PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Updated advice for safe COVID-19 vaccination in people with high-risk allergy histories

Accumulating data provide reassurance that the vaccines are safe even for people with severe allergies.

2021-04-19
(Press-News.org) BOSTON - At the end of 2020, experts led by allergists at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) examined all information related to possible allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccinations. Now the team has published updated insights based on their experience overseeing more than 65,000 employees who have become fully vaccinated since that time. The group's latest findings are published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.

"Our main goal is to enable as many individuals as possible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine safely and avoid unnecessary vaccine hesitancy due to a lack of knowledge around allergic reactions to vaccines," says lead author Aleena Banerji, MD, clinical director of the Allergy and Clinical Immunology Unit at MGH.

In addition to updated guidance on the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines, this guidance also includes the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine, which had not yet been authorized for emergency use at the end of 2020.

With additional clinical data and authorization of the third COVID-19 vaccine in the United States, the investigators propose modified approaches to the evaluation of patients with a history of allergies. This includes clear and simple initial questions to identify individuals who are eligible for all COVID-19 vaccines without needing an allergist evaluation.

"With more time and experience, we have been able to significantly narrow the group of patients with prior allergies who require an allergist assessment before COVID-19 vaccination," says senior author Kimberly G. Blumenthal, MD, MSc, co-director of the Clinical Epidemiology Program within MGH's Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology. "We now advise that only the rare individuals who have had a recent severe allergic reaction to polyethylene glycol, an ingredient in the vaccines, see an allergist or immunologist for evaluation, which may include skin testing." Individuals with severe allergies to foods, oral drugs, latex, bee stings or venom can safely receive the COVID-19 vaccines.

The team noted that severe allergic reactions to the vaccines remain exceedingly rare. Vaccine clinics should continue to observe higher-risk individuals for 30 minutes after vaccination, and they should have staff trained in recognizing and managing allergic reactions that may occur.

INFORMATION:

About the Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital, founded in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The Mass General Research Institute conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the nation, with annual research operations of more than $1 billion and comprises more than 9,500 researchers working across more than 30 institutes, centers and departments. In August 2020, Mass General was named #6 in the U.S. News & World Report list of "America's Best Hospitals."



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Bone microenvironment fosters breast cancer metastatic behavior

2021-04-19
Two studies led by Baylor College of Medicine shed new light on the unanswered question of why estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer sometimes grows back in the bone and spreads to other tissues despite effective endocrine therapies directed at ER. Working with animal models that include patient tumor samples, the team discovered that the bone microenvironment surrounding ER+ breast cancer cells reduced ER expression in these cells, leading to resistance to ER-targeting endocrine therapy (findings published in the journal Developmental Cell DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2021.03.008). Furthermore, the bone microenvironment triggered reprogramming of the cancer cells that promoted their ability to metastasize or spread to other tissues (findings published in Cell DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.03.011 ...

Epidural use at birth not linked to autism risk, study finds

2021-04-19
Having an epidural during childbirth is not associated with a greater risk of autism in the child, according to a study led by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of Manitoba. The study, which will publish online April 19 in JAMA Pediatrics, helps resolve questions raised by an earlier, widely criticized report on the topic. "We did not find evidence for any genuine link between having an epidural and putting your baby at increased risk of autism spectrum disorder," said the study's senior author, Alexander Butwick, MD, associate professor of anesthesiology, perioperative and pain medicine at Stanford. The study should help reassure both physicians and pregnant women about the favorable safety profile of epidurals, he added. ...

Investigating epidural labor pain relief, offspring risk of autism spectrum disorders

2021-04-19
What The Study Did: This population-based study of multiple databases from Canada found no association between epidural labor pain relief and risk of autism spectrum disorders in children. Authors: Elizabeth Wall-Wieler, Ph.D., of the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.0376) Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, and funding and support. INFORMATION: Media ...

Association between hearing loss, physical activity

2021-04-19
What The Study Did: The association between hearing loss and level of physical activity among U.S. adults ages 60 to 69 was analyzed in this study. Authors: Frank R. Lin, M.D., Ph.D., of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.5484) Editor's Note: The article includes conflicts of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict ...

Paternal drinking before pregnancy, risk of birth defects

2021-04-19
What The Study Did: This study examined the association of paternal drinking before pregnancy with the risk of birth defects in children among couples in China. Authors: Xiaotian Li, M.D., Ph.D., of Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University in Shanghai, China, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.0291) Editor's Note: The article includes funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, ...

3D deep neural network precisely reconstructs freely-behaving animal's movements

3D deep neural network precisely reconstructs freely-behaving animals movements
2021-04-19
Animals are constantly moving and behaving in response to instructions from the brain. But while there are advanced techniques for measuring these instructions in terms of neural activity, there is a paucity of techniques for quantifying the behavior itself in freely moving animals. This inability to measure the key output of the brain limits our understanding of the nervous system and how it changes in disease. A new study by researchers at Duke University and Harvard University introduces an automated tool that can readily capture behavior of freely behaving animals and precisely ...

