New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that there were 3,250 likely cases of severe MERS-CoV in the Middle East between Sept 2012 and Jan 2016. This number is 2.3-fold higher than current laboratory confirmed cases, suggesting that the disease is more widespread than previously thought.
In the more than 2 months since a previous update, the toll of a cucumber-linked Salmonella outbreak has risen by 50 cases and 2 deaths, and Tennessee has joined the list of affected states. Cases have reached 888, deaths 6, and states 39, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today.
Vaccine effectiveness (VE) for both US-approved rotavirus vaccines— the five-strain (RV5) and single-strain (RV1) versions—is 80% in children, according to a study published yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Health (MOH) today announced one new MERS-CoV infection, yet another case linked to an outbreak in the city of Hofuf, which has reported clusters linked to healthcare facilities and at least one family.
The patient is a 41-year-old Saudi man who is a household contact of an earlier reported case. He is not a healthcare worker and is hospitalized in stable condition.
As MERS continues to spread in South Korea, two more cases have been reported in the Middle East, one in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and one in Saudi Arabia.
A 77-year-old woman in Abu Dhabi, UAE, is in critical condition with MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus), the World Health Organization (WHO) reported yesterday. She fell ill May 21 and was hospitalized a week later.
The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) has announced that samples from 4 of 10 areas tested at the Whatcom County fairgrounds implicated in an outbreak of Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 that began sickening people last month matched the outbreak strain, according to a May 22 update.
Markers for the US flu season showed some further declines last week, with the percentage of clinic visits for flulike illness falling below the national baseline for the first time after 19 weeks at or above baseline, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today in its weekly update.
Five regions, however, are still above their baselines for that indicator.
The risk of post-vaccination seizures in 1-year-olds was twice as high with the combined measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) vaccine compared with the MMR and varicella vaccines (MMR+V) administered separately, but the absolute risk is small, according to a study yesterday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ).
The vaccine had similar efficacy as existing vaccines and may prove an option for developing nations.
Rotavirus vaccination in infants slightly raises the risk of a specific intestinal disorder, researchers reported today in The New England Journal of Medicine.
