Outbreak News Today

Binh Phuoc Province health officials said seven people have contracted the vaccine preventable disease, diphtheria, in recent weeks, of which three patients under the age of 24 died, according to local media. Bình Phuoc is is located in the Southeast region of the country, to the north of Hồ Chí Minh City. It shares a […]

Through July 12, Malaysian health officials have reported 60,085 dengue fever cases in 2016, after an additional 344 cases were reported yesterday. In addition, 134 dengue related fatalities have been reported by health authorities. Fifty-four percent, or 32,341 cases were reported from Selangor state, while 7,673 were reported from Johor and nearly 4500 from Kuala […]

Out of an abundance of caution, two flavors of Betty Crocker cake mix sold in the U.S. and one flavor sold in Canada have been added to General Mills’ previously announced flour recall from July 1, 2016. No illnesses reported to date have been connected to cake mix. No other General Mills or Betty Crocker […]

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) today announced the second case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) in a Virginia horse this year. The horse, a thoroughbred, was from Suffolk. The horse had been vaccinated and is recovering. Without vaccination the mortality rate is 80 to 90 percent. VDACS received confirmation of the […]

The Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH) is investigating a confirmed case of Hepatitis A in a food service employee at the ice cream specialty store, Baskin-Robbins, located at the Waikele Center in Waipahu. The department is advising persons who consumed any food or drink products from this store between June 17 and July 3, […]

The City of Albuquerque Environmental Health Department, the New Mexico Department of Health and the Bernalillo County Health Protection Section announced today that 2 cases of human tularemia have been confirmed from Bernalillo County, with one of the individuals likely being exposed in the bosque. These are the first two laboratory confirmed human cases in […]

Alberta Health Services (AHS) has confirmed a case of hepatitis A in a food handler working at two Edo Japan locations – Manning Town Centre (Edmonton) located at 15426-37 St., and Tudor Glen South (St. Albert) located at 3510 Tudor Glen Market. Patrons who consumed food from these Edo Japan locations in Edmonton and St. […]

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) announced today that a New Castle County man has tested positive for the Zika virus bringing the total number of cases in Delaware to eight. All of the Zika positive test results are due to a mosquito bite while traveling abroad and none involve a pregnancy. The man […]

The New York City Health Department issued a health alert today to providers that emphasizes the importance of testing pregnant women for syphilis as infection rates rise in New York City (NYC). Mirroring overall trends in syphilis prevalence in the United States, rates of primary and secondary syphilis among NYC women have risen 36 percent from […]

The El Salvador Ministry of Health issued a health warning about increased number of typhoid fever in the country reported in recent week, according to a local media report (computer translated). Health officials say the increases were detected via the early warning system. For the first six months of the year, El Salvador has seen 477 […]

Children who are thumb-suckers or nail-biters are less likely to develop allergic sensitivities, new research has found. And, if they have both ‘bad habits’, they are even less likely to be allergic to such things as house dust mites, grass, cats, dogs, horses or airborne fungi. The research, published in the journal Pediatrics today, was […]

The Chinese National Health and Family Planning Commission and Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province reported on an additional imported case of Zika Virus infection today. The patient is a 40-year-old woman who lives in Suriname. She arrived at Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou on July 9, and reported that she had developed skin […]

A third case of travel-related Zika virus was recently reported to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. The person is a woman in her 20s from Douglas County who recently traveled to a Zika-affected country. She wasn’t hospitalized. In February, DHHS announced the state’s first travel-related Zika cases. One was in Douglas County […]

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer detailed the latest Zika virus numbers, which show Long Island has the most confirmed cases in New York State, outside of New York City. Schumer said Congress is about to go on summer recess and that it is irresponsible to go on recess without a real funding bill to […]

In a follow-up to reports last month that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were investigating a multistate outbreak of Burkholderia cepacia (B. cepacia complex), federal health officials now released more details on the investigation. As of July 8, 47 B. cepacia complex cases have been confirmed by molecular typing […]

Another school year will soon begin for many students in Tennessee and now is the time to make sure they receive the required immunizations for school attendance. ‘’Vaccines are critical protection for our own children and help keep other kids around them safe from many diseases,’’ said TDH Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH. “The measles outbreak […]

A growing number of people in Vermont are becoming ill with diseases spread by ticks, such as Lyme disease and anaplasmosis. The good news is these illnesses are preventable. To help you be tick smart, the Vermont Department of Health’s Brattleboro District Office is holding a series of presentations about the simple actions you can […]

The Department of Public Health and Commissioner Dr. Raul Pino today announced updated Zika figures and hundreds of thousands of dollars in new funding to combat the virus. According to test results released today by the state Department of Public Health (DPH), of 25 Connecticut patients who have tested positive for the Zika virus, 16 […]

