vaccine, but a US official said no decision has been made yet.

Imvamune is Bavarian's version of modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA), which is considered safer than the conventional smallpox vaccine, particularly for people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, and children.