| Issue 1107: March 4, 2014 TOP STORIES
IAC HANDOUTS
OFFICIAL RELEASES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS FEATURED RESOURCES JOURNAL ARTICLES AND NEWSLETTERS
EDUCATION AND TRAINING CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS TOP STORIES CDC publishes ACIP recommendations for prevention and control of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) disease CDC published Prevention and Control of Haemophilus influenzae Type b Disease: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in the February 28 issue of MMWR Recommendations and Reports. The "Summary" section is reprinted below. This report compiles and summarizes all recommendations from CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) regarding prevention and control of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) disease in the United States. As a comprehensive summary of previously published recommendations, this report does not contain any new recommendations; it is intended for use by clinicians, public health officials, vaccination providers, and immunization program personnel as a resource. ACIP recommends routine vaccination with a licensed conjugate Hib vaccine for infants aged 2 through 6 months (2 or 3 doses, depending on vaccine product) with a booster dose at age 12 through 15 months. ACIP also recommends vaccination for certain persons at increased risk for Hib disease (i.e., persons who have early component complement deficiencies, immunoglobulin deficiency, anatomic or functional asplenia, or HIV infection; recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplant; and recipients of chemotherapy or radiation therapy for malignant neoplasms). This report summarizes current information on Hib epidemiology in the United States and describes Hib vaccines licensed for use in the United States. Guidelines for antimicrobial chemoprophylaxis of contacts of persons with Hib disease also are provided. Related Links
AAP News publishes commentary on HPV vaccination by Dr. Michael Brady, chair of the AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases; useful AAP resources available to help providers increase HPV vaccine uptake On March 1, AAP News published a helpful commentary by Michael T. Brady, MD, FAAP, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Committee on Infectious Diseases. The commentary, Pediatricians can lay out evidence to allay fears over HPV vaccine, includes talking points about the effectiveness and safety of HPV vaccines. Despite more than seven years of vaccine monitoring showing overwhelming evidence of HPV vaccine safety and effectiveness, HPV vaccination rates are not rising this year while rates for other adolescent vaccines are. AAP has developed a number of resources for healthcare providers to help educate patients and their parents about HPV vaccination, as have other organizations. Please explore all the great resources for patients, parents, and healthcare professionals listed below! Related Links HPV Resources from AAP
Reminder: National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit requests nominations for its 2014 Immunization Excellence Awards; deadline is March 25 The National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS) is soliciting candidates for the 2014 NAIIS Immunization Excellence Awards. The awards recognize individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions toward improved vaccination rates within their communities during 2013. The deadline for nominations is March 25 (due by close of business, 5 p.m., ET). A national winner and possibly an honorable mention recipient will be selected for each award category. The winners will be presented with their awards at the NAIIS meeting, to be held May 13–15, in Atlanta. The national winner in each category will be invited to present at the meeting. There are five categories of recognition:
CDC and South Carolina Department of Health and Environment warn of possible hepatitis A exposure at Hilton Head restaurant On February 25, CDC released a Media Advisory titled CDC and South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Warn of Possible Hepatitis A Exposure at Hilton Head Restaurant. Customers and staff who visited or ate at Hudson's Seafood House on the Docks in Hilton Head Island, SC, between 4:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. on February 15 may be at risk for contracting hepatitis A. People who may have been exposed are encouraged to call the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control at (800) 868-0404. Related Links
Please comment on the new USPSTF draft recommendations for hepatitis B screening by March 10; sample letters and comments available On February 10, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released a draft recommendation statement titled Screening for Hepatitis B Virus Infection in Nonpregnant Adolescents and Adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement. This statement recommends testing everyone who is at high risk for hepatitis B virus infection, and rates this recommendation a "B" grade. A "B" grade is defined as follows: "The USPSTF recommends the service. There is high certainty that the net benefit is moderate or there is moderate certainty that the net benefit is moderate to substantial." This is an importance change, as the current related USPSTF recommendation is a “D” grade, which means hepatitis B screening is not recommended for anyone except pregnant women. USPSTF recommendations are important because they increase awareness and ensure that recommended services are covered by most private and public payers. Submit your comments to USPSTF by 5:00 p.m. (ET), March 10. The Hep B United website includes resources to help with the comment process, including letter templates and a list of sample comments to use in the template letter. Related Links
