CDC Issues Travel Advisory For China Following Chikungunya Virus Outbreak
The virus, which is spread by mosquitoes, has sickened 7,000 people in Guangdong province since June. China has revived many covid-era rules to combat the outbreak. Also in the news, Zika virus, covid, influenza, and more.
San Francisco Chronicle:
Chikungunya Outbreak In China Prompts U.S. Travel Alert
U.S. health officials have issued a travel advisory for parts of China following a surge in chikungunya infections, a mosquito-borne viral disease that has sickened more than 7,000 people in Guangdong province since mid-June. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging travelers to exercise “increased caution,” particularly in the city of Foshan, the epicenter of the outbreak. (Vaziri, 8/5)
Bloomberg:
Chikungunya Virus: China Revives Covid-Era Measures To Battle Outbreak
More than two years after ending pandemic emergency procedures, China has revived some Covid-era health controls in southern Guangdong province to prevent the spread of a painful mosquito-borne viral disease. Recording the identities of people buying commonly used medicines, reinstating mass testing, requiring travel history reports and undertaking community-level disinfection are among measures put in place to check chikungunya, after a city in the industrial hub reported a rare but massive outbreak of the virus this summer. (Kan, 8/5)
In related news about mosquito-borne diseases —
BBC:
Ten Years After The Zika Outbreak: What Happened To The Babies Born With Microcephaly?
When Rute Freires was told by a doctor that her newborn daughter Tamara wouldn't live long, she started crying uncontrollably. Tamara had microcephaly - an abnormally small head - one of many conditions resulting from her mother being infected with the Zika virus while pregnant. Now nine-years-old, Tamara eats through a stomach tube. Her hands are increasingly stiff and contracted and she has a hard time holding her head still. "I was told early on that she wouldn't walk, she wouldn't speak nor smile," says Rute. Rute's daughter is one of the nearly 2,000 babies born to women who contracted the mosquito-borne virus in Brazil between 2015 and 2016. (Mota, 8/3)
On covid and flu —
USA Today:
New COVID Variant 'Stratus' Spreading In US: Symptoms, What To Know
A new COVID variant is climbing the ranks in the U.S., becoming the third-most common strain of the summer. Variant XFG, colloquially known as "Stratus," was first detected in Southeast Asia in January but accounted for less than about 0% of cases in the United States until May. By late June, it was estimated to account for up to 14%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (Walrath-Holdridge, 8/5)
Newsweek:
Map Shows States Where COVID Is Rising
COVID-19 cases are reported to be rising in 27 states and "likely growing" in 12 states more as well as in Washington D.C., according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The national health body warned that COVID-19 infections are estimated to be "growing or likely growing in 40 states [including D.C.], declining or likely declining in zero states, and not changing in nine states," as of July 29. (Kim, 8/5)
CIDRAP:
Influenza, Not Tamiflu, May Raise Risk Of Neuropsychiatric Events In Kids
For 20 years, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) has carried a black-box warning suggesting that use in pediatric patients may be linked to neuropsychiatric events, including confusion, delirium, and abnormal behavior. But a new study in JAMA Neurology debunks this association and suggests that influenza itself, not Tamiflu use, increases a child’s risk of experiencing neuropsychiatric events when ill. (Soucheray, 8/5)
MedicalXpress:
New Flu Drug Combo With Chocolate Compound Outperforms Tamiflu
In a potential game-changer for how we treat the flu, scientists have unveiled a new drug pairing that outperforms Tamiflu—the most widely used anti-influenza medication—against even the deadliest flu strains, including bird (avian) and swine flu. The surprising duo? One of them is theobromine, a compound found in chocolate. (Lock, 8/4)
New Atlas:
The 1918 Spanish Flu Virus Has Been Reconstructed From 107-Year-Old Lung
The preserved lung of an 18-year-old Swiss man has been used to create the full genome of the 1918 "Spanish flu," the first complete influenza A genome with a precise date from Europe. It offers new insights into the deadly pandemic that claimed the lives of up to 100 million people. (Thompson, 8/3)
Also —
CIDRAP:
Many Studies Of Air-Cleaning Tech Say They Curb Viral Spread, But New Review Raises Questions
Although many studies on air-cleaning technologies conclude that they prevent the indoor spread of respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and influenza, only a small fraction examine whether they reduce human infections or identify potential harmful emissions, finds a scoping review published today in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (Van Beusekom, 8/5)
KFF Health News:
Listen To The Latest 'KFF Health News Minute'
Jackie Fortiér reads the week’s news: The Republican megabill President Donald Trump signed July 4 could lead rural health facilities to close, and previously rare mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue are on the rise in the U.S. July 24 Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Affordable Care Act health plans will likely be more expensive next year, and work requirements for Medicaid recipients can be expensive and hard to navigate for enrollees. (Cook, 8/5)
