The CDC said on Monday that the deadly fungus, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers a major public health threat, has been spreading at an “alarming rate” during the pandemic.
The fungus, called Candida auris, mainly affects elderly people with weakened immune systems and is particularly dangerous because it cannot be treated with conventional antifungal drugs. C. auris was first reported in the United States in 2016, especially in New York and Illinois, where public health officials hoped to contain it through careful screening and infection control in long-term care facilities and nursing homes.
But during 2021, state and local health departments across the country reported 1,474 clinical cases, up about 200 percent from nearly 500 cases in 2019.
The spike represents a “dramatic increase” in the number of cases and transmission of C. auris, according to a research article published Monday in the Annals of Medicine and compiled by researchers at the CDC. few cases, but with higher concentrations in California, Nevada, Texas and Florida.
The new document did not take into account the load from 2022. CDC website which tracks the spread of the fungus shows that 2,377 infections were reported last year, another sharp increase.
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Nearly helped patients who contracted C. auris die within 90 days, according to the CDC. Megan Lyman, a medical officer for the CDC’s fungal disease division, said the agency doesn’t have a clear idea of how many deaths can be attributed directly to the fungus. The reason is that people who get infected also face a host of other health problems, so C. auris can be both the cause of death and something that, along with other ill health factors, hastens it.
It is likely that the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the spread of C. auris, according to CDC officials. Because the focus has been on Covid-19, screening for C. auris has received less attention. In addition, the fungus tends to cling to nurses’ gowns, gloves, and other personal protective equipment that would ideally be changed often, but that were reused during a pandemic due to lack of supplies. C. auris can also attach itself to ventilators or other medical equipment.
“We were worried about what would happen during Covid,” the doctor said. Lyman said. She described the spread as “troubling but not surprising”.
C. auris poses little threat to young healthy people whose immune systems can fight it off, but can be carried through skin and clothing. Those who become infected with it may experience typical symptoms of the infection, such as fever and chills, which can make the lack of treatment worse. The fungus usually affects older patients, especially those who make frequent or long-term visits to healthcare facilities where it is difficult to clean or eradicate.
A problem with treating C. auris is that it can be resistant to antifungal drugs. A research paper found that in 2020, 86 percent of microbial samples tested by the CDC Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network were resistant to a class of drugs known as azoles.
More worrying to health officials is that 1.2 percent of C. auris samples that year were found to be resistant to an advanced class of drugs called echinocandins. If echinocandin resistance becomes more common as the microbe evolves, treating C. auris could become extremely difficult, if not impossible, health officials say.
Dr. Lyman also said that the news is not so bad. Intense efforts to stop the spread of the microbe in New York and Illinois appear to have been effective in containing C. auris in those states’ health systems — even though the bug has taken root elsewhere.
“This is not a hopeless situation,” the doctor says. Lyman said.
After the Newport News police concluded their investigation last month, the local prosecutor’s office is revisiting the case to determine if anyone should be prosecuted. Newport News Commonwealth Attorney Howard Gwynn said he would not press charges against the 6-year-old given that such a young child is not qualified to understand the legal system or adequately assist a lawyer.
A lawyer representing Zwerner said she expects to file a lawsuit two weeks after she sent a notice of intent to sue to the Newport News School Board almost three weeks after the shooting. The notice alleges that over the course of several hours on January 6, school officials warned the assistant principal three times that the student was armed, but she did not call the police or place a quarantine.
“There were failures on several levels in this case, and there were adults in leadership positions who could have prevented this tragedy but didn’t,” lawyer Diane Toscano said on Monday.
Toscano said the boy had behavioral problems and a system of disturbing interactions with school staff and other students. The notice of intent to sue stated that he was suspended for one day for hacking into Zwerner’s mobile phone and returned the next day with the 9mm pistol he used to shoot her.
The boy’s family said in a statement that the guns were “protected” at home and that they “have always been responsible gun owners and kept them out of the reach of children.”
The family also said the boy had an acute disability and received “the treatment he needed” in a court-ordered temporary detention in a medical facility after the shooting.
Police said the child’s mother bought the gun, which he used legally, but they did not elaborate on how he got it or whether it was securely fastened, as the family claims.
James Ellenson, the family’s attorney, said in an email Monday that they “applaud the prosecutor’s decision” not to file charges and that they “continue to pray for Ms. Zwerner’s full recovery.”
Toscano declined to comment on the decision not to charge the boy, but said: “I feel there are people who need to be held accountable.”
Abigail Zwerner in Virginia on Monday.Carlos Bernate for NBC News
A spokeswoman for Newport News Public Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. She has previously stated that the district cannot comment on allegations against school officials as part of an ongoing internal investigation, nor can it share any information about a student’s education, citing a criminal investigation.
As a result of the shooting, the school board installed full-time security and metal detectors in Richneck.
Meanwhile, Zwerner said she takes every day at a time. She comes from a family of educators, including her mother and her sister. After graduating from James Madison University in Virginia, she began her teaching career almost during the Covid pandemic.
In 2020, her father John, a veteran Newport News firefighter and paramedic, died unexpectedlyHouses.