IAC Spotlight! Quick access to ACIP recommendations on immunize.org Looking for quick access to official recommendations of CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)? IAC’s ACIP web section provides up-to-date access to ACIP vaccine recommendations, which are listed by date, vaccine, and topic. Related Links
Polio-like illness reported in five California children Researchers have identified a polio-like syndrome in a cluster of five children from California over a one-year period, according to a report released on February 23. A portion of a related American Academy of Neurology press release is reprinted below. “Although poliovirus has been eradicated from most of the globe, other viruses can also injure the spine, leading to a polio-like syndrome,” said case report author Keith Van Haren, MD, with Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., and a member of the American Academy of Neurology and co-author Emanuelle Waubant, MD, with the University of California-San Francisco. “In the past decade, newly identified strains of enterovirus have been linked to polio-like outbreaks among children in Asia and Australia. These five new cases highlight the possibility of an emerging infectious polio-like syndrome in California.” Related Links
IAC HANDOUTS IAC revises and redesigns two educational pieces about the hepatitis B vaccine birth dose: "Give the Birth Dose... Hepatitis B Vaccine at Birth Saves Lives!" and "Hepatitis B Shots Are Recommended for All New Babies" IAC recently revised the following two educational pieces, one for providers and the other for parents, on the importance of the hepatitis B vaccine birth dose.
Back to top IAC updates and redesigns two hepatitis B handouts for adults: "Every Week Hundreds of People Get Hepatitis B" and "Protect Yourself Against Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B... A Guide for Gay and Bisexual Men" IAC recently revised the following two hepatitis B handouts for adults:
IAC updates "Questions Parents Ask About Vaccinations for Babies" IAC recently updated and redesigned the handout for parents previously known as "Questions Parents Ask about Baby Shots." To better acknowledge the fact that not all vaccines are "shots," this handout has been renamed Questions Parents Ask About Vaccinations for Babies.
IAC updates sample standing orders templates for administering meningococcal and varicella vaccines to children and teens IAC revised the following standing orders templates for providers:
Related Link Back to topIAC posts Hmong translation of "Screening Checklist for Contraindications to Live Attenuated Intranasal Influenza Vaccination" IAC recently posted a Hmong translation of its Screening Checklist for Contraindications to Live Attenuated Intranasal Influenza Vaccination. IAC thanks Marshfield Clinic, Marshfield, WI, for the translation. IAC offers screening questionnaires in many additional languages, including Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, French, Korean, Russian, Turkish, and Vietnamese. Related Links
OFFICIAL RELEASES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS WHO issues updated position paper on polio vaccines The February 28 issue of the WHO periodical, Weekly Epidemiological Record, includes the latest WHO position paper on polio vaccines. A collection of WHO position papers on vaccines is available in alphabetical order on the WHO website. They are available in chronological order and alphabetically by vaccine on the IAC website. Back to top CDC expands its injection safety efforts More than 150,000 patients have been notified of potential exposure to hepatitis and HIV due to unsafe injection practices in U.S. healthcare settings since 2001. To better protect patients from potential exposure to infectious diseases due to unsafe injection practices, the CDC Foundation is partnering with Eli Lilly and Company to support and expand CDC’s Safe Injection Practices Coalition—a group of public health, medical, and industry organizations collaborating to raise awareness among patients and healthcare providers about safe injection practices. The partnership will extend the reach of Safe Injection Practices Coalition’s One & Only Campaign, an injection safety awareness campaign that has produced and distributed educational and multimedia tools for healthcare providers and patients. This partnership will also support the expansion of the coalition’s activities, resources, and tools for provider training and education, as well as patient empowerment. Funding will also support dissemination of safe injection messages using social media, YouTube, electronic continuing medical education, advertising, and print materials for providers and patients. Follow the campaign on Twitter @InjectionSafety and Facebook. Related Links
