NEWS SCAN: Four contact vaccinia cases, polio vaccination in Sierra Leone

Polio
Smallpox

Mar 28, 2011

Smallpox shot in military member led to four vaccinia cases
Four people contracted vaccinia virus infections, leading in one case to systemic symptoms, as a result of direct or indirect contact with a US military man who had received a smallpox shot, according to a report in Emerging Infectious Diseases. The military member was vaccinated on Feb 23, 2010, and on Feb 27 he wrestled with two other men in a semiprofessional match, during which his vaccination-site dressing came off. Both of those wrestlers suffered skin lesions within 3 days. One of the two wrestled another man on Mar 5, and the latter subsequently had skin lesions on his chest. One of the men required treatment for erythema and early blepharitis of his left eyelid. In addition, a 29-year-old female household contact of the first case-patient suffered lesions along her lower jaw, followed by fever, chills, arthralgia, submandibular swelling, and a lesion in her right nostril. After her physician and the New York State Department of Health (NYSDH) consulted with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she was treated with vaccinia immune globulin, lead author Gregory E. Young of the NYSDH told CIDRAP News, which alleviated the pain of her lesions within 24 hours. Vaccinia virus was confirmed in all four patients, and gene sequencing in three of the cases linked the virus to the ACAM2000 smallpox vaccine. The report says the cases point up the need to ensure that military vaccinees understand the risks associated with contact transmission of vaccinia. On Mar 16 the same journal published a report of four similar vaccinia cases that were linked to a martial arts gym.
Apr 20l1 EID report
Mar 16 CIDRAP News story on earlier report

Nationwide polio vaccine drive targets children in Sierra Leone
Hundreds of health workers recently fanned out across Sierra Leone in an effort to vaccinate more than 1 million children under age 5 against polio and restore the country's previous polio-free status, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported Mar 25. The 4-day nationwide campaign is part of a broader effort to vaccinate children in 14 countries, said Tity Turay, a health ministry official. The campaign is being supported by the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Health Organization (WHO), Rotary International, and other development partners. The story said Sierra Leone was free of polio from 2000 until July 2009, when 13 cases were reported; the most recent case was reported in February 2010. The WHO representative in the country, Dr Wondimagegnehu Alemu, told AFP, "Despite two preventive and three reactive rounds of immunization campaigns in 2009 and two in March 2010, there is evidence that the wild polio virus continues to circulate in the country and the west coast of Africa."

This week's top reads

  1. Wastewater testing finds H5N1 avian flu in 9 Texas cities

    Wastewater detections began in early March, and so far sequencing hasn't found any mutations linked to human adaptation.

    Lisa Schnirring
    wastewater treatment plant

  2. Study: HHS's COVID vaccine campaign saved $732 billion in averted infections, costs

    Researchers say the campaign encouraged 22 million Americans to complete their primary COVID-19 vaccine series, preventing nearly 2.6 million infections.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    Vaccine assembly line

  3. CDC launches new influenza A wastewater dashboard; states report more H5N1 in dairy herds

    The tracker will help with surveillance, but it doesn't distinguish the influenza A subtype or determine the source of the virus.

    Lisa Schnirring
    wastewater collection

  4. Colorado officials probe source of H5N1 in cows as USDA confirms more infected mammals

    Monitoring of about 70 farm workers found no symptoms, and the state's wastewater sampling pilot has found no flu rise.

    Lisa Schnirring
    vet and dairy herd

  5. With H5N1 avian flu silently spreading in US cattle, wastewater testing could be key

    Wastewater treatment systems that have no intake of animal-related sewage could serve as sentinels for human disease, experts say.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    Wastewater plant

  6. USDA reports more H5N1 detections in poultry, wild birds

    Also, another avian flu outbreak was reported in backyard poultry in Idaho.

    Lisa Schnirring
    farm pigeons

  7. Feds announces assistance for US farmers affected by H5N1 avian flu

    The assistance is meant to both improve on-site biosecurity and address financial losses connected to lost milk production in herds affected by H5N1.

    Stephanie Soucheray
    cows

  8. USDA confirms 3 more H5N1 outbreaks in dairy herds

    Of the three newly confirmed outbreaks, two are in Michigan and one is in Idaho.

    Lisa Schnirring

  9. WHO describes MERS cluster in Saudi Arabia

    The index case-patient, who died from his infection, shared a hospital room with the second patient identified.

    Stephanie Soucheray

  10. Data: Heart-failure patients have 82% better odds of living longer if vaccinated against COVID

    Vaccinated patients also had a 47% lower risk of hospitalization for heart failure and a 13% reduced risk of infection over 6 months.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    COVID vaccination in woman wearing pearls