Outbreak News Today

At least eight confirmed and suspected cases of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) have been reported in scouts from Scotland and Sweden after returning from a scout gathering in Yamaguchi City in Japan earlier this month. To date, only Sweden (4) and the UK (4) have reported cases in scouts who attended the 23rd World Scout Jamboree and their […]

Mesa County health officials are reporting the second human case of tularemia in a county woman and believe she was likely exposed to the infection through a bite from a deer fly or tick while spending time on the Ruby-Horsethief section of the Colorado River. Earlier this month, a Mesa County woman became the second human […]

Just one day after the US National Institutes of Health reported that students who have used electronic cigarettes by the time they start ninth grade are more likely than others to start smoking traditional cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products, an expert independent evidence review published Wednesday by Public Health England (PHE) concludes that e-cigarettes are […]

Chetak New York L.L.C. of Edison, NJ is recalling 300 jars of 14.1 oz “Deep Coriander Powder”, Lot# LE15152, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected […]

A third person from Hillsborough County, FL has died as a result of an infection with the bacterial pathogen, Vibrio vulnificus, according to state health officials. This bring the death toll due to vibriosis caused by V. vulnificus to 11. There has been 24 cases, fatal and non-fatal, reported to date in 2015. The two […]

The District of Columbia Department of Health (DOH) has confirmed a single human case of West Nile Virus. DOH officials have been closely monitoring the well-being of the District of Columbia resident who has since improved and been released from a local hospital. A West Nile virus human case has been identified during the summer […]

The blastomycosis outbreak being investigated in Waupaca County, Wisconsin has grown to 18 confirmed cases, up five during the past week. The Wisconsin Division of Public Health puts the number of probable cases at 13. They continue to advise the public who visited the Little Wolf River since Memorial Day weekend (May 23-25, 2015), they may have been […]

Volunteer for a Hookworm Infection Study at the George Washington Medical Faculty Associates We are looking for healthy D.C.-area adults 18-45 years of age who are willing to participate in a research study on hookworm infection. This study will help us to understand hookworm disease, which affects over 700 million people in developing countries. For […]

The New York City Health Department’s Public Health Laboratory, in close coordination with the State’s Wadsworth Center Laboratory and the CDC, today announced that they had identified the source of the Legionnaires’ Disease outbreak in the South Bronx and declared the outbreak over. After extensive sampling of cooling towers and testing of Legionella bacteria, the […]

Johnson County, Kansas health officials are reporting three cases of the parasitic infection, cryptosporidiosis, linked to pools in the cities of Overland Park and Shawnee. The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment (JCDHE) is working closely with pool operators in Overland Park and Shawnee for cautionary measures to close and/or treat those known swimming pools […]

Health officials in New Mexico are reporting another case of human plague, this time in a Bernalillo County man. The 65-year-old unnamed man is the second case in the state so far this year. In July, a 52-year-old Santa Fe County woman was the first case and fatality from plague in New Mexico in 2015. In […]

During the press conference this morning on the condition and future of former US President Jimmy Carter, Mr Carter explained his situation with his cancer and it’s spread to his brain. The 90-year-old Carter, who appeared in exceptional spirits, as part of the press conference Q & A, discussed his work with the Carter Center, […]

Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti (HAS), a hospital and community health system located in Haiti’s rural Artibonite Valley founded in 1956 by Dr. Larry Mellon and his wife Gwen, has been awarded a $75,000 grant from the M·A·C AIDS Fund to bolster efforts for HIV prevention and effective treatment. The grant will better equip the hospital […]

With school starting, or already started in many areas of the country, a Southern Illinois University researcher in a presentation at the 250th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) report that lice populations in at least 25 states have developed resistance to over-the-counter treatments still widely recommended by doctors and schools. “We […]

Following reports of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) bacteria infections linked to endoscopic procedures performed at various hospitals, including Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center earlier in the year, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported on complaints of at least 16 patients who contracted a Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection, of which some resulted in abscesses, after undergoing an endoscopic procedure with […]

The patient from Georgia, who likely contracted plague while hiking in California’s Yosemite National Park, is hospitalized and being treated with antibiotics, and is expected to make a full recovery. Yersinia pestis infection has not been confirmed as of this writing and the Georgia Public Health Laboratory (GPHL) and the CDC are busy analyzing the samples. The Georgia […]

