Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

This report details the first documented outbreak of adenovirus D53 epidemic keratoconjunctivitis in the United States. Seventeen epidemic keratoconjunctivitis cases were identified; after the primary case, all cases occurred in eye care clinic patients or their household contacts. Infection prevention lapses were associated with the outbreak, specifically improper ocular equipment disinfection.

Since September 2015, the World Health Organization has recommended antiretroviral therapy (ART) for all persons with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, regardless of clinical stage or CD4 count (1).

Compared with other racial/ethnic groups, American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/AN) have a lower life expectancy, lower quality of life, and are disproportionately affected by many chronic conditions (1,2).

In 2010, the World Health Assembly set three milestones for measles prevention to be achieved by 2015: 1) increase routine coverage with the first dose of measles-containing vaccine (MCV1) among children aged 1 year to ≥90% at the national level and to ≥80% in every district; 2) reduce global annual measles incidence to less than five cases per million population; and 3) reduce global measles mortality by 95% from the 2000 estimate (1).*

Haemaphysalis longicornis is a tick indigenous to eastern Asia and an important vector of human and animal disease agents, resulting in such outcomes as human hemorrhagic fever and reduction of production in dairy cattle by 25%. H. longicornis was discovered on a sheep in New Jersey in August 2017 (1).

The U.S. territory of American Samoa has experienced recent outbreaks of illnesses caused by viruses transmitted by Aedes species mosquitoes, including dengue, chikungunya, and Zika virus.

World AIDS Day, observed each year on December 1, draws attention to the status of the human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) epidemic worldwide.

Overall, 46.7% of women and 39.9% of men aged ≥18 years have had a flu vaccination in the past 12 months. For both sexes, as age increased, a higher percentage of adults had a flu vaccination.

Arthritis occurs in 27% of adults in Montana, among whom 50% have activity limitations, 16% have social participation restrictions, and 23% have severe joint pain attributable to arthritis (1).

On November 24, 2017, MMWR published "Abortion Surveillance - United States, 2014" (1). On August 6, 2018, the authors informed MMWR about inadvertent errors in the data that resulted in publication of some erroneous numbers for gestational ages and abortion ratios throughout the report.

The number of pediatric cases of elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) are decreasing in North Carolina.

On November 28, 2017, the manager of restaurant A in Tennessee reported receiving 18 complaints from patrons with gastrointestinal illness who had dined there on Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 2017.

During 2016, 10.1% of all ED visits in the United States were made by patients with depression documented in their medical record.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a progressive and fatal neuromuscular disease; the majority of ALS patients die within 2-5 years of receiving a diagnosis (1).

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is a federal advisory committee that provides expert advice to the Director of CDC and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the form of recommendations on the use of vaccines and related agents for control of vaccine-preventable diseases in the U.S. civilian population.

On April 1, 2016, MMWR Surveillance Summaries published "Prevalence and Characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Children Aged 8 Years-Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 Sites, United States, 2012" (1).

Endorsed by the World Health Assembly in 2012, the Global Vaccine Action Plan 2011-2020 (GVAP) (1) calls on all countries to reach ≥90% national coverage with all vaccines in the country's national immunization schedule by 2020.

During 2000-2016, the suicide rate among the U.S. working age population (persons aged 16-64 years) increased 34%, from 12.9 per 100,000 population to 17.3 (https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars).

Dracunculiasis (Guinea worm disease), caused by the parasite Dracunculus medinensis, is acquired by drinking water containing copepods (water fleas) infected with its larvae.

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are battery-powered devices that provide nicotine and other additives to the user in the form of an aerosol (1). E-cigarettes entered the U.S. marketplace in 2007 (1), and by 2014, e-cigarettes were the most commonly used tobacco product among U.S. youths (2).

In August 2018, CDC noted an increased number of reports of patients having symptoms clinically compatible with acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a rare condition characterized by rapid onset of flaccid weakness in one or more limbs and spinal cord gray matter lesions, compared with August 2017.

On July 1, 2016, MMWR published "Suicide Rates by Occupational Group - 17 States, 2012" (1). On June 14, 2018, the authors informed MMWR about their concerns regarding the validity of some of the findings in the report, and on June 29, 2018, MMWR published "Notice to Readers: Ongoing Analysis of Suicide Rates Data by Occupational Group from Results Reported in MMWR" (2). The analysis is complete, and because the corrections change the conclusions, the original report is retracted.

The American Cancer Society's 43rd annual Great American Smokeout will be held on November 15, 2018. The Great American Smokeout is an annual event that encourages smokers to make a plan to quit smoking.

