A new survey of US adults suggests that, despite the spread of conspiracy theories about vaccines in recent years, most Americans trust the work of vaccine scientists.

The survey from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) found that, among 1,650 adults polled in February, nearly seven in 10 (69%) say they trust vaccine scientists a "moderate amount" or more to act in their best interest. The amount of trust in vaccine scientists was statistically the same as it was for medical scientists (72%) and scientists in general (70%).

The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

The findings come amid growing challenges to vaccine science that flourished during the COVID-19 pandemic and have been elevated by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has promoted the debunked idea that vaccines are linked to autism and once called the COVID-19 shot "the deadliest vaccine ever made." 

“It is reassuring to see that the public trusts vaccine scientists to act in their best interests just as much as scientists in general, despite the unfounded attacks on vaccine research,” APPC research analyst Laura Gibson said in an Annenberg news release.

By comparison, the survey found similar rates of trust in police officers (70%) and the military (70%). But trust in vaccine scientists, and scientists in general, was much higher than for religious leaders (47%), journalists (49%), elected officials (36%), and business leaders (30%).

Most believe vaccine science has been beneficial

When asked whether the findings produced by vaccine scientists over the past decade have benefited the country as a whole, 61% said they "strongly" or "somewhat" agree, while 61% said they strongly or somewhat agree the findings have benefited "people like me." The responses were similar for scientists in general (61% and 64%, respectively).

The survey also shows Americans believe vaccine scientists are just as beneficial, credible, self-correcting, and unbiased as scientists in general. But vaccine scientists were seen as less prudent than scientists in general. 

Cases of pneumococcal pneumonia surged in 2022 and 2023. The bacterial infection attacks the lungs, causing air sacs to become inflamed and fill with fluid.

New findings published today by the American Academy of Pediatrics show that this post-COVID increase was largely driven by a specific subtype of the Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria: Serotype 3 is associated with severe complications, including meningitis. 

These findings are especially salient for young children, older adults, and those with weakened immune systems, as these groups have the highest risk.

Finding the culprit

There are more than 100 distinct subgroups of S pneumoniae, though most hospitals lack the laboratory capacity to determine which serotype is causing an infection.

However, the study found that among 190 kids with pneumococcal pneumonia from 2017 to 2023, serotype 3 infected 32% of patients. 

Researchers note that serotype 3 was, "The only individual serotype with a significantly higher rate in 2022–2023 compared with 2018–2019." (Rate ratio, 3.0)

The findings don’t surprise the study's lead author, Eric E. Engstrom, MD, at Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters in Norfolk, Virginia. The pediatric infectious diseases specialist told CIDRAP News that he and other clinicians have noticed that more pneumococcal pneumonia patients are suffering from severe infections, which is indicative of Serotype 3.

Parents get impatient. Patients get impatient. And certainly, the providers get impatient.

Engstrom said these findings can inform clinical decisions because while patients with serotype 3 take longer to improve, this form of S pneumoniae responds well to common antibiotics, including penicillin.

"Parents get impatient. Patients get impatient. And certainly, the providers get impatient," he said.

But as the findings suggest, sometimes patience is the right course rather than prescribing broader, potentially more harmful antibiotics.

A study of children enrolled in Medicaid found a high rate of outpatient antibiotic use in kids with medical complexity, researchers from Boston Children's Hospital reported late last week at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS).

Using the multistate MarketScan Medicaid Database, the researchers examined outpatient antibiotic claims in more than 2.3 million children ages 0 to 18 years who were enrolled in Medicaid in 2023. They categorized the children into five groups—healthy; non-complex chronic condition; and one, two, and three or more complex chronic conditions (CCCs)—and compared antibiotic prescribing rates across groups.

Antibiotics are the most commonly prescribed medication in children, but little is known about antibiotic use in kids with medical complexity, who are prone to infection.

Nearly 40% filled at least 1 antibiotic prescription

Of the children included in the analysis, 39.3% filled one or more antibiotic prescriptions over the study period. Annual prescription rates per 1,000 children rose more than fivefold across the five groups as the level of medical complexity increased, rising from 514 in healthy children to 2,882 in children with three or more CCCs. Children with medical complexity were also far more likely to be prescribed broad-spectrum antibiotics. Penicillins, cephalosporins, and macrolides accounted for 93% of antibiotics prescribed to healthy children, while children with three or more CCCs had substantially more prescriptions for sulfonamides, quinolones, and aminoglycosides.

The researchers said that children with three or more CCCs have the highest annual antibiotic prescription rate of any population, pediatric or adult.

"These findings suggest that children with medical complexity may be a high-impact population for future antibiotic stewardship efforts,” lead author Kate Snow, MD, an instructor at Boston Children's, said in a PAS press release.