New: June 16, 2015

South Korea begins plasma treatment trial for Mers

South Korea is to begin trials of an experimental plasma treatment for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) which has now killed 19 people.

The treatment - which has already proved useful for tackling other deadly diseases, including Ebola - uses blood from patients who have successfully fought off the same infection.

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-33146828

:(((
A 65-year-old German man who was infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus earlier this year has died in hospital, the health ministry of the German state of Lower Saxony said on Tuesday.
The man died in the town of Ostercappeln, north-west Germany on June 6 from complications stemming from the virus, the ministry said in a statement.
http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/06/16/us-health-mers-germany-idINKBN0OW1GB20150616

Oh dear.
My brother worked some month in Laos when the SARS flue emerged in east india.
When he came back he had a flue that he never had Before.
He called the Health service here and got the answer that is probably nothing to worry about!

:(((
A 65-year-old German man who was infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus earlier this year has died in hospital, the health ministry of the German state of Lower Saxony said on Tuesday.
The man died in the town of Ostercappeln, north-west Germany on June 6 from complications stemming from the virus, the ministry said in a statement.
http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/06/16/us-health-mers-germany-idINKBN0OW1GB20150616

Oh dear.
My brother worked some month in Laos when the SARS flue emerged in east india.
When he came back he had a flue that he never had Before.
He called the Health service here and got the answer that is probably nothing to worry about!

That is great news about your brother, Janne. :-)

MERS coronavirus a bigger threat to Australia than Ebola, experts say

An infectious diseases expert has warned Australia is at greater risk from the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus than it was from Ebola, but Australian authorities insist the nation is prepared for any cases of the deadly disease.

The virus has killed 19 people in South Korea since last month in the largest known outbreak outside the Arabian Peninsula. To date, 161 cases have been confirmed in South Korea, and one case has been confirmed in China.

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/mers-coronavirus-a-bigger-threat-to-australia-than-ebola-experts-say-20150617-ghqi18.html

Thailand confirms its first case of MERS

(CNN)Thailand has confirmed its first case of MERS, representing a further spread of the deadly respiratory disease from the Middle East to eastern Asia, Thai Public Health Minister Rajata Rajatanavin said Thursday.

A man was diagnosed with MERS after he traveled to Thailand from a Middle Eastern country on June 15, Rajatanavin said.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/18/health/thailand-mers/

Ebola infection may be concealed by pregnancy

Ebola infection continues to surprise scientists. The latest twist: The deadly virus may hide in pregnant women without obvious symptoms.

A new case report describes a 31-year-old woman in late pregnancy who went to a hospital in Liberia complaining of mild stomach pain, possibly pregnancy-related.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/ebola-infection-may-be-concealed-by-pregnancy-1.3117936

Ebola infection may be concealed by pregnancy

Ebola infection continues to surprise scientists. The latest twist: The deadly virus may hide in pregnant women without obvious symptoms.

A new case report describes a 31-year-old woman in late pregnancy who went to a hospital in Liberia complaining of mild stomach pain, possibly pregnancy-related.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/ebola-infection-may-be-concealed-by-pregnancy-1.3117936

That is odd, to say the least.

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One of the most devastating consequences of the Ebola outbreak will be its impact on maternal health.
http://www.nature.com/news/maternal-health-ebola-s-lasting-legacy-1.17036

Ebola is having tremendous knock-on effects for maternal health in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. Pregnancy seems to make women uniquely vulnerable to the effects of the disease, and babies born to infected women have not been known to survive. Compounding these individual tragedies, the blood and abundant bodily fluid that accompanies delivery or miscarriage pose enormous risk of infection to health workers. As a result, many refuse to treat patients who are pregnant for fear that they will become infected. And throughout the region, fears about Ebola and stories about women being turned away have convinced many pregnant women to stop showing up for routine prenatal visits or for assistance with delivery.

Kim Jong Un says North Korean miracle drug cures cancer, AIDS and Ebola

Well, that’s a relief.

According to North Korean despot Kim Jong Un, there is now a miracle drug that wipes out cancer, AIDS, MERS and Ebola.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/north-korea-discovered-cure-cancer-article-1.2264015

There Are Now Fewer Than 25 Cases of Ebola


Guinea and Sierra Leone have around 10 patients each

There are currently just 23 confirmed cases of Ebola in West Africa, according to the latest numbers on the outbreak.

http://time.com/3928454/ebola-how-many-cases/

Kim Jong Un says North Korean miracle drug cures cancer, AIDS and Ebola

Well, that’s a relief.

