Canadian scientists monitoring how vaccines will work against latest COVID variant - Prince Rupert Northern View - The Northern View

Federal scientists will be monitoring global research to determine the effectiveness of updated vaccines against the latest COVID-19 variant, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada say.

Canada’s first known case of the Omicron variant BA.2.86 was detected this week in British Columbia as the country became the seventh in the world to report its presence.

READ ALSO: B.C. confirms 1st case of new COVID variant

Health Canada is currently reviewing applications for Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s new mRNA vaccines, developed against the dominant XBB.1.5 variant ahead of a vaccination campaign set for the fall.

As of this week, there were only 13 sequences of the highly mutated variant BA. 2.86 available to analyze across six other countries — four in Denmark, three in the United States, two in Portugal, two in South Africa, one in Israel, and one in the United Kingdom, Health Canada and PHAC said in an email.

“Scientists are looking for signs that BA.2.86 lineages would change disease severity or spread, or impact the effectiveness of diagnostic tests, vaccines or treatments for COVID-19,” they said.

“As this new variant was just detected in Canada, it is difficult to have an understanding of its prevalence. As laboratories’ and clinical data is reported to PHAC, a more accurate picture will begin to emerge.”

COVID-19 cases involving the XBB.1.5 variant are currently at a low to moderate level, with stable or increasing trends in all reporting provinces and territories, Health Canada and PHAC said.

However, a hospital in Windsor, Ont., and another in Montague, P.E.I., announced outbreaks of the illness this week.

The BA.2.86 variant was detected in a B.C. resident who had not recently been outside the country, provincial authorities said this week.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said in a joint statement that there doesn’t seem to be increased illness severity with the strain and the infected person was not in hospital.

Federal figures show that, as of mid-June, 80.5 per cent of Canadians had received their primary series of COVID vaccines. The highest uptake, at nearly 92 per cent, was in Newfoundland and Labrador. The lowest, at 75.5 per cent, was in the Northwest Territories, followed by Alberta, where 76 per cent of people were vaccinated.

Dawn Bowdish, an immunologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, said it’s understandable that people are tired of COVID-19 amid a mostly normal return to social activities, but the mutating virus puts vulnerable populations, including the elderly, most at risk of infection.

However, only about 21 per cent of Canadians aged 80 and over have received boosters or completed a primary vaccination series in the last six months, she said.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) has recommended Canadians roll up their sleeves for a booster in the fall if it has been at least six months since their last dose or COVID-19 infection.

Bowdish said anyone starting chemotherapy or having major surgery may consider getting a booster before the reformulated vaccines are available but it’s otherwise best to wait.

Parts of the Southern Hemisphere have faced a triple threat during its respiratory season, which usually starts in April and ends in September in that region.

“They had a lot of influenza, they had a lot of RSV. They had a lot of COVID and they reported a lot of health-care worker absences, which means care for all things is impaired,” she said of Australia’s recent experience.

However, Australians had access to the current bivalent COVID vaccines, not the reformulated ones.

“What I worry about is it doesn’t need to be any worse or as bad as last year to still majorly impact health care for Canadians,” Bowdish said of a respiratory season that saw shortages of children’s pain relievers and long waits in emergency rooms.

Bowdish is hoping Canadians won’t hesitate to get a booster this fall, when they could be vaccinated against influenza at the same time.

For people over 60, a vaccine for RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, may also be available. Earlier this month, Health Canada announced the approval of a vaccine for RSV for those aged 60 and up, but it’s up to the provinces and territories to decide if and when Arexvy will be included in their vaccination programs.

Eric Arts, a virologist at Western University in London, Ont., noted many Canadians are getting to the one-year mark since their last booster so it will be important to get vaccinated in the fall.

The updated vaccines’ formula will be a minor change from current vaccines but with better protection against circulating Omicron variants, he said.

“Hopefully, the bureaucracy will be fast to get them out.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2023.

Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.

Camille Bains, The Canadian Press

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‘Came back with a vengeance’: B.C. doctor urges flu shot as kids return to school - Global News

A pediatric infectious disease doctor says there’s nothing to suggest that British Columbia parents sending kids back to school next week need to make big changes in how they manage COVID-19 after a new variant was discovered in the province.

But Dr. David Goldfarb at BC Children’s Hospital says evidence from the Southern Hemisphere suggests influenza B, which can be harder on children than adults, will be particularly prevalent this year.

He says that strain is well covered in the annual flu shot and people should get the vaccine for themselves and their children when it becomes available, as well as for COVID-19.

Goldfarb says there was “unprecedented” pressure on the health system last year when there was a wave of childhood respiratory illnesses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.

He’s not expecting such an intense respiratory illness season this year, although it’s still important to get the shot.

The BC Centre for Disease Control this week detected Canada’s first known case of new COVID-19 variant BA.2.86, but Goldfarb says there’s no early evidence that it causes more severe disease.

The variant of the Omicron strain has been detected in a number of countries around the world and Goldfarb said doctors learn quickly whenever there is a new variant and can adjust their guidance accordingly.

“Right now, there’s not anything that would suggest parents need to make any big changes around guidance related to this specific variant,” he said.

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Goldfarb said he expected a new COVID-19 shot to be released soon, though details about who will qualify have not been announced.

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He said that influenza and RSV were generally the leading viruses causing illness among children during the respiratory season, but during the pandemic, influenza was “barely seen at all” until last season.

Both illnesses “very much came back with a vengeance,” he said

A report published this week says B.C. experienced only 11 RSV cases between September 2020 and August 2021. That shot up to 9,529 cases in 2021-22 and 8,215 cases the next year.

Goldfarb said doctors in Canada often look at the Southern Hemisphere to get a sense of what the respiratory illness season here might look like.

“It’s not a perfect crystal ball, but it does give us some sense of what we may expect. The fortunate news is that they didn’t see a huge surge this past season that’s just finishing up there in most jurisdictions in the south, for RSV or influenza.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2023.

&copy 2023 The Canadian Press

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COVID-19 is still circulating in Ottawa, top doctor warns - CTV News Ottawa

Ottawa's top doctor is reminding residents that COVID-19 is still present in the community ahead of back-to-school, and is urging people to stay home when they are sick and consider wearing a mask to help reduce the spread of viruses this fall.

Ottawa Public Health says there has been an increase in the level of COVID-19 circulating in Ottawa this summer, and a spike in hospitalizations and outbreaks in long-term care homes linked to COVID-19.

Medical officer of health Dr. Vera Etches says Ottawa is heading into the "respiratory illness season," with COVID-19, RSV and influenza expected to circulate in the community.

"One of those three viruses is here right now still: COVID-19, it's growing," Dr. Etches said during an interview on CTV Morning Live.

"In August, we have seen not only the wastewater results, but hospitalizations and outbreaks in long-term care and even deaths are starting to go up again. What we can do about it is be aware and adjust our behaviour to the level of risk."

Dr. Etches says it is important for children to return to class this fall, but one of the layers of protection for the community is keeping kids home when they're sick.

"Staying home when we're sick, that makes a difference. That can definitely help with slowing the spread in the community," Etches said.

Ottawa's wastewater surveillance shows "moderate levels" of COVID-19 in Ottawa this week, while RSV and influenza levels are low. The Ottawa Public Health COVID-19 dashboard shows there are 22 ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks in Ottawa's hospitals, long-term care homes and retirement homes.

Ottawa Public Health says while COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency, "It's still out there."

"We know it feels like we've been saying this for years, but layers work," the health unit said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Properly fitted masks work. Staying home when sick works. Getting vaccinated works. Your layers help protect you from COVID-19 (and other respiratory viruses, btw)."