In the report "Translocation of a Stray Cat Infected withRabies from North Carolina to a Terrestrial Rabies-Free Countyin Ohio, 2017,"

Pakistan remains one of only three countries worldwide that has never had interrupted wild poliovirus serotype 1 transmission.

Firearm homicide rates in large metro areas and the nation have risen back to rates similar to those seen during 2006-2007. Firearm suicide rates continued to increase, both nationally and in large metro areas overall. Firearm homicides and suicides pose a continuing public health concern in the United States.

In January 2018, the Indiana State Department of Health was notified of a case of Cronobacter sakazakii meningitis in an infant who had been fed exclusively maternal milk.

In 2017, the percentage of children who had a problem for which prescription medication has been taken regularly for ≥3 months increased with increasing age.

Beginning in October 2017, the Arizona Department of Health Services noted an increase in the number of reported cases of coccidioidomycosis.

The unadjusted prevalence of arthritis among adults with prediabetes was 32.0%. The unadjusted prevalence of physical inactivity and obesity among adults with these conditions were 56.5% and 50.1%, respectively.

In 2016, the national prevalences of preexisting and gestational diabetes were 0.86% and 5.96%, respectively. Among 40 jurisdictions, the prevalence of age- and race/ethnicity-standardized preexisting diabetes was stable at 0.8% and increased slightly from 5.2% to 5.6% for gestational diabetes.

Postexposure prophylaxis with hepatitis A vaccine or immune globulin effectively prevents infection with hepatitis A virus when administered within 2 weeks of exposure.

Youths identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or another nonheterosexual identity report more violence victimization, substance use, and suicide risk than do heterosexual youths.

Mouse bioassay is the standard test for botulinum neurotoxin detection. However, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry testing can be 10-100 times more sensitive than MBA but is not yet widely available.

The 2017 hepatitis A outbreaks among persons reporting drug use or experiencing homelessness reinforce the need to vaccinate people at risk for hepatitis A.

November is National Diabetes Month. In the United States, approximately 30 million persons are living with diabetes and 84 million with prediabetes.

During 2012-2016, the percentage of residential care communities located in the West increased from 36.4% to 40.8%.

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of cancer and resulted in 3.3 million new cases during 2010-2014.

During 2013-2016, the prevalence of anemia among persons aged ≥65 years increased with increasing age for both men and women.

On September 17, 2017, the Maryland Department of Agriculture was notified by fair and 4-H officials of ill swine at an agricultural fair held September 14-17.

From late May to mid-October 2018, influenza activity in the United States was low; circulating viruses were antigenically similar to cell-propagated reference viruses representing the Northern Hemisphere 2018-19 influenza vaccine composition.

In December 2017, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reported two human Salmonella Enteritidis infections in persons with exposure to pet guinea pigs.

After the 2016 synchronized switch from trivalent oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) (types 1, 2, and 3) to bivalent OPV (types 1 and 3), transmission of type 2 circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses was detected in countries with subpopulations of children who missed immunization to type 2 poliovirus before the switch.

In the report "Notes from the Field: Exported Case of Sin Nombre Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome - Israel, 2017," on page 1129, Maria Morales-Betoulle, PhD; Sara E. Zufan, MPH; and Shannon L.M. Whitmer, PhD, all affiliated with the Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, CDC, should have been included in the author list, and the affiliation for Heather Venkat, DVM, MPH should have been the Arizona Department of Health Services.

During July and August 2017, nine measles cases occurred among vaccinated Israeli soldiers. The primary patient had recently traveled to three countries in Europe with ongoing measles outbreaks. All other cases occurred in his direct contacts. All patients had mild illness; no tertiary cases occurred.

On July 24, 2017, the Ohio Department of Health was notified of a positive rabies test result from a domestic cat in Summit County, a county considered free from terrestrial rabies.

A new CDC analysis found that during 2014-2016 the number of U.S. residents who filled a prescription for preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) increased substantially, but remained a small fraction of the estimated 1.1 million U.S. residents who could benefit from PrEP.

In the report "National, Regional, State, and Selected Local Area Vaccination Coverage Among AdolescentsAged 13-17 Years - United States, 2017," on page 914, in Table 2, the entry for the column "Difference" and row "≥3 Hepatitis B doses" should have read -2.6 (-4.8 to -0.3).

CDC's Workplace Health Resource Center is a source for reliable evidence and best practices to improve worker health and productivity, address research gaps, and potentially reduce healthcare costs.

In the report "Vaccination Coverage for Selected Vaccines and Exemption Rates Among Children in Kindergarten --- United States, 2017-18 School Year," on page 1121, an incorrect figure was published.