Outbreak News Today

State and local public health officials are concerned about a recent increase in cases of sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs. In 2014, Montana’s gonorrhea cases nearly doubled, to over 400, and the number of chlamydia cases increased to over 4,100. Many STDs are easy to cure, however, if undiagnosed and untreated complications can occur. “I […]

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control is seeking the public’s help in preventing the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses such as West Nile virus and chikungunya virus. “Anyone can help us identify and track the arrival of West Nile virus by submitting dead blue jays, crows, house sparrows, and house finches for testing,” said […]

Many people know that diseases can be transmitted from animals to humans, but few consider the risks correlated with household pets. That’s why researchers from Ohio State and partner institutions have compiled data from more than 500 studies to obtain information on how people can reduce their chances of contracting infections from a pet. Dr. […]

Poor quality medicines are a real and urgent threat that could undermine decades of successful efforts to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, according to the editors of a collection of journal articles published today. Scientists report up to 41 percent of specimens failed to meet quality standards in global studies of about 17,000 drug samples. […]

The Health Department today warned New Yorkers not to use synthetic cannabinoids – most commonly referred to as “synthetic marijuana” – after a significant increase in emergency department visits. Between April 8 and April 15, more than 120 emergency department visits related to synthetic cannabinoids were detected by the Health Department. During the first few […]

After a week’s worth of reports on the “mystery illness” in Nigeria’s Ondo State, which killed 19, it is now reported that it may be linked to methanol poisoning, according to a World Health Organization Regional Office in Africa report today. The Minister of State for Health, Mr. Fidelis Nwankwo has debunked the rumors of unidentified […]

Hawaii health officials are confirming a case of Angiostrongylus cantonensis, or rat lungworm, on Puna district on Hawaii Island and are concerned there may be more. This is not the first time the parasitic disease has been reported in Hawaii, in fact, it appears to be firmly established on the island state. The Hawaiian government had previously […]

Puerto Rico has the lowest incidence rate of new lung cancer compared with all other races and ethnic groups in the United States, according to a study published last week in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The report also shows that Puerto Rico has a lower incidence rate of […]

In a follow-up to an earlier report on a suspect hantavirus case in a La Plata County, CO resident, The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is now reporting the individual has died from the lethal virus, the Denver Post reports today. This is the second Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS) case reported in Colorado this […]

The chikungunya epidemic in the Americas continues to be fueled by activity in Colombia, which accounted for the vast majority of news suspected and confirmed cases reported by UN health agencies this week. The new total cases in the Western Hemisphere stands at 1,367,781 since the first cases were reported in the Caribbean in Dec. […]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday advised travelers to Egypt to protect themselves from H5N1 avian influenza by avoiding contact with wild birds, live or uncooked poultry, and body fluids from birds and poultry in light of the record numbers of human cases reported since the beginning of the year. The federal health […]

Just days after the report on a gastrointestinal outbreak on board Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Pearl, federal health officials are reporting another outbreak of unknown etiology. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports 100 illnesses among passengers and crew on Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Infinity. The voyage began on March 29 and will end in San […]

April is National Donate Life Month, a month-long celebration that commemorates those who have received or continue to wait for lifesaving transplants as well as the donors who save and heal lives. Donate Life America stresses the importance and impact of organ donation by noting that more than 24,000 patients began new lives in 2014 thanks to organ […]

With reports of avian influenza spreading across the United States and Canada, researchers with the University of Guelph in Ontario have developed a simple and effective portable tool to predict avian flu outbreaks on farms. U of G researchers devised a real-time way to analyze chickens and other farm birds for avian flu. The tool uses a […]

Colorado state health officials, in coordination with San Juan Basin Health are currently investigating a suspect case of Hantavirus in a La Plata County resident. Laboratory samples are being sent to the CDPHE lab for testing. There has been one confirmed case of Hantavirus in the state this year. CDPHE has documented more than 90 cases […]

After days of wondering what took the life a an 18-year-old Broad Run High School student in Loudoun County, VA, the mystery is now over. In a report Friday, Nancy Bull, an administrator in the northern district of the Virginia medical examiner’s office reported that Madison Small had died Tuesday of Neisseria sepsis, a bloodstream infection by the bacterium, […]