Mississippi health officials are reporting the first case of rabies in a land animal in the state in 54 years. The case was identified in a feral cat in Starkville described as a small, black and white kitten. Exposures to the rabid cat were reported in downtown Starkville and in a remote area in the general […]

Officials with the City of El Paso Department of Public Health have reported a jump in human West Nile virus cases in light of recent rains and high temperatures. They have confirmed six additional cases locally involving three people who all live in the Mission Valley. In addition, the other new cases include an elderly man who […]

In a follow-up to a report last week about the Vibrio parahaemolyticus outbreak in Canada’s western provinces, Canadian health officials are now reporting an additional five cases of the gastrointestinal infection, bringing the total cases to 72. As of Aug. 19, a total of 72 cases have been reported in British Columbia (53) and Alberta (19). One […]

A novel synthetic DNA vaccine can, for the first time, induce protective immunity against the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus in animal species, reported researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. David B. Weiner, PhD, a professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and colleagues published their work in Science […]

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has confirmed the first human West Nile virus case reported in Illinois for 2015. The St. Clair County Health Department reported an adolescent female became ill in August. “The recent hot, dry weather in Illinois has increased the number of mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus,” said Illinois Department […]

The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) today reported the first fatality in the state due to the mosquito borne virus, West Nile virus (WNV). The patient was a 91-year-old man from Williams County who was hospitalized with neuroinvasive WNV (encephalitis). Health officials note that there have been eight reported human cases of WNV in Ohio this […]

Back in November of last year, the Ebola outbreak was in full force in Western Africa and the African country of Madagascar was reporting their annual outbreak of plague reported about every year. At the time the plague outbreak was being reported, some media outlets irresponsibly compared the two as one headline stated: “Quit stressing about […]

In an update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week, health officials report an additional 19 cases of cyclosporiasis during the past week bringing the total to 476 ill persons with confirmed Cyclospora infection were reported to CDC in 2015. Cases have been confirmed from 58 percent of the states (29). Health officials […]

Coconino County health officials reported two cases of the bacterial disease, tularemia. These two unrelated cases are the first seen in the county since 2005. The two individuals were likely exposed from insect bites sometime in July, according to Trish Lees, spokeswoman with the Coconino County Public Health Services District. One of the people was […]

What are CGMP regulations? Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP) regulations are guidelines which are set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), United States’ food, drug and cosmetic product safety governing body. CGMPs provide guidelines to develop systems which ensure that manufacturing facilities and processes are properly designed, monitored and controlled. An industry that operates […]

California health officials are reporting today a second (presumptive) human plague case in a visitor to Yosemite National Park. This follows the case of a Los Angeles County boy who contracted the dangerous bacterial infection in mid-July. California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Health Officer Dr. Karen Smith said the health department was […]

People who delay or refuse vaccines for themselves or their children are presenting a growing challenge for countries seeking to close the immunization gap. Globally, 1 in 5 children still do not receive routine life-saving immunizations, and an estimated 1.5 million children still die each year of diseases that could be prevented by vaccines that […]

In a follow-up to an earlier report, The Alabama Department of Public Health Bureau of Clinical Laboratories obtained negative results on follow-up tests for a patient in Alabama who had been tested for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV). The individual presented to a hospital in the state on Aug. 13 with respiratory problems. Because of a […]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Addyi (flibanserin) to treat acquired, generalized hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in premenopausal women. Prior to Addyi’s approval, there were no FDA-approved treatments for sexual desire disorders in men or women. “Today’s approval provides women distressed by their low sexual desire with an approved treatment option,” said […]

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) confirmed the presence of the Naegleria fowleri amoeba in the Schriever Water System at the site 588 Island Road, Montegut (Pointe Aux Chenes). The water system, which serves approximately 97,000 residents in the Houma area, was tested by DHH as part of the State’s new public drinking […]

The first human case of West Nile virus infection in Indiana has been reported in Huntington County, State health officials announced today. Hoosiers are encouraged to take steps to protect themselves from West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne diseases. “Unfortunately, this is the time of the year when West Nile virus infection is on the rise […]

The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) today is announcing the first confirmed and locally acquired case of West Nile Virus (WNV) in Maryland this year. The infected individual is an adult who lives in the Baltimore Metropolitan region. In addition, WNV also has been detected in mosquito pools collected in Anne Arundel and […]

