Update: June 16, 2009
June 16th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 14 to June 16, 2009
Update: June 14, 2009
June 14th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 12 to June 14, 2009
The Ten Worst Travel-Related Diseases
June 12th, 2009Virtually everything that we humans do for pleasure could place us at risk for illness, or even death. In recent years, a growing variety of medical conditions has been reported among travelers. The ‘top-ten’ from this list follow:
- Diarrhea – Not the most serious, but certainly the most common. Roughly 40% of travelers to less-developed countries will develop diarrhea within 48 hours of arrival. Much of the next few days of touring will be seriously damaged by searching for a clean bathroom … or even toilet paper. In recent years, scores of ocean voyages have been cut short by mass outbreaks of vomiting and diarrhea – related to Norovirus infection.
- Skin disorders due to sun, heat, humidity and insect bites. Like diarrhea, not life threatening – but no fun while touring.
- Insect-borne fevers. Dengue and Chikungunya are becoming increasingly common and are no longer limited to “local natives.” Both diseases are characterized by headache, high fever, muscle and joint pain. The incubation periods are short – meaning that the traveler is likely to still be on the road, with no chance for continued tourism and the risk of exposure to sub-standard health care.
- Read the rest of this entry »
Update: June 12, 2009
June 12th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 11 to June 12, 2009
Update: June 11, 2009
June 11th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 9 to June 11, 2009
Update: June 11, 2009
June 11th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 9 to June 11, 2009
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Coccidioidomycosis Acquired by Foreign Travelers
June 10th, 2009A recent case in Taiwan is the latest of over 20 foreign travelers who have acquired Coccidioidomycosis in Americas. A module in GIDEON maintains a chronology of all instances of travel-related infection (rabies, trypanosomiasis, trichinosis, Lassa fever, gnathostomiasis, melioidosis, etc). The following list is abstracted from the program.
[primary references are available on request]
Year* Country Cases Comment
1975* Finland 1
1976* Switzerland 1
1990 Israel 1
1993 Czech Republic 1
1996* Netherlands 1
1998* Hungary 1
2001 U.K, Finland, New Zealand 3 Associated with public event
2001 Germany 2 Acquired in Costa Rica
2002 India 1 Fatal infection
2003 Israel 1
2008* France 1
2008* Japan 4 Case series
2008* Poland 1
2009* Netherlands 1
* Year of publication (other cases refer to year of occurrence)
Update: Appeared in ProMED
Viral Hepatitis in Pakistan
June 9th, 2009Reports of a recent outbreak in Sindh question the relative likelihood of various forms of viral hepatitis in Pakistan. The following data are abstracted from GIDEON. One of the modules in GIDEON follows all published prevalence surveys (Ascariasis, Chlamydial infection, Trachoma, Leprosy …) and seroprevalence surveys (HIV infection, Toxoplasmosis, Rubella … etc) – for every infectious disease, in every country.
[primary references available on request]
Viral hepatitis in Pakistan:
Hepatitis A:
Prevalence
4% of acute hepatitis in pregnant women in Karachi
5.4% of acute hepatitis in Lahore.
Seroprevalence:
94% of children by age 5 (Karachi, 1994 publication)
100% of children ages 14 to 15 (Karachi, 2002 to 2004)
40.57% of persons with clinical suspicion of acute hepatitis (2003 to 2004)
Update: June 9, 2009
June 9th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 8 to June 9, 2009
Update: June 8, 2009
June 8th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 6 to June 8, 2009
Update: June 6, 2009
June 6th, 2009
GIDEON what's new: June 4 to June 6, 2009
Relapsing Fever in the United States
June 5th, 2009Historical:
Tick-borne relapsing fever was first described in the United States in 1915 (Colorado).
- The first case of louse-borne infection in the United States during the twentieth century was reported in 1976 – imported from Ethiopia.
Time and Place:
Peak incidence is reported during the summer, with 47% of cases from July to August.
- The disease is most common in Arizona, California, Colorado and Oregon.
- Sporadic cases are reported from Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
- Most cases occur in the Cascade, Rocky Mountain, San Bernadino and Sierra Nevada ranges.
- 40% of cases occur in tourists to endemic areas (1977 to 2000).
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