This story by Clare Shanahan was first published in the Valley News on Dec. 23. 

Two pneumonia-causing bacteria have been at especially high levels in Vermont and New Hampshire in recent weeks, leading to increased levels of illness.

At Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, 97 patients with pneumonia went to the emergency room between September and November, compared to 46 during the same time last year, Dr. Michael Calderwood, chief quality officer at DHMC, said Friday. While final numbers aren’t yet available for December it “looks like the numbers may be improving.”

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs often accompanied by fever, chills, cough, difficulty in breathing, fatigue and chest pain; it can be caused by multiple different viruses and bacteria, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The two types of potentially pneumonia-causing bacteria recently circulating in the region are: bordetella pertussis which causes whooping cough, a contagious respiratory infection that usually includes a severe cough and can lead to pneumonia, and mycoplasma pneumoniae, which causes walking pneumonia, a more mild form of illness that often does not require bed rest or hospitalization, Calderwood said.

Beyond DHMC, Vermont has seen a recent rise of respiratory illness outbreaks in schools believed to be specifically caused by mycoplasma pneumoniae, or walking pneumonia, Laura Ann Nicolai, deputy state epidemiologist and senior infectious disease program manager for Vermont, said in a Friday email statement.

Some children were specifically diagnosed with this kind of infection, but not all were tested for a specific pathogen by doctors.

The mycoplasma pneumoniae does not always cause pneumonia and often manifests as a chest cold. It mostly infects school-aged children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has reported high levels of this bacteria nationwide.

Statewide, the Vermont Department of Health has received seven reports from school nurses of these respiratory illness outbreaks, ranging in size from five to 31 cases. One such outbreak occurred in a Windsor County school, Nicolai said.

The Department of Health issued a health advisory to providers and school nurses Nov. 22 warning them of increased pneumonia cases. Many of the cases are suspected to be caused by mycoplasma pneumoniae and providers should consider that patients may be infected with this bacteria, treat them accordingly and report “any unexpected pattern or cluster of illness” to the state, the advisory said.

The number of cases of pneumonia, flu and “other cold viruses” overall at Gifford Health Care’s primary care clinics and emergency department has been mostly typical over the past few months, though the number of children infected is higher than usual, Gifford spokesperson Ashley Lincoln said.

Doctors attribute the rise to “fewer kids getting vaccinated.”

Nationally, children born since the COVID-19 pandemic, between 2020 and 2021, were less likely to have received standard vaccinations that children get before turning 2, with one of the lowest rates being the pneumococcal vaccine that is recommended for children under 5, according to a September CDC study.

This vaccine covers the most common type of pneumonia, pneumococcal; it does not prevent walking pneumonia, for which there is no vaccine.

The pneumococcal vaccine is recommended for children under 5, adults over 50 and people at higher risk of respiratory illness. Whooping cough is prevented by the DTaP and Tdap vaccines that are recommended at different frequencies depending on a person’s age.

Pneumonia can also occur as a secondary infection after someone has had another respiratory illness such as a cold, the flu, COVID-19 or RSV, according to the American Lung Association.

Vaccinations against COVID-19, the flu and RSV can help protect against pneumonia, according to the CDC.

Some additional ways people can minimize the spread of disease include: washing hands, staying home when sick and “donning a mask in public if they are concerned about their own and others’ health,” Calderwood said.

MILTON, Vt. (WCAX) – It’s a game of imagination, warlocks, wizards, dungeons and dragons. The decades-old fantasy roleplaying game, Dungeons and Dragons, is beloved by many. That includes Milton’s Dan DiPietro. He’s been playing since he was a little kid.

“I put it away for a little while, but as I got older, I realized I really enjoyed the adventure,” he said.

Now, he plays with his own kids. And his business, Dungeons by Dan, makes imagining all of the possibilities easy. With a love for the game and a background in graphic design, he decided to make maps for people to use during the game. They work on both the tabletop and the computer, and while you don’t necessarily need them to play, the Champlain College graduate says they add a lot to the experience.

“[They] liven the gameboard and really enhance the space when you’re playing on it,” said DiPietro. “You’re not just thinking in imagery but you’re actually playing on beautiful artwork.”

While the choose-your-own-adventure game can take you anywhere, the ideas for these maps begin in DiPietro’s brain.

“I just start writing ideas down and it’s just literally a brainstorm,” he said. “Once I come up with a dozen or so ideas, I start illustrating those ideas or I start working on the computer with those ideas.”

Drawing influence from organized religions and cultures, DiPietro has made thousands of maps. His physical copies are printed locally, though he offers downloadable versions for people playing online. He sells them at medieval events and on his website, and does so with much success as the game’s player base grows.

“It’s been a huge upswing, especially from COVID, but it was already happening. It just sort of launched it forward,” he explained.

DiPietro also 3D prints little characters for gameplay. Those, coupled with his maps, make his side gig the ultimate treasure for his D&D-loving kids. And, it gives DiPietro, who moonlights as a dungeon master, the chance to put work away and play.

“I love what I do because the creation process enhances my storytelling,” he said. “It allows you to unleash your creativity into wherever you want to go and that really never gets old.”

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HUNTINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Closed for the season– that’s what you’ll see at many tree farms across Vermont.

The Purinton Family Tree Farm in Huntington has lots of trees but they’re not for this season.

“The past two seasons demand’s been higher than it ever has been in the past,” said Cody Purinton of the Purinton Family Tree Farm.

Purinton chalks it up to the population growth of Chittenden County. He also says that because of a supply shortage in nurseries eight years ago, farms are just now seeing the effects as those trees reach market size. That means crop yield varies from year to year.

“We plant a certain amount of trees, and we just plan to sell that amount, and that’s when we cut it off,” Purinton said.

The weather plays a big factor in that supply and two soggy summers could mean fewer trees in coming years.

“It’s either way too wet or way too dry. They like a lot of sun and a little bit of moisture along the way, but not too much moisture,” Purinton explained.

The New Hampshire-Vermont Christmas Tree Association recommends farmers grow different varieties of trees to adapt to the changing climate.

“A good steadfast balsam and Fraser fir will grow, you’ve just got to have well-drained soil. So, we’re looking at what the soil is like and where to plant these different trees that we’re getting,” said Nigel Manley of the New Hampshire-Vermont Christmas Tree Association.

But if you’re looking to pick one out on Christmas Eve, you might be met with closed signs.

“It kinda hurts us because we have so many customers who have been loyal to us for such a long time, but we can’t oversell for next year. We’ve got to have trees for them then,” Purinton said.

There are a few places where you can still get trees, like Bakersfield Tree Farm, Split Rock Tree Farm, Sam Mazza’s Farm Market, Peter Lyon and Family Christmas Trees, and the Gardener Supply Company, which only has potted trees left. But most everyone else is closed for the season, preparing their saplings for their time to shine.

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