Students who have used electronic cigarettes by the time they start ninth grade are more likely than others to start smoking traditional cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products within the next year, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. E-cigarettes deliver nicotine to the lungs by heating a liquid solution […]

The outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Riyadh, Saidi Arabia has grown by nineteen cases since Monday, according to the Ministry of Health HERE and HERE. In fact, Avian Flu Diary reports 55 MERS cases in the Saudi capital during the past 15 days. The World Health Organization (WHO) today reported on 12 […]

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is reporting a surge of dengue fever in the Indian capital as officials report 158 new cases during the past week, bringing the total to 277 this year. This compares to to the 26 cases reported last year. This is the highest number of cases in the city in at […]

When a fever strikes in a developing area, the immediate concern may be: Is it the common flu or something much worse that requires quarantine? To facilitate diagnosis in remote, low-resource settings, researchers have developed a paper-based device that changes color, depending on whether the patient has Ebola, yellow fever or dengue. The test takes […]

The number of measles cases in war-torn Iraq has risen this far in 2015 compared to the previous two years, according to an OCHA Humanitarian Crisis Situation Report. The country, which has seen more than 3 million people displaced during the past year and a half, has seen the number of confirmed measles cases between […]

While the vast majority of presidential wannabes converge upon the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines this week, ophthalmologist and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul has gone to Haiti on a medical mission with the Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah. No helicopters, no cotton candy and no speeches for the Duke trained eye […]

In an update on the cyclosporiasis outbreak north of the border, Canadian health officials now report an additional four cases, bringing the total cases to 87 in four provinces. The additional cases include three in Ontario and one in British Columbia. The breakdown of the 87 cases include: British Columbia (4), Alberta (1), Ontario (77), and Quebec (5). Two cases have been hospitalized, […]

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced the state’s first positive case of West Nile Virus (WNV) in a horse in 2015. The horse, a five-year-old Choctaw mare, is from Orange County. The horse was not currently vaccinated for WNV. The onset of WNV symptoms started August 3, 2015. The horse was […]

Today the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) reports four new human cases of West Nile virus (WNV), bringing the total for 2015 to 11 cases. The reported cases are in Forrest, Hinds and Rankin (2) counties. So far this year, cases have been reported in Adams, Covington, Forrest (2), Hinds (3), Rankin (3) and […]

Pfenex Inc., announced today it has signed a five year, cost plus fixed fee contract valued at up to $143.5 million with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), for the advanced development of Px563L, a mutant recombinant protective antigen anthrax vaccine. “This contract for […]

Donald Trump is clearly leading in the polls for the Republican Presidential primary and Mr Trump gets enormous amounts of media attention and is a warehouse of quotes. Here I’ve compiled a list of quotes by Mr Trump related to various areas of health care and medicine, let’s take a look: Vaccines Mr Trump has […]

On Saturday, Outbreak News Today published a story on the West Nile virus (WNV) situation in the European Union and surrounding areas. Part of that report was on the first human WNV case in Serbia. Today, Serbian media have reported on the death of a 56-year-old man from the mosquito borne viral disease. “The patient […]

Agriculture & Industries Commissioner John McMillan announces that two positive tests for Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) have been reported by the department’s diagnostic laboratory located in Auburn. One sample was collected from a horse located in Dallas county and the other sample was collected from a horse located in Mississippi. “This is the time of […]

Two regions in the country of more than 7,000 islands have reported outbreaks of the mosquito borne viral disease, chikungunya, during the past week, both linked to issues of sanitation. First, CNN reported Wednesday that officials in Ilocos Norte, in the northern most regions of Luzon Island, have confirmed that at least 50 suspected cases of […]

A week after Wisconsin health officials announced an investigation into a outbreak of the fungal infection, Blastomycosis, some say linked to the Little Wolf River area in Waupaca County near New London, the ongoing investigation has revealed a significant increase in cases. The Wisconsin Division of Public Health (WDPH) said Friday that the number of confirmed cases […]

A Brooklyn man, in his 60’s, is the first human West Nile virus (WNV) case of the year, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene via CBS News today. It is reported that the individual has been treated and discharged from a local hospital. “This first case of West Nile virus […]

The number of Brazilians who have died from severe dengue has hit 600, according to country health authorities. Of the 600, 360, or 60 percent of the fatalities are reported from the most populous state in in Brazil, Sao Paulo. The 600 dengue-related deaths reported thus far in 2015, easily eclipses the number of fatalities […]