- A Promed-mail Post
- Promed-mail Is A Program Of The
- International Society For Infectious Diseases
-
-
- Canada
- ------
- [1] Birds - Health Canada Data (Thu 22 Jul 2004)
-
- United States
- -------------
- [2] MMWR, CDC/ArboNET Report (Wed 15 - Tue 20 Jul 2004)
- [3] Vaccination of Condors - California
- [4] Equine vaccination rates
- [5] Northward spread - California
- [6] Suspected human case - Nevada
-
- ******
- [1] Birds - Health Canada Data
- Date: Thu 22 Jul 2004
- From: ProMED-mail <Promed@promedmail.org>
- Source: Health Canada, Surveillance Data 2004 Program,
Thu 22 Jul 2004 [edited]
- http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/
- wnv-vwn/pdf_sr-rs/2004/situation_report_072204_db.pdf
-
-
- Dead Bird Test Results (As Of Thu 22 Jul 2004)
- ----------------------------------------------
- Province / Tested / Presumed Positive / Confirmed Positive
- Newfoundland & Labrador / 34 / 0 / 0
- Prince Edward Island / 57 / 0 / 0
- Nova Scotia / 220 / 0 / 0
- New Brunswick /281 / 0 / 0
- Quebec / 442 / 0 / 19
- Ontario / 854 / 3 / 72
- Manitoba / 293 / 0 / 7
- Saskatchewan / 233 / 0 / 2
- Alberta / 374 / 0 / 0
- British Columbia / 843 / 0 / 0
- Yukon / 11 / 0 / 0
- Northern Territories / 5 / 0 / 0
- Nunavut / 2 / 0 / 0 /
- Canada Total / 3106 / 3/ 100
-
- [An additional 543 dead birds have been tested since
the figures released 7 days ago on Thu 15 Jul 2004 and posted in the preceding
update. The number of confirmed West Nile virus-positive birds has increased
from 79 to 100 (plus 3 which were classified presumed positives); Manitoba,
Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan remain the only provinces to report West
Nile virus-positive birds so far in 2004. As of Thu 22 Jul 2004 there has
been no report of human cases of West Nile virus infection nor of infection
of any other species of animal, including mosquitoes. - Mod.CP]
-
- ******
- [2] USA - MMWR, CDC/ArboNET Report
- Date: Thu 15 Jul 2004
- From: ProMED-mail
- promed@promedmail.org
- Source: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR),
Fri 23 Jul 2004 / 53(28);638-639 [edited]
-
- http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5328a4.htm
-
-
- West Nile Virus Activity -- United States: Wed 14 Jul
to Tue 20 Jul 2004
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Human Cases
- -----------
- During the week of Wed 14 to Tue 20 Jul 2004, a total
of 74 cases of human West Nile virus (WNV) illness were reported from 7
states (Arizona, California, Florida, New Mexico, New York, South Dakota,
and Texas).
-
- During 2004, a total of 12 states have reported a total
of 182 cases of human WNV illness to CDC through ArboNET (See Table). Of
these, 125 (69 percent) were reported from Arizona. A total of 94 (54 percent)
of the 182 cases occurred in males; the median age of patients was 51 years
(range: 1 to 84 years); the dates of illness onset ranged from 23 Apr to
14 Jul 2004; and 4 cases were fatal.
-
- Table: Number of human cases of WNV illness by state
-- United States 2004
-
- State / Neuroinvasion* / West Nile fever** / Other***/
Total****/ Deaths
- --------------------------------------------------
- Arizona / 51 / 16 / 58 / 125 / 2
- California / 14 / 12 / 2 / 28 / 0
- Colorado / 1 / 11 / 0 / 12 / 0
- Florida / 3 / 1 / 0 / 4 / 0
- Iowa / 1 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 1
- Michigan / 1 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0
- Nebraska / 0 / 1 / 0 / 1 / 0
- New Mexico / 0 / 4 / 0 / 4/ 0
- New York / 1 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0
- South Dakota / 1 / 1 / 0 / 2 / 0
- Texas 2 / 0 / 0 / 2 / 1
- Wyoming / 0 / 1 / 0 / 1 / 0
- Total / 75 / 47 / 60 / 192 / 4
-
- Notes: As of Tue 13 Jul 2004;
- * Cases with neurologic manifestations (e.g. WN meningitis,
WN encephalitis, WN myelitis)
-
- ** Cases with no evidence of neuroinvasion
-
- *** Illnesses for which sufficient clinical information
was not provided
-
- **** Total number of human cases of WNV illness reported
to ArboNET by state and local health departments.
