US Government Secures Large Order Of Freeze-Dried Mpox, Smallpox Vaccine

CIDRAP: US Government Secures Production, Supply Of Freeze-Dried Jynneos Mpox Vaccine
Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic announced today that the US government has placed a $144 million order for a freeze-dried version of its mpox vaccine, which can also be used to prevent smallpox. The freeze-dried formulation of the Jynneos vaccine was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in March. It will be easier to store and transport, and has a longer shelf life, than the liquid-frozen formulation that Bavarian Nordic has been supplying to the US government since 2010. (Dall, 5/6)

On measles, bird flu, and Aspergillus —

CIDRAP: Texas Measles Total Tops 700 Cases Amid Rises In Other States
The Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS) today reported 19 more cases since its last update on May 2, lifting the state’s total to 702 cases. As the country’s biggest measles hot spot, the state has reported outbreak-linked cases from 29 counties, mainly in west Texas. So far 91 people have been hospitalized, reflecting an increase of 2 since the last report. Of the 702 cases, 672 involved unvaccinated people or whose immunization status was unknown. (Schnirring, 5/6)

MedPage Today: H5N1 Bird Flu Cases Have Slowed In Animals And People
Detections of H5N1 avian influenza have slowed in both animals and humans, but continued surveillance is warranted, CDC researchers said. In dairy cattle, cases surged over the fall and early winter but eased in January, while cases in poultry flocks fell after February, and came down last month in backyard flocks, according to data on CDC's website that was shared during a clinician outreach and communication activity (COCA) call on Tuesday. (Fiore, 5/6)

Fox News: Alarming Fungus Could Invade Parts Of The US, Researchers Warn
Some researchers are sounding the alarm about a potentially deadly fungus that could spread throughout parts of the U.S., Europe and Asia. The study article, which was published in pre-print (not yet peer-reviewed) in Research Square, claims that "rising global temperatures" could lead to severe infections of Aspergillus, a fungal mold that thrives in warm, damp climates. (Rudy, 5/6)

KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest 'KFF Health News Minute'
Katheryn Houghton delivers the week’s news: A new survey finds that more Americans are hearing false claims about measles and the vaccine that prevents it, and changes to federal health funding have advocates worried the White House is deprioritizing fighting addiction. (Dall, 5/6)

In other health and wellness news —

CNN: Early Periods Are A Problem, And What Your Kid Eats May Make An Impact, Study Suggests 
The foods you pack in your kids’ lunch boxes may have an impact on whether they experience their first menstrual cycle too early, according to new research. Eating a more inflammatory diet was associated with a 15% greater chance of kids having their first period in the next month, whereas a healthier diet reduced the risk by 8%, according to a new study published Tuesday in the journal Human Reproduction. (Holcombe, 5/6)

Stat: Fentanyl Busts Saved 258 Million Lives? Experts Say That’s Implausible.
In recent months, federal prosecutors indicted a Georgia man for “possessing enough fentanyl to kill up to 500,000 individuals.” A sheriff in South Carolina announced the seizure of fentanyl that “had the potential to kill more than 800,000 people.” Perhaps most impressively, California Highway Patrol officers estimated they seized enough of the opioid to kill “a quarter of the population” of the entire state — some 10 million people. (Facher, 5/7)

CIDRAP: Scientists Estimate Higher Rate Of New-Onset Diabetes After COVID Than In General Population
Today in Emerging Microbes & Infections, researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar present a systematic review of 35 studies on new-onset diabetes after COVID-19 infection, estimating an incidence of 1.37%. The researchers mined databases to identify and analyze studies from around the world on COVID-related type 1 or type 2 diabetes published up to October 2023. The studies included a total of 4.4 million COVID-19 patients of all ages, and 47.7% were male. (Van Beusekom, 5/6)