Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
Nigeria Issues Alert After ‘Highly Contagious’ Cholera Kills 15
Bloomberg Authorities in Nigeria’s commercial capital of Lagos have issued a public health warning after confirming a “highly aggressive and contagious” cholera strain that has killed 15 people in the city. The densely populated southwest city of about 25 million people said it has recorded 350 cases, a week after authorities began investigating a possible […]
Jun 19, 2024
Can we prevent a bird flu pandemic in humans?
Popular Science Here’s how experts say we should be mitigating the risk of H5N1 human outbreaks. highly pathogenic subtype of avian influenza (or bird flu), known as H5N1 is spreading among animals worldwide. For the past couple of decades, global health agencies have kept tabs on the virus, which is most well known for decimating […]
Jun 19, 2024
HPAI detected in WYO dairy herd
Oil City The Wyoming Department of Agriculture announced June 7 that highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected in one of Wyoming’s dairy herds. According to the FDA, CDC and USDA, the threat of the disease in humans remains low, and consuming pasteurized milk and properly cooked meat is safe. However, the economic impact of […]
Jun 19, 2024
Scientists try to solve bird flu mystery: Why there’s so much virus in Michigan wastewater
Detroit Free Press Newly released wastewater surveillance data suggests Michigan is a national hot spot for the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus that’s infecting poultry, dairy cows and other mammals across the U.S., and has also been identified in three farmworkers — two in Michigan. Researchers told the Free Press they’re still trying to understand exactly why […]
Jun 19, 2024
More Minnesota turkeys struck by avian influenza
Watt Poultry Highly pathogenic avian influenza was confirmed in a commercial meat turkey flock in Stearns County on June 13. The case was reported by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). With this latest detection, Minnesota has now had 11 commercial poultry flocks affected by HPAI in 2024. Prior […]
Jun 19, 2024
What causes long COVID? Case builds for rogue antibodies
Nature Study finds that antibodies from people with the debilitating condition trigger similar symptoms in mice. Antibodies isolated from people with long COVID increase pain sensitivity and reduce movement in mice when transferred to the animals, research shows1. The findings suggest that antibodies might drive some symptoms of long COVID — although how that process […]
Jun 18, 2024
Four cases of bird flu detected in Quebec farms
Quebec News The avian flu is beginning to infiltrate Quebec farms, reported at four separate sites in less than a week. On Sunday, Canada’s food inspection agency (CFIA) confirmed detection of the H5N1 strain at a poultry flock in Les Sources, a municipality in Quebec’s Estrie region. Bird flu was also detected in the Brome-Missisquoi, Hait-Saint-Francois […]
Jun 18, 2024
Bird flu infects seventh Iowa dairy farm, state agency says
De Moines Register Another dairy herd infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza has been reported in Sioux County, making it the fifth such outbreak in the northwest Iowa county. The Iowa Department of Agriculture said Monday that bird flu, known as H5N1, was reported in a Sioux County herd with 10,000 cows. It’s the seventh […]
Jun 18, 2024
Yes, Everyone Really Is Sick a Lot More Often After Covid
Bloomberg It’s not your imagination: At least 13 communicable diseases are surging past pre-pandemic levels. Since February, Kathy Xiang and her entire family have been under siege. Her 12-year-old daughter has had whooping cough, rhinovirus and parainfluenza: She’s missed more than five weeks of school in total. Xiang, a software developer in Shanghai, caught all […]
Jun 18, 2024
Bird Flu Is Infecting Cats (and the Occasional Dog). Here’s What to Know.
NYT A few “reasonable precautions” can help people keep their pets safe from the H5N1 virus, experts say. Over the past few months, a bird flu outbreak has spread swiftly through dairy cows in the United States, infecting more than 90 herds in 12 states. Along the way, the virus has caused collateral damage in several other […]
Jun 18, 2024