Panbronchiolitis - Diffuse Drug Information

Pneumonia prevention through nationwide adult immunisation

22 Oct 2018

Pneumonia is a common infection – affecting around 3,200 people in Singapore in 2016 – making it the third most common cause of hospitalisation in the country.¹ Its common complications, especially with delayed or inappropriate treatment, include bacteraemia and septic shock, lung abscesses, pleural effusions, empyema, pleurisy, respiratory failure and renal failure.² These complications may sometimes have fatal outcomes; in 2016, pneumonia was the second most common cause of death, accounting for 19.3% of all deaths in Singapore.³ Those with severe disease, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus infection, septic shock, prior antibiotic use, renal disease, and anaemia are at highest risk of poor outcomes, including death.^4,5

AZD7442 (tixagevimab–cilgavimab) prevents COVID-19 in high-risk populations

Dr. Leong Hoe Nam, Dr. Behram Ali Khan, Dr. See Hui Ti, Dr. Yoon Kam Hon, 12 Oct 2022

Though most COVID-19 safe management measures have been lifted in Singapore, the pandemic continues to adversely impact the lives of immunocompromised patients at high risk of severe infection.

“It has been an absolute misery for these patients and their families,” said Dr Leong Hoe Nam, Infectious Disease Specialist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, Singapore. “The virus is an unseen enemy that may strike unexpectedly. The strike may kill, or if not, maim the individual. Patients isolate themselves for fear of getting infected while their family members fear bringing the illness back home.”

Immunocompromised patients are those with suppressed immunity resulting from health conditions, including solid organ and haematological cancers, end-stage kidney and liver disease, organ or bone marrow transplants, and immune-mediated inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, or those on active treatment with immunosuppressive medications. [Expert Rev Vaccines 2022;1-17; BMJ 2021;374:n2098]

Product Highlight - VAXIGRIP TETRA

12 Sep 2023

Inactivated quadrivalent influenza vaccine (split virion) 0.5 mL suspension for injection