Foodborne Disease

MERS claims 2 more lives in Saudi Arabia, 1 in a new case

The death from MERS-CoV of a 99-year-old Saudi Arabian man whose case had not been reported before plus the death of a woman whose case was reported yesterday bring that country's total case count since June 2012 to 807, with 345 deaths, according to an update today from the Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH).

Polio emergency extended as vaccine-derived polio confirmed in 2 nations

The World Health Organization's (WHO's) emergency polio advisory committee met for the third time Nov 2 through Nov 7, advising that global conditions still meet the definition of a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), according to a Nov 14 WHO statement.

Chikungunya cases rise steeply, especially in Central America

More than 95,000 new cases of chikungunya have been reported in the Caribbean and Americas since Oct 31, bringing the total to 888,806 cases since the outbreak began in December 2013, according to a Nov 7 update from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

Study: H5N1 seroprevalence 2% in poultry-exposed Egyptians

A 2-year serology study using stringent criteria found antibodies to H5N1 avian flu in 2.1% of Egyptians exposed to poultry, a finding that National Institutes of Health (NIH) officials said demonstrates that the virus poses a low pandemic risk.

GAO recommends stronger food safety performance measures

The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday issued a series of recommendations to enhance the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS's) ability to prevent Salmonella and Campylobacter contamination of poultry products. The report is dated Sep 30.

EV-D68 cases in the United States top 900

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today confirmed 126 new cases of enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) in 46 states and the District of Columbia. The outbreak has now reached 922 cases, almost all of them in children, many of whom have asthma.

New estimates put price of US foodborne disease at $15.6 billion per year

Costs associated with foodborne illnesses in the United States total more than $15.6 billion annually, according to a data product released Oct 7 by the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Economic Research Service containing updated estimates.

Saudi audit finds 16 earlier MERS cases; 1 new case reported

An independent audit of MERS-CoV data in Saudi Arabia yesterday identified 16 more infections with illness onsets before Jun 3 and has reclassified a handful of previously reported cases, the country's Ministry of Health (MOH) announced yesterday.

It said the review is part of an ongoing effort to ensure that MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) data are accurate.

Saudi Arabia confirms another MERS-CoV case

Today Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed another MERS-CoV case, the sixth in just over a week and the second in as many days.

The case involves a 27-year-old Saudi man who is hospitalized in a ward in Taif in Mecca province, the MOH said. He is not a healthcare worker and had pre-existing disease and no contact with animals, the agency said. He is symptomatic. No other details were provided.

Saudi Arabia confirms MERS in man, woman

A man and a woman have developed MERS-CoV illness in Saudi Arabia, continuing a trickle of recent cases, according to the nation's Ministry of Health (MOH).

The man, 43, is from the Saudi capital of Riyadh in the center of the country. He has no underlying medical conditions and is being treated in an intensive care unit (ICU).