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FDA Advisory Committee on Janssen Booster and Heterologous Dosing: Day 2
Dr. Arnold Monto, Acting Chair “Arnie” couldn’t get his camera to work right off the bat on this, Day Two of the FDA Advisory Committee meeting on COVID-19 vaccine boosters. The microphone mute virus was also an issue—again. One committee member had real problems with audio skipping, which the on-screen captioning could not fix. There…
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FDA Advisory Committee Meeting on EUA for Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Today
Today I’m watching the FDA meeting on extending the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Booster application. Right now, I’m in-between presentations and I’ll be updating later this afternoon. I’m skipping the Open Public Hearing. I’m wondering if the question to vote on will get changed like it did last month for the…
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Heeeeeere’s Arnie—at the FDA Advisory Committee Meeting
I got a big kick out of Acting Chair of the FDA’s Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. Dr. Arnold Monto at the FDA meeting last month for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine booster. Everybody else did too, I bet. They all called him Arnie. I’m looking forward to seeing Arnie in action again this…
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Thoughts on Transplant Psychiatry
I see in the news that organ transplant centers have removed a few patients from wait lists because they refuse COVID-19 vaccines. It may seem odd, but this reminds me of an even more difficult situation in organ transplantation. What do you do about those who just refuse organ transplant altogether? I used to be…
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FDA Advisory Committee Meetings on COVID-19 Vaccine EUA Amendments for Moderna, J&J Boosters and Heterologous Boosters, Pfizer Vaccine for Children
The FDA Advisory Committee will hold a meeting October 14-15 to discuss amendments to the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Moderna and J&J COVID-19 boosters as well as heterologous boosting (mix and match). New data is available, including NIH preliminary results on the mix and match study. The FDA also announced a meeting to discuss…
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Get This Book: Every Deep-Drawn Breath
I just got Wes Ely’s new book, Every Deep-Drawn Breath. You do need to buy this book to learn about delirium, Post-Intensive Care Syndrome (PICS) and what Dr. Ely and colleagues are doing to prevent it. PICS is a syndrome patients suffer after being hospitalized with severe medical illness in critical care units. It includes…
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Rather Fight Than Switch?
I wonder how many baby boomers remember those TV cigarette commercials featuring an actor holding a smoke, sporting a black eye and saying “I’d rather fight than switch.” I guess they ran those ads from the 1960s to 1981. I think of those commercials when I read the news. There are a couple of Iowa…
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COVID Conspiracy Theories
A few days ago, I read the news story about COVID-19 antivaxx vigilantes interfering with the medical care of patients hospitalized with COVID-19. The writer interviewed Dr. Wes Ely, MD, MPH. He’s an intensive care unit (ICU) specialist at Vanderbilt University. I first corresponded with Dr. Ely by email about 10 years ago when I…
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Jab Who?
I just read a news item saying that the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa is administering COVID-19 vaccine to the animals there. I wondered how that would go, especially with large animals. I figured the zoo staff would be using dart guns. Talk about vaccine hesitance. Then I saw a YouTube showing animals…
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CDC Statement on COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters
The CDC published a media statement this morning that outlines the amended Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations for COVID-19 vaccine boosters. Late last night, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky restored the recommendation that ACIP voted down yesterday: “People aged 18-64 years who are at increased risk for COVID-19 exposure and transmission because of occupational…
Go Retire Psychiatrist 