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) has been confirmed in a gyrfalcon from Columbia Falls. This is the first case of HPAI reported in the state. The gyrfalcon is the largest of the falcon species, weighing 2-3 pounds, and can be used as a captive bird for hunting and the art of falconry. The falcon died […]

Finally, a deal has been reached on the price of the meningococcal B vaccine, Bexsero, and the life-saving vaccine will become part of national childhood immunization schedule in the United Kingdom. The back-and-forth between the UK government and GlaxoSmithKline, which acquired the vaccine 3 weeks ago, ended with an agreement. In a statement from London, the pharmaceutical […]

Antibodies from dromedary camels protected uninfected mice from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and helped infected mice expunge the disease, according to a study published online March 18th in the Journal of Virology, a journal published by the American Society for Microbiology. MERS, which emerged in humans last year in the Saudi Arabian peninsula, causes […]

The seasonal flu vaccine prevented more than 40,000 flu-associated deaths in the United States during a nine year period from 2005-2006 through 2013-2014 according to estimates in a new study published in the journal Vaccine. This estimate represents a little less than a one-quarter (22%) reduction in the deaths that would have occurred in the […]

From August 2014 to March 2015, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) verified reports of 115 children in 34 states who developed acute flaccid myelitis. Now a research team led by scientists from the University of California, San Francisco found the genetic signature of enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) in half of the California and Colorado children diagnosed with […]

The popularity of hunting feral hogs in Alabama has increased during the past few years as land managers target these animals to keep the population in check. Because handling harvested hogs brings with it a small chance of contracting swine brucellosis, officials with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources are reminding hunters to […]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lead new programs totaling more than $185 million in HIV prevention funding for men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people, with a particular focus on addressing the needs of MSM of color. The multi-faceted strategy will respond to the severe burden of HIV among […]

For the first time in two weeks, the California Department of Public Health reported a new confirmed measles case in a Los Angeles resident. This brings the total cases in California to 134 since December 2014. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) puts the measles tally at 178 people from 17 states and the […]

The topics on the Sunday, March 29 airing of the Outbreak News This Week Radio show included the antibiotic treatment of a serious Rickettsial infection, the call for vaccinating against Japanese encephalitis in the Philippines and the story of family who is dealing with a rare cancer in their 2-year-old daughter. CDC epidemiologist and author of a […]

According to a report published in ProMED Mail, officials say 12-year old boy died of furious rabies during treatment at Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal. The patient was bitten by an unknown stray dog (puppy) in the tip of the index finger. The wound was unnoticeable and hence the boy did not […]

The country of the Horn of Africa is currently battling outbreaks in two vaccine-preventable diseases, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). To date, 2,190 suspected measles cases were reported in 61 separate outbreaks in Ethiopia, of which 929 cases were confirmed positive. The majority of the cases were from Nejo […]

The number of H1N1 influenza, or swine flu deaths have increased by some 600 in the past two weeks in India as health officials now report the swine flu death tally at 2,011. The number of people affected by the seasonal flu is now more than 33,000 with Gujarat state being hit the hardest with 6,468 cases […]

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H5N2 avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial turkey flock in Stearns County, Minnesota. This is the third confirmation in a commercial flock in Minnesota. The flock of 39,000 turkeys is located within the Mississippi […]

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi, announced Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved use of Quadracel™ (Diphtheria and Tetanus Toxoids and Acellular Pertussis Absorbed and Inactivated Poliovirus; DTaP-IPV) vaccine for active immunization against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and poliomyelitis in children 4 through 6 years of age. “The FDA approval of […]

San Diego County health officials say a rabid bat was found at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and are interested to know if anyone who was in the park directly handled the rabid bat. The County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency says the bat was found dead on March 25 at 4:30 p.m. […]

The Obama administration released their 62-page plan the curb antibiotic resistance titled, National Strategy on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, and the detailed plan received mixed reviews from several organizations with a direct interest in the topic. In a blog post by Sylvia Mathews Burwell, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services; Tom Vilsack, Secretary of the Department […]

One year after Australia, Macao (China), Mongolia and the Republic of Korea were declared measles-free, the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region added Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia and Japan to the list of countries and areas in the Western Pacific Region that have successfully eliminated measles. The Region has made substantial progress, with measles deaths dropping to 1500 in 2013 […]

