News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – The number of West Nile virus (WNV) cases in the United States rebounded slightly this year after a sharp drop in 2004, signaling that the disease is here to stay, according to figures released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

(CIDRAP News) – A test to screen blood and organ donors for West Nile virus (WNV) has won approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after 2 years of trial use.

The FDA yesterday announced approval of the Procleix West Nile virus assay, developed by Gen-Probe Inc., San Diego, and marketed by Chiron Corp., Emeryville, Calif. The test detects West Nile RNA in blood.

(CIDRAP News) – Forty states have reported a total of 1,804 cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection, including 52 deaths, so far this year, numbers about even with last year's pace, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today.

At this time last year, 1,784 WNV cases, including 56 deaths, had been reported, the CDC reported in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

(CIDRAP News) – Amid the devastation left by hurricane Katrina on the US Gulf Coast, fears of infectious disease outbreaks have added to the distress. Some of those concerns are solidly grounded, while others are less so, disease experts say.

(CIDRAP News) – Federal officials say a new West Nile virus (WNV) vaccine for horses, licensed this week, represents a breakthrough that may lead to important benefits for human vaccine development.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the vaccine is the world's first licensed DNA vaccine—one that uses small pieces of the target virus's genetic material instead of using a weakened or killed form of the whole virus.

(CIDRAP News) – The annual invasion of West Nile virus has sickened 25 people in 11 states and caused one death so far this summer, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today.

Colorado leads the list with 7 cases, followed by South Dakota with 5 and Arizona with 3, according to an article in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The single death occurred in Missouri.

(CIDRAP News) – The range of animal species that can contribute to the spread of West Nile virus (WNV) may be much broader than experts have believed, according to a study published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

(CIDRAP News) – West Nile virus has made its US debut in the heartland this year, with Kansas reporting the first human case.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) notified the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of one human illness, the CDC announced on Jun 20. The infection had already been found in birds, horses, and mosquitoes in 14 states this year.

(CIDRAP News) – An initial human trial of a West Nile virus (WNV) vaccine has yielded promising results, officials said today.

In the double-blind, randomized trial, all but one of the people who received the vaccine developed antibodies to it, according to an Associated Press (AP) report quoting Dr. Thomas Monath, chief scientist at Acambis, the company that created the vaccine.

April 28, 2005 (CIDRAP News) – Just in time for mosquito season, federal health officials today heralded the addition of new defensive weapons against West Nile Virus (WNV): two non-DEET mosquito repellents.