Category: Emerging Infectious Diseases
New Tick Virus in China Raises Concerns: Could It Pose a Global Threat?
MSN Could the “Wetland virus” be the next global health threat? Transmitted by ticks, this virus is raising concerns. First identified in China in 2019, this pathogen is emerging in wetland areas. Scientists are investigating its potential dangers. The story begins with a 61-year-old man who was bitten by a tick in Inner Mongolia. He […]
Nov 12, 2024
Bird flu infections more widespread among US dairy workers than thought – study
Guardian Rate of dairy workers with antibodies to bird flu significantly higher than known cases of virus. Eight out of 115 dairy workers, or 7%, who worked with H5N1-infected cows in Michigan and Colorado have antibodies to bird flu, according to a new study from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – a rate significantly […]
Nov 12, 2024
Canada: B.C. teen with avian flu is in critical condition, provincial health officer says
CBC Teenager from Fraser Valley is first person in Canada believed to have contracted virus. The teenager who tested positive for avian flu is in critical condition and being treated at B.C. Children’s Hospital, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says. Henry says the teen, the first presumptive human case of avian flu contracted in Canada, […]
Nov 12, 2024
Elephant seal colony lost 95% of its pups to bird flu
Earth.com A year after an unprecedented outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza swept through elephant seal breeding grounds on Península Valdés in Argentina, the beaches are quieter, and the normally bustling colonies have drastically diminished. The bird flu outbreak, which killed over 17,000 elephant seals, including almost 97% of the pups, has left a scar on this vulnerable […]
Nov 12, 2024
Epidemiological data of an influenza A/H5N1 outbreak in elephant seals in Argentina indicates mammal-to-mammal transmission
Nature H5N1 high pathogenicity avian influenza virus has killed thousands of marine mammals in South America since 2022. Here we report epidemiological data and full genome characterization of clade 2.3.4.4b H5N1 HPAI viruses associated with a massive outbreak in southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) at Península Valdés, Argentina, in October 2023. We also report on […]
Nov 12, 2024
WHO says mpox cases in Congo’s epicenter where the new variant was detected may be ‘plateauing’
AP Cases of mpox in the region of Congo where a new and more infectious variant was first detected appear to be “plateauing,” the World Health Organization said on Monday, even as the virus continues to increase in other areas of the country, as well as in Burundi and Uganda. A report by the U.N. health agency said the […]
Nov 12, 2024
Idaho health agency halts COVID vaccine program, joining backlash
USA Today A health department in Idaho has voted to halt its COVID-19 vaccination program, joining the growing number of regional governments pushing back against federal vaccination recommendations. These actions concern some public health experts who fear health departments elsewhere in the country may stop offering vaccines and other vital health services. Board members at […]
Nov 12, 2024
VA marks millionth COVID case as officials warn health threat persists
Military Times Veterans Affairs medical officials recorded their millionth diagnosed COVID-19 case Wednesday, a milestone that department experts say serves as a reminder that the virus remains a public health threat even years after the height of the global pandemic. “COVID-19 continues to be the most significant viral respiratory infection in our community,” said Dr. Gio Baracco, senior advisor for […]
Nov 6, 2024
Team from UNMC’s global center return from assisting with Marburg outbreak in Rwanda
Omaha World Herald Three infectious diseases experts with the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Global Center for Health Security have returned to Omaha after spending about two weeks in Rwanda assisting with the east African nation’s response to an outbreak of Marburg virus disease, a type of hemorrhagic fever. Dr. James Lawler, an associate director […]
Nov 6, 2024
A Sexually Transmitted Ringworm Fungus Is Spreading in New York City
Gizmodo Dermatologists have discovered five cases of sexually transmitted ringworm in New York City caused by the fungus TMVII this year, the first ever detected in the United States. An unwelcome germ visitor to the Big Apple is making itself cozy. In a recent paper published last month, scientists have reported the growing emergence of […]
Nov 6, 2024