Disease

There has been a Salmonella outbreak in eggs produced by a North Carolina farm, Rose Acre Farms. These estimated 207 million infected eggs have been sold in Walmarts and restaurants under different names. Thirty-five people have reported the illness, mostly on the east coast, except for one case in…

According to the State Department of Public Health, over 100 individuals in California have contracted norovirus from Canadian oysters. An official warning was issued on Wednesday, May 9, 2018, regarding oysters harvested in the south and central Baynes Sound. In Canada alone, over 170 patients…

The New York Times: Donald G. McNeil Jr.- A recent study found that using mosquito nets utilizing two pesticides, pyrethroids and piperonyl butoxide, protect children up to 44% better than normal malaria nets. Pyrethroids have previously been used in malarial nets, but developed resistance has…

The Democratic Republic of the Congo declared an outbreak of Ebola, as two cases have been confirmed in the northwestern part of the country. In the past five weeks, there have been 21 suspected cases, with 17 deaths. Recent outbreaks in this region have been quickly contained through the combined…

Grant McArthur and Herald Sun — Herald Sun Three men are in critical care at a local hospital after visiting Airport West and Gladstone Park Shopping Centers in Melbourne, Australia. Two of the men are fighting Legionnaires’ disease, while the third individual is still under review. Legionnaires’…

As of January 1, 2018, Nigeria suffered a widespread Lassa fever outbreak that is finally starting to decline. Over 1,849 cases have been reported across 21 states for possible Lassa fever. 413 of those reported were in fact infected, 1,422 tested negative, 9 were classified as probable…

Reuters: Stephanie Nebehay- Venezuela saw the largest increase of malaria cases worldwide during the 2017 year. There were 406,000 cases of malaria reported that year, an increase of around 70% in the country. With the mass exodus of Venezuelans into neighboring countries, especially Brazil, as a…

South China Morning Post: Danny Mok, NHK - Japan and Taiwan are on high alert due to recent measles outbreaks in both countries. In Japan, specifically in Okinawa, there are currently 70 reported cases of measles and, in Taiwan, there are 23 cases, the highest number of measles cases reported in…

As reported by Lena H. Sun and Joel Achenbach in The Washington Post, a string of 60 sicknesses in 16 states since March have been linked to a pervasive romaine lettuce E. Coli contamination. The FDA has traced the contamination origin to Yuma, Arizona but the exact farm has yet to be discovered. …

 In a conversational piece for US News, Olivier Telle discusses current management of epidemiological issues with specific reference to New Delhi, India as an example. Telle posits a large discrepancy between concentrated containment and awareness efforts between urban areas and those of the…

A DNA test known as polymerase chain reaction or PCR was used by New York City health officials to identify the source of Legionnaires disease within hours of specimen collection. The current identification standard for the Legionella bacteria is to run bacterial cultures or get antibodies that can…

Michelle Roberts, Natasha Bach, BBC and Fortune- In general, infection rates of malaria have dropped over 60% since 2000. However, in 2016, for the first time in ten years, the number of cases of malaria in the world increased, from 211 million to 216 million. The recent rising trend of cases is…

Euan McKirdy, CNN- Australia is currently dealing with a mysterious outbreak of Buruli ulcer, an infectious, flesh-eating disease that affects the skin and sometimes the bone of the individual. Over the last few years, Australia has seen an increase in cases of Buruli ulcer, especially in…

Image Credit: CARLOS OSORIO/TORONTO STAR/GETTY IMAGES In a story for U.S. News, Katelyn Newman reported that the Massachusetts state health department discovered an increased outbreak of HIV cases in the past year. Researchers posit a potential correlation between HIV diagnoses and opioid drug use,…