David Banach

A surge in tick activity across Connecticut is renewing concerns about Lyme disease, prompting experts to examine the environmental factors driving tick populations, the challenges of prevention, and the future role of vaccines. Recently reported by CT Community News and CTNewsJunkie, researchers are seeing unusually high numbers of ticks infected with the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, with infection rates reaching levels typically not observed until peak season. Experts point to a combination of environmental conditions, including a snowy winter that insulated overwintering ticks, milder seasonal temperatures, and continued residential expansion into wooded areas where ticks thrive. According to Dr. David Banach, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at UConn Health, the increase in Lyme disease cases is influenced by multiple factors. While improved reporting may account for some of the rise, environmental conditions continue to play a significant role in the number of infections seen by clinicians each year. “Lyme disease is chronically underreported.” Dr. David Banach Dr. David Banach is an infectious diseases physician who leads UConn Health's Infection Prevention Program and serves as hospital epidemiologist. View his profile The article also explores ongoing efforts to develop new Lyme disease vaccines. Dr. Paulo Verardi, head of UConn's Department of Virology and Vaccinology, notes that vaccines could become an important tool in reducing disease risk, but cautions that vaccination alone will not solve the broader challenge posed by expanding tick populations and changing environmental conditions. Effective control, he argues, will require a combination of public education, land management, and efforts to reduce tick abundance. “To really control tickborne diseases, there needs to be more land management, public education and a drop in the overall tick population.” Dr. Paulo Verardi Dr. Paulo Verardi is a virologist who specializes in vaccine research and development. He is a Department Head and Associate Professor at UConn and a member of the Center of Excellence for Vaccine Research. View his profile As Lyme disease continues to spread across North America, understanding the intersection of climate, ecology, public health, and vaccine development is becoming increasingly important. Researchers are working to better understand why tick populations are expanding, how disease risk is changing, and what strategies can best protect people who live, work, and spend time outdoors. Covering Lyme or other tickborne diseases? We can help. To learn more about Lyme disease, tick-borne illnesses, vaccine development, infectious disease trends, and public health preparedness, connect with experts such as Dr. David Banach and Dr. Paulo Verardi, whose research and expertise help explain the growing challenges posed by tick-borne diseases.

An outbreak of an uncommon but not unheard-of illness is responsible for the deaths of at least three people who were on an international cruise ship. With the rest of the passengers and crew under observation in their home countries — including 18 Americans who went to a quarantine facility at the University of Nebraska — how worried do we need to be about hantavirus? Dr. David Banach, UConn Health infectious diseases physician and hospital epidemiologist, joins Dr. Anthony Alessi to explain what we’re dealing with, the public health implications, and how, unlike COVID, the medical community at least has some history with this virus. You can check out the podcast here: It doesn’t spread in the same way that COVID does, in the sense that there’s no established sort of asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic spread. — Dr. David Banach Dr. Banach explains that hantavirus is a rare but serious virus carried primarily by rodents and spread through exposure to rodent waste or contaminated environments. While most cases are isolated, clusters can occasionally occur. The discussion compares hantavirus to COVID-19, with Dr. Banach emphasizing that hantavirus spreads much less easily between humans and is therefore less likely to become a global pandemic. However, it can cause severe cardiopulmonary illness with a significantly higher mortality rate than COVID. There is currently no vaccine or specific antiviral treatment, meaning care is largely supportive for patients who become critically ill. Dr. Banach also addresses public anxiety and misinformation surrounding the outbreak, encouraging people to rely on trusted organizations such as the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for accurate information. He notes that public health officials continue to closely monitor the situation, but at this stage the overall risk to the general public remains low. Interested in learning more? Simply click on Dr. Banach's icon to arrange a time to talk today.

Updated COVID-10 booster shots are rolling out across the United States, and these new bivalent formulations target the omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants that have become the dominant circulating strains as well as the original form of the coronavirus. UConn Health's Dr. David Banach, an infectious diseases physician and hospital epidemiologist, spoke with UConn Today about the latest CDC vaccination guidelines and the significance of these updated boosters: What’s the difference between the monovalent and bivalent vaccines? The monovalent vaccines are the ones that have been available thus far. They contain a small piece of the mRNA component of the virus based on the original SARS-CoV-2 virus, sometimes termed as the “ancestral strain,” and are designed to generate an immune response to that original virus. We’ve seen with the omicron variant — and specifically with the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which have appeared most recently — the virus has changed. The bivalent vaccine contains both the portion of the original ancestral virus mRNA as well as a portion of mRNA that is specific for the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants that have been circulating most recently. The hope is, by more specifically targeting the most recent subvariants, the bivalent boosters will reduce the impact of COVID both on individuals who received them as well as the population. Conceptually it’s analogous to what has been done with the influenza vaccine. The technology’s a little different but it’s based on the same idea. It’s targeted against both the original strain and the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of omicron. What becomes of the monovalent vaccine? At this time the vaccination program will be a primary vaccine series with the original monovalent vaccine and booster doses using the bivalent vaccine. Why wouldn’t we just start people with the bivalent vaccine? Data showed the monovalent vaccine upfront provides that high level of protection. The bivalent vaccine has not been evaluated as a primary vaccine candidate, so we don’t have the data to support its use in that context. That’s how it was originally designed, to be a booster. Dr. Banach is a leading voice on the fight against the COVID-19 virus, and he's available to speak with the media. Click on his icon to arrange an interview today.