Flu Scan for May 02, 2017

News brief

H5N1 strikes Vietnam again as European H5N8 detections continue

In the latest avian flu developments, Vietnam reported another highly pathogenic H5N1 outbreak and Denmark and Finland reported more H5N8 detections. Also, Taiwan reported several more outbreaks caused by low-pathogenic H5N2, according to the latest notifications from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

Vietnam, which has been battling a steady stream of H5N1 and H5N6 events, reported a new H5N1 outbreak in backyard poultry in Quang Ninh province in the north. It began on Apr 27, killing 2,000 of 5,000 susceptible birds.

In Europe, Denmark reported 11 H5N8 detections, all in wild birds found dead from Jan 2 to Apr 4 across a wide part of the country, many of them forested areas. The virus was confirmed in 14 birds, many of them birds of prey. And Finland reported that tests on a white-tailed eagle found dead on Apr 8 near the Aland Islands in the far southwest were positive for H5N8.

Elsewhere, Taiwan reported six more outbreaks linked to low-pathogenic H5N2, but they were all from 2015, but pathogenicity results were just confirmed on Apr 18. The island is still battling low-pathogenic H5N2 alongside highly pathogenic H5N2, H5N3, H5N6, and H5N8. According to the OIE report, abnormal deaths were observed on five poultry farms, and symptoms were also seen in poultry carcasses at a slaughterhouse in Taipei City. The events led to the slaughter of 91,485 birds.
May 2 OIE report on H5N1 in Vietnam
May 2 OIE report on H5N8 in Denmark
Apr 28 OIE report on H5N8 in Finland
May 1 OIE report on low path H5N2 in Taiwan

 

Influenza activity decreasing in US, Europe

Levels of flu continue to decrease in much of the Northern Hemisphere, but influenza A and B are still circulating, with more influenza B cases detected in recent weeks, according to a global flu update from the World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday.

All regions are reporting typical flu patterns for this time of year, the WHO said in the update.

The United States and Europe said that influenza B was predominating, while Canada still reported more influenza A. Asia reported all seasonal influenza strains to still be active and circulating. China was reporting increased 2009 H1N1 activity in both the northern and southern parts of the country.

Much of the Caribbean and South America reported low levels of influenza activity. Most of West Africa also reported low flu activity.
May 1 WHO
update

News Scan for May 02, 2017

News brief

Second Monrovia death reported in unexplained Liberia illness cluster

Health officials in Liberia have reported a second death in Monrovia linked to an unexplained illness cluster in people who attended the funeral of a religious leader in Greenville, located about 4 hours' drive south of the country's capital in Sinoe County, according to local media reports.

Frances Kateh, MD, Liberia's deputy health minister and chief medical officer, told the Monrovia-based Daily Observer that the latest death raises the cluster's fatality count to 12. The new case raises the overall cluster total to 21. He said tests have repeatedly ruled out Ebola and Lassa fever.

A media report from Liberia News Agency (LINA) yesterday said the second Monrovia death involved a female contact of a man who also died after returning from Greenville. The report did not say if the woman had also traveled to Greenville, so it's unclear if her illness represents a secondary case from an infectious cause.

Tarik Jasarevic, a spokesman with the World Health Organization (WHO), told CIDRAP News today that a field investigation team lead by Liberia's health ministry but supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the WHO is still trying to determine of the cluster is related to ingestion of contaminated food or drinks served at funeral events in Greenville around Apr 22.

He added that investigators are also exploring if any contaminated food or drinks were taken to other locations by any funeral participants.

"Other possible causes of this cluster are not being ruled out at this stage, and so the investigation continues to follow all leads, including collecting specimen for full range of bacteriological, virological, and toxicological analysis," Jasarevic said.
May 2 Daily Observer story
May 1 LINA story

 

Postmortem findings on 7 Zika infants show microcephaly, other issues

In a study yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases, results of postmortem examinations of seven babies born in Ceara, Brazil, highlight microcephaly and other major defects. The babies were likely exposed to Zika virus through their mothers during the first trimester of pregnancy in early 2015.

The babies died 30 minutes to 6 days after delivery, and cerebrospinal fluid tested positive for Zika virus. Only one of the seven neonates suffered from intrauterine gross restriction, but six had low brain weight for their gestational age.

Six of the babies also had obvious microcephaly, and all had several neurologic malformations, including calcifications in the brain stem and thinning of the parenchyma.

Besides brain malformations, all seven neonates had pulmonary hypoplasia, and several had small lungs for their respective gestation ages. The authors concluded that the lungs were damaged when the central nervous system was attacked by the Zika virus.

"In addition, variable liver damage, a finding commonly seen with infection by other flaviviruses, was found in these neonates," the authors concluded.
May 1 Emerg Infect Dis study

 

Pathogenic bacteria identified in Germany using DIY CRISPR kit

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said that in March of this year, Germany reported the detection of pathogenic organisms in a do-it yourself Bacterial Gene Engineering CRISPR Kit. Some of the organisms were antibiotic-resistant.

"The kit is sold over the Internet, targeting non-professional microbiology hobbyists. The detection of the pathogenic microorganisms was made as part of the control implemented by local health and food safety authorities," the ECDC report said. The kit was labeled safe for at-home use.

The genome editing kit is manufactured in the United States, and the ECDC said it does not suspect to be in wide use in Germany or elsewhere in Europe.

"The risk of infection by the contaminating strains in the kit is low for the users of the kit, assuming that they are healthy," the ECDC concluded. "The contribution of the kit to the burden of antimicrobial resistance in the EU/EEA population and environment is marginal and the risk associated with the kits is considered very low."
Apr 29 ECDC report

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