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Friday, November 24, 2017
News Recap:
HAV
Top of the hepatitis news is the growing HAV epidemic in the US. Apparently the current supply of the HAV vaccine is “not sufficient to support demand,” the CDC told CNN in a written statement. You can read more about the vaccine shortage here.
Coffee
Also in the news is yet another study on the benefits of coffee, this one sponsored by the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee. Excuse me while I ignore the possible bias. But more to the point: For those of you who know me – imagine me on 3 to 5 cups of coffee a day! You can read the complete study here, but bear in mind the authors’ note that the “existing evidence is observational and of lower quality, and randomised controlled trials are needed.”
Screening for HCV in Canada
In April, the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care recommended against hepatitis C screening among patients with a low risk for infection. Infectious Disease News asked Jordan Feld, MD, MPH, a scientist with the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Toronto, for his opinion on the matter: Should people at low risk for HCV infection be screened for the virus?
Screening for HBV in the USA
Reducing chronic hepatitis B infections by screening at-risk adults, increasing hepatitis B vaccination rates, and linking infected persons to care is a public health priority, the American College of Physicians (ACP) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise in a new paper published in the Annals of Internal Medicine: US: ACP and CDC issue recommendations for hepatitis B screening, vaccination, and care.