Takeaways from AP's report on problems in the worldwide campaign to eradicate polio
In its quest to eliminate the virus, WHO and its partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative have been derailed by mismanagement and what insiders describe as blind allegiance to an outdated strategy and a problematic oral vaccine, according to workers, polio experts and internal materials obtained by the Associated Press.
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Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
FDA flags problems with two Boston Scientific heart devices tied to injuries and deaths
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health regulators are warning doctors and patients about safety issues with two separate Boston Scientific heart devices recently linked to injuries and deaths. The Food and Drug Administration issued two alerts Wednesday about electrical problems tied to the company's heart-zapping defibrillator systems and a separate issue with a heart implant used to reduce stroke risk. The agency said the company's Endotak Reliance defibrillator wires can become calcified, leading to failures in delivering life-saving shocks to the heart, according to the FDA. Defibrillators are surgically placed in the upper chest, where they monitor irregular heartbeats and use electrical shocks to jolt the heart back to normal. As of July 24, Boston Scientific has reported 386 serious injuries and 16 deaths associated with this issue, the agency said. Ten of the deaths were judged to be due to the device failing to function properly, the company said in an email. Four were linked to attempts to surgically remove the devices from patients and two others were deemed unrelated to the implants. Boston Scientific's wires were distributed between 2002 and 2021 and are no longer available, the company noted in its letter to doctors. Some patients will need to have the devices replaced, though physicians should weigh the risks of the removal procedure. In a separate notice, the FDA said Boston Scientific recently updated instructions for implanting its Watchman device, which closes a portion of the heart's left atrium to reduce the risk of stroke. In a letter to physicians, the company noted that there is an increased risk of blockages in the bloodstream depending on the level of anesthesia for patients undergoing the initial implantation procedure. Watchman is an alternative to long-term treatment with blood thinners for patients at increased risk of stroke. As of July 30, the company has reported 120 serious injuries and 17 deaths related to the issue, the FDA said. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. A company investigation concluded that the safety issue 'is not associated with the design or manufacture of any component of the Watchman system. Heart devices, including defibrillators and other implants, are Boston Scientific's largest business, making up two-thirds of its $5 billion in revenue for the most recent quarter. Shares of Boston Scientific Corp. fell nearly 1.8 percent Wednesday to close at $102.95 in trading. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Trump once hailed mRNA vaccines as a ‘medical miracle.' Now RFK Jr. is halting advancement
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump hailed as a 'medical miracle' the mRNA vaccines developed to combat the deadly COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Now, his health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is effectively halting the vaccine technology's advancement. Kennedy announced Tuesday that the federal government is canceling $500 million worth of mRNA research development contracts, putting an end to U.S.-backed hopes for the vaccine technology to prevent future pandemics, treat cancer or prevent flu infections. It's a sharp pivot from how Trump and top officials described the technology during his first term. Here's a look at what Trump and some of his closest advisers have said about mRNA vaccines that were credited with slowing the pandemic five years ago. Robert Redfield, Trump's director of the Center's for Disease Control 'A COVID-19 vaccine is the thing that will get Americans back to normal everyday life,' said Redfield, in a Sept. 16, 2020 statement. Americans were still donning face masks as one of the few ways of protecting themselves from a virus that had killed nearly 200,000 in just over six months. Redfield promised that the new vaccines — developed for the first time using mRNA technology — would offer a return to normalcy. Trump wanted to make sure Biden didn't get credit 'Don't let Joe Biden take credit for the vaccines … because the vaccines were me, and I pushed people harder than they've ever been pushed before .. The vaccines are — there are those that say it's one of the greatest things. It's a medical miracle.' Trump said on Nov. 26, 2020 said during a news conference in the White House. Weeks earlier, Trump had lost the election in a bitter race against Democrat Joe Biden. As the Republican grappled with leaving Washington and continued to plan for the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines, he reminded reporters that he oversaw the development of the new shots. 'They say it's somewhat of a miracle and I think that's true,' Trump said on Dec. 8, 2020 during a speech at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The event celebrated 'Operation Warp Speed,' the government-funded project that accelerated vaccine development with pharmaceutical companies. Trump was promoting the shots as the government prepared to offer them to frontline health workers. Trump's first-term health secretary, Alex Azar 'It's clear that many Americans are learning these vaccines are safe and extraordinarily effective,' Azar said on Dec. 16, 2020 at a news conference. The government was shipping out mRNA vaccines to states, preparing to distributed it to the masses. Azar noted that a vast majority of Americans — between 70% to 80%, according to polls — intended to get the new COVID-19 vaccine that would be available to the public in the coming months. Gen. Gusave Perna, Trump's chief operating officer for pandemic response 'It takes somewhere between five and 10 years to put a vaccine on the street. Look what we did. Now, that's because of the great work of the scientists who had done the research on mRNA vaccines and others because of industry working on this, they just didn't wake up one day and start working on it,' Perna said during a podcast interview that aired on May 9, 2023. Reflecting in an interview about his time overseeing 'Operation Warp Speed,' Perna credited the mRNA technology with the government's ability to get shots in arms mere months after the pandemic started claiming lives in the U.S. in 2020. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Trump supporters boo his vaccine accomplishments 'Take credit because we saved tens of millions of lives. Take credit. Don't let them take that away from you,' Trump said on Dec. 19, 2021 during a live interview with former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly. Daily COVID-19 deaths had ticked down to 1,500 compared to 3,000 from a year earlier after Americans began receiving their first doses of the mRNA vaccines. Trump revealed to O'Reilly and the audience that he had just gotten a COVID-19 booster. The crowd booed.
