Communications, Vaccine News
Division of Bacterial Diseases (DBD) News Bulletin - Fall 2014
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This website is archived for historical purposes and is no longer being maintained or updated.
November 7, 2014: Content on this page kept for historical reasons.
In This Issue
Communications Updates
Seeking More Information on Pertussis
NCIRD’s Health Communication Science Office and DBD conducted formative research on knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors regarding pertussis and the ACIP recommendation for receiving Tdap vaccine during each pregnancy. This past summer, surveys were conducted with ob-gyns, nurses, nurse midwives, and pregnant women. Focus groups with pregnant women and in-depth interviews with ob-gyns were also included in this research. Findings will be applied to developing materials to increase Tdap use during pregnancy across the country and those materials will be tested in additional research in the fall of 2014. According to a few CDC studies, current coverage nationally is low, with only about 10–15% of women receiving Tdap while pregnant.
Mobile Technology Helping Prevent Group B Strep (GBS)
The “Prevent Group B Strep” (GBS app) mobile application technology introduced in 2013 is a standalone application that provides patient-specific and scenario-specific guidance consistent with the 2010 Guidelines for the Prevention of Perinatal GBS Disease for practitioners providing obstetric or neonatal care. Developed in collaboration with and endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Nurse-Midwives, and American Academy of Family Physicians, the GBS app has been downloaded more than 15,000 times. Accessibility using Android devices was recently launched. Learn more about the GBS app and how to download it.
DBD Launches Websites with New Look and Content
In fall 2013, CDC began to require that all web content on CDC.gov use an approved CDC.gov template. Last spring, DBD launched new websites on pneumonia and Mycoplasma pneumoniae in this new template. Other DBD websites will be transitioned to the new required format by May 2016. The new template uses a “responsive” approach to improve viewing experiences by automatically optimizing content design for phones, tablets, laptops, or widescreen computers.
Save the Date!
World Pneumonia Day
World Pneumonia Day is being observed November 12, 2014, to raise awareness about pneumonia’s toll and to promote interventions to protect against, treat, and prevent the disease globally. The day will mobilize efforts to fight a neglected disease that kills more than 1 million children younger than 5 years of age worldwide each year. Learn more.
Get Smart About Antibiotics Week
Get Smart About Antibiotics Week is November 17-23, 2014. The event marks an annual observance to raise awareness of the threat of antibiotic resistance and the importance of appropriate antibiotic prescribing and use. The observance is an international collaboration, coinciding with European Antibiotic Awareness Day, Australia’s Antibiotic Awareness Week, and Canada’s Antibiotic Awareness Week. Learn more.
Vaccine News
CAPiTA Trial Complete. ACIP Recommends PCV13 Use in Adults
Pfizer’s Community-Acquired Pneumonia Immunization Trial in Adults (CAPiTA) was completed earlier this year. The trial involved approximately 85,000 people and looked at effectiveness of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) at preventing the first episode of vaccine-type community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in adults 65 years of age and older. Study data from this trial was important in considering new recommendations for PCV13 use in adults as it is the first trial in adults to clearly demonstrate a significant reduction in vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP, and importantly, non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP.
A recommendation for routine use in adults was considered at a specially called Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) meeting on August 13, 2014. ACIP voted to recommend PCV13 for all adults 65 years of age or older. The recommendation was published on September 19, 2014.
Price Freeze for GAVI Graduating Countries
Countries that graduate away from GAVI Alliance support will be offered a 5-year price freeze on GlaxoSmithKline vaccines. By 2020, some 22 countries with growing economies will graduate from GAVI support. With the graduation of these countries, GAVI can focus its resources on the poorest countries, while enabling country governments to take increasing responsibility and ownership for vaccination programs over time. DBD staff are actively engaged in collaborations with GAVI to share their knowledge and public health expertise to develop, deliver and evaluate public health programs around the globe, including current activities on neonatal sepsis, pneumonia, and meningitis.
Interim Guidance for Use of MenB Vaccines
At the June ACIP meeting, a Meningococcal Outbreak Working Group of experts from CDC, ACIP, and state and local health departments presented interim guidance on the use of serogroup B meningococcal vaccines for outbreaks in organizational settings. The guidance provides information for decision-makers about options in an organization-based outbreak situation, including the use of a serogroup B vaccine not licensed in the United States via the U.S. FDA’s expanded access program for investigational products. CDC is the sponsor of this Investigational New drug application. The guidance has been added to CDC’s meningococcal disease website.
- Page last reviewed: November 7, 2014 (archived document)
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