Recent reports of La Crosse encephalitis in North Carolina remind us that a number of severe arthropod-borne infections continue to appear each year in the United States. For almost four decades, California encephalitis has been the most commonly-reported disease in this group ; however, since 2000, (more…)

An ongoing outbreak in Denmark belies the fact that salmonellosis rates in Scandinavia have remained fairly constant during the past decade. In the attached graph rates for the United States are added for comparison. Some additional background data on salmonellosis in Denmark – source www.GideonOnline.com (more…)

The following background information on Trypanosomiasis in Angola is abstracted from GIDEON:

Trypanosomiasis was first identified in Angola in 1871, in the Quixama region (Kwanza River area, south of Luanda).

A resurgence of disease rates during the 1980’s does not represent a general phenomenon for Africa, and appears to be related to civil unrest in the country. See graph

Trypanosomiasis is endemic to 7 of the country’s 18 provinces.
- Risk areas include the northern provinces of Bengo, Kwanza north and Kwanza south, Luanda, Malange, Uige, and Zaire.
- Widespread disease in the southern provinces of Kunene, Huambo, Namibe, and Huila was first reported in 2003.
- 2.5 to 4 million persons are considered at risk in 6,000 villages north of the Kuanza River.

Trypanosoma brucei gambiense predominates (mostly in the northwestern region - Zaire, Uige, Luanda and Cuenza Norte).
- Sporadic disease due to Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense is also reported.

Tsetse flies are present in 14 of Angola’s 18 provinces.
- The local vectors are Glossina palpalis (found in Zaire, Bengo, Kwanza Norte, Kwanza Sul and Cuando Cubango), G. fuscipes ssp. quanzensis and martinii (found in Uige, Malanje, Lunda Norte and Lunda Sul), and G. morsitans (found in Malanje, Kwanza Sul, Bia, Moxico and Cuando Cubango).

Quoted in ProMED

As America once again enters the “Lyme disease season” information regarding this major infectious disease continues to evolve rapidly. The following material has been generated using GIDEON, an interactive on line program that can be used to diagnose or explore the status of all infectious diseases: signs and symptoms, status in every country, ongoing epidemics, antibiotics, vaccines, parasites, virus … in real time. So, let’s test your knowledge about Lyme disease:

1. True or false: Lyme disease is a relatively new infection that is primarily limited to the United States.
2. You have probably heard that Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks. How many tick-borne diseases occur in the world ? In the United States ?
3. Many other infectious diseases are characterized by severe illness, involving many body systems. Are there any truly unique features to Lyme disease ?
4. How many antibiotic agents are available ? How many are effective against the bacterium that causes Lyme disease ?

I put these four questions to GIDEON … (more…)

A recent outbreak highlights the fact that New Caledonia has one of the highest rates of leptospirosis in the Pacific region (see graph). In fact, in these islands, Leptospirosis is more common than Salmonellosis, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Gonorrhea and Tuberculosis (see graph).

The following background information regarding Leptospirosis in New Caledonia is abstracted from GIDEON:

Leptospirosis is most common in west coast cattle-farming areas and rural Melanesian settings

• Disease rates are highest in the Bourail area.
• Disease rates peak during March to May.

Notes:

1. An average of 4 fatal cases are reported yearly.
2. 57 cases were diagnosed during 1983 to 1985.
3. 239 cases were reported during 2001 to 2005. The principal serogroups were Icterohaemorrhagiae (69%), Australis (8%), Pyrogenes (6%)

58% of cattle are seropositive.

The principal reservoirs in this country are rodents, pigs, horses and cattle.

The principal species are Leptospira serovars. Icterohaemorrhagiae, tarassovi, pyrogenes, canicola, australis and pomona.

• Serovar tarassovi accounts for 22% of cases, icterohaemorrhagiae 18% and pyrogenes 17%.

Notable outbreaks:
1989 - An outbreak (144 cases, 6 fatal) was reported, with 41% of the cases caused by serovar icterohaemorrhagiae.

Update: Also mentioned in ProMED

Steve quoted in ProMED:

Recent outbreaks of mumps in Moldova illustrate the fact mumps rates in this region have been erratic for the past 3 decades, but appear to be declining slowly. See graph.

Quoted in ProMED:

Visceral leishmaniasis was 1st described in Brazil in 1934 and 1st reported from Rio de Janeiro state in 1977.

90 percent of cases are reported from the north (mouth of the Amazon) and eastern regions. The disease is endemic to Alagoas, Bahia, Ceara, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio Grande do Norte, Roraima and Sergipe. Urban transmission was 1st reported in 1981, from Teresina (Piaui State). A large focus extends from Roraima into Venezuela and Guyana.

The reported incidence has increased from 164 cases (35 fatal) in 1980 to 3220 (223 fatal) in 2005; see graph . A total of 44 289 cases were reported during 1980 to 2000, 39 823 of these from the northeast. Brazil accounts for over 90 percent of cases in the New World.
(more…)

Quoted in ProMED:

An ongoing epizootic in Campania highlights the fact that human brucellosis is more common in Italy than in any contiguous countries. I’ve compared regional disease rates on the graph.

Update: In an additional ProMED note, other countries were added to the comparison:

In comparing brucellosis rates in Italy to those of neighboring countries, the moderator suggested that data should also be expanded to include Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Cyprus.

Rates for the latter are contrasted on this graph.

Recent events in Antananarivo highlight the fact that Africa - and particularly Madagascar - have accounted for most of the world’s plague deaths since the 1980’s. See graph of reported plague deaths and graph of rates per 100,000.

Update: Appeared in ProMED, with the following commentary:

Readers should link to the URLs above to observe the reported deaths due to _Yersinia pestis_ from Gideon.

The 1st graph compares worldwide statistics as compared to Africa and as compared to Madagascar. It illustrates that over the years 1994 to 2003, the African continent is the source of most of the world’s reported cases of plague deaths, and since the increased incidence of plague in Madagascar in 1996, a significant percentage of the plague deaths were reported from Madagascar.

The 2nd graph reports plague deaths from 5 African nations, Uganda, Tanzania, Namibia, Congo DR, and Madagascar. In the years 1996-2003, Madagascar reported more deaths than any of the other 4 nations with Congo DR 2nd. In 1996 and 1997, Tanzania reported the 3rd most plague deaths among the 5 nations, but from 1998-2003, Uganda has taken that role. - Mod.LL

Quoted in ProMED:

A recent outbreak in West Yorkshire belies the fact that rates of giardiasis in the United Kingdom have been for decreasing several years. In this graph, I’ve added the United States data for comparison.

As quoted in ProMED:

The recent outbreak in Lagodechi belies the fact that reported rates for [human] brucellosis in Georgia are relatively low in comparison to neighboring countries. See graph:

A recent upsurge in Ross River virus infection in Queensland highlights the fact that this state has consistently accounted for the majority of cases in Australia for several years. See graph: