H5N8 avian flu continues in Europe, while H5N6, H5N1 strike again in Asia.
A new analysis of all 17 H5N6 avian flu cases reported in China since 2014 found that 15 out 16 hospitalized patients required mechanical ventilation, while 12 patients (75%) died from their infections.
Two European countries—Hungary and Romania—reported more highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza outbreaks in poultry and wild birds today, and Hong Kong officials confirmed H5N6 in a wild bird found dead in Kowloon, a major urban area.
The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (MOH) reported two new cases of MERS-CoV today, the first since Apr 6.
A 72-year-old Saudi man from Riyadh is in stable condition after presenting with symptoms of MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus). The source of his infection is listed as primary, meaning it's unlike he contracted the virus from anyone else.
The recent report of Tibet's first human H7N9 avian influenza case appears to be locally acquired, according to an Apr 7 Tibet Autonomous Region government statement translated and posted by Avian Flu Diary.
Officials said the 41-year-old man is a migrant worker from Sichuan province who had been working with live poultry in Tibet since February and became ill in early April.
In a gain-of-function (GOF) experiment, Belgian researchers showed that serial passaging of H9N2 avian flu viruses in pigs enhanced the virus's replication and transmissibility, the scientists reported yesterday in PLoS One.
A bipartisan group of 47 lawmakers sent a letter to President Trump yesterday, asking him to continue support for a comprehensive response across US government agencies to the Zika virus threat.
Cameroon and Nigeria reported more highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu outbreaks on poultry farms, and France reported four more H5N8 outbreaks from its hard-hit southwest, according to the latest notifications from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
Saudi Arabia reported two new MERS-CoV cases over the weekend, including a case in an asymptomatic healthcare worker who contracted the virus in a healthcare setting.
There were six more pediatric influenza deaths reported in the last week, according to today's FluView from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Last week, the CDC reported only two such deaths. So far, there have been 61 pediatric deaths during the 2016-17 flu season.
