Current Travel Health News

In Bangladesh, more than 40 farms in 11 districts have been affected by Avian Influenza since it was first reported in March. So far, the authorities culled more than 150 000 birds. The latest outbreak occurred in a farm in the northern Nilphamari district. More than 3000 chickens and ducks were culled.

In Brazil, the first case of cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the state of Rio de Janeiro has been diagnosed in an inhabitant of a rural forested area. This disease has been found in the states of Bahia, Mato Grosso, and Santa Catarina.

 

As of 4 May, 241 confirmed cases of Mumps have been reported from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Ontario provinces of Canada. Nova Scotia was the most affected province with 203 cases, followed by Nova Scotia with 34 cases. Around 90% and 25% of the cases in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick respectively were associated with university settings. Health authority recommended a second dose of the Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccine for certain adults born after 1970, including post-secondary students and health care workers.

 

In India, as many as 70 cases of Cholera have been reported in Delhi. Water crisis has worsen the situation of the epidemic.

 

In India, Nipah virus has claimed 5 lives in Nadia district, West Bengal. It was mainly transmitted to human by bat urine or saliva contaminated fruit in the region.

 

[Editor’s note: Nipah virus was first discovered in Malaysia in 1999. Since then, it has been known to have struck only 2 other places, Bangladesh and Bengal of the West Bengal state of India.]

 

In Indonesia, a pregnant 26-year-old woman was tested positive in a preliminary test for Avian Influenza. She presented with symptoms on around 2 May and died at a hospital in Medan of North Sumatra on 13 May. The source of infection had not been clear yet. This case, if confirmed, would be the country’s 76th fatal case of human Avian Influenza.

 

The Ministry of Health of Kenya has issued a Cholera outbreak alert. A total of 528 cases and 32 deaths were reported in 8 districts. West Pokot district had the highest number of infections with 151 cases, while Turkana district recorded the highest number of deaths at 9.

 

From 30 November 2006 to 12 March 2007, Kenya reported a total of 684 cases, including 155 deaths, of Rift Valley Fever. Among whom, 333 cases were reported in North Eastern Province, 183 in Rift Valley Province, 141 in the Coast Province, 14 in Central Province, and 13 in the Eastern Province.

 

The health official of Myanmar reported that 2 children in Rakhine state had been infected with Poliomyelitis. The outbreak was caused by type 1 wild Poliovirus. Myanmar has been Polio-free since 2000.

 

In Namibia, the number of acute diarrhoea and Cholera cases was on the increase in the Ohangwena Region. The number of cases reached 475, and among whom 27 were confirmed to be Cholera. A week ago, health authorities reported 343 cases. The affected areas included Engela, Opuwo, Ruacana and Okatope.

In Russia, 2 residents of the Budenovskiy and Krasnogardeyskiy districts of Stavropol were infected with Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever while removing ticks from domestic animals. A preliminary diagnosis of the disease has also been made in 16 people from another 11 districts treated in hospital. Of these, 5 were children under the age of 14. This year, 818 people have treatment for tick bites, 368 of them were children. In the past week alone nearly 300 people have received treatment.

 

From 19 December 2006 to 20 February 2007, Somalia reported a total of 114 cases of Rift Valley Fever, including 51 deaths. Seventy-three cases were reported in Lower Juba region, 26 in Gedo region, 7 cases in Hiran region, 2 cases in Middle Juba region, 4 cases in Middle Shabelle region, and 1 case in Lower Shabelle region.

 

Between 1 March and 5 April, 11 cases of Measles were notified in the canton of Geneva of Switzerland. The first case presented with symptoms since 26 February. Most cases were children and teenagers. This was the third outbreak of Measles in the canton of Geneva since 2003.

 

From 13 January to 3 May 2007, Tanzania reported a total of 264 cases including 109 deaths of Rift Valley Fever. The disease was reported in 10 out of the 21 regions of the country, including Arusha region (12 cases), Dar es Salaam (1 case), Dodoma (156 cases), Iringa (4 cases), Manyara (6 cases), Morogoro (50 cases), Mwanza (5 cases), Pwani (5 cases), Singida (24 cases), and Tanga (1 case).

 

In Vietnam, a new outbreak of Avian Influenza has been reported in Hung Nguyen district of Nghe An.  Around 1 300 out of flocks of 3 800 ducks raised by 3 households were found dead on 9 May.  The samples from dead poultry were tested positive to bird flu virus strain H5.