Vaccine switched in 'milestone' towards ending polio

More than 150 countries have begun switching to a different polio vaccine - an important milestone towards polio eradication, health campaigners say.

The new vaccine will target the two remaining strains of the virus under a switchover 18 months in the planning.

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-36055507

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NIH doctor explains U.S efforts to combat Zika virus

Despite growing concerns over the spread of the Zika virus abroad, the National Institutes of Health's Dr. Anthony Fauci said Sunday there is no cause for alarm about its spread in the United States and explained health officials' efforts --but added that women traveling abroad need to take travel warnings very seriously.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/nih-doctor-explains-u-s-efforts-to-combat-zika-virus/

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Yellow fever outbreak in Angola is 'threat to entire world'

An outbreak of yellow fever in Angola in which hundreds have already died could be "a threat to the entire world", the World Health Organisation has warned.

Cases of the mosquito-borne virus were first reported in Angola's capital Luanda in December. The disease has now spread to 16 of the country's 18 provinces.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/yellow-fever-outbreak-symptoms-angola-threat-to-entire-world-warns-the-world-health-organisation-a6988011.html

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What Yellow fever I thought that was all but wiped out someone opened another seal of bible all these diseases of late making a resurgence :-(

One day we will understand that having poor living conditions and poverty leads to disease

Black Death spread by rats with fleas that bit you

no sanitation , unclean drinking water blah blah blah

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Zika Is Extremely Good At Mutating. Here’s What You Need To Know.

As a disease, Zika virus caught the world’s doctors and scientists off-guard. It appears to cause severe harm in a variety of different ways, including birth defects and neurological disorders, yet the symptoms are mild or negligible for most people who contract it. It can be passed both from mother to fetus and through sex — a first in the realm of mosquito-borne diseases. Finally, despite the fact that Zika virus has been around since 1947, it has only inflicted widespread injury in the current 2015-2016 outbreak, centered mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/zika-is-extremely-good-at-mutating-heres-what-you-need-to-know_us_57153223e4b0018f9cbabd9b

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No new cases of malaria originated in Europe, Central Asia or the Caucasus in 2015, the first year without a transmission for almost 30 years, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
Between 1995 and 2015, the number of "indigenous"—or locally transmitted—malaria cases, fell from 90,712 to zero in countries located in the WHO's European region.
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-04-malaria-cases-europe-caucasus-casia.html

Last known Ebola patient discharged in Guinea



Guinea's health authorities and the medical charity treating the last known Ebola patient in the country said Wednesday he had been discharged after successfully recovering from the disease.

The elderly man, named as Gbana Kalivogui, was shown smiling broadly in images released by the ALIMA medical charity, which treated him at their dedicated unit in the southern city of Nzerekore.

"The last current confirmed case of Ebola hospitalised in Nzerekore left last night (Tuesday) fully recovered, and has gone home," said Fode Tass Sylla, a spokesman for Guinea's Ebola response unit.

Guinea now no longer has any known Ebola patients, but a spate of recent cases despite the announcement of the end of the main outbreak in west Africa has demonstrated the difficulty of managing its aftermath.

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-04-ebola-patient-discharged-guinea.html

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West Africa Still Under Ebola Threat

As the world's attention continues to focus on the threats of the Zika virus, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association or JAMA on Tuesday, 19 April sheds light on ongoing efforts to combat the deadly Ebola virus that still threatens countries in West Africa.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201604220644.html

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Memphis: Measles cases investigated, additional cases anticipated

State and local health officials in Tennessee are investigating two confirmed positive measles cases in Memphis-area residents. Officials say there is no known connection between the two individuals and the source of the virus has not yet been identified. More cases are anticipated in the Memphis area.

http://outbreaknewstoday.com/memphis-measles-cases-investigated-additional-cases-anticipated-51513/

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Creepy things.

Bed bugs might dislike certain colors

Take a deep breath, scratch any errant itches, and feast your eyes upon the latest bed bug research: According to a study published Monday in the Journal of Medical Entomology, the infuriating insects might prefer red and black to other colors. Don't go throwing out your black bedding just yet, though — the researchers aren't ready to claim that one set of sheets is more likely to attract bed bugs than another.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2016/04/25/certain-colors-might-repel-bed-bugs/

and..

Bed bugs' thick skins beat insecticide

Bed bugs might be developing thicker "skins" to help them survive exposure to common insecticides.

Human population growth and international travel have helped the bug become a source of irritation in hotel rooms around the world.

Insecticides are the most common way to kill them, but they have rapidly developed resistance.

Now, an Australian team writing in Plos One journal thinks it has found one of the reasons why.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-36037823

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WHO Warns of "Marked Increase" in Virus in Europe This Summer

Warming weather throughout Europe could mean the Zika virus will spread at a greater rate, a World Health Organization official said this week.
Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, an assistant director-general for health systems and innovation at the WHO, addressed the possibility of an expanding range for the mosquitoes that spread the Zika virus.

With mosquito season arriving in Europe, "the possibility of local transmission combined with the likelihood of onward sexual transmission could see a marked increase in the number of people with Zika and related complications," she said, according to Agence France-Presse.

"As seasonal temperatures begin to rise in Europe, two species of Aedes mosquito, which we know transmit the virus, will begin to circulate," Kieny said, according to the AFP.

