Outbreak News Today

In a follow-up on the scarlet fever surge in England since September 2017, Public Health England is now reporting 20,372 cases, an increase of over 8,000 cases in the past month. In addition, the number of cases this 2017-2018 period is dramatically higher than average of 9,461 for the same period over the last 5 years. Dr […]The post England sees thousands more scarlet fever cases over past month appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

A student at Montana State University has been diagnosed with mumps, a viral infection. No other cases have been detected as of late Thursday, and public health officials are working to limit the risk of additional cases. Health officials believe the risks of transmission of the disease are reduced because the person diagnosed with mumps […]The post Mumps reported in Montana State University student appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The U.S. Embassy Manila issued a health alert Friday for US citizens living in or traveling to the Philippines due to a measles outbreak being reported throughout the country. This follows a travel notice issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wednesday. According to Philippines health officials, in the current measles outbreak, data from the Epidemiology […]The post U.S. Embassy Manila issues health alert: Measles in the Philippines appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

An affordable hepatitis C combination treatment including the new drug candidate ravidasvir has been shown to be safe and effective, with extremely high cure rates for patients, including hard-to-treat cases, according to interim results from the Phase II/III STORM-C-1 trial presented by the non-profit research and development organisation Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative(DNDi) at the International Liver […]The post New Hepatitis C combination treatment: High cure rate, Affordable appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Philippines Department of Health said recently that it has provided medical assistance to thousands of children who reported showing signs of adverse effect following the immunization of the dengue vaccine. Based on the Department’s Dengue Adverse Events Surveillance, 3,281 Dengvaxia vaccinees reported were hospitalized following immunization of the dengue vaccine for various illnesses covering the […]The post Dengvaxia in the Philippines: 2000 vaccinees contract dengue since 2016 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa recently reported updated meningitis numbers for the countries of the African Meningitis Belt and surrounding areas. For the first three months of 2018, 7,403 suspect and confirmed cases were reported, including 566 deaths for a case fatality rate of 7.6 percent. A total of 2,904 samples […]The post Africa meningitis: More than 7,000 suspect cases reported in first quarter appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Norovirus — the highly contagious gastrointestinal illness best known for spreading rapidly on cruise chips, in nursing homes, schools and other densely populated spaces — kills an estimated 200,000 people annually, mostly in the developing world. There’s no treatment or vaccine to prevent the illness, and scientists have understood little about how the infection gets […]The post Norovirus infects rare intestinal cell: Study appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) and the Kansas City Missouri Health Department have been notified of a confirmed case of measles. At this time, the investigation does not connect the individual to the Kansas outbreak of measles. The Department is waiting for the completion of tests to determine the strain of disease […]The post Measles case confirmed in Kansas City, Missouri appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Philippines Department of Health (DOH) today launched the “Ligtas Tigdas,” a strategy to curb the spread of measles through the provision of free vaccination among infants and children 6-59 months. Vaccination has been proven to be the most effective public health intervention. In fact, since the last measles mass immunization campaign in 2014, this […]The post Measles in the Philippines: DOH launches ‘Ligtas Tigdas’ appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) can progress to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A study published in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics describes a new HBV assay that offers advantages over currently used methods because it has the capability to detect closed circular DNA (cccDNA) in serum, single cells, and preserved tissue samples. This assay can be used to […]The post Hepatitis B assay may allow earlier detection of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

