Young Adult Myocarditis After Covid Shots Found Mild, Temporary
In other news, a major British study into mixing covid vaccines found that people showed a better immune response after a Pfizer or AstraZeneca shot followed by a Moderna one nine weeks later. The Wall Street Journal reports on the rise in post-booster breakthrough cases, which are still rare.
CIDRAP:
Study: COVID Vaccine-Related Myocarditis Mild, Resolves Quickly
Today in Circulation, researchers report that most cases of rare yet potentially serious episodes of myocarditis related to COVID-19 vaccinations in teens and young adults were mild, and the case-patients recovered quickly. Myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, often follows bacterial or viral infections. In June 2021, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a link between mRNA COVID-19 vaccines and increased incidents of myocarditis, especially in boys and men 12 to 29. (12/6)
Reuters:
Mixing Pfizer, AstraZ COVID-19 Shots With Moderna Gives Better Immune Response -UK Study
A major British study into mixing COVID-19 vaccines has found that people had a better immune response when they received a first dose of AstraZeneca or Pfizer-BioNTech shots followed by Moderna nine weeks later, according to the results on Monday. "We found a really good immune response across the board..., in fact, higher than the threshold set by Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine two doses," Matthew Snape, the Oxford professor behind the trial dubbed Com-COV2, told Reuters. (Aripaka and Marks, 12/7)
In updates on breakthrough infections —
The Wall Street Journal:
Post-Booster Breakthrough Covid-19 Cases Are Happening, But Rarely
A small number of Covid-19 breakthrough cases are beginning to show up among people who got both a full round of vaccinations and a booster shot. Heather Green received her Covid-19 booster, a third injection of the Pfizer vaccine, at the end of September. A month later, the 47-year-old was surprised to discover during a routine test that her mild allergy-like symptoms were actually from Covid-19. (Reddy, 12/6)
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer:
What Is The Buckeye State’s Coronavirus Breakthrough Case Rate? Ohio Department Of Health Isn’t Reporting It
The Ohio Department of Health still doesn’t release the number of positive coronavirus cases among vaccinated Ohioans, despite nearly a year passing since the first shots arrived in the Buckeye State. Ohio has entered a new wave in the pandemic. COVID-19 hospitalizations in Northeast Ohio have shot up, and some facilities have postponed elective surgeries to devote more resources to fighting the coronavirus. Yet, the state doesn’t plan to release breakthrough case data beyond cases that result in hospitalizations and deaths that it currently updates on Thursdays. (Hancock, 12/6)
And more on the vaccine rollout —
AP:
Unvaccinated Starkville Employees To Pay More For Insurance
Starting in early February, Starkville city employees who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 may have to pay an extra $75 a month for medical insurance. Aldermen for the Mississippi city set the policy in September and set it to take effect Dec. 1. They met last week and voted to delay that until Feb. 4. (12/6)
The Boston Globe:
Wu Announces Free COVID Tests, Masks, And Vaccination Clinics To Confront Boston’s ‘Urgent Situation’
Boston health officials will distribute 20,000 free rapid antigen home tests and free masks to neighborhoods with the highest rates of COVID-19, Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration announced Monday. The city will also expand access to vaccinations, including at new high-volume clinics and city schools. The plan, announced at a City Hall press conference, marked the new mayor’s first initiative to combat the latest phase of the pandemic, as the Omicron variant bears down on Massachusetts. She also announced the formation of a 17-member board to advise the city on its COVID-19 response. (Freyer and Stoico, 12/6)
NPR:
Francis Collins On Medical Advances, Vaccine Hesitancy And Americans' Ill Health
It's Dr. Francis Collins' last few weeks as director of National Institutes of Health after 12 years, serving three presidents. Collins made his name doing the kind of biomedical research NIH is famous for, especially running The Human Genome Project, which fully sequenced the human genetic code. The focus on biomedicine and cures has helped him grow the agency's budget to over $40 billion a year and win allies in both political parties. Still, in a broad sense, Americans' health hasn't improved much in those 12 years, especially compared to people in peer countries, and some have argued the agency hasn't done enough to try to turn these trends around. One recently retired NIH division director has quipped that one way to increase funding for this line of research would be if "out of every $100 dollars, $1 would be put into the 'Hey, how come nobody's healthy?' fund." (Simmons-Duffin, 12/7)