According to North Korean despot Kim Jong Un, there is now a miracle drug that wipes out cancer, AIDS, MERS and Ebola.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/north-korea-discovered-cure-cancer-article-1.2264015

aha...& this also:
http://www.tweaktown.com/news/35032/north-korea-confirms-it-has-landed-a-man-on-the-sun/index.html
:D

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non-profit org. Play4Life in Zagreb, Croatia, EU

Kim Jong Un says North Korean miracle drug cures cancer, AIDS and Ebola

Well, that’s a relief.

According to North Korean despot Kim Jong Un, there is now a miracle drug that wipes out cancer, AIDS, MERS and Ebola.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/north-korea-discovered-cure-cancer-article-1.2264015

aha...& this also:
http://www.tweaktown.com/news/35032/north-korea-confirms-it-has-landed-a-man-on-the-sun/index.html
:D

Funny :-)

Why Ebola Won't Go Away In West Africa

Ebola has dug in its heels.

Despite dramatic drops in the overall numbers of reported cases, Sierra Leone and Guinea are still struggling to stop the deadly disease.
Case tallies in both countries have dipped towards zero in the past few months, only to bounce back up. Sierra Leone reported 14 new cases this week and Guinea counted 10.

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/06/19/415302571/why-ebola-wont-go-away-in-west-africa

Why Ebola Won't Go Away In West Africa
Ebola has dug in its heels.
Despite dramatic drops in the overall numbers of reported cases, Sierra Leone and Guinea are still struggling to stop the deadly disease.
Case tallies in both countries have dipped towards zero in the past few months, only to bounce back up. Sierra Leone reported 14 new cases this week and Guinea counted 10.
http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/06/19/415302571/why-ebola-wont-go-away-in-west-africa

This is the problem now.

One bad sign is that people continue to die from Ebola at home and are only diagnosed as having the disease after death. "That means they've been sick for days, possibly weeks, and so they're contagious," he says. "Who did they expose? It's hard to know once they're dead."

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/05/15/406748691/its-like-the-story-of-job-ebola-survivors-who-continue-to-suffer

South Korea, Thailand Report No New MERS Cases

Updated at 9:25 a.m. ET

Officials in South Korea say they've had no new cases of MERS for 16 days, but also reported the 25th death from the deadly disease. Thailand, which discovered the first case of the deadly disease earlier this week, says 175 people were exposed to its single case, with no new infections reported so far.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/06/20/415976907/south-korea-thailand-report-no-new-mers-cases

With low numbers of new cases, Ebola vaccine trials fight odds of success

TORONTO -- New Ebola infections in Guinea and Sierra Leone are down to a trickle. That means while there may still be time to prove if experimental Ebola vaccines protect against the dreaded disease, the chances of success are becoming slimmer.

The teams trying to do that critical research know the odds are stacked against most of the trials that are underway.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/with-low-numbers-of-new-cases-ebola-vaccine-trials-fight-odds-of-success-1.2433170

Guinea, Sierra Leone Still Have Ebola

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa is still not over. Health officials continue to report cases in Guinea and Sierra Leone. Liberia was declared Ebola-free on May 9th.

Dr. Margaret Harris of the World Health Organization said, “It’s taking a little bit longer and it’s proving quite difficult in both Guinea and Sierra Leone. But honestly, this is something we’ve expected. We’ve been saying for a long time – we keep using this analogy -- ‘the bumpy road.’ We noticed when Liberia had managed to drop most of its cases down it still took four months before they got to the end of their outbreak. And we’re seeing the same sort of thing…in both Sierra Leone and Guinea.”

http://www.voanews.com/content/who-ebola-22jun15/2832627.html

Updated.

South Korea reports two more MERS deaths, Thailand says no new cases

South Korea's health ministry reported on Monday two more deaths in the country's Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak, which the World Health Organization said was "large and complex," bringing the number of fatalities to 27.

Thailand, which reported its first case last week, said it had no new cases, raising hopes the virus there had been contained. Neighbouring Malaysia announced nonetheless that it was stepping up health screening at all entry points.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/22/us-health-mers-southkorea-idUSKBN0P200C20150622

News.

Ebola outbreak: New cases in Freetown, Sierra Leone

Two new cases of Ebola have been recorded in the Sierra Leone capital Freetown, weeks after the city was thought to be free of the disease.

Health officials say there are fears of further infections as the cases occurred in a densely populated slum.

Sierra Leone's National Ebola Response Centre said there was great concern because all Ebola quarantine facilities in Freetown had been closed.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-33247554

Heart disease drugs may help Ebola patients

WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) -- Researchers in Sierra Leone found that Ebola patients given inexpensive generic statins and angiotensin receptor blockers showed significant improvement.

While the treatment does not attack the virus itself, the hope is that it will allow the body's immune system to improve enough that, with or even without the help of antiviral drugs, Ebola can be eliminated.

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2015/06/23/Heart-disease-drugs-may-help-Ebola-patients/7261435091687/