The latest data about it can be found here: https://t.co/uNbxrBLuWh

We know it feels like we've been saying this for years (in fairness, it's literally been years), but layers work. Still.

Properly fitted masks work. Staying home when sick works. Getting vaccinated works. (3/4)

— Ottawa Public Health (@OttawaHealth) August 30, 2023

Etches says Ottawa Public Health and school boards are working to make schools "mask friendly and respect the choices that people are making."

"There are reasons to wear masks; masks work," Etches said about helping to "slow down the amount of virus" in the community.

"People will be wearing them to protect themselves from illness, and also people will be wearing them to protect loved ones or people who are at higher risk of illness."

Etches says people in the high-risk groups, including immunocompromised people and pregnant women, should receive a COVID-19 booster six months after their last dose.

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Peel Region reports first human case of West Nile virus for 2023 - CP24

Peel Region has reported its first human case of the West Nile virus for this year.

In a news release on Friday, the region’s public health confirmed that a resident from Mississauga had tested positive for the virus.

This is the third reported human case of West Nile in the Greater Toronto Area this past week, with the other two found in Toronto. Officials in Halton Region said they had identified a probable case and were waiting for laboratory results to verify.

“As summer winds down, residents are reminded to protect themselves against mosquito bites. Mosquitos capable of transmitting West Nile virus remain active until the first hard frost,” Dr. Kate Bingham, Peel Region’s associate medical officer of health, said in a statement.

Peel Public Health noted that its monitoring has indicated West Nile virus activity in mosquitoes “has been higher than the historical average.”

The virus is transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito.

Most people who contract the disease will show no symptoms. But some will experience mild flu-like symptoms like fever, headache, a mild rash and swollen lymph glands.

Peel residents are urged to protect themselves from mosquitoes, including applying an approved insect repellent, avoiding areas with large mosquito populations, especially between dusk and dawn, wearing light-coloured, tightly woven, loose-fitting clothing and removing or draining items that hold stagnant water.

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Overdose Awareness Day underscores crippling crisis in northern B.C. - Prince Rupert Northern View - The Northern View

On International Overdose Awareness Day, Aug, 31, Northern B.C. continued to see disproportionately high rates of overdose deaths.

According to the B.C. Coroners Report, deaths due to overdose in the Northern Health region have increased from 19 in 2013 to 107 in 2023, with data only available up until July. Both the Northwest and the Northern Interior have death rates of more than 70 people per 100,000, the second and third highest rates in the province.

A staggering 1,717 First Nations people have died in B.C. due to overdoses since 2016, according to a March 2023 report by the First Nations Health Authority (FNHA).

The same report showed that while First Nations people make up approximately 14 per cent of the North’s population, 43 per cent of toxic drug deaths from Jan. 2021 until March 2023 in the region involved First Nations people.

There were 166 deaths in that time frame, almost 20 per cent of the the total deaths to First Nations people due to overdoses in the province. Both Terrace and Prince George were identified as major hotspots of concern by the FNHA.

The most dangerous thing people can do is use drugs alone, according to Dr. Rakel Kling, medical health officer for the Northern Health Interior area.

“It makes people incredibly vulnerable to dying from overdose when using at home alone and there’s no one there to reverse an overdose,” she said. “The most important thing that people can do when using substances is to use in the presence of others.”

Northern B.C.’s vast geography means many drug users do not have the same resources as more dense regions of the province, making people more likely to use alone, said Kling.

Staffing for remote outreach programs is always difficult, but burnout from the pandemic has made the situation even worse, according to Dr. Nel Wieman, acting chief medical officer for FNHA.

“Working on the frontlines with people who are using substances is very emotionally heavy work, some either burn out or take a break from working in the area,” she said. “We’re having a hard time filling vacancies on various teams. It’s hard to recruit people to the northern region.”

Indigenous women and young people are disproportionately represented in overdose deaths, a particular concern for FNHA.

