Urgent Updates | January 2, 2025

Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel

As of January 3, 2025, the amount of acute respiratory illness causing people to seek healthcare is at a high level and continues to increase nationally. COVID-19 activity is increasing in most areas of the country. Seasonal influenza activity continues to increase and is elevated across most of the country. RSV activity is very high in many areas of the country, particularly in young children. Full Access: CDC

Comparing Outcomes for Outpatients Treated with Cephalexin for Uncomplicated Cystitis: Is QID Dosing Necessary?

This observational study included patients discharged from an emergency department (ED) and Urgent Care (UC) center from November 2023 to February 2024. In this small study of patients treated for cystitis with cephalexin 500 mg q12h vs 500 mg q6h, clinical cure rates were similar, and adherence rates were overall high in both groups. Full Access: JUCM

Prenatal or Early-Life Exposure to Antibiotics and Risk of Childhood Asthma: A Systematic Review 

PubMed was systematically searched for studies published between 1950 and July 1, 2010. Those that assessed associations between antibiotic exposure during pregnancy or in the first year of life and asthma at ages 0 to 18 years (for pregnancy exposures) or ages 3 to 18 years (for first-year-of-life exposures) were included. Antibiotics seem to slightly increase the risk of childhood asthma. Reverse causality and protopathic bias seem to be possible confounders for this relationship. Full Access: AAP

2024 Brought More Troubling News About Measles

A surge in measles cases linked to declining vaccination rates could threaten the United States’ measles elimination status, the CDC said in 2024. This article discusses 10 stories we reported about measles in 2024, and other diseases that have emerged or reemerged, including pertussis. Full Access: Healio

CDC Releases New In-Season Estimates for COVID-19 and RSV

SARS-CoV-2, continues to cause serious illness, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) can be dangerous for infants and older adults. Using a model similar to one developed for flu, CDC is sharing in-season COVID-19 and RSV disease estimates for numbers of medical visits, hospitalizations, and deaths. These estimates can help public health agencies, policymakers, and the public make informed decisions about prevention strategies. Full Access: CDC

Comparative Effectiveness and Safety of Single Inhaler Triple Therapies for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: New User Cohort Study

For patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), budesonide-glycopyrrolate-formoterol does not improve clinical outcomes compared with fluticasone-umeclidinium-vilanterol. Full Access: BMJ

Patient Assistance Programs for COVID-19 Therapeutics

On November 1, 2023, Lagevrio and Paxlovid became commercially available, and patient assistance programs are available for eligible individuals. Check out the table to find out more about patient assistance programs. Full Access: ASPR

Intestinal Ultrasound at Diagnosis of Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease Compared to Endoscopy

This study was a 1-year, single-center, prospective study. Intestinal Ultrasound (IU) can be considered a screening tool for pediatric IBD. It has reasonable sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV, particularly for moderate-to-severe disease. The severity noted on IU correlated with FC and endoscopic disease activity but did not correlate with clinical disease activity. Full Access: Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition