Outbreak News Today

Minnesota, like many states, has seen an overall increase in sexually transmitted diseases (STD) last year and has seen the most congenital syphilis cases ever, according to health officials. Ten congenital syphilis cases were reported in 2018, a major increase from two in 2017. This is a rate of 15.1 per 100,000 live births which […]The post Minnesota reports most congenital syphilis cases ever appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Here are the top five posts on Outbreak News Today for the month of April 2019: 5. Hepatitis A outbreak in Sweden: Fresh dates from Iran are the suspected source The Sweden The Public Health Authority, or Folkhälsomyndigheten are reporting an outbreak of hepatitis A where the suspected source of infection is fresh dates from Iran. […]The post Infectious disease news: Top 5 posts for the April 2019 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the outbreak of Shigella infections in Guam, The Department of Public Health and Social Services (DPHSS) reports the outbreak continues to grow. In 2019, in only four months, Guam has already reached one-half of the total number of cases from all of last year. In 2018, a total of 29 cases […]The post Shigellosis outbreak in Guam: An update appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Three of the most common sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)–chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis have risen sharply in Denver, Colorado in recent years, health officials report. The rate of gonorrhea infections grew most sharply, up 150 percent in 2018 from four years earlier to an estimated 2,703 Denver cases, according to preliminary data. Increases in gonorrhea cases have […]The post Denver: Gonorrhea cases up 150 percent in four years appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Mavyret (glecaprevir and pibrentasvir) tablets to treat all six genotypes of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in children ages 12 to 17. Mavyret was previously approved to treat HCV in adults in 2017. “Direct-acting antiviral drugs reduce the amount of HCV in the body by preventing the virus from […]The post Hepatitis C drug, Mavyret, approved to treat children appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The line between the human herpes simplex viruses – HSV-1 and HSV-2 – is blurrier than previously thought, according to a new study published this week in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. Researchers found that HSV-1 and HSV-2 are mixing together to result in several new, different recombinant versions of herpes. Read the paper “The main […]The post Herpes simplex viruses continue to recombine appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the measles outbreak in the Philippines, health officials report that the outbreak tally through Apr. 13 is now 31,056. This is five times more than the figures in 2018 when 6,641 cases were reported at this time. In addition, the measles death toll this year dwarfs 2018. To date, more than […]The post Philippines measles 5-times 2018 numbers appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the measles epidemic in Ukraine, health officials are reporting an additional 2,175 cases during the week ending Apr. 27. The new cases were evenly divided between adults and children. Kharkiv, Kyiv and Ternopil regions reported the most cases last week. Save 42% or more on New York’s 6 best attractions with […]The post Measles epidemic: Ukraine cases near 44K, 16th death reported appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Thailand Department of Disease Control (DDC) with the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) reports a diphtheria incidence rate that is 2 times higher than the same period of last year (2018) and also the median of the past 5 years (2014 – 2018). Through Apr. 27, there had been nine confirmed diphtheria cases of […]The post Diphtheria cases up in Thailand appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Health authorities with ARS Indian Ocean have reported four additional human cases of Rift Valley Fever (RVF) during the past week, bringing the total cases to 126 since the first cases occurred at the end of November 2018. After a steady decline in cases during the last 3 weeks of March, a new increase has […]The post Rift Valley fever: Four more human cases in Mayotte appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Finland health officials are reporting two imported and unrelated measles cases in recent days in North Karelia and Vantaa. In North Karelia, the case of measles has been found in an unvaccinated infant while in Vantaa, measles has been reported in an adult who has received one dose of vaccine. According to the Department of Health […]The post Finland reports two imported measles cases appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

