YES!!!


The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo is over


After a 42-day period without any new cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo over.

Initially announced on May 12 in Likati, a remote town in the Bas-Uélé province close to the Central African Republic border, the outbreak resulted in a total of eight cases—with four of those patients dying. While it has declared the outbreak over, WHO says “enhanced surveillance” will continue in the country. The period of 42 days without a new case is significant because it means that two 21-day incubation cycles of the virus have passed.

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Deadly dengue fever outbreak kills hundreds in Sri Lanka

(CNN)A deadly outbreak of dengue fever has ravaged the island nation of Sri Lanka, killing at least 227 people and infecting tens of thousands.
Experts worry the death toll could yet increase, as the country's health infrastructure struggles to cope with the virus' rapid spread.

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Odd how these deadly diseases get wiped out in one locale and then pop up somewhere else. And yes I know technically ebola and dengue are not the same.

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Bob DeWoody

My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events.

Odd how these deadly diseases get wiped out in one locale and then pop up somewhere else. And yes I know technically ebola and dengue are not the same.

Also odd, where do cicadas go for 17 years?

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Capitalize on this good fortune, one word can bring you round ... changes.

Also odd, where do cicadas go for 17 years?

To eat and get fat.

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Cholera :-)


Yemen cholera cases pass 300,000 as outbreak spirals - ICRC

A cholera outbreak in war-torn Yemen is thought to have infected 300,000 people in the past 10 weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross says.

The situation has continued to "spiral out of control", with about 7,000 new cases every day, the ICRC warned.

More than 1,700 associated deaths have been reported, according to the UN.

Yemen's health, water and sanitation systems are collapsing after two years of conflict between pro-government forces and the rebel Houthi movement.

Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholera.

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:-(


Measles 'tragedy' kills 35 across Europe


Thirty-five people have died in the past year from measles outbreaks across Europe, the World Health Organization has warned.

It described the deaths - which can be prevented with vaccination - as an "unacceptable tragedy".

A six-year-old boy in Italy was the latest to die from the infection. More than 3,300 measles cases have been recorded in the country.

The most fatalities - 31 - have been in Romania.

But there have also been deaths in Germany and Portugal since June 2016.

Dr Zsuzsanna Jakab, the WHO regional director for Europe, said: "Every death or disability caused by this vaccine-preventable disease is an unacceptable tragedy.

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Love mac and cheese? Beware of the chemical in those boxed versions

Before breaking out another box of macaroni and cheese to whip up, you might want to stop and think about what’s in that golden cheesy meal.

A controversial chemical called phthalates is present in multiple mac and cheese powdered cheese mixes, according to a report from the Coalition for Safer Food Processing and Packaging.

The chemical, which is found in plastics, adhesives and sealants, has been connected to learning and behavior problems in children and birth defects in boys, a New York Times article said.

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Back to Zika :(


More U.S. counties are finding Zika-carrying mosquitoes

With the summer mosquito season in full swing in many U.S. states, a new report shows a significant increase in counties across the South that have reported mosquitoes capable of spreading Zika and related viruses.

Two types of mosquitoes are the primary transmitters of Zika, dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya viruses. Based on updated data collected through 2016, research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 38 additional counties -- primarily in Texas but as far north as Illinois -- documented the presence of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, Zika's main vector. That's an increase of 21 percent compared to an earlier 2016 survey.

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State issues boil advisory for southeastern New Mexico city


ROSWELL---The temperature in Atresia isn't the only thing boiling. In fact, a total of 14,000 residents were advised on July 15th to boil their drinking water after E.coli was found in the city's water supply.

Click here to read the warning. Residents KOB spoke to say the sudden contamination comes as a shock.

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Texas health officials warn of outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite

Texas health officials are investigating an outbreak of cyclosporiasis, a parasite-borne illness that has typically popped up in the state from imported food.

Doctors diagnosed 68 cases in Texas from June through July 18, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. The state has identified eight cases in Travis County, and one each in Hays and Williamson counties, health department spokesman Chris Van Deusen said.

The intestinal illness’ main symptom is prolonged diarrhea. That, plus loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss, stomach cramps, gas, nausea and vomiting, can last up to a few months.

