Hospitalization rates for children rising, says CDC

New data from the CDC suggests that the hospitalization rates for children in the US aged 0-4 years are at the highest since the pandemic started. This age group is not yet eligible for Covid-19 vaccination. The hospitalization rate for children under 5 years is 4 in 100,000, and about 1 in 100,000 in children 5-17 years. At present, just over 50% of children aged 12 to 17 years are fully vaccinated, and only 16% of those five to 11 years are fully vaccinated….(Source: CDC, Jan. 7, 2022)  

Post-Covid executive dysfunction in young 

Persons with history of previous Covid-19 infection reported more cognitive dysfunction particularly executive dysfunction compared to persons who did not have the infection, according to a new medRxiv study of 1958 young and middle-aged adults. Compared to persons with asymptomatic infection, those who had had moderate and very/extremely severe disease experienced greater dysfunction. This effect was stronger for men than for women, and for younger compared to older adults. Researchers used four “self-restraint” subscale items from the Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale, short form (BDEFS-SF) to assess executive dysfunction ….(Source: medRxiv, Jan. 2, 2022)

Adolescents aged 12-17 Years now eligible for booster, says CDC

The CDC has recommended booster doses for adolescents aged 12 to 17 years old. They are now eligible to receive a booster shot 5 months after the initial vaccination with two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. At present, only the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is authorized and recommended for adolescents aged 12-17 years. CDC also recommends that moderately or severely immunocompromised 5–11-year-olds should get an additional primary dose of vaccine 28 days after their second dose.... (Source: CDC, Jan. 4 & 5, 2022)

Atypical manifestations of Covid-19

Researchers have reported the case of a 34-year-old man who presented with a new onset of hallucination and a 5-day history of anxiety. The patient had no past history of any medical condition or any complaints of headache, visual changes, seizures, or body weakness. He was a nonsmoker and did not consume alcohol/drugs. He was tested for Covid-19 with nasopharyngeal RT PCR in the ED due to a history of contact with sick patients in his family, which was positive. This case reports highlights the need that physicians should be aware about atypical manifestations of Covid-19. Any new symptom must be carefully considered keeping in view the local epidemiology… (Source: Case Reports in Psychiatry. 2021 Dec 30.)

CoronaVac two doses + Pfizer booster less effective against Omicron

A preprint study conducted in vaccinated volunteers from Dominican Republic, two doses of the inactivated CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine followed by Pfizer booster generated comparable antibody response against ancestral virus and Delta variant to that seen after two doses of mRNA vaccines, while the neutralization titers against Omicron were significantly lower. Antibody levels against Omicron declined 6.3-fold when compared with the ancestral variant and 2.7-fold lower when compared with the Delta variant. None of the participants who had taken just the two doses of CoronaVac showed neutralizing antibodies against Omicron…(Source: medRxiv, Dec. 29, 2021)