6 hours ago
China is fighting an outbreak of the chikungunya virus. What is it?
Chinese health officials are responding to an outbreak of a mosquito-borne virus that can cause severe pain. More than 7,000 cases of chikungunya have been reported in the Chinese province of Guangdong in recent weeks, with most in the southern city of Foshan. Reports from the region say those who are infected are being quarantined in hospital until they test negative for the virus, and workers are going to homes in Foshan to check for risk factors like standing water where mosquitoes can breed. Workers are also spraying parks and streets with insecticide, and authorities have released elephant mosquitoes and mosquito-eating fish to prey on the virus-carrying bugs. On Tuesday, the Canadian government added a Level 2 travel advisory (new window) encouraging travelers to practice enhanced health precautions if visiting China. What is chikungunya? Chikungunya is transmitted by infected female mosquitoes, most commonly the subspecies Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus — the same types that can transmit the Zika and dengue viruses, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). When a mosquito feeds on an infected person, it ingests the virus and can transmit it to other humans. The onset is typically four to eight days after the bite. Outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in various parts of the world, mostly concentrated in South America, Asia and Africa in recent decades. Smaller outbreaks have also been reported in Europe. The Pan American Health Organization has tracked (new window) more than 209,000 chikungunya cases in the Americas this year, with the highest numbers recorded in Brazil, and none in Canada. What are the symptoms? Chikungunya can cause fever and potentially debilitating joint pain. It can also cause muscle pain, headaches, nausea and rashes, according to the WHO. Symptoms typically last for several days and most people recover fully, but occasional cases of eye, heart and neurological complications have been reported, as well as joint pain lasting weeks to years. The main issue is that it causes a pretty significant joint pain, said infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch. Any joint in the body can be impacted, but it tends to impact the smaller joints of the hands and feet. Newborns, the elderly and and people with underlying health conditions are at the highest risk of severe symptoms and, in rare cases, death. According to the WHO, the name chikungunya derives from a word in the Kimakonde language of southern Tanzania, where the disease was first identified in 1952. The word means that which bends up, which describes the contorted posture of infected people with severe joint pain. Should Canadians be worried? Not according to Bogoch. He says it's not unusual for Canadian physicians to see travellers return with a variety of infections acquired abroad, including chikungunya. Canadian scientists are monitoring the presence of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which are not widespread in Canada but are established in the Windsor-Essex region of Ontario, according to the federal government (new window) . I don't think there's anything to freak out about. It's a well-known infection with well-known outbreaks, he told CBC News. You don't want to get this one, but we're not going to have an outbreak in Canada, at least in the 2025 calendar year. LISTEN | How to keep mosquitoes away (new window) A vaccine called IXCHIQ is licensed for use in Canada, but is not recommended for anyone over age 65 (new window) . Bogoch says the best strategy for travellers is to keep mosquitoes away as much as possible by wearing long sleeves and pants and by using insect repellant. He also recommends seeking free advice from travel clinics. There's parts of the world that have malaria that can be deadly, or other other various travel related risks, and a travel specialist can help navigate that so people can have a healthy, safe and happy trip, he said. Kevin Maimann (new window) · CBC News · Digital Writer Kevin Maimann is a senior writer for CBC News based in Edmonton. He has covered a wide range of topics for publications including VICE, the Toronto Star, Xtra Magazine and the Edmonton Journal. You can reach Kevin by email at