A key strategy for FNHA has been to bring communities, many of whom are compounded with grief from the toxic drug crisis, together to find creative ways to deal with the emergency. Communities just identifying the problem is not good enough anymore, and what’s needed is decisive action, according to Wieman.

Wieman also said the tight-knit nature of many rural First Nations communities means there are more opportunities to reach out to people who are having issues.

“If someone is struggling, it’s in some ways easier to identify that person and identify a relationship with them,” she said.

In some instances, individuals are excluded from traditional ceremonies due to their substance use. However, cultural activities are beneficial to personal healing, according to Wieman.

“We need to move into having conversations about substance abuse,” she said. “That includes addressing stigma and shame and what we might do to make someone feel isolated.”

For the public, little things such as carrying a naloxone kit and understanding the harms of stigma can make a difference, said Kling.

She added the increased use of benzodiazepines, which is seeing a boom across the province, has made the crisis even worse, as it reduces the ability of naloxone to function.

Aug. 31 is a good day to reflect on how to improve the dire crisis B.C. and the Northern Health region are facing, according to Kling.

“Overdose awareness day really shows that there’s a lot more that we can be doing to end this crisis. It’s still very much going on and getting worse.”

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COVID-19 variant: Will updated vaccines work against BA.2.86 - CTV News

Federal scientists will be monitoring global research to determine the effectiveness of updated vaccines against the latest COVID-19 variant, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada say.

Canada's first known case of the Omicron variant BA.2.86 was detected this week in British Columbia as the country became the seventh in the world to report its presence.

Health Canada is currently reviewing applications for Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech's new mRNA vaccines, developed against the dominant XBB.1.5 variant ahead of a vaccination campaign set for the fall.

As of this week, there were only 13 sequences of the highly mutated variant BA. 2.86 available to analyze across six other countries -- four in Denmark, three in the United States, two in Portugal, two in South Africa, one in Israel, and one in the United Kingdom, Health Canada and PHAC said in an email.

"Scientists are looking for signs that BA.2.86 lineages would change disease severity or spread, or impact the effectiveness of diagnostic tests, vaccines or treatments for COVID-19," they said.

"As this new variant was just detected in Canada, it is difficult to have an understanding of its prevalence. As laboratories' and clinical data is reported to PHAC, a more accurate picture will begin to emerge."

COVID-19 cases involving the XBB.1.5 variant are currently at a low to moderate level, with stable or increasing trends in all reporting provinces and territories, Health Canada and PHAC said.

However, a hospital in Windsor, Ont., and another in Montague, P.E.I., announced outbreaks of the illness this week.

The BA.2.86 variant was detected in a B.C. resident who had not recently been outside the country, provincial authorities said this week.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said in a joint statement that there doesn't seem to be increased illness severity with the strain and the infected person was not in hospital.

Federal figures show that, as of mid-June, 80.5 per cent of Canadians had received their primary series of COVID vaccines. The highest uptake, at nearly 92 per cent, was in Newfoundland and Labrador. The lowest, at 75.5 per cent, was in the Northwest Territories, followed by Alberta, where 76 per cent of people were vaccinated.

Dawn Bowdish, an immunologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, said it's understandable that people are tired of COVID-19 amid a mostly normal return to social activities, but the mutating virus puts vulnerable populations, including the elderly, most at risk of infection.

However, only about 21 per cent of Canadians aged 80 and over have received boosters or completed a primary vaccination series in the last six months, she said.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) has recommended Canadians roll up their sleeves for a booster in the fall if it has been at least six months since their last dose or COVID-19 infection.

Bowdish said anyone starting chemotherapy or having major surgery may consider getting a booster before the reformulated vaccines are available but it's otherwise best to wait.

Parts of the Southern Hemisphere have faced a triple threat during its respiratory season, which usually starts in April and ends in September in that region.

"They had a lot of influenza, they had a lot of RSV. They had a lot of COVID and they reported a lot of health-care worker absences, which means care for all things is impaired," she said of Australia's recent experience.

