Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
ABC News For the first time, Los Angeles County health officials have identified a cluster of dengue fever cases that are not travel-related. Could we be seeing more of this disease in places it’s not usually found? Experts say it’s important for residents to protect themselves. We’ve grown accustomed to these aggressive ankle-biting insects. But […]
Sep 25, 2024
A virus that could lead to paralysis in kids is on the rise. How worried should parents be?
CNN Rates of enterovirus D68 infections are on the rise across the United States, according to the nonprofit WastewaterSCAN network. This common virus can lead to a rare but serious polio-like complication known as acute flaccid myelitis. Symptoms of acute flaccid myelitis include limb weakness and paralysis. Children are among those most affected by this condition. What is enterovirus D68, and how is it spread? What are its […]
Sep 25, 2024
Whooping cough spikes, especially among unvaccinated teens
NBC News Pertussis outbreaks are at the highest level in a decade and doctors say many cases are going undetected — allowing people to spread the bacterial infection unknowingly for weeks. The U.S. is experiencing more than four times as many whooping cough cases compared with last year — a spike that some experts attribute to post-pandemic […]
Sep 25, 2024
Minnesota: Measles outbreak sickens 51
Minnesota News At least 51 people have been sickened by measles in Minnesota since May, with nearly one quarter of them ending up hospitalized, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Health. Nearly all the cases are in Hennepin County, and MPR News reports that most are among unvaccinated children in the Somali community. Overall childhood […]
Sep 25, 2024
Mpox cases in L.A. County on the rise, Public Health warns
KTLA News The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is warning about a rise in mpox cases in the Los Angeles area and urging those at the highest risk of transmission to get vaccinated against the potentially serious disease. On Monday, Public Health announced that 52 cases of the disease had been reported in […]
Sep 25, 2024
Bird flu control strategies ‘not working’: Gaps in data highlight potential for silent spread
Medical Express A review of sustained mammal-to-mammal bird flu transmission in diverse species, led by The Pirbright Institute, shows global control strategies are not working. Writing in Nature, researchers analyzed whether outbreaks in European fur farms, South American marine mammals and United States dairy cattle raise questions about whether humans are next. Led by zoonotic influenza […]
Sep 25, 2024
Deadly Fungal Infections Causing a ‘Silent Pandemic’, Scientists Warn
Science Alert Fungal infections are also adapting beyond the means of our medicine, causing a “silent pandemic” that needs to be addressed urgently, according to some researchers. “The threat of fungal pathogens and antifungal resistance, even though it is a growing global issue, is being left out of the debate,” explains molecular biologist Norman van Rhijn from […]
Sep 25, 2024
India confirms first case of deadlier mpox strain
CNN India has confirmed its first case of a deadlier strain of mpox, which has raised alarm among health officials around the world over the rapid pace of its spread. The clade Ib strain of the virus was confirmed by health authorities in the southern state of Kerala after being detected last week in a 38-year-old […]
Sep 25, 2024
Remdesivir-Dexamethasone Tied to Fewer Deaths in Severe COVID
MedPage Treatment with the antiviral remdesivir (Veklury) plus dexamethasone was linked to fewer deaths among patients hospitalized for COVID-19 compared with dexamethasone monotherapy, a retrospective study suggested. Using propensity score matching, the drug duo was associated with an overall 26% reduction in mortality at 14 days (adjusted HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.69-0.78, P<0.0001) and an overall […]
Sep 24, 2024
A new outbreak is plaguing the West
Deseret News Richard Geary heard word of the contagion around the turn of spring, when it was still distant. News reports and murmurs among fellow veterinarians revealed livestock herds about 1,000 miles away in Kansas had fallen ill with a confusing new ailment. In the 35 years he’s been treating animals across southeast Idaho, Geary […]
Sep 24, 2024