Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
An ‘unprecedented’ good news story about a deadly viral outbreak
NPR Marburg virus is notorious for its killing ability. In past outbreaks, as many as 9 out of 10 patients have died from the disease. And there are no approved vaccines or medications. That was the grim situation in Rwanda just over a month ago, when officials made the announcement that nobody wants to make: The […]
Nov 5, 2024
Bird Flu in Pigs Is One Step Closer to Endangering Humans
Bloomberg If a pig infected with human flu got infected with the H5N1 bird flu, a new virus could emerge with parts of both. That’d be bad. When the USDA issued an announcement on Oct. 30 that the worrisome H5N1 bird flu turned up in a pig, I dropped what I was doing to read it. The situation […]
Nov 5, 2024
Three people with bird flu traveled to Oregon during Washington State outbreak
KOIN.com A week after Washington reported human cases of bird flu in the state, officials have announced that three of those cases had traveled to Oregon during their infection and were monitored during their stay. All three cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) were reported in Washington after they were exposed to poultry that tested […]
Nov 5, 2024
Health Departments Struggle to Track Human Cases of Bird Flu
MedPageToday Bird flu cases have more than doubled in the country within a few weeks, but researchers can’t determine why the spike is happening because surveillance for human infections has been patchy for 7 months. Just this week, California reported its 15th infection in dairy workers and Washington state reported seven probable cases in poultry workers. Hundreds […]
Oct 30, 2024
WHO In October 2024, WHO and partners, in collaboration with Member States, activated the Global Health Emergency Corps (GHEC) for the first time to provide support to countries facing mpox outbreaks. GHEC is a grouping of professionals with the objective of strengthening the response to health emergencies, and a collaboration platform for countries and health emergency networks. […]
Oct 30, 2024
Walking pneumonia cases are spiking, especially in kids. Here’s what to know
NPR (Podcast) Respiratory infections caused by the bacteria mycoplasma pneumoniae are on the rise across the US. People of all ages are being affected — including an unusual surge in young children. The good news: It’s usually mild. The bad news: It can take weeks for an infection to burn through a classroom or family.
Oct 30, 2024
Tuberculosis returns as top infectious disease killer, WHO says
Reuters Tuberculosis replaced COVID-19 to become the top cause for infectious disease-related deaths in 2023, according to a World Health Organization report published on Tuesday, highlighting the challenges in the global effort in eradicating the disease. Last year about 8.2 million people were newly diagnosed, meaning they could access suitable treatment – the highest number […]
Oct 30, 2024
How Long Should Kids Stay Out of School After They’ve Had COVID?
MedPageToday When the daughter of MedPage Today‘s editor-in-chief Jeremy Faust, MD, got COVID in September, he strategized how best to prevent spread of the virus while causing the least disruption to her school schedule. He debated whether the CDC’s most recent isolation guidelines — which recommend resuming activities when symptoms are resolving and you’ve been fever-free for […]
Oct 29, 2024
U.S. death from Lassa fever, an Ebola-like virus, is reported in Iowa
STAT A person from Iowa who recently returned to the United States from West Africa has died after contracting Lassa fever, a virus that can cause Ebola-like illness in some patients. State health officials reported the case on Monday. “I want to assure Iowans that the risk of transmission is incredibly low in our state. […]
Oct 29, 2024
Rwanda: Exact Origin of Marburg Virus Identified, Says Minister Nsanzimana
All Africa The Minister of Health, Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, has said the Marburg virus that led to an outbreak on September 27 came from a cave where mining activities had been ongoing. Initial findings of genomic sequencing indicated that the virus, which is transmitted by fruit bats, had come from animal to human, without passing through multiple hosts. “We […]
Oct 29, 2024