However, Australians had access to the current bivalent COVID vaccines, not the reformulated ones.

"What I worry about is it doesn't need to be any worse or as bad as last year to still majorly impact health care for Canadians," Bowdish said of a respiratory season that saw shortages of children's pain relievers and long waits in emergency rooms.

Bowdish is hoping Canadians won't hesitate to get a booster this fall, when they could be vaccinated against influenza at the same time.

For people over 60, a vaccine for RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, may also be available. Earlier this month, Health Canada announced the approval of a vaccine for RSV for those aged 60 and up, but it's up to the provinces and territories to decide if and when Arexvy will be included in their vaccination programs.

Eric Arts, a virologist at Western University in London, Ont., noted many Canadians are getting to the one-year mark since their last booster so it will be important to get vaccinated in the fall.

The updated vaccines' formula will be a minor change from current vaccines but with better protection against circulating Omicron variants, he said.

"Hopefully, the bureaucracy will be fast to get them out."

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'The pandemic is not over': Experts expect a surge in COVID cases this fall - CBC.ca

Higher COVID-19 levels seen in Ottawa in the past month are expected to continue to rise through the fall, public health experts warn. 

Coronavirus levels in Ottawa's wastewater have been increasing since the end of July, and the city saw an average of 28 patients in hospital because of active COVID-19 cases during the week of Aug. 21.

This number has come down since the previous week, but is much higher than the single digit averages reported in July. 

The highly mutated new variant BA.2.86 was also detected in Canada for the first time on Tuesday.

Ottawa's medical officer of health Vera Etches confirmed Thursday these trends will increase in the coming months, but said it's not yet clear that subvariants are driving the surge. 

"It's more that we're in close contact with each other," she said.

"Regardless of the variant, there are things we can do to decrease spread of respiratory illness," she said, emphasizing masking, staying up to date with vaccinations, and staying home when sick as effective practices to reduce spread going into the fall. 

Etches also noted COVID-19 will be one of several respiratory illnesses that will be circulating, along with influenza and RSV.

Rising virus levels in wastewater

The latest data from Ottawa's wastewater monitoring program shows a steady increase in COVID-19 virus levels since the end of July, and forecasts this upward trend will continue into the fall.

"Based on that I think it's a foregone conclusion we're in a late summer, early fall wave, and that this wave will continue for at least the next couple of months," said Tyson Graber, co-lead investigator of the wastewater monitoring project.

"Unsurprisingly at this point, that [increase] is followed by an increase in hospitalizations, which we've seen now in Ottawa over the last couple of weeks."

Graber said the wastewater samples contain several different variants but that Omicron subvariant EG.5 has been out-competing the others since the beginning of August.

This subvariant has been circulating in Canada since at least May, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada, and experts say it is responsible for the surge in cases that has been reported in the last month. 

Graber said the wastewater data indicates the uptick in COVID-19 levels he's seeing right now will likely continue well into the fall.

"Based on the wastewater data alone, looking at Ottawa, we probably won't be done with this wave until at least October or November, based on the current trajectory," he said.

Researchers measure and share the amount of novel coronavirus in Ottawa's wastewater. The most recent data is from Aug. 27, 2023. (613covid.ca) ( (613covid.ca))

Graber determines how long a wave will last based on a trajectory extended from the current trend.

"In the past, this hill has been steeper," he explained. "Right now, the trajectory is a bit of a less steep hill, meaning that the entire wave will be a little bit longer than in previous waves."

Graber said a handful of variables that could change this forecasted trajectory, including the coming return to school, an increase in indoor activities, waning immunity, and new variants coming through the door.

Subvariant BA.2.86 has not yet been detected in Ottawa's wastewater, but Graber expects it will show up within the next month.

"The pandemic is not over, but there are measures available to reduce both personal risk and community risk," he said.

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