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RSV can trigger invasive pneumococcal disease in children, study finds
News brief
Today at 2:36 p.m.
Stephanie Soucheray, MA
Topics
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) may trigger invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in some children, but its role in doing so varies across pneumococcal serotypes, according to a recent study in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
The findings are based on three continuous French surveillance systems on IPD, pneumococcal carriage and RSV infections from 2008 to 2023. The analysis included children younger than 15 years old.
Pneumococcal nasopharyngeal colonization (the presence in the upper throat, behind the nasal cavity, of Streptococcus pneumoniae) is the first step to developing IPD. And respiratory infections can prompt the transition from pneumococcal colonization to invasive disease. The authors used surveillance data to determine serotype-specific involvement in IPD depending on RSV circulation.
Risk depends on serotype
A total of 4,574 IPD cases were included over the study period: 1,621 (35.4%) during the RSV season and 2,953 (64.6%) during the non-RSV season, with three serotypes (24F, 19A, and 1) accounting for more than 30% of all cases.
“The serotype distribution among IPD cases strongly varied depending on RSV circulation,” the authors found. Serotypes 1, 17F, 7F, 38, 8, and 12F had an odds ratio involvement in IPD depending on the RSV circulation period greater than 1, indicating their higher likelihood of occurrence, in proportion, during the non-RSV season.
“Overall, this serotype-specific association with RSV may have important clinical consequences, some low disease potential serotypes being more likely to induce an invasive disease during RSV epidemics,” the authors concluded. “These findings may also have important implications for RSV preventive strategies in early childhood.
Quick takes: Nominee for FDA director, Ebola cases hit 5,000, Cyclospora outbreak slows but cases top 15,000
News brief
Today at 1:55 p.m.
Stephanie Soucheray, MA
Topics
Public Health
Ebola
Viral Hemorrhagic Fever
Cyclospora
Foodborne Disease
RSV can trigger invasive pneumococcal disease in children, study finds
News brief
Today at 2:36 p.m.
Stephanie Soucheray, MA
Topics
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) may trigger invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in some children, but its role in doing so varies across pneumococcal serotypes, according to a recent study in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
The findings are based on three continuous French surveillance systems on IPD, pneumococcal carriage and RSV infections from 2008 to 2023. The analysis included children younger than 15 years old.
Pneumococcal nasopharyngeal colonization (the presence in the upper throat, behind the nasal cavity, of Streptococcus pneumoniae) is the first step to developing IPD. And respiratory infections can prompt the transition from pneumococcal colonization to invasive disease. The authors used surveillance data to determine serotype-specific involvement in IPD depending on RSV circulation.
Risk depends on serotype
A total of 4,574 IPD cases were included over the study period: 1,621 (35.4%) during the RSV season and 2,953 (64.6%) during the non-RSV season, with three serotypes (24F, 19A, and 1) accounting for more than 30% of all cases.
“The serotype distribution among IPD cases strongly varied depending on RSV circulation,” the authors found. Serotypes 1, 17F, 7F, 38, 8, and 12F had an odds ratio involvement in IPD depending on the RSV circulation period greater than 1, indicating their higher likelihood of occurrence, in proportion, during the non-RSV season.
“Overall, this serotype-specific association with RSV may have important clinical consequences, some low disease potential serotypes being more likely to induce an invasive disease during RSV epidemics,” the authors concluded. “These findings may also have important implications for RSV preventive strategies in early childhood.
Quick takes: Nominee for FDA director, Ebola cases hit 5,000, Cyclospora outbreak slows but cases top 15,000
News brief
Today at 1:55 p.m.
Stephanie Soucheray, MA
Topics
Public Health
Ebola
Viral Hemorrhagic Fever
Cyclospora
Foodborne Disease
- President Donald Trump has nominated Heidi Overton, MD, PhD, to be the next commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), after Marty Makary, MD, MPH, resigned in May. Overton now faces Senate confirmation. Overton is currently serving as deputy assistant to the president for domestic policy. In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “Dr. Heidi has been a ROCKSTAR in my Administration, where she has worked directly with Secretary Kennedy, Dr. Oz, and team, to deliver on the MOST TRANSFORMATIVE Health Agenda in History.” Overton has briefed the president on a number of health issues, and was present at the executive order signing this month, where Trump lowered the number of childhood vaccines. Overton is also said to be leading the charge on the president’s plan to lower prescription drug prices. Before working at the White House, Overton served as chief policy officer at the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank.
- The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) reached another grim milestone today, as cases topped 5,000. DRC officials say 5,021 cases, including 2,378 deaths, have been recorded in the past three months as an outbreak of Bundibugyo strain Ebola has become intractable in Ituri province. This is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history, and is expected to surpass the West African outbreak of 2014-2016, which killed more than 11,000 people. Yesterday during the second meeting of the emergency committee convened under the International Health Regulations, the World Health Organization said the outbreak remains a public health emergency of international concern.
- Yesterday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) added 1,821 infections to its 2026 Cyclospora total, raising it to 15,716—compared with 1,180 cases through August last year. The CDC said it is investigating an additional 11,841 cases. The parasite has caused at least 828 hospitalizations and two deaths this summer, as dozens of states have battled large outbreaks tied to tainted lettuce. States have higher case counts than the CDC, because they may include cases that do not meet CDC’s formal reporting criteria, the agency said. As of August 13, Michigan, the epicenter of this summer’s outbreak, has reported 13,909 cases, 314 hospitalizations, and two deaths.