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Deadly salmonella outbreak infects at least 12 in N.J., CDC reports

At least 47 people in 12 states have been infected by salmonella, which federal health officials linked to yellow Maradol papayas.

Twelve people in New Jersey, along with 13 in New York, were infected. It has also infected those in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Kentucky.

Health officials said they are still investigating the multistage outbreak of salmonella kiambu infections, which has caused 12 hospitalizations and one death, that occurred in New York City.

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'Unprecedented' outbreak of dengue fever plagues Sri Lanka

(CNN) Sri Lanka is facing an "unprecedented" outbreak of deadly dengue fever, with 296 deaths recorded and over 100,000 cases reported in 2017 alone, according to the Red Cross.
The international aid organization, formally known as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), is increasing its emergency assistance across Sri Lanka to help contain the spread of the mosquito-borne disease, a press release says.

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Study: US is slipping toward measles being endemic once again

With firm vaccination campaigns, the US eliminated measles in 2000. The highly infectious virus was no longer constantly present in the country—no longer endemic. Since then, measles has only popped up when travelers carried it in, spurring mostly small outbreaks—ranging from a few dozen to a few hundred cases each year—that then fizzle out.

But all that may be about to change. With the rise of non-medical vaccine exemptions and delays, the country is backsliding toward endemic measles, Stanford and Baylor College of Medicine researchers warn this week. With extensive disease modeling, the researchers make clear just how close we are to seeing explosive, perhaps unshakeable, outbreaks.

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Ebola nurse's lawsuit against Christie creates quarantine 'bill of rights'

TRENTON -- Anyone suspected of contracting the Ebola virus will not be quarantined without receiving the state's written medical justification, and a chance to challenge the decision, according to a settlement announced Thursday stemming from a nurse's lawsuit over her three-day isolation in 2015.

The settlement does not award nurse Kaci Hickox any monetary damages. But it creates a "bill of rights" should anyone else ever face similar treatment, according to statement from Hickox, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and her private attorneys.

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Yemen conflict: Cholera risk for more than a million children

More than a million children in Yemen are at high risk of dying from cholera, says Save the Children.

The charity warns that the children are severely malnourished, and living in some of the areas of the country worst hit by the disease.

The number of people infected with the disease during the country's civil war has already reached more than 430,000.

Malnourished children are at least three times more likely to die if they are infected with cholera.

It is because their immune systems are weakened and they become less capable of fighting off the water-borne disease.

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Lucknow records 23 swine flu cases on Sunday, highest since January

LUCKNOW: Leaving health officials baffled on Sunday, Lucknow recorded its highest surge in fresh swine flu cases since January, with 23 new cases recorded on the day, by the health department. The city reached the highest figure of influenza A H1N1 cases in the state, with its own tally of 129 cases since the onset of the season-January.

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Salmonella Outbreak Linked To Papayas Sickens More Than 100 People

It's the right time of year to enjoy delicious tropical fruit.

But for now, U.S. consumers should avoid Maradol papayas imported from Mexico, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

More than 100 people in 16 states have been sickened by strains of salmonella that U.S. health officials say are linked to the papayas.

Authorities are recommending that "consumers not eat, restaurants not serve, and retailers not sell Maradol papayas from Mexico until we learn more." When in doubt, throw it out, the CDC says.

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Philippines declares first ever H5 bird flu outbreak

The Philippines declared its first ever outbreak of the H5 strain of bird flu on Friday, but said there had been no cases of humans infected.

An immediate cull was ordered for all chicken, ducks and quail within a kilometre (0.6 miles) of the infected poultry in San Luis town, north of Manila, said Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol.

The health department was meanwhile monitoring the health of farm workers exposed to the infected birds, he added.

"So far we do not have any reported animal to human transmissions," Pinol told a news conference.

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Experts: Herd Immunity Outside US Slows Zika in Florida




MIAMI (AP) — The waning of Zika outbreaks in the Caribbean and South America has helped slow the spread of the mosquito-borne virus in Florida this year, according to health officials.

Herd immunity, when enough people in an area are infected with a virus and develop resistance to it, likely has contributed to Zika's decline outside the continental United States, Dr. Henry Walke, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's incident manager for Zika response, said in a Miami Herald report .

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