FEATURED RESOURCES Influenza is serious; vaccination is recommended for nearly everyone, so please keep vaccinating your patients Vaccination remains the single most effective means of preventing influenza, and is recommended for everyone age six months and older. If you don't provide influenza vaccination in your clinic, please recommend vaccination to your patients and refer them to a clinic or pharmacy that provides vaccines or to the HealthMap Vaccine Finder to locate sites near their workplaces or homes that offer influenza vaccination services. Following is a list of resources related to influenza disease and vaccination for healthcare professionals and the public:
JOURNAL ARTICLES AND NEWSLETTERS January and February issues of CDC's Immunization Works newsletter now available CDC has posted the January and February issues of its monthly newsletter Immunization Works on the website of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD). The newsletter offers the immunization community information about current topics. The information is in the public domain and can be reproduced and circulated widely. Related Links Back to top CDC publishes information about two-dose varicella vaccination coverage in the U.S. CDC published Two-Dose Varicella Vaccination Coverage among Children Aged 7 Years—Six Sentinel Sites, United States, 2006–2012 in the February 28 issue of MMWR (pages 174–177). A summary made available to the press is reprinted below. Substantial progress has been made towards ensuring as many children as possible are protected against varicella. Adoption of two-dose varicella vaccination school entry requirements by more states will help further increase the number of children protected against the disease. In 2007, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended a routine second dose of varicella vaccine for children at age 4–6. The number of states with a two-dose varicella vaccine elementary school entry requirement has increased from four in 2007 to 36 in 2012. Two-dose varicella vaccination coverage levels among children aged 7 years in six Immunization Information System sentinel sites increased from a range of 3.6 percent to 8.9 percent in 2006 to a range of 79.9 percent to 92.0 percent in 2012 and are approaching levels of two-dose measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) coverage, which ranged from 81.9 percent to 94.0 percent in 2012. These increases suggest substantial progress in implementing the routine two-dose varicella vaccination program in the 6 years since its recommendation by ACIP. Back to top CDC reports on emergence of wildlife rabies on island free from canine rabies for 52 years CDC published Notes from the Field: Emergence of Wildlife Rabies on an Island Free from Canine Rabies for 52 Years—Taiwan, 2013 in the February 28 issue of MMWR (page 178). The first two and last two sentences are reprinted below. Dog-to-dog transmission of rabies in Taiwan was eliminated in 1961; the island was considered canine rabies-free for 52 years. On July 16, 2013, three ferret-badgers (Melogale moschata) tested positive for rabies by fluorescent antibody testing at the Animal Health Research Institute, Council of Agriculture of Taiwan....The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control urges clinicians to maintain a high index of suspicion for rabies when evaluating patients with encephalitis in Taiwan. Surveillance for animal and human cases will need to be continued to appropriately describe the epidemiology of rabies in Taiwan. Back to top EDUCATION AND TRAINING CDC updates Influenza module in its "You Call the Shots" training course CDC recently announced that it had updated the Influenza module in the web-based training course "You Call the Shots." Continuing education credit is available for viewing a module and completing an evaluation. Related Links
CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS Conference on Vaccine Research posts agenda; early bird registration rate ends March 17 The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) is hosting its Conference on Vaccine Research in Bethesda, MD, on April 28–30. Now in its 17th year, the conference has become the largest scientific meeting devoted exclusively to research on vaccines and associated technologies for disease prevention and treatment through immunization. The meeting agenda is now available online. Register by March 17 to get the early bird rate. Back to top  |
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ISSN 2771-8085
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ISSN 2771-8085
Editorial Information
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Editor-in-ChiefKelly L. Moore, MD, MPH
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Managing EditorJohn D. Grabenstein, RPh, PhD
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Associate EditorSharon G. Humiston, MD, MPH
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Writer/Publication CoordinatorTaryn Chapman, MS
Courtnay Londo, MA -
Style and Copy EditorMarian Deegan, JD
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Web Edition ManagersArkady Shakhnovich
Jermaine Royes -
Contributing WriterLaurel H. Wood, MPA
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Technical ReviewerKayla Ohlde