Many NICUs don't give rotavirus vaccines owing to a theoretical risk of transmission of vaccine strains, because vaccinated infants can shed live virus in their stools.
Researchers estimate vaccines for enteric pathogens could prevent up to 8 to 12 courses of antibiotics per 100 vaccinated children per year in low-resource countries.
Vaccine effectiveness against rotavirus infection was highest in children younger than 3 years and declined with increasing age.
Less than 1% of unvaccinated infants exposed to vaccinated babies contracted rotavirus.
A study today in the journal Family Practice reports that a rapid, multi-viral point-of-care test for respiratory infections was easy to use, acceptable to patients and clinicians, and appeared to influence clinical reasoning about antibiotics.
The study provides clear evidence of the power of childhood vaccines on reducing the antibiotic resistance burden.
Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) today reported another MERS-CoV case, the fourth case in September.
The new MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) case involves a 39-year-old man from Al Hofuf in the eastern part of the country. The man had contact with a camel, the most common primary risk factor associated with contracting MERS.
According to the World Health Organization's (WHO) online dashboard, 10 new cases of Ebola have been confirmed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), raising the outbreak total to 2,852, and 380 suspected cases are still under investigation.
Fatalities have passed the 1,900 mark, to stand at 1,905, after seven new deaths from the virus were confirmed today.
Over the weekend and through today the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) health ministry reported 16 more lab-confirmed Ebola cases, 13 of them from Katwa, the outbreak's current hot spot. Also, in a Feb 9 update, health officials reported 7 more probable cases, all from Katwa involving people who became ill in November and December and died between November and January.
A new study based on 80,000 children shows no association between prenatal Tdap vaccination (tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The study is published in Pediatrics.