Five percent of adults from a cohort of 400 people reported using antibiotics without a prescription during the previous 12 months. Twenty-five percent said they would use antibiotics without contacting a medical professional. These findings demonstrate yet another factor abetting the spread of antibiotic resistance. The research is published ahead of print July 11 in […]

NSW Health is urging the community to wash their hands and stay at home if affected by gastroenteritis, following an increase in emergency department presentations in hospitals across the state. More than 1600 people attended NSW emergency departments with gastroenteritis in the past week, a 14 per cent increase on the usual number for this […]

As the intense heat of late summer drives Oklahomans to find relief in lakes, rivers and streams, the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) wants to remind everyone of the risk of water-related illness as natural bodies of water are not disinfected. Recreational bodies of water can be contaminated with germs from sewage spills, animal […]

In a recent CBS News report, which took data from a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute joint program, called County Health Rankings & Roadmaps and compiled the top 20 “drunkest cities” in the US. What was found was that Wisconsin accounted for 60 percent of the top 20. The report notes that […]

In an article published in PLoS Genetics on July 5, scientists from the Institut Pasteur and the Belgian-based Université catholique de Louvain identify for the first time the genetic and metabolic mechanisms underpinning the therapeutic action of a bacteriophage known for its therapeutic potential. Given the worrying rise in bacterial resistance to antibiotics and the […]

In a follow up to a report Friday, The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has established an Avian Influenza Control Zone in Ontario to control the movement of animals, products and equipment in the area to minimize disease spread. The boundary of the Avian Influenza Control Zone covers a 3km radius from the single premises confirmed […]

Lyme disease expert, Clinical Director for the Division of Infectious Diseases and Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Paul Auwaerter joined me on last evenings Outbreak News This Week Radio Show to answer questions about Lyme disease diagnostic testing, treatment, chronic Lyme disease and Lyme literate physicians. LISTEN to the podcast of the show below: The […]

Boulder, CO police responded to a report of an 18-year-old man who purposely ingested ricin after manufacturing it in his home in the 900 block of Poplar Place. The victim died later in the evening at the University of Colorado Hospital. According to Tom Dowd, Detective Sergeant with the Boulder Police Department, they worked with the Boulder […]

This is a viral infection of the skin caused by a poxvirus. It results in lesions that are smooth, firm and spherical ranging in size from 2-5mm. The lesions may be yellow, white or flesh colored. They may show an indentation at the top of the lesion. This infection is most frequently seen in children […]

Sri Lanka health officials have seen the total dengue fever case tally rise by 1845 since our last report, bringing the total to 22,799 through July 8. The capital region of Colombo has recorded 7369 cases to date alone. Local media reports that the death toll due to dengue is 40 in Sri Lanka to date. The World […]

The number of people infected with the parasitic disease, trichinosis, has grown to 20 people in the Irkutsk region of Siberia, Russia, according to a Sib.fm report (computer translated). The public health investigation reveals that the hunters contracted the parasite in May after preparing smoked bear meat which was consumed. Shortly after consuming the not fully […]

I spoke with Dr Bobbi Pritt with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota on the February 14, 2016 airing of the Outbreak News This Week Radio Show about the recently published discovery of a new species of bacteria (Borrelia mayonii) that causes Lyme disease in people. Dr. Pritt discussed how Mayo researchers made the discovery and […]

In the latest update from the Colombian National Institute of Health (computer translated), health officials reported an additional 1134 suspected Zika virus cases during the past week, with slightly more than half of the cases actually delayed from previous weeks. During the past month, Colombia has averaged some 1400 Zika cases per week. Since the beginning of […]

A deadly bacteria that can be picked up by a simple sniff can travel to the brain and spinal cord in just 24 hours, a new Griffith University and Bond University study has found. The pathogenic bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei, which causes the potentially fatal disease melioidosis, kills 89,000 people around the world each year and […]

Tracing the movements of patients at a South Korean hospital has helped identify how Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus was transmitted from a single super-spreader patient in an overcrowded emergency room to a total of 82 individuals over three days including patients, visitors and health-care workers. The study, published Friday in The Lancet, maps […]

The Kroger Co. has recalled Kroger Deluxe S’mores Ice Cream (48 oz, tub) sold in its retail stores because the product may contain peanuts not listed on the label. Kroger initiated the recall when a supplier, Grain Craft, indicated a raw ingredient may have become contaminated with low levels of peanut residue. People who are […]