With measles cases being at its highest in 25 years in the United States,President Donald Trump is calling on people to get vaccinated. “They have to get the shots. The vaccinations are so important. This is really going around now. They have to get their shots,” Trump said recently. This is good sign when compared […]The post President Trump promotes vaccines amid measles outbreak appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Clark County, Washington health officials today declared the measles outbreak that started some four months ago over after no new cases were reported in the past six weeks. The outbreak that began in early January when a child who traveled to Clark County from Ukraine tested positive for measles. During this period, 71 cases were […]The post After 71 cases, four months and $864,679, Vancouver measles outbreak declared over appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Florida health officials reported an additional 70 hepatitis A cases during the past week, bringing the number of cases in 2019 to 954 and more than 1500 cases since the beginning of last year. Pinellas, Pasco, Orange and Hillsborough counties continue to reported the most cases accounting for some 62 percent of outbreak cases in […]The post Florida hepatitis A outbreak tops 1500 cases appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The number of measles cases reported to date in the US has topped 700 cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From January 1 to April 26, 2019, 704 individual cases of measles have been confirmed in 22 states. This is the greatest number of cases reported in the U.S. since […]The post Measles cases top 700, Agency heads reinforce confidence in vaccines appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says the increasing number of new Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is deeply concerning. Fortunately to date, geographic spread is still limited to two provinces and there is no spread to neighboring countries. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Ministry of Health […]The post Ebola outbreak: 43 additional deaths among confirmed cases over the weekend appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Cruz Vermelha de Timor-Leste (CVTL), or the Red Cross is reporting a dengue fever outbreak in the capital city of Dili. In addition, other districts/municipalities also experienced higher rates of dengue infection since the beginning of year. The official data showed that a total of 532 new cases have been confirmed since the beginning of […]The post Dengue outbreak in Dili, Timor-Leste appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Dengue fever cases are up among most countries in Southeast Asia during the first months of 2019 compared to last year. Here is a look at three of the countries: The Philippines More than 3100 dengue fever cases were reported during the week ending April 6, bringing the total cases to 59,139 year-to-date. 237 dengue […]The post Asia: Dengue cases up in the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

More than 2,000 measles cases were reported in the latest update from the Center for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. During the week ending Apr. 20, health authorities saw an additional 2,141 cases of measles–1,106 adults and 1,035 children. This brings the outbreak total for 2019 to 41,640 people – 19,271 […]The post Measles in Ukraine: 100,000 cases and 35 deaths since summer of 2017 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Of the 36 states in Nigeria, 25 States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are in the African meningitis belt. States in the meningitis belt were formally placed on alert on the 8th of November 2018 as during the dry season ((i.e. November through May)), high temperatures and low humidity increase the likelihood of transmission […]The post Meningococcal meningitis update for Nigeria appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) and the North Dakota Department of Health (NDDoH) are reminding the public to be aware of the risk of rabies. Rabies is a viral infection that affects mammals, including humans. In the United States, the virus circulates in wild animals and is most commonly found in bats, raccoons, […]The post Rabies: North Dakota officials remind the public to be aware of the risk, Skunks most common carrier appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department is seeking the public’s help in locating a person believed to be exposed to a rabid bat earlier this week in Santa Barbara. The person is described as a tall, slender, Caucasian female between the ages of 45 and 70 years old with short gray hair. At 10 […]The post Rabies exposure: Santa Barbara County health officials seek individual appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The number of dengue fever cases in the Americas in 2019 to date–North, Central and South America and the Caribbean islands–has nearly quadrupled the number of cases reported during the same period in 2018. Through April 7, 526,550 dengue cases have been reported, compared to 146,436 cases reported this period in 2018. Large increases have […]The post Dengue fever cases up 3.5 times this year in the Americas appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Southern Nevada Health District is reporting its first human case of West Nile virus in Southern Nevada in 2019. The individual, a female over the age of 50, had the more serious neuroinvasive form of the illness and has recovered. There were no reported human cases of West Nile virus in Clark County last […]The post Las Vegas area reports 1st West Nile virus case of 2019 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the hepatitis A outbreak in Louisiana, state health officials have reported 136 hepatitis A virus (HAV) infections since the outbreak was declared in December. Of this total, 66 percent of the cases required hospitalization and the first HAV related death was reported. The Louisiana Office of Public Health (OPH) says the […]The post Louisiana hepatitis A outbreak: 1st death reported appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Thai health officials are reporting the first human rabies death of 2019. Disease Control Department director-general Dr Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai says the victim is a 32-year-old man in Surin. The man was bitten by a stray dog in November and never sought out medical treatment and rabies post-exposure prophylaxis. “If a cat or a dog scratches or […]The post Thailand reports 1st human rabies death in a Surin man appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

