Diseases & Outbreaks News and Discussions

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Total of 14 cases confirmed in measles outbreak in Knox County

https://www.10tv.com/article/news/healt ... 1eeef79a69

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Mass Anthrax Outbreak Kills Dozens of Hippos in African National Park
April 10, 2025

Introduction:

(Science Alert) Anthrax poisoning has killed about 50 hippos in Virunga, Africa's oldest national park located in the Democratic Republic of Congo's troubled east, the head of the park told AFP on Tuesday.

It is caused by a spore-forming bacterium, Bacillus anthracis, which survives for decades in soil where animals that died of anthrax or were carriers were buried. It is transmissible to humans and potentially fatal in its inhaled form.

The hippopotamuses were found floating in a river south of Lake Edward, which separates the DRC from Uganda, park director Emmanuel de Merode said.

The local office of the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) in the North Kivu province, where the hippos were found floating, recommended precautionary measures including avoiding eating bushmeat.

"Although this disease mainly affects wildlife, it poses a potential risk of transmission to humans as well as domestic animals," said the body, which manages national parks in the DRC.

Read more here: https://www.sciencealert.com/mass-anth ... al-park

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US measles cases surpass 700 with outbreaks in six states. Here's what to know

U.S. measles cases topped 700 as of Friday, capping a week in which Indiana joined five others states with active outbreaks, Texas grew by another 60 cases and a third measles-related death was made public.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed in a televised Cabinet meeting Thursday that measles cases were plateauing nationally, but the virus continues to spread mostly in people who are unvaccinated and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention redeployed a team this week to the epicenter of West Texas’ monthslong outbreak.

The U.S. has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in all of 2024, and Texas is reporting the majority of them with 541.

Texas’ cases include two unvaccinated elementary school-aged children who died from measles-related illnesses near the epicenter of the outbreak in rural West Texas, which led Kennedy Jr. to visit the community Sunday. The third person who died was an adult in New Mexico who was not vaccinated.

Other states with active outbreaks — defined as three or more cases — include New Mexico, Indiana, Kansas, Ohio and Oklahoma.

https://apnews.com/article/measles-outb ... 4ab71774fe

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First cases in Arkansas

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Vaccine expert worries child measles deaths are being 'normalized'

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WHO agrees legally binding pandemic treaty

1 hour ago

Members of the World Health Organization (WHO) have agreed the text of a legally binding treaty designed to better tackle future pandemics.

The pact is meant to avoid the disorganisation and competition for resources seen during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Key elements include the rapid sharing of data about new diseases, to ensure scientists and pharmaceutical companies can work more quickly to develop treatments and vaccines.

For the first time, the WHO itself will also have an overview of global supply chains for masks, medical gowns and other personal protective equipment (PPE).

WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the deal as "a significant milestone in our shared journey towards a safer world".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c7vn1r3ge2jo

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