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The viruses causing outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5 avian flu that spread across North American poultry farms in late 2014 into the summer of 2015 did not persist in wild aquatic birds like ducks, suggesting they are not an ongoing source of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses, according to a study yesterday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The updates include an expanded definition of Zika congenital syndrome from PAHO and revised CDC guidance on testing pregnant women and on preventing sexual spread.
The Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health (MOH) reported two deaths from MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) yesterday and today. The fatalities bring Saudi Arabia's total number of deaths from MERS-CoV since 2012 to 608.
Egypt recently reported three new H5N1 avian flu cases, all in people who had been exposed to poultry or their environments, according to a monthly update from the World Health Organization (WHO) on animal-to-human flu transmission events for the middle of June through the middle of July.
Shortening the course of NICU antibiotics led to a 27% drop in use and an increase in appropriate prescribing.
New York City confirms its first Zika-related microcephaly case, Florida is investigating a possible 2nd local infection, and Puerto Rico turns down a CDC plan to spray for mosquitoes.
The rate of new suspected and confirmed cases of yellow fever continues to decline in Angola, but health officials are concerned about disease activity in Benguela province, where surveillance gaps and reporting delays are occurring, the World Health Organization (WHO) said yesterday in its weekly update.
A dose of H5 avian influenza vaccine may set the stage for a stronger cellular immune response if a person later encounters a different strain of H5 virus, which suggests that this prime-boost strategy could be useful in fighting an H5N1 pandemic, according to a study reported Jul 20 in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.
Originally published Jul 21.
Carbapenems, penicillins, quinolones, macrolides and ketolides, and the newest cephalosporins were among the antibiotics that a World Health Organization (WHO) expert panel yesterday rated as "critically important" for human medicine of highest priority in limiting their use in food animals to combat resistance to the drugs.
Also, researchers report that Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes are a potential Zika vector, and CDC notes 3 new cases of birth defects.
Most recipients produced antibodies, but 34% had no immune response to the outbreak strain.
The US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) yesterday issued a public health alert over the risk of Salmonella infection related to preparing and consuming whole hogs for pig roasts, after investigation into a recent outbreak in Washington state linked illnesses to Kapowsin Meats for a second year in a row.
Only 2.7% of 443 samples from recovered patients, health workers, and others had high enough antibody levels.
The VRE harbored a gene that can confer resistance to other types of bacteria.
As officials probe the source of the infection, mosquito control activities are under way in the area and Zika kits are being distributed.
Researchers found the virus in Aedes mosquitoes near the homes of patients in southern Mexico, and another team found that two species commonly found in the US aren't likely to spread the disease.
Hospital-acquired and ventilator-related pneumonia get a 7-day course, IDSA says.
After a quiet 3 months, France is reporting avian flu activity in the southwestern part of the country, according to Avian Flu Diary, an infectious disease blog. The 2 new outbreaks raise the total number of French outbreaks to 79 since November of 2015.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today reported another outbreak of Salmonella linked to live poultry in backyard flocks, with 287 new cases and 10 previously unaffected states reporting infections. Those cases nearly double the 324 that the CDC reported on Jun 2.