According to a post on the Liberia Ministry of Health Facebook page yesterday, Acting Health Minister Norwu declared an outbreak of monkeypox. Nigerian news source, Vanguard, reported today that Liberia’s chief medical officer Francis Kateh said monkeypox has already been discovered in the southern county of Rivercess. The report also notes that four confirmed monkeypox cases are reported with […]The post Monkeypox confirmed in Liberia appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Irish Health Service Executive (HSE) is now reporting 28 confirmed measles cases linked to the ongoing outbreak in the Mid-West region. The majority of these are in Limerick City. There is one associated case in Clare, one in Dublin and one in Galway, all linked to the Limerick outbreak. There are also a number of […]The post Limerick measles outbreak: Officials urge vaccination appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Hawaii Department of Health (DOH) has been conducting detailed investigations of two additional cases of angiostrongyliasis, or rat lungworm disease, contracted in the state. The two cases are unrelated and were confirmed by laboratory tests conducted by the DOH State Laboratories Division in March. This brings the statewide total of confirmed cases of the […]The post Hawaii reports two additional cases of rat lungworm, one in New York resident appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Federal and state health officials announced they are investigating a multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7 infections. This investigation includes E. coli O157:H7 infections recently reported by the New Jersey Department of Health. As of April 9, 2018, 17 people infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 have been reported from 7 states. Six ill people have been hospitalized, including one person […]The post Multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7 infections being investigated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

San Diego County health officials announced today that three wound botulism cases have been reported in the past month. The cases are linked to injecting black tar heroin. Two cases have been preliminarily confirmed by the California Department of Public Health and the third case is being tested for confirmation. The men are 28, 42 and […]The post Black tar heroin linked to wound botulism cases in San Diego County appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Ministry of Health of the Mayor’s Office of Bogotá issued an alert in the city due to the increase in pertussis, or whooping cough, according to a LAFM report (computer translated). Since the beginning of the year, 28 cases have been reported in the first three months of 2018. Cases have been reported in the […]The post Whooping cough alert in Bogota appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Nigerian health officials recorded eight new confirmed Lassa fever cases in the past week, putting the country’s total to 408 confirmed and 9 probable cases since the beginning of the year. In addition, three new deaths were confirmed and one backlog case bringing the total to 101 deaths in confirmed cases, 9 in probable cases in the […]The post Lassa in Nigeria: Confirmed cases top 400 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a Japanese Encephalitis (JE) alert notice for the whole country after confirming Culex tritaeniorhynchus, the JE vector mosquito, in Busan on 1st April 2018. Culex tritaeniorhynchus is a small, dark brown mosquito with no distinctive patterns on its body and a wide white band at the center […]The post Japanese Encephalitis Alert issued in South Korea appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In southwest France, the largest administrative region, Nouvelle-Aquitaine is experiencing an epidemic situation of measles, according to French health officials. Since Jan. 1, 2018, France has reported a significant increase in measles cases, recording 1,346 cases. In Nouvelle-Aquitaine, more than half of the country’s cases have been reported (758). Outbreaks of measles have been reported from other regions […]The post France’s Nouvelle-Aquitaine region facing measles epidemic situation appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Public Health France has reported an additional 167 autochthonous, or locally transmitted dengue fever cases during the past week on Réunion Island, bringing the total cases to 755 since the beginning of the year. Confirmed cases have been reported in the north, west and south of the island. Health officials report the current epidemic could continue to […]The post More autochthonous dengue fever in Réunion appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Nearly one billion people will be vaccinated against yellow fever in 27 high-risk African countries by 2026 with support from the World Health Organization (WHO), Gavi – the Vaccine Alliance, UNICEF and more than 50 health partners. The commitment is part of the Eliminate Yellow fever Epidemics (EYE) in Africa strategy, which was launched by […]The post Yellow fever: 1 billion Africans to be vaccinated by 2026 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) researchers have published details of a new malaria diagnostic test which detects a new form of malaria: Plasmodium knowlesi (P. knowlesi). The College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science’s Professor Dean Goldring, conducted the research with Dr Robert Krause, who did the investigations as part of his PhD thesis. “This is the first test […]The post Plasmodium knowlesi: South African researchers detail new test for this malaria appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Louisiana state health officials are investigating a confirmed case of measles in New Orleans. The illness was confirmed through laboratory testing in a recent traveler from Europe to New Orleans. Measles is a highly contagious viral illness that can spread rapidly amongst individuals who are unvaccinated. In extreme cases, the illness can lead to hospitalization […]The post Measles case confirmed in New Orleans, Recent traveler from the UK appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