Venezuela recorded the most malaria cases in decades in 2015 (HERE), ending the year with a total 136,402 cases. However, the data for the first 25 weeks of 2016 put the country over the 100,000 case threshold, a whopping 68 percent increase compared to the same period in the record year of 2015, according to the […]

Health officials in Brazil say they are seeing the most deaths due to influenza A (H1N1) since 2009, the year of the worldwide pandemic, Brazilian media reported Thursday (computer translated). Through June 25, Brazil has reported 1,233 deaths due to H1N1 influenza with 112 deaths reported in just the past week. More than 6500 H1N1 influenza cases […]

On July 1, 2016, an unvaccinated five (5) year-old grey thoroughbred (TB) mare in San Diego County displaying neurologic signs including ataxia, depression, stiffness in neck and spine an severe lip twitching, was confirmed positive for West Nile Virus (WNV). The onset of clinical signs began on July 24th. The mare is alive and recovering slowly. West […]

Infection with Strongyloides stercoralis is frequently asymptomatic or may show few clinical signs. However on occasion it can persist for many years due to autoinfection and depending on the immune status of the individual, be life threatening with dissemination and hyperinfection. Humans get infected with this nematode parasite by its ability to penetrate skin. They […]

Though this horribly disabling disease is virtually unknown to many Americans, trachoma is responsible for an estimated 7-8 million cases of permanent blindness particularly in the Middle East and Africa. The organism that causes trachoma is Chlamydia trachomatis serovars A-C. These types are different from the types of Chlamydia that commonly cause the sexually transmitted […]

Aflatoxin is a potent toxin and a very serious health issue in many parts of the developing world. Major outbreaks have been seen in Africa, India, Malaysia and Taiwan over the years. This mycotoxin is a natural toxin produced as a secondary metabolite to certain strains of the fungus Aspergillus, in particular Aspergillus flavus and […]

The Gram stain: even many lay people have heard of this basic but incredibly important test that serves an integral role in the microbiology laboratory. Here I would like to give a brief overview over the basics of the Gram stain. The staining procedure for bacteria was discovered over 100 years ago by Hans Christian […]

Walking pneumonia is a very common type of respiratory illness, with an estimated 2 million cases annually in the United States, caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae. The mycoplasmas are the smallest known free-living bacteria and are unique because they lack a cell wall. “Walking pneumonia” is an atypical pneumonia and gets its name from the fact […]

Schistosomiasis, also referred to as Bilharzia and Katayama fever, is an infection with a type of Schistosoma parasite. The schistosomes or blood flukes are parasites that have been around since antiquity. It was described in writings in the Gynacological Papyrus of Kahun from 1900 BC. Calcified ova have been found in Egyptian mummies from 1250 […]

Last week, U.S. Senator and physician Rand Paul applauded the decision of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to implement changes called for by Dr. Paul and a bipartisan Senate coalition to increase access to much-needed treatment for those battling an opioid addiction. The Administration announced today that HHS will raise the number of […]

A case of hepatitis A has been reported in a food handler at the Pizza Works restaurant in Custer. The food handler worked shifts between June 19 and July 5. Individuals who ate at the restaurant during that time period should contact their health care provider to determine if they need a shot of immune […]

An outbreak of schistosomiasis, or bilharzia that affected dozens of school children at Maradu Primary School in Francistown, Botswana is reportedly under control, according to Dr Gobezie Solomon, coordinator of the District Health Management Team (DHMT) of Greater Francistown. The outbreak that began in mid-May resulted in 42 positive cases of schistosomiasis. All the 42 cases were registered […]

Over time on this radio program, I’ve had a number of Lyme disease advocates on the show discussing their positions on the various aspects of the bacterial disease (HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE ). In an effort to offer some balance to these viewpoints, I had a discussion with the Clinical Director for the Division of Infectious Diseases […]

Health and Social Security Minister Nickolas Steele says there is need for a collective effort to mitigate against the effects of Zika, with nine confirmed and 30 suspected cases of the virus. During the weekly post cabinet briefing, Minister Steele said two persons are currently warded with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), at the General Hospital. Guillain-Barré is a disorder in which the body’s […]

Carson City Health and Human Services (CCHHS) and Douglas County Mosquito Abatement (DCMA) are reporting the first human case of West Nile virus in the Carson City-Douglas County area for 2016. The 65+-year-old individual confirmed to have West Nile Virus had the more serious form of the illness, which can impact the brain and surrounding […]

In a follow-up to a report earlier today, the Salt Lake County Health Department (SLCoHD) announced that a county resident infected with ‪‎Zika‬ virus died in late June. The deceased individual, who was elderly and had an underlying health condition, had traveled this year to an area of the world where mosquitoes are known to […]