New research findings provide solid evidence that annual COVID-19 vaccine booster doses continue to be advisable for certain immunocompromised people, researchers at McGill University say.

The researchers looked at how often people with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) got COVID-19 despite having received at least three doses of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. IMIDs – including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, inflammatory bowel disease and multiple sclerosis – affect more than seven million Canadians. The medications they take often weaken their vaccine responses, increasing their vulnerability to infection.

A new study in JAMA Pediatrics found that the spike in gun death rates during the first two years of the pandemic disproportionately affected adolescents ages 10-16, as well as adults over 30 years old. These increases lowered the peak risk of being a victim of a fatal shooting from 21 years old to 19 years old. The study also found that as adult gun death rates returned to pre-COVID levels in 2022 and 2023, gun homicide rates continued increasing for the 10-16 adolescent age group, doubling pre-pandemic rates.

Key findings

• Sarcoidosis patients are prone to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, increased severity, morbidity and greater mortality of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

What is known and what is new?

• Subjects with sarcoidosis are more vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

• Severity of COVID-19 was also more serious in subjects stricken with sarcoidosis.

What is the implication, and what should change now?

• Vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 for sarcoidosis may be a compulsory measure.

Researchers at the University of Cologne have discovered that mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines have a persistent effect on the innate immune system. These mechanisms may help the human body to better protect itself against potential future infections / publication in ‘Molecular Systems Biology’

The global average for countries to report genetic information about bird flu, crucial to tracking and preventing a human pandemic, was seven months, and Canada came in last, a new study has found.

Authors of the non-peer reviewed commentary published today in Nature Biotechnology say the work highlights the urgent need for Canada and other countries to speed up the pipeline from sampling an infected creature, analysis of the genetic information, and submission to a global scientific database.