Current Travel Health News
Travel Health News Digest (12 November 2006)
In Angola, a total 126 cases of Cholera and 6 deaths have been registered in the southern Cunene province, mainly in the districts of Kwanhama and Cuvelai. In addition, more than 1 800 cases of Cholera and 121 related deaths have been recorded in Huila province since April 2006. Most cases were reported in Lubango and Quipungo districts. Other affected districts included Quilengues, Cacula and Matala.
In Chad, more than 1200 cases of Cholera with 60 deaths have been recorded between June and October 2006. The mostly affected region was Hadjer-Lamis where nearly 560 cases with 28 death have been reported.
In Guinea, more than 620 cases of Cholera have been reported in the capital Conakry, among whom 25 people died. In the remote Forest Region in the southeast, 13 people died of cholera in the town of Kissidougou and another 20 died in the town of Lola.
In Sudan, a new acute water diarrhoea outbreak which was believed to be Cholera has been reported in southern capital Juba. Cholera outbreak has killed at least 424 people and sickened 14 000 since January 2006 in southern Sudan.
In Tanzania, nearly 60 persons in the capital Dar es Salaam have contracted Cholera and one person has died. In addition, more than 140 patients from Zanzibar have been admitted to hospital for dysentery since 20 October. Most of the victims were children. Both Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam suffer from a shortage of clean water and an outdated sewage system.
In Uganda, 4 internally displaced persons in Pader district have died of Cholera while more than 20 were suffering from the disease in 3 different camps.
In Zambia, outbreaks of Cholera have been reported in Chiengi and Sinazongwe that affected 12 and 14 victims respectively.
(Source: ProMED-mail 10 November 2006)
There have been around 170 cases of Denge Fever in the past few months in the Cook Islands. The outbreak was first noticed in May 2006, and has mostly affected the main island of Rarotonga.
Czech Republic: Tick-borne Encephalitis
The number of Tick-borne Encephalitis cases has increased by 70% in the Czech Republic this year, compared to 2005. A total of 890 people have been affected since the beginning the year. According to the National Reference Laboratory, the steep rise in Tick-borne Encephalitis was partially caused by the extremely hot summer. The mostly affected area was South Bohemia where 155 cases have been reported, followed by Vysocina (106 cases) and Central Bohemia (105 cases).
[Editor's Note: Tick-borne encephalitis is a viral infection. It is transmitted by the bite of infective ticks or by consumption of infected milk. Incubation period ranges from 7-14 days. Symptoms include fever, vomiting and paralysis. Mortality rate is about 15-20%. Travellers should adopt measures similar to anti-mosquito measures to avoid tick bite and avoid consumption of unpasteurised milk.]
Democratic Republic of Congo: Plague
A suspected pneumonic Plague outbreak has been reported in Haut-Uele district, Oriental province in the north-eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo. As of 29 September, a total of 1 174 suspected cases including 50 deaths have been reported.
As of 7 October, a total of 19 443 cases of Denge Fever were reported in El Salvador, of which 204 were Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever. Three persons died of the disease. The departments of San Salvador, La Libertad and Sonsonete accounted for 70% of the cases.
Egypt: Avian Influenza, poultry
A new outbreak of H5N1 Avian Influenza among domestic fowls has been reported in Luxor of Egypt. The area has been quarantined and the birds were being culled.
French Polynesia: Dengue Fever
In October 2006, a total of 129 new cases of Denge Fever were reported in French Polynesia. The number of confirmed cases over the past 5 months has reached 376. The most affected area is the capital Papeete.
As of 2 November, a total of 9 161 cases of Dengue Fever and 152 deaths have been reported in India. Among which, 1 718 cases have been reported from Delhi, 1 224 from Rajasthan, followed by Kerala (849), West Bengal (820), Punjab (809), Uttar Pradesh (604), Maharashtra (582), Gujarat (475), Haryana (395), Tamil Nadu (324), Andhra Pradesh (97) and Karnataka (92).
In Indonesia, the diarrhoeal disease outbreak in South Sumatra has affected 218 people and killed one man.
Namibia: Poliomyelitis (Update)
As of 2 October, a total of 19 cases of Poliomyelitis have been confirmed in Namibia that affected primarily young adult males. Six patients died. The outbreak was traced to importation from neigbhouring Angola of wild Poliovirus type 1 that originated in India.
In Nepal, 9 persons have been hospitalised because of Denge Fever. Seven of them have been discharged and 2 persons were undergoing treatment in hospital.
The Typhoid Fever epidemic at Manthali, the headquarters of Ramechhap district, in the central Nepal was spreading. More than 200 locals were affected within the last week. Around 10 to 15 patients were hospitalised each day. The disease was assumed to spread due to polluted water around the area.
(Source: ProMED-mail 6 November 2006)
Nepal: Undiagnosed death (updated)
The recent epidemic in Banke district of Nepal was confirmed to be Malaria. Around 1 200 people were affected, with 32 deaths in the 10 Village Development Corporations of Banke district. There has been a spraying program in the affected area to control Malaria.
Netherlands: Vibrio alginolyticus infection
In July 2006, three persons in the Netherlands were reported to have developed infections due to Vibrio alginolyticus after swimming in the Oosterschelde. These patients included a 73-year-old woman who had an injury on her knee, an 18-year-old woman who had a wound on her hand, and an 11-year-old boy who developed ear infection. They were treated with antibiotics and recovered.
[Editor’s note: Vibrio alginolyticus is a bacterium which is part of normal marine flora. It can multiply in salty waters at elevated temperature and has been associated with wound infections, ear infections, but also with gastroenteritis and blood infection in those with very poor immunity.]
Up to 31 October, a total of 2 286 cases of Denge Fever have been reported in Pakistan. Out of which 736 cases have been confirmed and 30 persons have died.
The health officials in the Philippines declared an outbreak of Dengue Fever after the death of two victims in a relocation site in Laguna. Around 120 children residing in the same site had symptoms of Dengue Fever pending for further investigations.
An outbreak of Typhoid Fever had been reported in Agusan del Sur of the Philippines with affecting 478 people. Most patients were hospitalised or treated in rural health centers. The contamination of wells might have caused the outbreak.
An outbreak of Dengue Fever has been reported in Jeddah of Saudi Arabia. So far, 4 people have been affected.
On 10 August, an outbreak Mumps affecting 12 persons have been notified from a village of around 3 500 inhabitants in Navarra in northern Spain. Cases in neighbouring villages started to appear since 14 August. Investigation suggested that the outbreak probably began with transmission at the village festival. Disease surveillance was enhanced and susceptible contacts of the cases had been vaccinated. From 1 September to 15 October, 58 further cases of mumps were notified in different places in Navarra.
A suspected outbreak of Chikungunya Fever has been reported in Sri Lanka. Over 1 000 patients of viral fever were reported from the Colombo, Mannar, Kalmunai and Jaffna areas while a student has died from the disease.