Current Travel Health News
Travel Health News Digest (5 March 2006)
Mainland: Avian Influenza, human
Mainland reported two confirmed cases of human infection with H5N1 Avian Influenza. Both patients are in critical. The first patient was a 9-year-old girl from eastern province of Zhejiang. She developed symptoms on 10 February after visiting relatives in Anhui province. No outbreaks had been reported in Zhejiang Province since 2004. The second patient was a 26-year old female farmer from Anhui province. She developed symptoms on 11 February following contact with diseased poultry.
To date, Mainland had reported 14 laboratory-confirmed cases. Of these, eight had been fatal.
(Source: World Health Organization 27 February 2006)
Mainland: Avian Influenza, human
The Health Department of Guangdong Province and Ministry of Health confirmed a human case of Avian Influenza H5N1 infection in Guangzhou, Mainland. The case, a 32-year-old man lived in Guangzhou, had onset of fever and respiratory symptoms on 22 February, and died on 2 March. He had history of prolonged stay in poultry stall before onset of symptoms.
(Source: Department of Health, HKSAR 6 March 2006)
Indonesia: Avian Influenza, human
The Ministry of Health in Indonesia had confirmed another case of human infection with the H5N1 Avian Influenza virus. The fatal case was in a 27-year-old woman from the West Java Province. She developed symptoms on 13 February and died 7 days later. The newly confirmed case brought the total to 27. Of these, 20 were fatal.
(Source: World Health Organization 27 February 2006)
In Germany, authorities announced detection of H5N1 Avian Influenza in a domestic cat. The cat was found dead over the weekend on the northern island of Ruegen. Since mid-February, more than 100 wild birds had died on the island, and tests had confirmed H5N1 infection in several.
(Source: World Health Organization 28 February 2006)
Switzerland: Avian Influenza, bird
Switzerland had reported two cases of H5 Avian Influenza within one week. The new case was a dead swan found at Bodensee. Final test results of both cases were still pending.
(Source: ProMED-mail 1 March 2006)
Greece confirmed three more cases of H5N1 Avian Influenza in migratory birds, bringing the total number to 19 since the disease was first reported in the country in February this year. The three swans were found in the north, the same area where all other cases were found.
(Source: ProMED-mail 2 March 2006)
Hungary: Avian Influenza, bird
Hungary had announced that a mallard, a gull and two swans found dead near Budapest were most probably due to the H5N1 Avian Influenza virus, pending further test for confirmation.
(Source: ProMED-mail 2 March 2006)
In Torun of the middle of Poland, H5 Avian Influenza virus was first detected in 2 dead swans.
(Source: ProMED-mail 5 March 2006)
Azerbaijan: Avian Influenza, poultry
Azerbaijan had found Avian Influenza at a chicken farm outside capital Baku. However, it was not known whether it was the H5N1 strain of the virus. Avian Influenza infection also occurred in a farm in Kilyazin.
(Source: ProMED-mail 1 March 2006)
Outbreaks of Avian Influenza had been registered in Russia's Stavropol, Republic of Dagestan, Krasnodar, and the Republics of Kalmykia and Adygeya.
The disease had killed more than 2 000 chicken in a private farm in Stavropol territory. No bird flu cases among humans had been reported in the village.
Bird deaths had also been registered in farms and villages in 14 districts in the Republic of Dagestan.
In addition, bird flu had killed over 100 000 birds in Krasnodar. Tests of blood samples taken from dead birds confirmed the H5 bird flu strain.
(Source: ProMED-mail 1 March 2006)
Ethiopia: Avian Influenza, poultry
Ethiopia confirmed that thousands of chickens had died of Avian Influenza in a southern region. The precise strain of the virus had not yet been determined.
(Source: ProMED-mail 1 March 2006)
Niger: Avian Influenza, poultry
In Niger, significant mortality of chickens and ducks was observed in five outbreaks in two districts near the border with Nigeria during February. Positive test results of highly pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza were reported yesterday on samples taken from dead ducks in Magaria and Dan Barde, located in one of the two districts. Investigation of the additional outbreaks was underway.
(Source: World Health Organization 28 February 2006)
Between 28 March 2005 and 19 February 2006, 2 406 cases of Chikungunya Disease had been found in Reunion. It was estimated that 157 000 people may have been infected by Chikungunya virus since March 2005.
Since beginning of January, other countries in the south west Indian Ocean have reported Chikungunya cases: Mayotte (924 cases), Mauritius (2 553 cases including 1 173 laboratory confirmed cases) and the Seychelles (4 650 cases).
(Source: World Health Organization 1 March 2006)
[Editor’s Note: Symptoms of Chikungunya Disease were similar to Dengue Fever (high fever, severe joint pain and rashes). However, Chikungunya Disease is characterized by a briefer episode of fever and by the absence of deaths. Avoiding mosquito bites can prevent transmission of the disease.]
In Ghana, Cholera outbreaks in the Mfantseman District had killed 3 people and affected over 15 others.
In Luanda of Angola, Cholera outbreak had caused 113 cases since 13 February.
In Central Equatoria State of Sudan, 4 906 acute diarrhoea cases and 89 deaths were recorded in this suspected Cholera epidemic.
In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, since October 2005, a total of 1 185 cases of Cholera had been reported in 2 areas around Lake Tanganyika and 14 patients had died.
In Zimbabwe, Cholera outbreak in 2 central districts had killed 6 people and infected 137 others.
(Source: ProMED-mail 3 March 2006)
Kenya: Meningococcal Meningitis
In Kenya, 74 cases and 15 deaths of Meningococcal Meningitis had been reported from 1 January to 26 February 2006 in 4 divisions (Alale, Chepareria, Kachelila and Kasei) of West Pokot, an area bordering the epidemic districts of Uganda. The immunisation campaign would be due to start on 7 March.
(Source: World Health Organization 3 March 2006)
Niger: Meningococcal Meningitis
In Niger, 614 cases and 44 deaths of Meningococcal Meningitis had been reported from 1 January to 26 February 2006. The epidemic threshold had been crossed in the two neighbouring districts of Madarounfa and Guidan-Roumdji. An immunisation campaign had started in both districts.
(Source: World Health Organization 3 March 2006)
Thailand: Hong Kong traveller contracted Dengue Fever
The Department of Health confirmed one imported cases of Dengue Fever, bringing to 4 cases so far this year. The case was a 48-year-old female who complained of fever, headache, rash, joint pain and muscle pain since 4 February. She had history of travel to Thailand in late January 2006.
(Source: Department of Health, Hong Kong SAR 28 February 2006)
In Vietnam, 4 800 cases of Dengue Fever had been detected so far this year. The cases were detected in 20 cities and provinces nationwide, but most of them were in southern Ho Chi Minh City, and the southern provinces of Soc Trang, Dong Thap and Dong Nai.
(Source: ProMED-mail 4 March 2006)
In Ecuador, 1 460 cases of Dengue Fever were detected so far in 2006, of which 1 430 are of the classic Dengue and 30 haemorrhagic type.
(Source: ProMED-mail 4 March 2006)
According to the newspaper in Guangzhou, the Mainland, about 330 000 people were bitten by dogs in Guangdong province last year. There were 306 human cases of Rabies. All of them were fatal.
(Source: Mingpao Daily News 28 February 2006)
In Khmelnizkiy Oblast, midway between Lvov and Kiev in western Ukraine, an outbreak of Measles had affected over 1 500 persons. A vaccine programme had been initiated.
(Source: ProMED-mail 2 March 2006)