By Jory Lange Celebrate frozen profiteroles and eclairs are being recalled in the wake of Salmonella outbreak in Canada. 73 confirmed cases of Salmonella infection have been linked to frozen profiteroles and eclairs. 27 people are sick in British Columbia, 12 in Alberta, 9 in Saskatchewan, 10 in Manitoba, 13 in Ontario, and 2 in […]The post Profiteroles and Eclairs Linked to Salmonella Outbreak in Canada appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is investigating two cases of Legionnaires’ disease in patients possibly exposed at Mercy Hospital & Medical Center in Chicago, and a report of Legionella in the facility’s water system. The investigation is currently limited to this facility; the general public is not at risk. IDPH, along with the […]The post Chicago: Legionnaires’ disease cases prompt investigation of Mercy Hospital appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Maine health officials are reporting dramatic increases in the sexually transmitted diseases (STD), gonorrhea and syphilis in the last five years. According to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, gonorrhea cases increased 191 percent, from 236 cases in 2014 to 686 in 2018 and cases of infectious syphilis increased by 593 percent, from […]The post Maine reports increases in gonorrhea and syphilis, emphasizes importance of testing appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the dengue fever epidemic on the island of Reunion, ARS Indian Ocean reports (computer translated) the number of cases is steadily increasing with the most active areas located in the South. However, there are outbreaks in the north and east of the island. Officials report an additional 1200 cases during the […]The post Dengue fever cases continue to rise in Reunion appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Earlier this week we reported an update on the measles outbreak in the Brooklyn/Queens area of New York City. Since Oct. 2018, 390 confirmed cases have been reported as of Apr. 23. More details on the outbreak are available. According to NYC health officials, all but twelve of these individuals with measles are members of […]The post NYC measles outbreak: 92 percent of children diagnosed were unvaccinated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Sweden The Public Health Authority, or Folkhälsomyndigheten are reporting an outbreak of hepatitis A where the suspected source of infection is fresh dates from Iran. Of the nine cases reported since late February, eight of the cases are confirmed and have the same type of hepatitis A virus (genotype IIIA) and one case is […]The post Hepatitis A outbreak in Sweden: Fresh dates from Iran are the suspected source appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the Thailand chikungunya outbreak, particularly affecting the southern provinces, Thai health officials now report 3141 cases as of Apr. 23 from 21 provinces. No deaths have been reported. The good news is, it appears that the number of cases reported by week is declining. Chikungunya Virus (CHIKV) is an arbovirus of […]The post Thailand chikungunya cases top 3,000 for 2019 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The number of states battling hepatitis A outbreaks has risen to 20, with the addition of Colorado and Virginia in the past month. Since these outbreaks were first identified in 2016, more than 15,000 cases and 8,500 hospitalizations (57% of cases) have been reported in the United States. In Virginia, health officials have recently declared […]The post Virginia declares a statewide outbreak of hepatitis A appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Another April 25 has come and gone and the observance of World Malaria Day reveals that progress has essentially stalled in the battle against the vector-borne parasitic disease. The World Health Organization reports: After more than a decade of steady advances in fighting malaria, progress has levelled off. According to WHO’s latest World malaria report, no significant […]The post Malaria: Annual observance passes with barely a word about Venezuela appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

For the first time, Alaska health officials reported a case of the parasitic infection, angiostrongyliasis, aka rat lungworm disease. The case was in a traveler to Hawaii where it is endemic–18 cases in 2017 and three cases to date in 2019. The Department of Epidemiology reports in a bulletin this week: On January 28, 2019, […]The post Alaska reports rat lungworm case in traveler to Hawaii, 1st case reported appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

New cases There was a number of wild poliovirus and circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus cases reported this past week, according to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI). In Afghanistan, three wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases have been reported in the past week, all with onset of paralysis in March: one each from Sangin and Washer […]The post Polio in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Nigeria closes in on polio-free status appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Pan-resistant superbugs, world travel, a love story and the use of a virus to treat a life-threatening infection–and its all absolutely true. The makings of a great book. On this week’s program, I am joined by the authors of The Perfect Predator: A Scientist’s Race to Save Her Husband from a Deadly Superbug: A Memoir, Steffanie Strathdee […]The post Bacteriophages and ‘The Perfect Predator’ appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health notified UCLA earlier this week of a measles case in a student. School officials immediately identified and contacted students, faculty and staff with whom the student may have come into contact or who may have otherwise been exposed. On Wednesday, the Department of Public Health decided to […]The post UCLA: 127 students and faculty quarantined due to measles case appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