A DNA test method called polymerase chain reaction (PCR) allowed New York City health officials to identify the source of a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak within hours of specimen collection and should be considered in all Legionnaires’ outbreak investigations, researchers say in the April issue of the Journal of Environmental Health. Their study describes the outbreak response […]The post Legionnaires’ disease: PCR test used to rapidly solve outbreak appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In British Columbia today, the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) issued a warning concerning an increase in norovirus cases linked to raw oysters. Since early March 2018, approximately 40 cases of acute gastrointestinal illness have been reported to public health authorities in BC. All of the ill people reported consuming raw BC oysters. Laboratory testing […]The post Canada: Norovirus outbreak linked to British Columbia oysters appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The incidence of listeriosis cases in South Africa continues to steadily decline following the recall of the implicated food source which was initiated on Mar. 4. The source of the outbreak has been identified as ready-to-eat processed meat products manufactured at Enterprise Foods’ Polokwane production facility A total of 37 laboratory-confirmed cases are reported since […]The post Listeriosis outbreak in South Africa: Cases declining since recall appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the mumps outbreak in New Castle County, Delaware, health officials confirmed two additional cases Friday, bringing the total to 13. Nine of the thirteen persons with mumps attended either the Feb. 10, or March 3, 2018 social dance (Baile Mejicano) that took place at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington. […]The post Delaware mumps outbreak rises to 13 cases appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Health officials in Táchira state in western Venezuela have declared an alert due to an outbreak of the parasitic disease, Chagas disease. In the village of Puerto Nuevo, Libertador, the Health Corporation – Government of Tachira has reported 45 suspected Chagas disease cases, including five fatalities due to acute Chagas. Governor of the state Táchira, Laidy Gomez tweeted the […]The post Chagas outbreak kills five, sickens dozens in Táchira, Venezuela appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

After a record year for dengue fever in Sri Lanka in 2017, the first three months of 2018 saw a decrease in cases to date. In 2017, Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Health saw 186,101 cases, about 3 1/2 times the number of cases reported in 2016. In the first three months of 2018, health officials reported […]The post Sri Lanka: Dengue cases down in 1st three months of 2018 appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Seven additional confirmed measles cases have been reported in Portugal, bringing the total confirmed cases since February to 105, according to the Directorate-General for Health (DGS) (computer translated). The bulk of the cases are linked to the Santo António Hospital in Porto where some 85 cases have been reported in health care professionals. Of the total number […]The post Portugal measles cases top 100, eight out 10 are health professionals appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) reported today that three cases of measles have been confirmed in the last four days in the South Island–one each in Queenstown, Wanaka and Christchurch. At this time the common place of exposure for all three cases is Queenstown Airport, where all three are likely to have been in contact […]The post New Zealand: Three cases of measles confirmed in South Island, All unvaccinated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Officials with Queensland Health are reporting five cases of measles during the last three weeks. Four cases have been reported in the Brisbane and Logan regions and one case in Townsville. Movements of recent cases have included, but not limited to, the Fortitude Valley Entertainment Precinct, Brisbane focused around Ann and Wickham Streets from 11pm on 21 […]The post Queensland Health reports five measles cases in recent weeks appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

