Biological Agents & Infectious Diseases
Ebola Virus Disease - Democratic Republic of the Congo (
WHO) Since the last Disease Outbreak News on 14 May 2018, an additional five cases, including one laboratory-confirmed case from the city of Mbandaka, Wangata health zone, have been notified by the country's Ministry of Health. From 4 April through 15 May 2018, a cumulative total of 44 Ebola virus disease cases including 23 deaths (CFR = 52%) have been reported from three health zones in Equateur Province.
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The Quiet Return of Ebola (
Washington Post) It's easy to forget how worried people were about Ebola during the outbreak in West Africa four years ago. While most of the 11,000-plus who died of the disease lived in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the story dominated headlines and seemingly caused panic the world over. Over the past few days, Ebola has made a (relatively) quiet comeback.
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Domestic Preparedness & Response
Global Health Security
Cholera Epidemic -- Lusaka, Zambia, October 2017-May 2018 (
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) On October 6, 2017, an outbreak of cholera was declared in Zambia after laboratory confirmation of
Vibrio cholerae O1, biotype El Tor, serotype Ogawa, from stool specimens from two patients with acute watery diarrhea. The two patients had gone to a clinic in Lusaka, the capital city, on October 4. Cholera cases increased rapidly, from several hundred cases in early December 2017 to approximately 2,000 by early January 2018.
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Medicine & Public Health
Outbreaks Associated with Treated Recreational Water -- United States, 2000-2014 (
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) Outbreaks associated with exposure to treated recreational water can be caused by pathogens or chemicals in venues such as pools, hot tubs/spas, and interactive water play venues (i.e., water playgrounds). During 2000-2014, public health officials from 46 states and Puerto Rico reported 493 outbreaks associated with treated recreational water.
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Ethics of Randomized Trials in a Public Health Emergency (
PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases) The 2014-2015 outbreak of Ebola in West Africa claimed over 11,000 lives and laid bare the challenges of responding to a large-scale, swiftly evolving public health emergency. Prominent among these difficulties was disagreement about the ethics of conducting clinical research during epidemics and whether clinical trials of vaccines and therapeutics should employ randomization and concurrent controls.
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Science & Technology
Controlling Epidemics with Transmissible Vaccines (
PLOS One) As the density of human and domestic animal populations increases, the threat of localized epidemics and global pandemics grows. Although effective vaccines have been developed for a number of threatening pathogens, manufacturing and disseminating vaccines in the face of a rapidly spreading epidemic or pandemic remains a formidable challenge.
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