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Sierra Leone reports 2 more Ebola cases, 1 fatal

Sierra Leone has reported two more Ebola cases, including a fatal one that is not part of a recent cluster in the northwestern Kambia district.

Nigeria reports 6 new H5N1 outbreaks involving 28,000 chickens

Nigeria reported six new outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu affecting more than 28,000 chickens, bringing to 12 the number of outbreaks reported this month, according to separate reports filed yesterday with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

Deputy director nominated for top FDA post

President Barack Obama today nominated deputy commissioner Robert Califf, MD, as the next Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner, Bloomberg News reported. If approved by the Senate, Califf would replace Margaret Hamburg, MD, who stepped down in March after serving 6 years.

Saudi Arabia reports 2 new MERS case, 1 death

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) reported two new MERS-CoV cases in Riyadh today that don't appear to be linked to a large hospital outbreak, and it confirmed a death in a previously reported patient.

WHO: Malaria cases down 60%, deaths cut 37% since 2000

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced today that malaria incidence and mortality have decreased by 37% and 60%, respectively, since 2000, thus meeting the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halting and reversing malaria incidence by 2015.

Possible Ebola treatment ZMapp receives FDA fast-track status

Mapp Biopharmaceuticals announced yesterday that its experimental Ebola treatment ZMapp received fast-track status to gain US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

CDC ends special entry screening for Liberia travelers

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has stepped down its travel advisory level for Liberia, with the country now more than 2 weeks past achieving Ebola-free status for the second time. The CDC today moved the alert level to the green watch level 1, which recommends practicing the usual precautions, according to a Sep 18 media statement.

PAHO reports 3,000 new chikungunya cases

Chikungunya outbreak cases in the Caribbean and the Americas continued a modest increase for the third straight week, with only 3,085 new infections reported in an update late last week from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

The most recent weekly updates before last week's included 7,156 and 4,857 new cases. The two updates before that noted much higher levels of 34,866 and 27,867 new cases, respectively.

H5N8 returns to South Korea as Nigeria reports 7 H5N1 outbreaks

H5N8 avian flu has returned to South Korea after a few months of inactivity, officials said, while Nigeria, which has been hit hard by H5N1 avian flu, reported seven more farm outbreaks.

Cucumber-linked Salmonella outbreak total climbs to 558

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today that 140 more infections and one more death have been reported in a multistate outbreak linked to cucumbers tainted with strains of Salmonella Poona.

Fatal MERS case reported in Kuwait

Kuwaiti health officials have notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about a fatal MERS-CoV case, in a 78-year-old man from Kuwait City who owned camels and had frequent contact with them, according to a WHO statement today.

The investigation revealed that 170 people—many of them in high-risk groups—may have been exposed to TB, a number expected to grow.

Less than 1% of unvaccinated infants exposed to vaccinated babies contracted rotavirus.

Seventeen percent to 20% of caregivers reported poor mental health in the lockdown periods of 2020-2021.

The false belief is undermining efforts to address the country's rising measles cases through vaccination.

Heating the milk to 63°C (145°F) for at least 30 minutes and 72°C (162°F) for 15 seconds both inactivated all tested viruses.

Company officials say the lab will expand an existing R&D facility for San Diego–based Qpex Biopharma, which was acquired by Shionogi in 2023. 

In other updates, the USDA also reported more H5N1 detections in wild birds and mammals.

One and 6 months after the second vaccine dose, fatigue, malaise, chills, and headache were each tied to 1.4- to 1.6-fold higher neutralizing antibody levels.

No safety concerns were reported after Paxlovid use.

A longitudinal household study found shared C difficile strains in 17 of 28 families, with the infant detected first in most instances.

Research in 7 African countries estimates inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene in healthcare facilities contributed to 2.6 million healthcare-associated infections in 2022.

High-risk patients who received antibiotics before invasive dental procedures were 59% less likely to develop infective endocarditis than those who didn't receive antibiotics.

Physicians with the largest proportion of unvaccinated patients were more likely to be male.

Spanish-speaking Hispanic women had the highest self-reported rate of any COVID-19 vaccination.