Health Security Headlines
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T oday's Headlines: November 20, 2018

Biological Agents & Infectious Diseases
 
Cholera Outbreak in Far North Region of Cameroon (Outbreak News Today) The cholera outbreak in Cameroon is persisting and the Far North Region has shown a rapid increase in incidence cases in the last two weeks. From 2-9 November 2018, the Far North Region recorded 106 new suspected cholera cases, while North Region recorded 12. Four new deaths were reported in the Far North during this period. Go to article
 
China Confirms New African Swine Fever Outbreak in Heilongjiang Province (Successful Farming) China confirmed on Monday a new African swine fever outbreak in Heilongjiang province, the agriculture ministry said in a statement published on its website. The new case, found on two pig farms in the city of Haerbin, the capital of the northeastern province, killed 269 of the animals, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said. Go to article
 
 
Global Health & Security
 
WHO and Partners Launch New Country-led Response to Put Stalled Malaria Control Efforts Back on Track (WHO) Reductions in malaria cases have stalled after several years of decline globally, according to the new World malaria report 2018. To get the reduction in malaria deaths and disease back on track, WHO and partners are joining a new country-led response, launched today, to scale up prevention and treatment, and increased investment, to protect vulnerable people from the deadly disease. Go to article
 
CDC Issues Travel Notice for Israel Due to Measles Outbreak (Outbreak News Today) An outbreak of measles in Israel, where over 1,000 cases have been reported since September, has prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to advise travelers to the country to make sure they are vaccinated against measles with the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine. Go to article


Government Affairs & National Security
 
FDA Approves New Drug to Treat Travelers' Diarrhea (R&D Magazine) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Aemcolo (rifamycin), an antibacterial drug indicated for the treatment of adult patients with travelers' diarrhea caused by noninvasive strains of Escherichia coli (E. coli), not complicated by fever or blood in the stool. Go to article
 
Acute Flaccid Myelitis Task Force Formed as Confirmed Case Count Tops 100 (Outbreak News Today) CDC Director Robert R. Redfield, MD, announced today the establishment of an Acute Flaccid Myelitis Task Force to aid in the ongoing investigation to define the cause of, and improve treatment and outcomes for, patients with AFM. The AFM Task Force will bring together experts from a variety of scientific, medical, and public health disciplines to help solve this critical public health issue. Go to article

 
Medicine & Public Health
 
New Phase 1 Zika Vaccine Trial Meets Primary Endpoint (Outbreak News Today) Emergent BioSolutions Inc. and Valneva SE announced this week positive interim results for the Phase 1 study evaluating VLA1601, their vaccine candidate against the Zika virus. The highly purified inactivated vaccine candidate, VLA1601, met the study's primary endpoint showing a favorable safety profile in all doses and schedules tested. Go to article
 
Pediatric Influenza Vaccination Rates Continue to Fall Short for 2018-2019 Flu Season (Contagion Live) Although influenza activity has remained low the first weeks of flu season in US, more than one-third of parents surveyed in a nationwide poll indicated that their child is unlikely to receive the flu vaccine this season. Go to article
 
 
Science & Technology
 
New Study Reveals a Genotype Responsible for Most Dangerous Norovirus Outbreaks (Homeland Preparedness News) A study funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined that the most serious outbreaks of norovirus could be tracked to a particular genotype of the virus. The study, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, tracked nearly 3,800 outbreaks in the US between 2009 and 2016, analyzing the factors that influenced severity. Go to article
 
CRISPR versus GMOs: Public Acceptance and Valuation (Global Food Security) CRISPR gene-editing has major implications for agriculture and food security. However, no studies have evaluated the public acceptance and valuation of CRISPR-produced food. As such, we conducted a multi-country assessment of consumers' willingness-to-consume and willingness-to-pay for CRISPR-produced food compared to conventional and genetically modified foods, respectively. Go to article
 
 
21st Century Threats
 
Healthcare Providers -- Not Hackers -- Leak More of Your Data (EurekAlert!) Your personal identity may fall at the mercy of sophisticated hackers on many websites, but when it comes to health data breaches, hospitals, doctors offices and even insurance companies are oftentimes the culprits. New research from Michigan State University and Johns Hopkins University found that more than half of the recent personal health information, or PHI, data breaches were because of internal issues with medical providers - not because of hackers or external parties. Go to article


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