Infectious Disease

The FDA and the White House also announced new initiatives to combat the novel coronavirus.

Dengue is endemic in the United States territories of American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands.

Fears surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak have had major effects even in unaffected areas, including face mask shortages, a falling stock market, and many unsubstantiated rumors.

Although the number of US cases is still low, experts are raising concerns that the US reliance on China for pharmaceutical ingredients could result in drug shortages as Chinese officials battle the outbreak.

As the most accessible health care providers, pharmacists can play a key role in counseling patients on the best practices for infection control and prevention.

There is still no vaccine or effective antiviral treatment for the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) that continues to spread worldwide, and health care providers should be aware of the symptoms.

Each year, infections related to antibiotic-resistant superbugs kill 700,000 people worldwide, according to researchers at the Italian Society of Anti-Infective Therapy (SITA).

The survey, administered by the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA), aimed to evaluate how pharmacists and their patients are handling concerns about 2019-nCoV.

Tedros Adhanom, PhD, director general of WHO, concluded his statements in the WHO press conference by reiterating that while 2019-nCoV is of global concern, it should not lead to widespread panic.

Pharmacists can administer the MMR vaccine without a prescription in most states and US territories.

The Clinical Advisor program detects potential issues with antibiotic prescribing and sends near real-time alerts to health care providers through means that include mobile devices.

In a tele-briefing Thursday, the CDC also reiterated that the threat to the general public in the US is still low.

The virus, first seen in Wuhan, China, is characterized by mild to severe respiratory illness, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

Fidaxomicin is a macrolide antibacterial medicine indicated to be used to treat infections that are proven or strongly suspected to be caused by C. difficile.

A case of the virus that reportedly originated in Wuhan City, China has been confirmed in Washington State.

Since 2006, the CDC has tracked increases in cases and outbreaks about every 5 years.

The CDC has reported 34800 new cancer diagnoses linked to HPV annually, and the virus is predicted to account for more than 90% of all cervical and anal cancers, more than 60% of all penile cancers, and 70% of all oral cancers.

These 5 developments, including epidemic forecasting and inhaled antibiotics to treat pneumonia, have global research behind them.

Krutika Mediwala, PharmD, BCPS, discusses the effects that institutional policies can have on antimicrobial stewardship in health systems. This video was filmed at the ASHP (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) 54th Midyear Clinical Meeting & Exhibition in Las Vegas.

Lisa Dumkow, PharmD, BCIDP, a clinical pharmacist of antimicrobial stewardship, discusses outpatient stewardship and why it's vital for health system pharmacists. This video was filmed at the 2019 ASHP Midyear Meeting Clinical Meeting & Exhibition in Las Vegas.

InsightRx, a company specializing in precision medicine, and Premier Inc, a health care improvement company, have partnered to individualize medication dosing for drugs used to treat infectious diseases.

Officials with the FDA have expanded the use of Melinta Therapeutics’ delafloxacin (Baxdela) to include treatment of adult patients with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia caused by designated susceptible bacteria, but the drug’s availability will be delayed for this new indication.

A first-in-human trial evaluating the safety, pharmacokinetics, and fecal microbiome effects of a novel DNA polIIIC inhibitor demonstrated the antibacterial’s promise as a potential treatment alternative to vancomycin for the treatment of Clostridioides difficile.

The newly published guidelines answer 16 core questions about the diagnosis and treatment of CAP in adults. The guidelines are more narrow in scope than previous versions and focus primarily on the care of a patient with active pneumonia.

The NFID released data that revealed only 52% of adults in the country plan to get vaccinated against the flu this season.