More than 60 years to achieve gender equity?

More than 60 years to achieve gender equity?
2021-04-19
It will take until at least 2080 before women make up just one-third of Australia's professional astronomers, an analysis published today in the journal Nature Astronomy reveals. "Astronomers have been leaders in gender equity initiatives, but our programs are not working fast enough," says Professor Lisa Kewley, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for All-Sky Astrophysics in 3 Dimensions (ASTRO 3D). Kewley is also an ARC Laureate Fellow at the Australian National University's Research School for Astronomy and Astrophysics. She developed workforce forward modelling that can predict the fraction of women at all levels in astronomy from 2021 to 2060, given different initiatives ...

Researchers drill down to the core of wellbeing worldwide

2021-04-19
Researchers at SAHMRI and Flinders University have conducted the largest ever meta-analysis of wellbeing studies from around the world to answer the question, 'What's the best way to build personal wellbeing?'. The analysis included 400+ clinical trials involving more than 50,000 participants. Researchers divided people into three main groups, those in generally good health, those with physical illness and those with mental illness. They found it is possible to build the wellbeing of all individuals, but Mr Joep Van Agteren, Co-lead at the SAHMRI Wellbeing and Resilience Centre, says there's no one-size-fits-all solution. "During stressful and uncertain periods in our lives, pro-actively working on our mental health is crucial to help mitigate ...

Deaths rising in workers using methylene chloride paint strippers

2021-04-19
Researchers and physicians from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and UC San Francisco have found that deaths of workers using methylene chloride paint strippers are on the rise. The solvent is widely used in paint strippers, cleaners, adhesives and sealants. The study is the first comprehensive review of fatalities linked to the deadly chemical in the United States and identified more deaths than previously reported. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has acknowledged 53 fatalities connected to the chemical from 1980 to 2018. The new study identified 85 deaths over the same period, most of them ...

Sustainable chemical synthesis with platinum

Sustainable chemical synthesis with platinum
2021-04-19
Researchers used platinum and aluminum compounds to create a catalyst which enables certain chemical reactions to occur more efficiently than ever before. The catalyst could significantly reduce energy usage in various industrial and pharmaceutical processes. It also allows for a wider range of sustainable sources to feed the processes, which could reduce the demand for fossil fuels required by them. There are many chemicals used in a wide range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, that you probably don't notice in everyday life; for example, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Bubbles are key to new surface coating method for lightweight magnesium alloys

Carbon stable isotope values yield different dietary associations with added sugars in children compared to adults

Scientists discover 230 new giant viruses that shape ocean life and health

Hurricanes create powerful changes deep in the ocean, study reveals

Genetic link found between iron deficiency and Crohn’s disease

Biologists target lifecycle of deadly parasite

nTIDE June 2025 Jobs Report: Employment of people with disabilities holds steady in the face of uncertainty

Throughput computing enables astronomers to use AI to decode iconic black holes

Why some kids respond better to myopia lenses? Genes might hold the answer

Kelp forest collapse alters food web and energy dynamics in the Gulf of Maine

Improving T cell responses to vaccines

Nurses speak out: fixing care for disadvantaged patients

Fecal transplants: Promising treatment or potential health risk?

US workers’ self-reported mental health outcomes by industry and occupation

Support for care economy policies by political affiliation and caregiving responsibilities

Mailed self-collection HPV tests boost cervical cancer screening rates

AMS announces 1,000 broadcast meteorologists certified

Many Americans unaware high blood pressure usually has no noticeable symptoms

IEEE study describes polymer waveguides for reliable, high-capacity optical communication

Motor protein myosin XI is crucial for active boron uptake in plants

Ultra-selective aptamers give viruses a taste of their own medicine

How the brain distinguishes between ambiguous hypotheses

New AI reimagines infectious disease forecasting

Scientific community urges greater action against the silent rise of liver diseases

Tiny but mighty: sophisticated next-gen transistors hold great promise

World's first practical surface-emitting laser for optical fiber communications developed: advancing miniaturization, energy efficiency, and cost reduction of light sources

Statins may reduce risk of death by 39% for patients with life-threatening sepsis

Paradigm shift: Chinese scientists transform "dispensable" spleen into universal regenerative hub

Medieval murder: Records suggest vengeful noblewoman had priest assassinated in 688-year-old cold case

Desert dust forming air pollution, new study reveals

[Press-News.org] Updated advice for safe COVID-19 vaccination in people with high-risk allergy histories
Accumulating data provide reassurance that the vaccines are safe even for people with severe allergies.