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Articles

Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalizations for Selected Nonfatal Injuries Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2018

CDC Media Relations
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In 2018, older adults age 65 and older had about 2.4 million emergency department visits and over 700,000 hospitalizations related to injuries from falls, motor vehicle crashes, opioid overdoses, and self-harm. Unintentional falls accounted for 9 out of 10 emergency department visits and hospitalizations. Injuries are not an inevitable part of aging — they can be prevented. Effective clinical and community strategies can help older adults age without injury. CDC’s new communication campaign, Still Going Strong, empowers older adults to take simple steps to avoid injuries as they age. These steps include exercising to improve strength and mobility, getting annual eye exams, and talking with health care providers about reducing medications that can increase their risk of injury.

Surveillance To Track Progress Toward Polio Eradication — Worldwide, 2019–2020

CDC Media Relations
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Key poliovirus surveillance indicators for 2020 fell substantially compared to 2019 in many of the 42 priority countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings emphasize the need for the rigorous search for cases of new-onset, floppy weakness or paralysis among children (high-quality surveillance) to be restored in 2021 while maintaining pandemic response and infection control protocols. The pathway to polio eradication requires promptly detecting spread of poliovirus, primarily through acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic substantially impacted polio eradication activities in many of the 42 priority countries deemed to be at high risk for poliovirus transmission. In most countries, field surveillance activities were curtailed and polio staff and assets were repurposed to support pandemic response efforts. While 90% of priority countries in the World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean Region met AFP surveillance performance indicators nationally in 2020, only 48% of the priority countries in the African Region and 40% in other regions did so. Standard surveillance activities must be restored while maintaining necessary infection control precautions.

Effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Vaccines Against COVID-19 Among Hospitalized Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, January–March 2021 (Early Release April 28, 2021)

CDC Media Relations
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Safety Monitoring of the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) COVID-19 Vaccine — United States, March–April 2021 (Early Release April 30, 2021)

CDC Media Relations
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Anxiety-Related Adverse Event Clusters After Janssen COVID-19 Vaccination — Five U.S. Mass Vaccination Sites, April 2021 (Early Release April 30, 2021)

CDC Media Relations
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• Clinical Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Botulism, 2021

Botulism is a serious, muscle-paralyzing illness caused by a toxin made by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum. CDC guidelines provide health care personnel with evidence-based best practices for diagnosing, monitoring, and treating individual cases and outbreaks of foodborne, wound, and inhalational botulism. Botulism is a life-threatening illness caused by a toxin that attacks the nerves and can cause muscle paralysis, difficulty breathing, and sometimes death. Because it is rare and its symptoms resemble those of other diseases, botulism is often misdiagnosed. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is critical to prevent severe outcomes. CDC’s new guidelines present healthcare providers with evidence-based best practices for diagnosing, monitoring, and treating single cases or outbreaks of foodborne, wound, and inhalational botulism. These are the first comprehensive clinical care guidelines for treating botulism based on the systematic review of a century of scientific publication and extensive consultations with experts. The guidelines highlight the need to prepare for a large botulism outbreak, during which resources such as ventilators, medical staff, or antitoxin, might be in short supply.

• Percentage of Adults Aged ≥18 Years with Diagnosed Diabetes, by Urbanization Level and Age Group — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2019

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

CDC works 24/7 protecting America’s health, safety and security. Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are curable or preventable, chronic or acute, or from human activity or deliberate attack, CDC responds to America’s most pressing health threats. CDC is headquartered in Atlanta and has experts located throughout the United States and the world.