Travel Health Service Year 2007

Travel Health News Digest (24 December 2007)

Singapore: Dengue Fever

In Singapore, an outbreak of Dengue Fever has affected 13 workers at a construction site. Four of them lived near the construction site. Officials are determining the source of infection.

(Source: ProMED-mail 18 December 2007)

Italy: Meningococcal meningitis

A total of 7 cases of Meningococcal Meningitis, including 3 deaths, have been reported in several small towns near Treviso, Italy. The cases were young adults aged 15 to 33 years old and had attended a dance party.

(Source: ProMED-mail 22 December 2007)

Poland: Avian Influenza, poultry

In Poland, an outbreak of Avian Influenza affecting a large egg-laying chicken farm was reported in Mazowsze Province. More than 120,000 birds were culled and 100,000 eggs were destroyed. This was the fifth reported case of Avian Influenza in the country recently.

(Source: ProMED-mail 18 December 2007)

Saudi Arabia: Avian Influenza, poultry

In Saudi Arabia, an outbreak of Avian Influenza affecting an ostrich farm was reported in the Al-Kharj region, 80 km south of Riyadh. The government has ordered 13,500 ostriches to be destroyed. There have been no reports of the disease spreading to humans so far.

(Source: ProMED-mail 17 December 2007)

Africa: Cholera

In Rutshuru and Goma of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, more than 1,200 and 1,600 people have been treated for Cholera since mid-November and September respectively. As of 16 December 2007, 291 Cholera cases have been reported in Malawi, 2 of them died. In Nebbi of Uganda, 331 Cholera cases have been reported since November, 4 of them died of the disease. In Kenya, at least 7 people died of Cholera and 33 were infected in the past week. In Harare of Zimbabwe, more than 2,000 Cholera cases have also been reported in the past week.

(Source: ProMED-mail 19 December 2007)

Sudan: Rift Valley Fever [update 3]

As of 16 December, 601 cases of Rift Valley Fever including 211 deaths had been reported in White Nile, Sennar, Gazeera and River Nile States of Sudan. Most of the cases were from Gazeera. Apart from this, 31 cases including 7 deaths were reported in Khartoum State, but they are believed to have acquired the infection in the other affected areas.

(Source: World Health Organization 20 December 2007)

[Back]

[Back to top]