News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – Flu activity remained low in the Northern Hemisphere last week, with only a few countries, such as Costa Rica and Cameroon, reporting spikes in the number of cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) said today.

Costa Rica is the only tropical country in the Americas to report increasing numbers of cases, which are primarily influenza A/H3N2, the WHO said.

(CIDRAP News) – Beef industry organizations and some US trading partners today urged the US government to delay its planned ban on non-O157 strains of pathogenic Escherichia coli in beef, saying the need is unclear and tests aren't ready, while consumer groups urged the government to forge ahead with the program.

(CIDRAP News) – New seasonal flu viruses can launch from one of many world urban centers, not just from tropical areas in Southeast and East Asia, as previously thought, a research group reported yesterday.

(CIDRAP News) – The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today reported two more infections with swine-origin H3N2 influenza, including a case first announced by Maine 3 days ago and an additional illness in an Indiana patient.

The CDC also said flu activity in the United States is still at low levels, a pattern the World Health Organization (WHO) is also seeing in most parts of the world.

Editor’s Note: This article covers research conducted in part by CIDRAP researchers. Please note that CIDRAP News operates independently in relation to CIDRAP's research and policy programs.

See also: Public health groups say flu vaccine is best tool, despite limitations

(CIDRAP News) – A few of the world's tropical countries are reporting active flu transmission, as the flu season continues in Australia and New Zealand, though activity is declining, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported today.

(CIDRAP News) – A field trial in young children that compared an adjuvanted version of the seasonal flu vaccine with the conventional, non-adjuvanted version during two flu seasons found promising results for the boosted version, which might open up new options for a more effective vaccine strategy, researchers reported today.