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In a pair of puzzling statements, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) on Sep 1 reported the recovery of four patients from Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infections, though two of them had previously been described as asymptomatic.
The WHO confirmed four MERS cases in Saudi Arabia, raising the global tally to 108 cases and 50 deaths.
Several virologists have questioned the report of a MERS virus fragment found in a Saudi bat sample.
H7N9 studies from China revealed more about cytokine patterns in severely ill patients and reaffirmed airborne spread in ferrets.
South Korean researchers reported today that they have isolated variant H3N2 influenza (H3N2v) viruses in pigs outside of North America for the first time, and they also isolated novel reassortant swine H3N1 viruses that have 2009 pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1)–derived genes.
A Saudi official reported two asymptomatic MERS cases as the WHO confirmed two from Qatar.
Findings raise concerns about an approach eyed for developing a "universal" flu vaccine.
Progress is being made overall in achieving the targets set out by the Healthy People 2020 program for fully immunizing adolescents, but human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine coverage is lagging and healthcare providers should use every opportunity to administer it, says a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
Michigan health officials today reported a variant H3N2 (H3N2v) flu infection in a child who exhibited swine at the Berrien County Youth Fair, which took place Aug 12 through Aug 17 in Berrien Springs, Mich., in the southwest corner of the state.
The case raises the nation's number of H3N2v cases this year to 17. Though Michigan had a few H3N2v cases last summer, the child's illness is its first this year.
Saudi Arabia announced two new MERS cases, one fatal, as the WHO recognized eight recent ones.
In addition to naming risk groups, the new study found that West Nile in 2012 cost Texas over $47 million.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today it has received reports of six more Cyclospora infections, lifting the nation's total to 616 so far (see map below).
Of 591 case-patients with available information, 45 (8%) were hospitalized. The latest illness-onset date was Aug 6.
Cyclospora cases in Texas — unlike in Iowa and Nebraska — seem not connected to Taylor Farms produce, officials say.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has launched a study to identify the long-term health effects of last fall's deadly fungal meningitis outbreak linked to tainted steroids and to determine which antifungal drugs work best, the Boston Globe reported recently.
Authorities in Qatar have reported another Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) case, the country's second in a week, according to a Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) story today.
Evidence of some risk factors such as pregnancy and ethnicity for a severe outcome in patients with seasonal and pandemic influenza is largely limited or absent, which has implications for public policies regarding prioritization of groups for vaccination programs, according to a recent meta-analysis.
The country's Ministry of Health reports three more cases, although total counts from various sources are conflicting.
A new case in an Ethiopian child, the country's first since 2008, raises concern about disease spread in the Horn of Africa.
The World Health Organization's (WHO's) strategy for better hand hygiene in healthcare workers (HCWs) is easily implemented and can make a major impact on patient safety worldwide, says a study published today in Lancet Infectious Diseases.
New cases and a death in the Riyadh region were reported, as well as in a man in Florence who apparently transmitted MERS to a niece and co-worker.
