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Haiti’s cholera epidemic twice as bad as predicted, say researchers
Haiti’s cholera epidemic may be twice as bad as health officials originally thought.
The number of people affected with the disease may be nearly 800,000, double what U.N. officials predicted, BBC reports.
The bacterial disease causes severe diarrhea and vomiting and can be life-threatening if left untreated as it can lead to severe dehydration. It is spread from person-to-person through contaminated food and water.
About 150,000 people contracted cholera and 3,500 died in Haiti between October and December 2010. U.N. health officials expected the number of infected at this time to be about 400,000. But researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, say the number is likely to be double that.
The new calculations take into consideration factors such as Read more…
New Tdap vaccine requirement for seventh graders begins this fall
A new immunization requirement will be in effect this fall to help fight the spread of whooping cough in Oklahoma schools and communities.
All students entering seventh grade will be required to have one dose of Tdap — tetanus, diphtheria and acelluar pertussis vaccine — before the start of the 2011-2012 school year.
According to the Oklahoma State Department of Health, the new requirement will help Oklahoma avoid outbreaks of the disease that other parts of the country are experiencing. Thousands of cases of whooping cough have been noted in California and Texas.
“While Oklahoma has been fortunate thus far in avoiding an outbreak of whooping cough, we did see an increase in the number of cases reported in the state last year,” said State Health Commissioner Dr. Terry Cline. “One hundred seventy cases were reported in Read more…
Scientists deliberately create 127 hybrid viruses from H1N1, then warn they are dangerous
(NaturalNews) Chinese researchers recently warned the world in a study that the H1N1 virus is capable of combining with various other viruses to create “novel pandemic strains.” Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, the paper states that with the proper mixing host in place, viruses can swap genes and mutate into new strains — and researchers discovered this by deliberately creating 127 of them in a laboratory.
After concocting these 127 hybrid viruses, researchers found that eight of them were more harmful than their parent viruses when tested in mice, according to a Reuters report. And researchers warn that these deadly mutant strains may one day be a serious threat to public health because they cause pneumonia, edema, and hemorrhaging.
“The main message is that the H1N1 can combine in certain ways with the H9N2 to create reassortants and some of the viruses had an increased Read more…
Avian influenza continues to spread across Asian countries
Across Japan a total of 22 cases of avian flu have been reported as the infection continues to spread. On Sunday, 33,000 more chickens were culled in the Miyazaki Prefecture, bringing the total chickens culled to around 990,000 birds since the first infection was reported on Jan 22, 2011.
In India, further cases have been confirmed on a Tripura farm where the culling process has started to take place. This is the second time bird flu has been detected in the state following an outbreak in February this year. Health and veterinary workers had then culled more than 4,000 chickens.
South Korea has also had 12,400 birds test positive for avian flu last week, marking the 49th outbreak since December 29. The latest outbreak is a poultry farm in Cheonan, 92 km south of Seoul, the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service (NVRQS) said. All ducks on the farm will be culled with quarantine authorities asking nearby farms to be vigilant and protect their birds.
This is the second case of the highly pathogenic avian influenza reported in the country this month although the number of AI cases has started to fall off in recent weeks. The government has culled more than 6.04 million birds in six provinces across the country.
Air travelers may have been exposed to measles
WASHINGTON (AP) — Public health officials are warning travelers and workers present at four U.S. airports on two recent days that they may have been exposed to measles from a traveler arriving from London.
Authorities said Saturday that a New Mexico woman later confirmed to have measles arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport late in the afternoon of Feb. 20. Two days later, the measles-infected traveler departed from BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport near Baltimore on an evening flight to Denver, Colo., and then on to Albuquerque, N.M.
The traveler became sick and was subsequently diagnosed with measles in New Mexico, said Tom Skinner, a spokesman for the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He said Saturday night that authorities in those states are trying to notify Read more…
Earthquakes and Volcanoes in Prophecy
DAVID C. PACK
Earthquakes and volcanic activity have become regular in the news—and there is a reason. While most take Earth’s surface for granted, danger lies within its thin and fragile crust.
Throughout history, God has used earthquakes to serve His purpose. The Bible foretells that the greatest period of earthquake activity in history lies just ahead. In fact, earthquakes and volcanoes will soon affect the security and stability of the whole world—including your life.
God’s Word is plain. Yet most “prophecy watchers” speak little about this subject beyond the warning that “earthquakes are increasing” or “will increase.” You are about to learn things no one else is telling you about earthquakes and volcanoes!
Earthquakes in Recent History
In the past 500 years, earthquakes of every size have claimed many millions of lives. The danger is now greater than ever—since the population has dramatically increased during the last two centuries, and some of the world’s most earthquake-prone regions have become the most densely populated.
Before thoroughly examining what God reveals about earthquakes—and volcanoes!—past and present—here are some facts.
The Pacific Rim has long been the most volatile region in the world. It accounts for 90 percent of Read more…
Poultry farmers on bird flu alert
“We have asked poultry farmers to report any unusual and large-scale deaths so as to take the necessary measures to confirm if there is any outbreak of bird flu here,” said Dr Y Thirupathaiah, additional director, planning, directorate of animal husbandry.
In 2006, bird flu fear led to losses worth crores of rupees in the state as poultry birds had to be culled in large numbers and eggs were also destroyed.
In case of any signs of bird flu in the state, the serum samples will have to be Read more…
Global warming could increase diseases originating from water sources
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Climate change could increase exposure to water-borne diseases originating in oceans, lakes and coastal ecosystems, and the impact could be felt within 10 years, US scientists told a conference in Washington on Saturday.
Several studies have shown that shifts brought about by climate change make ocean and freshwater environments more susceptible to toxic algae blooms and allow harmful microbes and bacteria to proliferate, researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.
In one study, NOAA scientists modeled future ocean and weather patterns to predict the effect on blooms of Alexandrium catenella, or the toxic “red tide,” which can accumulate in shellfish and cause symptoms, including paralysis, and can sometimes be deadly to humans who eat the Read more…
S. Korea confirms 2 more bird flu outbreaks
SEOUL, Feb. 13 (Yonhap) — South Korea on Sunday confirmed two additional bird flu outbreaks in areas near Seoul despite nationwide efforts to stem the spread of the disease.
The farm ministry said the new cases were reported at a medium-sized duck farm and a small poultry farm that raises chickens and ducks, which reported symptoms earlier in the week.
All 8,400 birds on the two farms in Hwaseong south of Seoul and Dongducheon north of the capital have been culled and buried, with other bird farms within a 3-kilometer radius being checked for infections.
The outbreaks are the Read more…
North Korea confirms large-scale foot-and-mouth disease outbreak
PYONGYANG: North Korean state media on Friday acknowledged for the first time that foot-and-mouth disease has broken out in the Asian country, affecting eight provinces.
KCNA said the most seriously affected areas are Pyongyang, North Hwanghae Province and Kangwon Province. Other areas which have been affected are North and South Phyongan Provinces and Jagang Province, although the other three affected provinces were not identified.
“Type O Foot-and-mouth diseases broke out on cooperative farms, diary farms and pig farms in those areas, doing harm to domestic animals,” KCNA said. “More than 10 000 heads of draught oxen, milch cows and pigs have so far been infected with the diseases and thousands of them died.”
The state broadcaster said a national emergency veterinary and anti-epizootic committee has since been established. “An emergency anti-epidemic campaign was Read more…
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