Spain reported its first highly pathogenic H5N8 avian flu outbreaks in poultry, following two earlier detections in wild birds, and Egypt noted poultry outbreaks involving both the H5N8 and H5N1 strains, according to the latest reports from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
China today reported two more H7N9 avian influenza infections in humans, and the country's top health officials have announced an update to treatment recommendations for patients.
The latest cases are both from Sichuan province in southwestern China, according to a state news agency report translated and posted by FluTrackers, an infectious disease news message board.
Portugal yesterday reported its first highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza detection, in a grey heron found dead near the southern city of Faro, according to a notice yesterday from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In several countries in Europe and other regions that have had H5N8 outbreaks, the virus was first found in wild birds before jumping to poultry.
China today reported five new H7N9 avian flu cases in humans, most of whom are in critical condition.
According to the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) in Hong Kong, a 50-year-old woman from Nanchang is hospitalized in critical condition in Jiangxi province. And a 59-year-old man from Yiyang who worked with poultry is also listed in critical condition in a Hunan province hospital, the CHP said.
The Pakistani city of Quetta has launched a new 5-day vaccination campaign against polio targeted at children under the age of 5, Reuters reported today.
Last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that a rare vaccine-derived type 2 strain of polio was found in sewage samples taken from Quetta in November. No cases of this type 2 polio have been reported in humans so far.
Saudi Arabia late yesterday announced three more MERS cases in three cities, raising the total over the past week to six cases.
All three cases are listed as primary, meaning there are no known links to other MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) cases, the Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH) said. None of the patients work in healthcare or had exposure to camels.
The MOH listed the patients as:
A study published Monday in Nature Ecology and Evolution suggests plasmids may play more of a role in spreading and facilitating antibiotic resistance than previously thought.
The CDC celebrates World Polio Day with hopeful talk of the finish line.
High demand, production problems, and lack of raw materials contribute to the shortage, which has hindered immunization campaigns at a crucial time.
The Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health (MOH) reported two new cases of MERS-CoV in the last 3 days. The cases involve camel and health care workplace exposure, two known risk factors for the respiratory virus. These are the first cases reported by the MOH since Sep 29.
