Disease Surveillance

--BBC Last Updated: February 24, 2019 CBC: Measles outbreak leads to 136 deaths in the PhilippinesAs of February 18th, the measles outbreak in the Philippines has caused the death of 136 people. The outbreak has 8,400 cases so far and quickly has led to government-led immunization efforts.  …

Lack of sleep is a growing commonality, however, this deficit may be dangerous. New research has suggested that a lack of sleep may increase the risk of Alzheimer’s, anxiety, and feelings of social isolation. An estimated 33.3% of adults do not get the ideal seven hours of sleep a night. Sleep is…

There has been a reported 20% and 5% increase in e-cigarette use among high school and middle-school students, respectively. It has been estimated that this is a 75% increase in use overall since 2017. As e-cigarette use increase among youths, the AAP says that it is threatening five decades of…

Denmark is planning to spend $12 million dollars on a southern border fence to prevent the spread of the African Swine Fever, a highly contagious disease deadly to swine but not to humans. While there has yet to be a major outbreak, the Danish pig industry is planning to undertake this preventative…

BBC News: A new five-year plan is being unveiled in the United Kingdom to attempt to combat drug-resistant superbugs. The plan will attempt to cut antibiotic use in humans by 15% over the next five years. A new payment plan for pharmaceutical companies will also be enforced; payment will be made…

On the 17th of January, Perdue Foods recalled over 65,000 pounds of ‘ready to eat’ chicken nuggets. The FSIS(Food Safety and Inspection Service) is suspicious that this item is contaminated with materials, such as wood. Three consumers filed reports to the company that they found wood in the…

In Washington, there has been a declared outbreak of Measles. Twenty-two people are confirmed to have measles, with all but one being younger than ten years old. There have been some identified sources: an elementary school, a dollar store, and an urgent care facility. Measles is a highly…

CNN: At least nineteen individuals have confirmed cases of measles in Washington State.  Eighteen of the nineteen cases are children. Most of the infected children reported being unvaccinated against measles. There’s concern that the Washington outbreak could spread across the state line to…

In the fall of 2017, several people in Anaheim, California fell ill with Legionnaires Disease. All but three of them had visited Disneyland during this period. Cooling towers that project mist throughout the park were tested and ‘cooling tower #4’ tested for high levels of the disease bacteria at…

A new form of polio vaccine could help eradicate the disease in developing countries. Freeze drying the Polio vaccine allows it to be stored for up to four weeks, even in hotter climates. Usually, vaccines require refrigeration, which has been a barrier to preventing the disease in countries like…

Currently, there is a total of 286 cases of a rare polio-like disease called acute flaccid myelitis that can be found across 31 states. The average age of acquisition is 5 years old, and the patient will have a fever and cough about 3 to 10 days before the onset of paralysis. Since 2014, every other…

Reuters: According to a recent WHO report, measles cases are on the rise in Europe and Latin America. Worldwide there has been a 30% increase in the number of cases since last year. Both Europe and Latin America show high rates of vaccine-refusal, which is certainly contributing to the problem. Read…

Currently, there is a significant measles outbreak occurring in Europe and it is predicted to spread to the United States if something does not change quickly. This call to change pertains to increasing vaccination levels. Vaccination levels used to be at 95% in Europe, but it has now dropped to 70%…

Leptospirosis in surging in Los Angeles Sea Lions. This disease affects Sea Lions on a ‘semi-regular’ cycle, however, it is believed that global warming and migrating fish are leading to increased levels. Warmer water temperatures are shown to increase the prevalence of algal blooms which emit…