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Officials with NSW Health are advising consumers who have any imported frozen pomegranate purchased from Coles supermarkets in their freezer to not consume the product. Seven locally acquired cases of hepatitis A have been identified in which all had consumed the imported product from the supermarket. NSW Health is working with other States and Territories to determine […]The post Australia: Hepatitis A outbreak linked to frozen pomegranate sold at Coles Supermarket, Precautionary recall instituted appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago and Nosopharm, a biotechnology company based in Lyon, France, are part of an international team reporting on the discovery of a new class of antibiotics. The antibiotic, first identified by Nosopharm, is unique and promising on two fronts: its unconventional source and its distinct way of killing […]The post Newly discovered antibiotic class, Odilorhabdins, and how they work appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The New Jersey Department of Health announced they are in the preliminary stages of an investigation into eight cases of E. coli in four counties [Somerset (2), Hunterdon (4), Middlesex (1)and Warren (1)]. The Department is investigating a possible association with a chain restaurant, but the association may be broader than a single chain restaurant. Laboratory […]The post New Jersey officials investigate multi-county E. coli outbreak appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Mississippi has seen an increase in syphilis cases from 2015 to 2016 of 32 percent. “We want to make sure providers and the public are aware that we have seen recent increases in syphilis in Mississippi,” said Dr. Paul Byers, State Epidemiologist for the […]The post Mississippi reports increase in syphilis cases appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Officials with the San Francisco Department of Health are reporting six confirmed measles cases in the Bay area in the past month. All the cases were unvaccinated and were residents of Santa Clara County (5) and Alameda County (1). One additional linked case has been confirmed in Nevada. All cases are linked to an unvaccinated traveler […]The post San Francisco: Six measles cases confirmed in past month, All unvaccinated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Last year, experts with the University of Alberta warned of a dangerous tapeworm found in at least five people in recent years (Listen to the interview below). The parasite is called Echinococcus multilocularis (EM) and according to the University of Guelph, this same parasite has been reported in five dogs in Southern Ontario since 2012. Reports of […]The post Southern Ontario dogs infected with dangerous tapeworm appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

Officials with the Romania National Center for Communicable Disease Control and Control reports investigating a 47th measles fatality in Braila County (computer translated). From Jan. 1, 2016 through April 6, 2018, 11,988 measles cases have been confirmed, including 46 deaths. In the past week, officials reported 204 measles cases from 23 counties and Bucharest. Measles is […]The post Romania measles update: 47th death being investigated appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the outbreak of severe bleeding linked to synthetic cannabinoid use in Illinois, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is now reporting 95 cases through today. The death toll in this outbreak remains at two. More than 80 percent of the cases have been reported from Chicago and Peoria and Tazewell Counties. […]The post Illinois severe bleeding outbreak linked to synthetic cannabinoids update appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has agreed to assist the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) with investigating a large cluster of new HIV infections in the northeast region of the state among people who inject drugs and/or experience homelessness. After seeing the increase in new HIV cases last year in Lawrence and […]The post Massachusetts reports HIV increases in Lawrence and Lowell, CDC to assist in the investigation appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the multistate outbreak of Salmonella infections linked to kratom, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is reporting forty-five more ill people from 19 states, bringing the outbreak total to 132 cases from 38 states. Four outbreak strains have been identified: Salmonella I 4,[5],12:b:- (61), Salmonella Javiana (15), Salmonella Okatie (21), or Salmonella Thompson (35). Connecticut, Iowa, and Idaho reported their first […]The post Dozens more Salmonella cases reported in outbreak linked to kratom appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

In a follow-up on the meningococcal C outbreak in Fiji, the Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MoHMS) is now reporting 22 confirmed and 16 suspected or probable cases as of Apr. 5. In addition, six fatalities have been reported including 4 confirmed. There has been an average of 2.5 cases per week in the last 4 weeks. […]The post Meningococcal C outbreak: Fiji reports additional cases appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Malaysia Ministry of Health reported Thursday (computer translated) of an additional human rabies death in Sarawak state. This is the second human rabies death reported in the state this year and the seventh since last June. The case is a 26-year-old man from Kuching who had a dog bite history from Dec. 2017. The deceased never […]The post Malaysia reports another rabies death in Sarawak appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

A new blood test has been found to more accurately predict the development of tuberculosis up to two years before its onset in people living with someone with active TB, according to research published online in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, an American Thoracic Society journal. Those living with someone with active […]The post Tuberculosis: New blood test can predict onset 2-years in advance appeared first on Outbreak News Today.

The Tulsa Health Department is currently investigating a case of measles in Tulsa County. Measles was identified in a person who had returned to Oklahoma after international travel. Measles is a highly contagious respiratory disease and spreads through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes. It is possible to catch measles just […]The post Measles case reported in Tulsa, follows international travel appeared first on Outbreak News Today.