Systematic review finds FMT and standardized microbiome products outperform antibiotics in efficacy and safety.

Global modeling identifies vertical transmission burden and underscores need for maternal screening policies.

There have been more measles cases in the US this year than any other since the disease was declared eliminated a quarter-century ago.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection disproportionately affects people who inject drugs (PWID), particularly people experiencing homelessness, who face significant barriers to testing and treatment. Simplified testing and treatment algorithms, including the use of mobile medical units (MMUs), may improve access to care for this population. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a simplified HCV testing and treatment algorithm with integrated care delivered via MMU to unhoused PWID in an urban US setting.MethodsThis pragmatic, randomized controlled trial compared a simplified MMU care model with usual care among 201 PWID who tested positive for HCV antibodies. Patients were randomized into simplified MMU or usual care. The primary outcome was treatment initiation within six months. Secondary outcomes included treatment completion, sustained virologic response (SVR12), and initiation of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder.ResultsOf 98 patients with confirmed HCV RNA, 33% in the MMU group initiated treatment compared to 24% in the usual care group (P = 0.4). Treatment completion and SVR12 rates were higher in the usual care group (16% vs. 10% and 12% vs. 4%, respectively), but differences were not statistically significant. MMUs facilitated faster treatment initiation but encountered challenges with patient retention and follow-up.ConclusionsWhile the MMU model demonstrated potential for improving rapid access to HCV treatment, overall treatment initiation, retention, and cure rates remained low. A critical need remains to develop approaches that more closely approximate a test and treat model to increase treatment initiation and completion and achieve elimination in unhoused PWID.

ASM joined leading life science organizations in an amicus brief filed in support of a suit calling for immediate funding restoration.

Many children with hepatitis C do not receive treatment.

Patients with suspected sepsis in the emergency department are twice as likely to survive at 28 days when antibiotics are started within 1 hour.

Global study data show injection drug use is driving upwards of 79% of all new HCV cases in high-income countries. Low-threshold models can engage vulnerable populations in treatment to achieve HCV elimination targets.