Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2015/03/news-scan-mar-11-2015
News Scan for Mar 11, 2015
More Saudi MERS cases; Norovirus from food
Filed Under:
MERS-CoV; Foodborne Disease; Norovirus
[h=3]Saudi Arabia confirms 2 more MERS cases[/h] The steady drumbeat of MERS-CoV cases in Saudi Arabia continued today, as the country's Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed two new cases and two deaths in previously reported patients.
The most recent cases involve a 55-year-old male expatriate in Jeddah and a 59-year-old Saudi man in Riyadh. Both are hospitalized in stable condition, while neither is a health worker, had preexisting disease, or had contact with MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) patients in a healthcare setting.
The Jeddah man had recent animal contact, while the man from Riyadh had contact with a MERS patient in the community.
The MERS-CoV patients who died were a 44-year-old male expatriate in Shaqra and a 48-year-old Saudi woman in Riyadh. Both had preexisting disease, and neither was a healthcare worker.
The country has now confirmed 948 MERS cases, including 412 deaths, the MOH reported. The agency said 512 patients have recovered from the disease, while 24 are still receiving treatment or in home isolation. The MOH has confirmed 28 MERS-CoV cases so far in March, compared with 75 cases in all of February.
Mar 11 MOH update
[h=3]Study: 14% of norovirus outbreaks food-related[/h] About 14% of norovirus outbreaks worldwide are attributable to contaminated food rather than person-to-person or environmental transmission, notes a study today in Emerging Infectious Diseases.
To determine routes of norovirus transmission, Dutch, US, and New Zealand researchers compared data from 1999 through 2012 from three surveillance systems in Europe (FBVE), the United States (CaliciNet), and New Zealand (EpiSurv) covering thousands of outbreaks as well as from a systematic literature review.
They found that 10% (range, 9%-11%) of all type GII.4 norovirus outbreaks were attributable to foodborne transmission, as were 27% (range, 25%-30%) of outbreaks caused by all other single genotypes and 37% (range, 24%-52%) caused by mixtures of GII.4 and other genotypes.
Through applying these genotypic profiles to global surveillance data, the authors estimated that 13.7% of all norovirus outbreaks are attributable to contaminated food.
The researchers conclude, "The foodborne transmission route represents a major target for intervention, particularly given the possibility of widespread exposures and the possibility of preventing not only primary but also secondary cases if contaminated foods are recalled from the market."
Mar 11 Emerg Infect Dis study
News Scan for Mar 11, 2015
More Saudi MERS cases; Norovirus from food
Filed Under:
MERS-CoV; Foodborne Disease; Norovirus
[h=3]Saudi Arabia confirms 2 more MERS cases[/h] The steady drumbeat of MERS-CoV cases in Saudi Arabia continued today, as the country's Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed two new cases and two deaths in previously reported patients.
The most recent cases involve a 55-year-old male expatriate in Jeddah and a 59-year-old Saudi man in Riyadh. Both are hospitalized in stable condition, while neither is a health worker, had preexisting disease, or had contact with MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus) patients in a healthcare setting.
The Jeddah man had recent animal contact, while the man from Riyadh had contact with a MERS patient in the community.
The MERS-CoV patients who died were a 44-year-old male expatriate in Shaqra and a 48-year-old Saudi woman in Riyadh. Both had preexisting disease, and neither was a healthcare worker.
The country has now confirmed 948 MERS cases, including 412 deaths, the MOH reported. The agency said 512 patients have recovered from the disease, while 24 are still receiving treatment or in home isolation. The MOH has confirmed 28 MERS-CoV cases so far in March, compared with 75 cases in all of February.
Mar 11 MOH update
[h=3]Study: 14% of norovirus outbreaks food-related[/h] About 14% of norovirus outbreaks worldwide are attributable to contaminated food rather than person-to-person or environmental transmission, notes a study today in Emerging Infectious Diseases.
To determine routes of norovirus transmission, Dutch, US, and New Zealand researchers compared data from 1999 through 2012 from three surveillance systems in Europe (FBVE), the United States (CaliciNet), and New Zealand (EpiSurv) covering thousands of outbreaks as well as from a systematic literature review.
They found that 10% (range, 9%-11%) of all type GII.4 norovirus outbreaks were attributable to foodborne transmission, as were 27% (range, 25%-30%) of outbreaks caused by all other single genotypes and 37% (range, 24%-52%) caused by mixtures of GII.4 and other genotypes.
Through applying these genotypic profiles to global surveillance data, the authors estimated that 13.7% of all norovirus outbreaks are attributable to contaminated food.
The researchers conclude, "The foodborne transmission route represents a major target for intervention, particularly given the possibility of widespread exposures and the possibility of preventing not only primary but also secondary cases if contaminated foods are recalled from the market."
Mar 11 Emerg Infect Dis study