Three Things Thursday highlights three things I am paying attention to as an epidemiologist each week.
The three things I am paying attention to this week are the SARS-CoV-2 virus and vaccines, specifically news about the COVID booster and annual flu shot.
Hoping this post helps to educate and empower you
to be healthy and create healthy communities.
What’s the SARS-CoV-2 Virus Up To?
The number of hospitalizations related to COVID-19 continues to increase incrementally. Compared to last week, rates still are going up. But if you look at the previous three years, these increases are small in comparison. Upwards of 15,000 people are hospitalized with COVID each week in the United States.
Questions the public health community are asking include — Is this the new normal? Is this what we should expect in the months and years to come? What can be done to reduce the number of deaths and hospitalizations?
These questions will take time to answer. So stay tuned…
Data from wastewater — which had been increasing week-to-week this summer — appear to be decreasing (or at least plateauing) across the country.
Again, these numbers from summer 2023 are significantly (and noticeably) lower when compared to earlier in the pandemic.
This is just a friendly reminder that context matters.
My advice remains the same —
Make peace.
Make peace with the reality that there will be a lot of disease spread as we go back to school and the flu season begins (in the Northern Hemisphere). Expect COVID, flu, RSV, and other diseases to spread. And to make you and your loved one sick. Disease spread and illness is a reality — make peace with it.Understand that the only constant is CHANGE.
In the coming weeks, we will know more about these new variants and we may learn something new that forces us to change our behaviors or worry a little less. We do not know. What we do know is we will know more. And things could change in an unexpected or unpredictable way. No one has a disease forecasting crystal ball. There is no way to predict what will come next, but you can expect things to CHANGE.Be a good neighbor — stay home to slow the spread of disease.
Regardless of whether you get COVID, RSV, flu, or some other disease this year, please stay home if you are sick. Seek out preventative care (vaccines) and treatment when necessary. Make the commitment to be a good neighbor/citizen and work hard to break disease transmission cycles by staying home when you are sick.Do NOT panic.
At least not YET. When you see the news headlines about masking or outbreaks or significant increases — either read the full article and ask the important questions about what data comparisons are being made or ignore the sensational headlines and get your updates here! My goal is to provide actionable and reliable information to improve community health.
COVID Booster Shot Updates
The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, September 12 from 10-4 to discuss COVID booster shots for the Fall. You can watch the meeting online.
While I don’t have a crystal ball (nor have I seen the most recent data about vaccine effectiveness), I anticipate that booster shots will be recommended for adults over the age of 65. I also anticipate that booster shots will be recommended for any individual who is immunocompromised.
I’m not sure if a booster shot will be recommended for healthy individuals 6 months to 64 years.
WHY?
Previous infections and vaccinations have prepared our immune systems to respond when the SARS-CoV-2 virus enters our bodies. And we have the immune memory to prevent severe disease and death caused by the virus. It is unclear to me — at this point in time without access to all of the data — if there is a benefit to another boost. Data will be shared at the ACIP meeting and the benefits of the booster shot will be weighed and discussed.
Answers will come in less than two weeks. Stay tuned! Be sure you are subscribed so you don’t miss a summary of the ACIP meeting including recommendations regarding who is eligible for a COVID booster shot this fall.
Flu Shots
Flu shots are available!
And while the flu vaccine is not perfect, it is EXTREMELY beneficial. The vaccine is effective at reducing the severity of illness for all. And for individuals who are immunocompromised or have an aging immune system, the vaccine prevents hospitalizations and deaths.
Plan to get your flu shot.
Given that the flu season is expected to start earlier than expected, I recommend getting your flu shot in late September/early October. That is when I am scheduled to get mine.
Do you have any questions about viruses or vaccines? Please ask —
And please share this with your friends and family — we all need to get a flu shot & some of us will need need a COVID booster.
Not quite on topic but I thought you might be interested in this COVID-related news article: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/aug/31/uk-scientists-find-link-between-proteins-related-to-blood-clots-and-long-covid?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
And here’s the paper they are referring to:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02525-y