Understanding pioneer bacterial adhesion is essential to appreciate bacterial colonization and consider appropriate control strategies. This bacterial entrapment at the wall is known to be controlled by many physical, chemical or biological factors, including hydrodynamic conditions. However, due to the nature of early bacterial adhesion, i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo estimate the relative effectiveness of NVX-CoV2373 versus BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19 disease during the Omicron variant dominance in South Korea, we conducted a retrospective cohort-study among ≥12-year-olds using the K-COV-N database, which links COVID-19 vaccine registry data with health insurance claims data. The Cox proportional-hazards model and inverse probability of treatment weighting were employed to calculate adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs). Among homologous primary-series NVX-CoV2373 versus BNT162b2 recipients at Day 180 post-vaccination, the aHR was 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe life insurance industry is transitioning towards precision underwriting driven by increased data availability and access to advanced analytical tools. Effectively utilizing diverse data sources in life insurance underwriting presents an opportunity for medical directors to fully leverage their skillset in this evolving environment. By navigating these changes, balancing the value of data against its limitations, and fostering collaborative approaches to enhance risk assessment and underwriting processes, medical directors can maintain a pivotal role in the life insurance companies of tomorrow.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA benefit-risk assessment of NVX-CoV2373, a vaccine to prevent COVID-19, was conducted to determine if the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of myocarditis/pericarditis. This analysis used data on myocarditis/pericarditis cases observed in the NVX-CoV2373 clinical studies, real-world data of mRNA COVID vaccine effectiveness against predominant SARS-CoV-2 strains in early 2023, and recent COVID-19 burden of disease data from the United States. The benefits of NVX-CoV2373 vaccination were estimated as the number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths prevented.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHuman respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in newborns, with all children being infected before the age of two. Reinfections are very common throughout life and can cause severe respiratory infections in the elderly and immunocompromised adults. Although vaccines and preventive antibodies have recently been licensed for use in specific subpopulations of patients, there is still no therapeutic treatment commonly available for these infections.
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