Currently, 42 countries are experiencing a first outbreak of Zika virus since 2015, with no previous evidence of circulation and ongoing transmission by mosquitoes, according to a WHO situation report last week.

Three European countries -- France, Italy and Portugal -- are among the eight countries that have reported person-to-person transmission of the virus via sexual contact.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/zika-virus-updates-warns-marked-increase-outbreak-europe/story?id=38675468

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Mumps Outbreak Reaches 40 at Harvard University

There have been 40 confirmed cases of the mumps at Harvard University, even though many of those infected were vaccinated.

The outbreak was first reported on Feb. 29 and public health officials confirmed today that the contagious disease had continued to spread though the Harvard community.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/mumps-outbreak-reaches-40-harvard-university/story?id=38703839

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Mumps Outbreak Reaches 40 at Harvard University

There have been 40 confirmed cases of the mumps at Harvard University, even though many of those infected were vaccinated.

The outbreak was first reported on Feb. 29 and public health officials confirmed today that the contagious disease had continued to spread though the Harvard community

A vaccine that is only 78% effective and even after 2 doses it's only 88% effective ????????

If you get the mumps as a kid you get immunity but have the vaccine and you don't ?? sort of suggests it's better to get it than not .

Makes me think this is a case where it may be better not to have the shots until they can work out a much better vaccine and sounds like drug company influence has trumped public safety and has stopped the company's from coming up with a better vaccine $$$$$$$$
or am I being cynical again .

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:-(

First US Zika death in Puerto Rico

The first known death in the US to the Zika virus has been recorded in Puerto Rico, say health officials.

A 70-year-old man infected with the mosquito-borne virus died in February, Puerto Rico's health secretary said.

The US territory has recorded more than 600 Zika cases, with 73 of those involving pregnant women.

Zika has been linked to severe birth defects, especially in Latin America, such as babies being born with under-developed brains.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36174235


Glenn, Thanks for your input.

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‘Ebola-Free’ Doesn’t Mean The Disease Is Gone Forever
The West African countries at the center of the epidemic have had flareups even after being declared Ebola-free by the World Health Organization.

Just when health officials think the Ebola outbreak is over in West Africa, the virus pops up again seemingly out of the blue. It's happened at least five times so far.

Now scientists are starting to figure out why: The virus can lay dormant in a survivor for more than year and then re-emerge to infect others.

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2016/04/29/475801199/ebola-carriers-why-the-virus-keeps-coming-back
Ebola Carriers? Why The Virus Keeps Coming Back

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Mumps Outbreak Reaches 40 at Harvard University

There have been 40 confirmed cases of the mumps at Harvard University, even though many of those infected were vaccinated.

The outbreak was first reported on Feb. 29 and public health officials confirmed today that the contagious disease had continued to spread though the Harvard community.

the link below is something all males need to read and be aware of . Having the Mumps vaccine can in rear cases and because of problems with the vaccine cause Infertility in males you are only protected really if you had the mumps when you are a child . So know the risks and talk to your Doctor if your not shore or are worried .

http://livehealthy.chron.com/infertility-caused-mumps-1232.html

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:-(

Top Sierra Leone Doctor Dies From Ebola

Dr. Victor Willoughby, who contracted the disease on Saturday, was the 11th doctor in his country to die from the deadly disease.

A senior physician whom other doctors saw as their mentor in the battle against the Ebola virus died on Thursday from the disease, according to Reuters.

http://www.seeker.com/top-sierra-leone-doctor-dies-from-ebola-1769383020.html


Darth Beaver, Did not know that side effect about the mumps.

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The Other Zika Mosquito

After the virus itself, the main villain of the Zika outbreak has been the Aedes aegypti mosquito, its primary vector. These mosquitoes are sneaky, and resilient, as my colleague Adrienne LaFrance recently reported—able to breed in the smallest amounts of standing water, predisposed to bite people from behind when they’re not looking. You can imagine them swarming through packed cities, nipping people behind the knees, twirling their tiny mosquito-sized mustaches, and cackling as they fly away.

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/05/the-other-zika-mosquito-aedes-albopictus-asian-tiger/480828/

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Liberia: Why Is Liberia On Taiwan's Orange Alert? Resurrection of Ebola Stigma Fears

Monrovia — Months after being declared free of the deadly Ebola virus outbreak, Liberia, one of the West African nations hit hard by the deadly Ebola virus outbreak continues to suffer stigma.

Travel Warning Declaration Triggers Resurrection Of Ebola Stigma Fears

Citing possibilities that the virus could resurface in Liberia, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) last Friday issued a yellow travel alert for Ghana, which it says is a possible target for terrorist attacks, while issuing an orange travel alert for Liberia and Sierra Leone amid signs of Ebola cases reemerging there.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201605031383.html

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Frozen Food Fears: 4 Things To Know About The Listeria Recall

Frozen vegetables are a staple in many diets, so a huge recall of them has us peering at the packages in our freezers.

On Tuesday evening, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced an outbreak of the deadly Listeria monocytogenes bacteria — and frozen vegetables and fruits are believed to be the cause.

More than 350 products like green beans, broccoli, peas and blueberries sold under 42 brands at grocers including Safeway, Costco and Trader Joe's in the U.S. and Canada have now been recalled.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/05/04/476777724/frozen-food-fears-4-things-to-know-about-the-listeria-recall

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