Foodborne Disease

Study: Northern states have higher E coli O157 isolation rates

Northern states appear to have higher rates of Escherichia coli O157 than southern states do, and young children appear to be infected most often, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published today in Epidemiology & Infection.

MSF resumes treatment center work at Ebola protest site

Doctors without Borders (Medecins Sans Fronteires, or MSF) said it resumed treating patients with Ebola infections at a center in the Guinea city of Macenta yesterday, following protests last week by some of the local people.

Saudi Arabia reports four severe MERS cases in Riyadh

Saudi Arabian officials today reported four Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) cases in Riyadh, one of them fatal and the other three severe enough to require intensive care.

CSPI data show twice as many food outbreaks linked to eating out

Food from restaurants was associated with almost twice the number of disease outbreaks and more than double the illnesses as food prepared at home, according to data compiled by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a food safety watchdog.

Editor's Note: The H5N1 item was corrected on Apr 1 to accurately reflect the date of Laos's previous H5N1 outbreak.

Laos reports H5N1 return after 5-year hiatus

H5N1 avian flu has returned to Laotian poultry after a hiatus of almost 4 years, striking a village flock of more than 5,000 birds, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) reported today.

Two more deaths reported in Guinea Ebola outbreak

In an update today on the Ebola virus outbreak in Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) African Regional Office said in a statement that two more patients have died, pushing the number of fatalities to 62. The number of suspected cases remained at 86, for a case-fatality ratio of 72%.

Study finds avian flu mixing pot in Iceland's wild birds

Wild birds in Iceland harbor avian influenza viruses (AIVs) of entirely American lineage, entirely Eurasian lineage, and mixes of the two, providing compelling evidence of the importance of the North Atlantic as a corridor of virus movement and mixing, according to a study yesterday in PLoS One.

Drug-resistant Salmonella linked to hospitalization, study finds

Drug-resistant Salmonella is associated with more severe clinical illness than drug-susceptible strains are, according to a study yesterday in Foodborne Pathogens and Disease.

NYC officials link skin infections to Chinatown fish markets

New York City's health department said yesterday that a rare skin disease has been identified in 30 people who handled live or raw fish or seafood bought in Chinatown markets in Manhattan, Brooklyn, or Queens.

Saudi Arabia reports two MERS cases, one fatal

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) announced two new Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infections today, one of them fatal.