Her work as a teacher became a bright spot in her life, and the first time she stepped into her class at Richneck was life-affirming.
“It was amazing. This was the moment you’ve been waiting for. Like, this is what I practiced. That’s what I studied,” Zwerner said. “Finally here.”
But almost death has changed her, she said, and she’s not sure if she’ll be back in class in the future. She added that even getting out of bed for physical therapy can be exhausting.
“I’m not sure when the shock will ever go away because it was surreal and, you know, I have vivid memories of that day. I think about it every day,” Zwerner said. “Sometimes I have nightmares.”
For now, she is grateful for the cards and messages of hope and resilience from strangers who have learned from her story.
On her right wrist is a bracelet with a pendant that says “Smile”. She does this when she thinks of the young faces of her students, who, she is grateful, have not been harmed.
“I love every one of them. I am very grateful that they are all alive, safe and healthy,” she said. “And I just really miss you.
Eric Ortiz
Eric Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital, specializing in racial injustice and social inequality.
An unusually warm US winter has resulted in the earliest spring on record in parts of the US. And from New York to Seattle and south, pollen is already causing sneezing and itchy eyes in allergy sufferers. Climate change is actually exacerbating the allergy season in North America and lengthening it by an average of 20 days. In some places, however, it’s even longer than that.
Which cities are the hardest, why, according to scientists, allergies are becoming even more unbearable, and what can we do to cope with it?
What causes seasonal allergies?
In short, botanical sex: plants release pollen to reproduce, and wind, insects, birds, and other animals transfer male pollen to female plants. If you are one of 26% adults and 19% children in the US with seasonal allergies, the immune system reacts to the pollen when it is inhaled, swallowed, or comes into contact with the skin. Common symptoms include sneezing, nasal congestion, runny and runny nose, itchy throat and eyes.
In North America, the main seasonal allergens are tree pollen in spring, grass pollen in summer, and weeds, primarily ragweed, in autumn.
What causes seasonal allergies to start earlier and last longer?
The climate crisis and pollen are mainly linked to warming. “The season starts earlier because spring comes earlier and fall is delayed,” said Lewis Ziska, assistant professor of environmental sanitation at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.
Winter is the fastest warming season, and reducing the number of frosty days is important for pollen production. Since 1970, 203 U.S. cities have experienced an average of 15 more days of frost-free periods since 1970, according to a recent study. report non-profit research organization Climate Central.
“Due to warmer winter temperatures, trees start flowering earlier, which means they release pollen early in the season,” said Amir Sapkota, professor and chair of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. “Because autumn also sees warmer temperatures, plants like ragweed bloom late in the fall, almost winter.”
Which city has the biggest increase in allergy season?
Reno, Nevada. Since 1970, its growing season has increased by 99 days. Reno is one of the cities in the country experiencing the fastest warming. Its average spring temperatures have increased by 7.1 F over the past 50 years.
“Sometimes people think of climate change as a big hazy future that won’t affect them personally,” said Lauren Casey, meteorologist at Climate Central. “But as you can see, climate change is already here, it’s happening now, and it’s affecting many of us in our daily lives.”
One factor in Reno’s warming is the growth of the city, which causes an urban heat island effect, Casey said. Population of the Reno metropolitan area Rose from about 120,000 in 1969 to almost 500,000 in 2021, i.e. a net increase of approximately 320%.
Other cities that have dramatically increased the length of their allergy season include Bend, Oregon (83 days), Las Cruces, New Mexico (72 days) and Boise, Idaho (52 days).
Is pollen more intense as a result of the climate crisis??
Increasing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere causes plants to absorb more carbon dioxide, which stimulates their growth and increases pollen production. Research oak another ambrosia showed that CO2 can also affect the chemical composition of pollen, increasing the allergen content of the pollen itself.
“Pollen may be denser in terms of allergens,” said Ziska, one of the researchers. “Thus, less pollen can cause the same reaction as more pollen.”
Rain and storm patterns change affects allergy season?
Precipitation is increasing as a result of the climate crisis, andcan increase pollen exposure, mainly due to the breaking of one pollen grain into several pieces.
“When pollen spores break down into smaller pieces, they get into the lungs more easily,” says Brooke Lappe, a researcher at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. “And the wind can also carry the pollen further.”
There is more potential for more serious thunderstorms in spring. During a thunderstorm, pollen can be carried up and more easily dispersed and inhaled. This leads to a phenomenon known as “thunderstorm asthma”, which has been associated with more hospital visits.
Are any other allergens emerging due to climate change?
Mold, a year-round indoor allergen, loves heat, dampness, and organic matter to grow. With elevated temperatures and rainfall, conditions that favor mold formation become more frequent.
“Now mold is something we can potentially deal with in more northerly latitudes, growing for months when it usually doesn’t,” Casey said.
What can people do to manage their allergies?
Antihistamines can relieve seasonal allergies. There are also pollen tests for certain plants that can help you monitor exposure.
“If you have a really terrible allergy to maple pollen, knowing when maples are releasing pollen in your area will be very valuable,” Sapkota said. “Knowing this ahead of time will be especially important from a prevention standpoint, and minimizing outdoor activity during the high season can go a long way.”