State health officials reported today a total of 81 HIV positive tests, which includes 74 confirmed and 7 preliminary cases related to the outbreak in southeastern Indiana. Oral fluid HIV tests (swab in the mouth to collect saliva), which are being utilized, are very accurate and all of the preliminary positives in the outbreak have […]

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H5N2 avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial turkey flock in Lac Qui Parle County, Minnesota. This is the second confirmation in a commercial flock in Minnesota. The flock of 66,000 turkeys is located within […]

An outbreak of scabies has affected 197 children under the age of 10 in the municipality of Caala, in Huambo province in the south African country of Angola, according to an Angola Press report (computer translated). Head of the municipal health department, Albino Ndumbi Ernesto said the cases were found in the localities of Sipiti, Calomanda, Catetele […]

In a follow-up to a report on the local transmission of chikungunya on the Cook Islands from early February, health officials report the outbreak is showing a steady increasing trend since the first cases were reported last November 2014. As of Mar. 15, Cook Islands put the case count at 174 cases with 13 additional […]

In response to a large-scale measles outbreak, Kyrgyzstan will initiate a mass measles vaccination campaign on 16 March 2015, targeting over 2 million people aged 1–20 years in the country. The outbreak, which began in early 2014, has caused over 11 300 suspected cases to date and continues to increase by 120–250 suspected cases every […]

Health officials in two different areas of the Philippine archipelago are raising awareness of animal bites and rabies as the number of animal bites reported in each region increased significantly in 2014. The Provincial Health Office (PHO) in the Western Visayas province of Negros Occidental are calling on animal bite victims to go to their animal bite […]

Taylor Farms Florida Inc., of Orlando, FL is voluntarily recalling a limited quantity of Kale and Quinoa Salad because they have the potential of containing an undeclared soy allergen within the dressing packet in the salad. The recall was initiated after it was discovered that the ingredient label on the bottom of the packaging did […]

Texas Star Nut and Food Co., Inc. of Boerne, Texas is voluntarily recalling Nature’s Eats Natural Macadamia Nuts, Lot Code #31435001, because it has 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 […]

La Terra Fina issued a voluntary recall of its Organic Spinach Dip due to a potential health risk from Listeria exposure. The recall of product available in Bay Area Costco stores is a precaution. This is the only product that has been impacted and there have been no reports of illness. The quality of its products […]

The number of imported, or travel-associated chikungunya cases in the United Kingdom has increased 12-fold from 2013 to 2014, according to new data from Public Health England. In 2013, England, Wales and Northern Ireland recorded 24 imported chikungunya cases, while this number exploded to 295 in 2014 and the vast majority of cases (88%) were linked […]

At least five Souderton Area High School Students have been confirmed positive for pertussis, or whooping cough, prompting Montgomery County health officials to classify the situation as an outbreak at the school. The Souderton Area School District says they are working closely with county health officials to monitor and respond to this issue. The school has increased its […]

Health officials in Newfoundland are reporting an outbreak of the sexually transmitted infection, syphilis, and are advising safe-sex practices to the non-monogamous public. Eastern Health is reporting 15 confirmed syphilis cases during the first 2 1/2 months of 2015, this compares to reporting 26 cases during all of 2014. Health officials say the majority of these […]

Just a month after Kosovo health officials declared a tularemia outbreak, neighboring country, Macedonia has started reporting cases of the bacterial infection in several areas, according to a Focus Information Agency report. Health authorities in Skopje have officially registered nine cases of tularemia and say there are another five suspect cases. Also known as rabbit fever […]

Trader Joe’s Company is recalling Raw Walnuts because these products 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 with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, […]

It what seems like stating the obvious, new research from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Boston Children’s Hospital scientists published yesterday in JAMA Pediatrics concludes that substandard vaccination compliance is likely to blame for the 2015 measles outbreak that to date has totaled 176 people from 17 states and the District of Columbia. 130, or 74% of […]

Twenty-two years ago this month, residents of Milwaukee started falling ill with nausea, diarrhea and abdominal cramps. At first, a highly contagious intestinal virus was blamed. But as symptoms struck tens of thousands of people – closing schools and businesses and nearly bringing the city to a standstill – health officials discovered the culprit: a […]

A Yale University scientist has developed a promising new method to identify malaria in the bone marrow of ancient human remains. It is the first time researchers have been able to establish a diagnostic, human skeletal profile for the disease, which is transmitted by mosquitoes and continues to infect millions of people a year. The […]