Latest news with #LazarusGehring
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Broome County Medical Director urges residents to get vaccinated
(WIVT/WBGH) – Broome County's medical director is cautioning the public that while on the whole, area residents are well-protected against vaccine-preventable diseases, there are still a number of troubling cases. Doctor Lazarus Gehring of the county health department says the success of vaccines against such diseases as measles, polio and chicken pox has led to a level of cultural amnesia about just how threatening those illnesses can be. Gehring says that over the six months since he became Medical Director, there have multiple outbreaks in Broome and surrounding counties. He says 45 children contracted chicken pox, or varicella, and none of them were vaccinated. One, a child under 6 months old, had to be hospitalized with meningitis. And while that infant was too young to be vaccinated, the lack of vaccinations among older children is what put that baby at risk. Gehring says a 3-year-old died of haemophilus influenza, another vaccine preventable infection. And Broome saw six times the normal rate of whooping cough last year. Gehring says all of the publicity about those who are vaccine skeptics may give people the wrong impression that vaccination rates are lower and therefore less significant. He says rates remain high, especially for childhood vaccines, which makes those instances when someone is seriously ill from a preventable disease all the more disturbing. 'In case people are thinking, 'Well, wow these vaccines don't work, a lot of people don't use them', that's actually wrong. Now, in New York, those are required for school, but outside of that, even those who are older are quite vaccinated against some of these things and that's why they don't get up off the ground,' said Gehring. Gehring says there are now more effective vaccines for older adults than ever before, including for shingles, RSV, pneumonia and, of course, flu and COVID. He says a case of meningitis at Binghamton University last fall led to a high exposure event in which 30 people were exposed. None of them contracted the illness, which Gehring attributes to vaccinations. Emily Mackay reminisces on her time as a U-E Tiger with students Take a behind the scenes look of Kilmer Mansion with Junior League Broome County Medical Director urges residents to get vaccinated Vestal Joann Fabric and Crafts set to close Binghamton and Broome hire outside law firms for Kweller case Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Broome County sees surge in flu cases this winter
BROOME COUNTY, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – While COVID and RSV cases are down in Broome County this winter, there's been a surge in flu cases. Dr. Lazarus Gehring, the Medical Director for the county health department, says our area is experiencing its worst flu season since right before the pandemic. Gehring says Broome saw a pair of spikes in cases around the holidays and again when Binghamton University students returned for the Spring semester. He says hospitalizations reached a peak in late December, causing Wilson Hospital in Johnson City to briefly go on diversion, meaning ambulances were being sent to other emergency departments. Gehring says the cause of the rise could be linked to the quality of this year's flu vaccine, which is tweaked each year to try to account for the latest strain of the virus that is circulating. He also says certain safety precautions that were common during the pandemic, such as masking, distancing and increased hand washing, have returned to pre-pandemic levels. 'It's very simple, we forget it, we have amnesia and then we panic when something happens. This is how it goes: we have vaccination, we have treatment and we have the things we can do socially to help. I'm not saying we're at a shutdown stage at all for influenza, but those kind of things have happened in the past. We've had a terrible human history with this influenza virus,' Dr. Gehring said. Gehring says influenza symptoms tend to be severe with fever and body aches that should easily distinguish it from the common cold. He says prescription Tamiflu can be helpful in relieving symptoms, but it must be taken within 48 hours of symptoms to be effective. Gehring says at-home tests can help diagnose the flu, assuming people follow the directions carefully. And he says it's not too late to get the flu shot. You can see the full interview with Dr. Gehring below: Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
