Covid vaccine news

As expected, the FDA has given emergency use authorization to update Covid-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna. They should be available within the next few weeks.

For people five and over, a single dose of the new vax will do the trick, but for kids 6 months to 4 years old the number of shots is based on whether they’ve been vaccinated before — see the FDA release for details.

In other vaccine news, though…

Getting the Covid vaccine after infection seems to protect patients — at least primates — from hyperglycemia, one of the (many) issues faced by people who develop long Covid.

Tulane University researchers “found that administering the Covid-19 mRNA vaccine four days after infection showed a significant positive effect on blood sugar levels that was sustained over time.”

They’re thinking that the Covid vaccine might be indicated for treatment for at least some of Covid’s long-term issues, although it’s not clear yet how quickly you would need to get the shot for it to be effective.

Technicians! Get your immunization training now!

GPhA is offering its top-of-the-line immunization course for techs — the aptly named “GPhA’s Immunization Delivery Training for Pharmacy Technicians” — twice in the next couple of months.

Techs, you want this training (and the spiffy certificate it comes with). Respiratory virus season is coming up fast, and immunizations will be in demand.

What does it cover, you ask?

The latest info on flu and Covid-19 vaccines, how to give those jabs the right way (of course), the legal details of tech vaccinations, a bit of background on vaccines and immunology, practical stuff like ordering vaccines with inventory management standards, billing and reimbursement, and the documentation you need to use.

(Whew!)

The course will also help you sit for PTCB’s Advanced Skill Exam, and yes, it’s ACPE accredited for 8 hours of CPE, which includes 5 hours of self-study.

The deets

Two sessions to choose from:

Saturday, September 21, 2024 Jekyll Island Convention Center, Jekyll Island, Ga. 9:30am – 12:30pm

— or —

Sunday, October 20, 2024 GPhA World Headquarters, Sandy Springs 9:30am – 12:30pm

Cost: GPhA Members: $199; non-members: $235 (which includes a full GPhA membership through December 31, 2025 … but only if you live in Georgia)

More info: Hit up GPhA.org/techimmunization.

Fruit for the liver

If you’ve thought to yourself, “I wonder which exotic fruit might help treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease,” a group of researchers in Quebec has got your back. The answer, they say, is the camu-camu — or at least its extract.

The Quebecois did a basic test: Over 12 weeks they gave 30 participants either some camu-camu extract or a placebo, then used an MRI to measure their liver fat.

Scientists observed a 7.43% reduction in liver lipids when study participants took camu-camu extract. With the placebo, they noted an 8.42% increase in liver fat. (Emphasis ours for clarity.)

They think it’s because the camu-camu’s polyphenols boost certain gut bacteria, and that bacteria “metabolizes the large polyphenol molecules that cannot be absorbed by the intestine, transforming them into smaller molecules that the body can assimilate to decrease liver fat.”

Next up: seeing whether camu-camu and cranberries can work together to get even better results.

Two degrees above zero

You want to be a pharmacist, but your mother has her heart set on your becoming a lawyer. Well there’s good news from UGA — you can do both.

Starting this fall, UGA will offer a Pharmaceutical Sciences and Juris Doctor (BS/JD) degree program, “for students with a passion for pharmaceuticals and law, offering an accelerated pathway to earn both degrees in just six years.”

Short Takes

Ebola vaccine worked

A real-world test of Merck’s Ebola vaccine in the Democratic^* Republic of the Congo “was 84% effective against infection during the country’s 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak,” according to a study by French and DRC researchers. Previously the vaccine had only been tested in clinical trials.

^* Uh-huh.

Coffee compilation

We’ve talked about all the benefits of drinking coffee (i.e., not just caffeine, but coffee in particular), and now a British biomedical professor puts it together in “All the reasons a cup of coffee really can be good for you.”

Live long and prosper (but maybe in Hawai’i)

The latest life expectancy numbers show that Georgia ranks #41 in the country, with a life expectancy at birth of 74.3 years. (Hawai’i is #1 at 79.9 years, while Mississippi is at the bottom at 70.9 years.)

Saving you a click

“Study reveals best exercise for diabetes patients” is the headline. Annoyingly, the story takes more than 200 words to get to the answer(s): moderate aerobic exercise.

For men, either continuous or interval aerobic exercise will reduce blood glucose, while for women only continuous exercise showed the same benefit.

You’re welcome.