A first-of-its-kind study reveals malaria spending in 2016 totaled $4.3 billion globally, far short of the annual funding target of $6.6 billion set by the World Health Organization. “A persistent challenge remains as funds are stagnating,” said Dr. Joseph Dieleman, a senior author on the study, health economist, and assistant professor at the Institute for […]The post Malaria: Global funding short of WHO target appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Indiana University officials have reported three additional mumps cases at the IU Bloomington campus, bringing the outbreak total to 23 since Mar. 12. Symptoms of mumps may include: Swelling and tenderness in front of and below one or both ears and along the jaw; Pain along the jaw and in front of and below one […]The post IU mumps outbreak rises to 23 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Three additional confirmed measles cases have been reported in the metro Atlanta area, bringing the total cases in Georgia this year to six. The three individuals are all members of one family – none of whom were vaccinated. The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) says while the risk of becoming sick is low, they […]The post Atlanta: Three confirmed cases in one family, all unvaccinated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

California state health officials are urging residents to make sure they are protected against measles, particularly those who plan to travel internationally. Since our last update on the measles situation in California, an additional 15 cases have been reported. In 2019 to date, there have been 38 cases of measles in California. This with 11 […]The post California measles: Vaccinations critical for overseas travel appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Following a decline in notification rates in 2016, the number of gonorrhoea cases has gone up by 17% across the reporting EU/EEA countries with more than 89 000 confirmed diagnoses in 2017 – more than 240 cases a day. The 2017 increase follows the overall trend over the last decade during which 20 of the […]The post Gonorrhea cases up 17 percent in Europe appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Hawaii state health officials have reported the third confirmed case of rat lungworm disease, or angiostrongyliasis in Hawaii County and in the state this year. Health officials learned recently about the case, although the individual may have been infected as early as February. Laboratory testing though Hawaii Department of Health’s (DOH) State Laboratories Division confirmed […]The post Rat lungworm: 3rd case reported in Hawaii County appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Swedish health officials (Folkhälsomyndigheten) report investigating (computer translated) an outbreak of Yersinia enterocolitica cases throughout the country since March. Cases have been reported in nearly all regions of the country and affected adults the most. To date, 26 cases in ten regions have been confirmed in the outbreak. Another thirty cases are being investigated. Health […]The post Yersinia enterocolitica outbreak is being investigated in Sweden appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Since the beginning of the year through April 16, Vanuatu health officials have reported a total of 216 suspected dengue cases reported including 18 confirmed cases. In just the past week, 42 suspected dengue cases reported in Port Vila and Luganville and 4 cases were confirmed positive for dengue in Luganville only. The DENV-2 serotype […]The post Dengue in Vanuatu: More than 200 cases in 2019 to date appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

As of April 24, 2019, CDC is reporting 695 cases of measles from 22 states. This is the greatest number of cases reported in the United States since measles was eliminated from this country in 2000. The high number of cases in 2019 is primarily the result of a few large outbreaks – one in […]The post Measles in the US: 695 cases from 22 states appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

By Jory Lange The pre-cut melon Salmonella outbreak that has swept through Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri is growing. The CDC updated its Food Safety Alert on the outbreak today to reflect that there are now 117 confirmed Salmonella cases in 10 states linked to this outbreak. 32 people have been hospitalized. […]The post Pre-Cut Melon Salmonella Outbreak Expands appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

New York City The measles outbreak in the Brooklyn and Queens area of NYC increased by 31 cases in the past week. The outbreak total is now 390. Most of these cases have involved members of the Orthodox Jewish community and the initial child with measles was unvaccinated and acquired measles on a visit to […]The post Measles: NYC outbreak rises to 390 cases, CDC confirms US outbreak highest since declared eliminated in 2000 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.