Current Travel Health News
Travel Health News Digest (9 October 2005)
Russia: Hepatitis A [update-3]
As of 3 October, 1 438 cases of Hepatitis A infection were reported in Nizhniy Novgorod of Russia. About 64 000 people had received Hepatitis A vaccine.
(Source: ProMED-mail 3 October 2005)
Canada: Undiagnosed Respiratory Disease
In Canada, the undiagnosed respiratory disease that had affected 93 cases (including 16 deaths) at a Toronto nursing home had been initially identified as Legionnaires’ disease. No new cases were identified since 2 October.
(Source: ProMED-mail 7 October 2005)
North America: West Nile Virus Infection
As of 24 September, 213 human cases (including 9 deaths) of West Nile Virus Infection had been reported in Canada this year. The newly reported cases came from Ontario (7 cases), Manitoba (4), Saskatchewan (3), New Brunswick (1) and Quebec (1).
As of 4 October, a total of 2 016 human cases contracted with West Nile Virus Infection were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the USA this year. Among them, 55 had died.
(Source: Health Canada 24 September 2005, CDC, USA 6 October 2005)
Japan: Resident contracted West Nile Virus Infection in USA
In Japan, a resident of Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, was infected with the West Nile Virus Infection from the USA, where he stayed in Los Angeles from 28 August to 4 September. This was the first case of West Nile Virus Infection in Japan.
(Source: ProMED-mail 4 October 2005)
In the Mainland, an outbreak of Cholera occurred in Jiaxing city of Zhejiang province since early September. More than 100 cases were reported. Local authority had taken measures to contain the outbreak. Restaurants and health institutions were under monitoring and supervision daily.
(Source: Mingpao Daily News 8 October 2005)
Cambodia and Thailand: Hong Kong traveller contracted Dengue Fever
The Department of Health confirmed the twenty-first imported case of Dengue Fever this year. The patient had travelled to Cambodia, Thailand and Japan in September and developed fever and rash on the day of return to Hong Kong. She was in stable condition.
(Source: Department of Health, Hong Kong SAR 7 October 2005)
Indonesia: Hong Kong traveller contracted Dengue Fever
The Department of Health confirmed the twentieth imported case of Dengue Fever this year. The patient had travelled to Indonesia in September and developed fever, general weakness and diarrhoea after returned to Hong Kong. He was in stable condition.
(Source: Department of Health, Hong Kong SAR 6 October 2005)
Turkey and Romania: Avian Influenza, bird
In Turkey, officials confirmed the first bird case of H5 type Avian Influenza. All birds and strayed dogs in the villages near Balikesir were destroyed as a precaution against the disease spreading.
In a village of Ceamurlia of eastern Romania, ducks had died of a strain of Avian Influenza. Movement of people and animals into and out of the village were restricted. Vaccination of people was planned. Nearly all domestic fowl in the village had been slaughtered.
(Source: ProMED-mail 8-9 October 2005)
In Indonesia, health officials reported that the tests for 2 young men in Lampung and West Java, including one who died a week ago, had proved positive for Avian Influenza virus. Another 20-month-old baby who was suspected of developing bird flu symptoms had died in Jakarta. Avian Influenza had killed at least 7 people in the country, but only 4 of them were confirmed by the World Health Organization.
In addition, Indonesian health authorities had found that chickens which were tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus appeared to be healthy. The virus has always been known to be virulent in chickens which fall sick quickly and usually die within 24 hours after contracting it. The finding revealed that the disease was harder to be detected and it posed a greater threat to humans.
(Source: ProMED-mail 5, 6 & 8 October 2005)