A total of 694 cases of Dengue Fever have been confirmed in Sao Paulo of Brazil since this year, compared with 466 cases registered in the entire 2006. The most affected districts were Sao Raposa Tavres, Penha, and Campo Limpo.

In Canada, the Mumps outbreak in Nova Scotia has continued to grow. As on 25 May, provincial health authorities have recorded 302 cases of Mumps. Six other provinces, including New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and Manitoba, have reported cases of Mumps, with some of those linked to Nova Scotia's outbreak. The majority of the patients were young adults between 17 and 24.

Officials in Ghana declared an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 Avian Influenza virus in Sunyani, a provincial capital 400 km north of Accra. Thousands of birds were culled.

In India, about 100 cases of Chikungunya Fever have been reported in Pathanamthitta of Kerala. Cases were also reported in Kottayam and Alappuzha districts of the state. In addition, 642 cases have been reported in a village in Nayagarh district of Orissa.

The Ministry of Health of Indonesia reported a new fatal case of human infection of H5N1 Avian Influenza. The victim was a 5-year-old girl from Central Java province. She developed symptoms on 8 May and died on 17 May. Initial investigation indicated she had exposure to dead poultry.

In Japan, the cumulative number of Measles.cases reported from around 3 000 nationwide paediatric sentinels between weeks 1 through 19 was 691. A total of 214 cases have been reported between 7 and 13 May, compared to 88 cases reported in the previous week. In addition, the cumulative number of cases reported from the hospital sentinels between weeks 1 through 19 was 208, of which 132 cases were reported from South Kanto region, including Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba Prefectures. More than 80 percent of cases were under 29 years of age. In Tokyo, Waseda University has suspended almost all classes after 30 students were confirmed infected with Measles.

Mainland's Ministry of Health has confirmed a new human case of Avian Influenza. A 19-year-old soldier in the People's Liberation Army developed symptoms of fever, cough, and pneumonia on 9 May. He was hospitalised in an army hospital since 14 May. So far, no close contacts of the patient have shown symptoms of the disease.

More than 1 200 cases of Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease have been reported in Shandong province of the Mainland since April 2007. So far, 3 children died of the disease.

In Myanmar, at least 7 children in Rakhine state were confirmed to be cases of Poliomyelitis. A vaccination campaign covering more than 500 000 children under the age of five in western Rakhine and Chin state was planned.

In Nigeria, Avian Influenza virus was confirmed in birds found at the Namaturu village in the northern state of Zamfara on 23 May. More than 200 birds had been culled to curtail the spread of the disease.

The health department in Islamabad of Pakistan detected an outbreak of Avian Influenza at 5 poultry farms in Sihala and Chak Shahzad. Around 16 000 chickens were culled.

In the Philippines, 2 persons have died of Dengue Fever. These fatal cases were from the municipalities of Oton and Barrotac Nuevo of Iloilo province.

In the United Kingdom, an outbreak of H7N2 low pathogenic Avian Influenza has been confirmed at a smallholding in Conwy of north Wales on 24 May and 15 chickens died. Investigation revealed that the farm owners had bought chickens from a market in Cheshire on 7 May. On 26 May, a possible case of Avian Influenza was reported at a farm on the outskirts of Efailnewydd, near Pwllheli. It has also been linked to the market. By 27 May, the health authorities of Wales have identified 142 people who might have contact with the Avian Flu. Tweleve contacts had been found to have or have had symptoms of flu-like illness or conjunctivitis. No one was seriously ill.

[Editor’s Note: H7N2 is a low pathogenic strain of Avian Flu. Almost all human cases of Avian Influenza (H7N2) to date were mild.]

Vietnam confirmed its first human infection of H5N1 Avian Influenza since November 2005. The victim was a 30-year-old man from northern Vinh Phuc province. He was under treatment in hospital. Initial investigation indicated that he had exposure to poultry.

In Vietnam, more outbreaks of Avian Influenza have been reported in duck and geese farms since the virus resurfaced early this month. The provinces affected were Son La, Quang Ninh and Nam Dinh in the north, Nghe An in the central and Can Tho in the south. Samples from dead poultry were tested positive to bird flu virus strain H5.