Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
What We Know About HMPV, the Common Virus Spreading in China
NYT While cases are climbing in China, the situation is very different from what it was when Covid-19 emerged five years ago, medical experts say. HMPV has circulated in humans for decades. Reports of a surge in cases of a respiratory virus in China have evoked dark echoes of the start of the Covid-19 pandemic […]
Jan 14, 2025
Mongolian horses are contracting H5N1 under the radar, says new study
Telegraph Scientists find ‘conclusive’ evidence of spillover infections from wild birds in the east Asian country – home to five million horses. Horses are silent carriers of H5N1 bird flu, a new study from the University of Glasgow has found. Testing of horses in Mongolia found that several had antibodies for H5N1, indicating prior infection. […]
Jan 14, 2025
Some Raw Truths About Raw Milk
NYT Despite the serious risks of drinking it, a growing movement — including the potential health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — claims it has benefits. Should we take them more seriously? Thousands of years ago, after domesticating cows and other ruminants, humans did something remarkable: They began to consume the milk from these animals. […]
Jan 14, 2025
Sierra Leone declares public health emergency over mpox
Dawn Sierra Leone declared a public health emergency on Monday to combat mpox, announcing it was stepping up surveillance at its borders after confirming two cases of the deadly viral disease. “The confirmation of two cases of mpox in the country has prompted immediate action as mandated by the public health act,” Health Minister Austin […]
Jan 14, 2025
It feels like everyone has a stomach bug. A new norovirus strain might be to blame, CDC data suggests
CBS News A new strain of norovirus now makes up a majority of outbreaks nationwide, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The new strain’s emergence, found spreading throughout the country and on cruise ships, offers a possible explanation for the past month’s steep wave of infections from the stomach bug. Scientists call this […]
Jan 14, 2025
CWD prions found in moose, deer, reindeer muscles in Norway, highlighting potential risk to people
CIDRAP Researchers who late last week reported finding chronic wasting disease (CWD) prions in the muscles of infected moose, red deer, and reindeer in Norway say the discovery raises questions about the risk of human exposure through eating the meat of infected cervids (members of the deer family). CWD is a fatal neurodegenerative cervid disease caused by […]
Jan 14, 2025
U.S. egg industry sees record chicken deaths from bird flu outbreak
CBS News More than 20 million egg-laying chickens in the U.S. died last quarter because of bird flu, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows, marking the worst toll inflicted on America’s egg supply since the outbreak began. The record number of chicken deaths, which includes those birds culled when infection is discovered in a flock, […]
Jan 14, 2025
COVID tests: Do at-home tests work on newer variants?
Harvard Health If you develop respiratory symptoms, you may worry that you have COVID-19. One easy way to check is with an at-home COVID test. These tests are widely available at drugstores, supermarkets, and online retailers like Amazon. Here’s a closer look at at-home COVID tests: how they work, when to test, and how to get […]
Jan 8, 2025
France identifies first case of new mpox variant
Reuters rance has identified its first case of the new mpox variant, news agency AFP reported on Monday, citing a statement from the country’s health ministry. The patient had not traveled to Central Africa, where the new form of the virus originated but was in contact with two people who had returned from that region, […]
Jan 8, 2025
Avian flu suspected in deaths of 200 snow geese in eastern Pennsylvania
WGAL The Pennsylvania Game Commission said avian influenza is suspected to have caused the deaths of about 200 snow geese in the greater Allentown area. Dead birds were recovered Monday from two sites – one in Lower Nazareth Township in Northampton County and another in Upper Macungie Township in Lehigh County. Continue reading
Jan 8, 2025