Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2013/08/news-scan-aug-26-2013
News Scan for Aug 26, 2013
MERS case in Qatar; Florida's dengue cases; Staph outbreak at Canadian fair
Filed Under:
Staphylococcus; Dengue; Foodborne Disease; MERS-CoV
Report says Qatar has another MERS case
Authorities in Qatar have reported another Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) case, the country's second in a week, according to a Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) story today.
The illness is in a 29-year-old man who is in critical condition in an intensive care unit, according to the story. The nation's Supreme Council of Health reported that the case was diagnosed at the national influenza center and that samples were sent to laboratories abroad for confirmation, the report said.
On Aug 20 a media story said Qatari officials reported a MERS case in a 59-year-old man who was said to be in stable condition, and Qatari authorities issued an English-language statement about the case on Aug 21. That case has not yet been noted by the World Health Organization, which has not issued announcements about any of the new cases reported in the past week.
Two MERS cases were reported previously in Qatar. One involved a 49-year-old man who got sick last September and died in a London hospital in June; the other was in a man who recovered after treatment in Germany last October.
Aug 26 KUNA story
Aug 20 CIDRAP News item
Aug 21 Qatar Council of Health statement
Count of locally acquired dengue cases in Florida reaches 8
This year's count of locally acquired dengue fever cases in Florida reached eight late last week with reports of new cases in Martin County and Miami-Dade County, according to media accounts and health officials.
In Martin County, a case was reported Aug 22 in Rio, an unincorporated community, and on Aug 23, county health officials said three cases were confirmed in the Jensen Beach area, according to an Aug 24 story in the Palm Beach Post.
Those cases had been preceded the previous week by three others, two in Martin County and one in St. Lucie County, the story said.
Miami?Dade County's first locally acquired dengue case of the year was reported Aug 23 in an 18-year-old man, the Florida Department of Health announced that day.
Locally acquired infections with dengue virus, spread by mosquitoes, are rare in the United States. In Florida the disease cropped up in 2009 after being absent since 1934, according to previous reports. Since then a few cases have been reported in the state each year.
The latest cases have prompted health officials to warn residents to take steps to eliminate mosquito breeding sites and protect themselves from the insects.
Aug 24 Palm Beach Post story
Aug 23 statementfrom Florida Health Miami?Dade County
May 20, 2010, CIDRAP News story on Florida cases that year
Cronut burger fingered in Canadian fair Staph outbreak
An outbreak of foodborne Staphylococcus aureus that sickened more than 150 people at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto may have been caused by the pastry-hamburger combo called the cronut burger, health officials said on Aug 23.
"The cronut burger is the only food that was common to the people that became ill," said Dr. David McKeown, Toronto's medical officer of health, according to C-News.
Toronto Public Health (TPH) said that, as of the morning of Aug 23, more than 150 people had gastrointestinal symptoms after eating food at the CNE, and all 100 or so of those who were interviewed reported eating cronut burgers from Epic Burgers and Waffles at the fair.
"Early laboratory test results indicate that samples of the cronut burger were contaminated by Staphylococcus aureus toxin, which is a recognized cause of foodborne illness," McKeown said in a TPH news release. Symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea within 2 to 4 hours of consuming a contaminated item are common with S aureus, McKeown told C-News.
Epic said on its Facebook page that it has closed its CNE site over the outbreak. "We will await results and further information from Toronto Public Health before we re-open our operation," it added.
A cronut is a cross between a croissant and a doughnut. Food can be contaminated with S aureus by workers who carry the bacterium, which makes toxins that are not destroyed by cooking, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Aug 23 C-News story
Aug 23 TPH news release
Aug 22 Epic Burgers and Waffles Facebook statement
News Scan for Aug 26, 2013
MERS case in Qatar; Florida's dengue cases; Staph outbreak at Canadian fair
Filed Under:
Staphylococcus; Dengue; Foodborne Disease; MERS-CoV
Report says Qatar has another MERS case
Authorities in Qatar have reported another Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) case, the country's second in a week, according to a Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) story today.
The illness is in a 29-year-old man who is in critical condition in an intensive care unit, according to the story. The nation's Supreme Council of Health reported that the case was diagnosed at the national influenza center and that samples were sent to laboratories abroad for confirmation, the report said.
On Aug 20 a media story said Qatari officials reported a MERS case in a 59-year-old man who was said to be in stable condition, and Qatari authorities issued an English-language statement about the case on Aug 21. That case has not yet been noted by the World Health Organization, which has not issued announcements about any of the new cases reported in the past week.
Two MERS cases were reported previously in Qatar. One involved a 49-year-old man who got sick last September and died in a London hospital in June; the other was in a man who recovered after treatment in Germany last October.
Aug 26 KUNA story
Aug 20 CIDRAP News item
Aug 21 Qatar Council of Health statement
Count of locally acquired dengue cases in Florida reaches 8
This year's count of locally acquired dengue fever cases in Florida reached eight late last week with reports of new cases in Martin County and Miami-Dade County, according to media accounts and health officials.
In Martin County, a case was reported Aug 22 in Rio, an unincorporated community, and on Aug 23, county health officials said three cases were confirmed in the Jensen Beach area, according to an Aug 24 story in the Palm Beach Post.
Those cases had been preceded the previous week by three others, two in Martin County and one in St. Lucie County, the story said.
Miami?Dade County's first locally acquired dengue case of the year was reported Aug 23 in an 18-year-old man, the Florida Department of Health announced that day.
Locally acquired infections with dengue virus, spread by mosquitoes, are rare in the United States. In Florida the disease cropped up in 2009 after being absent since 1934, according to previous reports. Since then a few cases have been reported in the state each year.
The latest cases have prompted health officials to warn residents to take steps to eliminate mosquito breeding sites and protect themselves from the insects.
Aug 24 Palm Beach Post story
Aug 23 statementfrom Florida Health Miami?Dade County
May 20, 2010, CIDRAP News story on Florida cases that year
Cronut burger fingered in Canadian fair Staph outbreak
An outbreak of foodborne Staphylococcus aureus that sickened more than 150 people at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto may have been caused by the pastry-hamburger combo called the cronut burger, health officials said on Aug 23.
"The cronut burger is the only food that was common to the people that became ill," said Dr. David McKeown, Toronto's medical officer of health, according to C-News.
Toronto Public Health (TPH) said that, as of the morning of Aug 23, more than 150 people had gastrointestinal symptoms after eating food at the CNE, and all 100 or so of those who were interviewed reported eating cronut burgers from Epic Burgers and Waffles at the fair.
"Early laboratory test results indicate that samples of the cronut burger were contaminated by Staphylococcus aureus toxin, which is a recognized cause of foodborne illness," McKeown said in a TPH news release. Symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea within 2 to 4 hours of consuming a contaminated item are common with S aureus, McKeown told C-News.
Epic said on its Facebook page that it has closed its CNE site over the outbreak. "We will await results and further information from Toronto Public Health before we re-open our operation," it added.
A cronut is a cross between a croissant and a doughnut. Food can be contaminated with S aureus by workers who carry the bacterium, which makes toxins that are not destroyed by cooking, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Aug 23 C-News story
Aug 23 TPH news release
Aug 22 Epic Burgers and Waffles Facebook statement