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CDC confirms 37-case multistate hepatitis A outbreak linked to frozen clams
News brief15 minutes ago.
Stephanie Soucheray, MA
Topics
Hepatitis
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced late last week that a multistate hepatitis A outbreak linked to frozen clams has sickened at least 37 people.
So far cases have been identified in four states, Massachusetts (three cases), Minnesota (three), New York (27), and Pennsylvania (four). No deaths have been reported but 30 people have required hospitalization. Illness-onset dates range from July 30, 2025, to June 23, 2026.
Case-patients range in age from 6 to 40 years old.
“Of the people interviewed, 77% reported eating ceviche (raw fish or shellfish marinated in citrus juice), 76% reported eating raw or undercooked shellfish, and 47% reported eating raw or undercooked conchas negras (black clams),” the CDC said. Further analysis showed that imported frozen clams were the likely source of infection.
Recall in April
In late April the FDA announced La Serranita brand concha negra (black shell) shell meat products from Ecuador had been recalled by dealers in New Jersey and New York. The products were distributed to restaurants and retailers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, and might have been further distributed.
Study shows high need for respiratory support in patients with severe Andes hantavirus infections
News brief21 minutes ago.
Chris Dall, MA
Topics
Hantavirus
A new study by Chilean researchers highlights the high need for respiratory support and high mortality in patients infected with severe disease caused by the Andes hantavirus.
The study, published earlier this month in Intensive Care Medicine, analyzed data on 215 patients hospitalized in Chile with hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS), a severe disease caused by the Andres strain of the virus. The aim was to assess the need for respiratory support, hospital length of stay (LOS), and in-hospital mortality.
Hantavirus is primarily transmitted through inhalation of aerosolized rodent feces, urine, or saliva, but the Andes strain is the one species with documented human-to-human transmission. An outbreak of Andes hantavirus on a cruise ship traveling from Argentine Patagonia to Europe in April and May sickened 13 passengers and crew members and killed three.
“Although cases occur every year in endemic areas, recent data on organ support requirements and intensive care outcomes remain scarce,” the study authors wrote. “The recent hantavirus outbreak highlights the need for current data that may help inform planning of care for these patients in intensive care units in non-endemic regions.”
69% of patients required respiratory support
Of the 215 patients identified with HCPS from 2019 through 2024, 148 (69%) required respiratory support, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO, 34%), mechanical ventilation (MV, 25%), and non-invasive ventilation (10%). In addition, 40% of patients received transfusions, and 16% underwent renal replacement therapy.The median hospital LOS was eight days, and in-hospital mortality was 21%, with the highest case-fatality rates observed in patients receiving ECMO (33%) and MV (30%). In-hospital mortality was nearly three times higher in HCPS patients who were hospitalized during the COVID-19 pandemic (adjusted odds ratio, 2.73).
“These findings reinforce the importance for intensivists of remaining aware of HCPS, particularly in the context of the current outbreak, and of ensuring that intensive care units and healthcare systems are adequately prepared,” the authors wrote.
Data reveal higher rates of severe RSV, death in medically complex kids not targeted for immunization
News brief55 minutes ago.
Mary Van Beusekom, MS
Topics
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
Older children diagnosed as having complex critical conditions (CCCs) carry a greater burden of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)–related serious illness and death, suggesting the need for preventive interventions, researchers write in JAMA Network Open.
A team led by Children’s National Hospital researchers in Washington, DC, analyzed electronic health record data on 6,430 US RSV-related admissions to intensive care units (ICUs) of children aged 2 to 17 years from January 2017 to June 2023.
Although recent studies suggest that critical RSV disease extends beyond infancy and early childhood, preventive strategies such as vaccination are still targeted to infants and older adults, leaving high-risk older children unprotected, the authors noted.
Plausibility of vaccinating older children
RSV-associated ICU admissions represented 8.3% of 77,395 ICU admissions among children aged 2 to 17 years, occurring within 119,782 ICU admissions in children of all ages. In-hospital death occurred in 7.5% of all ICU admissions and accounted for 65.9% of 735 RSV deaths among all ages.Of all ICU admissions, 39.8% occurred in children aged 2 to 4 years, 37.2% in those 5 to 12 years, and 23.0% in those 13 to 17.
At least one CCC category was documented in 57.2% of admissions, and three or more were listed in 25.9%. The most common categories were neurologic or neuromuscular (24.0%), gastrointestinal (22.9%), and cardiovascular (19.0%). Technology dependence was present in 28.9% of admissions and transplant status in 3.2%.
A total of 93.8% of children who died had at least one CCC (mortality odds ratio, 12.76). The median number of CCC organ system categories among survivors was one, compared with four among those who died.
Risk factors for death were older age, greater medical complexity, longer ICU and hospital stay, and need for mechanical ventilation, vasoactive drugs, or both therapies.
“Active immunization of older children is biologically plausible, although optimal vaccine strategies likely depend on age and prior RSV exposure,” the authors wrote. “Additional studies are needed to determine safety, effectiveness, as well as optimal vaccine approaches and target populations among older children.”
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