-
- Blood donors
- ------------
- A total of 23 presumptive West Nile viremic blood donors
(PVDs) have been reported to ArboNET in 2004. Of these, 21 (91 percent)
were reported from Arizona, and one each was reported from Iowa and New
Mexico. Of the 23 PVDs, 2 persons aged 66 and 69 years subsequently had
neuroinvasive illness, and 5 persons (median age: 52 years (range: 22 to
63 years) subsequently had West Nile fever.
- Dead Birds and Equines
- ----------------------
- In addition, during 2004, a total of 1264 dead corvids
and 130 other dead birds with WNV infection have been reported from 31
states, and 39 WNV infections in horses have been reported from 10 states
(Alabama, Arizona, California, Idaho, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma,
South Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas).
-
- Sentinel Chickens and Mosquitoes
- --------------------------------
- WNV seroconversions have been reported in 173 sentinel
chicken flocks from 4 states (Arizona, California, Florida, and Louisiana)
and in a wild hatchling bird from Ohio. 3 seropositive sentinel horses
were reported from Puerto Rico. A total of 591 WNV-positive mosquito pools
have been reported from 16 states (Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia,
Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico,
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia).
-
- Additional information about national WNV activity is
available from CDC at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/index.htm
and at http://westnilemaps.usgs.gov.
- --
- ProMED-mail
- <promed@promedmail.org>
-
- [The above report is supplemented by a figure showing
the location of the 12 states reporting cases of human WNV infection in
relation to the 19 states reporting non-human cases of WNV infection only,
and the remaining states still to report cases of WNV this year. During
the past 7 days, the number of human cases has increased from 108 to 182,
and the total number of WNV-related deaths from 3 to 4. Colorado and Iowa
have been added to the list of states reporting cases of WNV infection.
-
- Not listed above are the 1st confirmed cases of WNV infection
in the state of Nevada -- a crow (see: West Nile virus, crow - USA (NV)
20040721.1977), and WNV-positive mosquito pools (see: http://health2k.state.nv.us/pio/releases/072004PressReleaseWNV.pdf.
In addition one suspected human case of WNV infection in Nevada is described
in part [6] below. - Mod.CP]
-
- ******
-
- [3] USA - Vaccination of Condors - California
- Date: Sun 18 Jul 2004
- From: ProMED-mail
- promed@promedmail.org
- Source: Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek), Sun 18 Jul
2004 [edited]
-
-
- California: Condors Receive West Nile Virus Vaccine
- ---------------------------------------------------
- Californian condors, giant birds once driven to near
extinction, are being vaccinated against West Nile virus and seem to be
responding well, according to the scientist who developed the vaccine.
The majority of the roughly 188 condors that have been tested since they
were vaccinated against West Nile virus have developed antibodies, said
Jeff Chang, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention research microbiologist
who developed the vaccine.
-
- About 250 condors, the only ones in existence, have been
vaccinated as part of a study conducted by the CDC, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and Aldevron, a biotechnology company that produced the vaccine.
None of the California condors has tested positive for West Nile virus,
a virus that is believed to have killed millions of birds. The virus can
also be transmitted to humans by mosquitoes and has caused hundreds of
human deaths nationwide.
-
- "We haven't had confirmation that condors are susceptible
to West Nile virus infection," said Chris Parish, condor project director
for the Peregrine Fund, a conservation group helping to return the endangered
birds to the wild. "We are just trying to be ahead of the game by
vaccinating them." The 1st California condor was vaccinated 24 Oct
2004 at the Los Angeles Zoo, Chang said. The program then expanded to other
breeding facilities and eventually to birds living in the wild. Vaccinations
started in Arizona in June 2003.
-
- Before the vaccine was tested on condors, it was given
to crows, said Gavin Shire of the American Bird Conservancy, which researched
the vaccine. The vaccine reduced the mortality rate in West Nile-infected
crows by 40 percent, he said. The condors, which are the biggest and among
the most ancient of North America's birds, nearly became extinct 2 decades
ago.
-
- There were only 22 of the birds living in 1982. The Peregrine
Fund started the condor reintroduction program in 1996 with a release at
Vermilion Cliffs, about 30 miles north of Grand Canyon National Park. Nearly
100 of the birds are in the wild, half in Arizona and half in California.
The 1st condor to successfully fledge in the wild since the reintroduction
did so in 2003.
-
- To vaccinate the birds, biologists must recapture them
and administer a shot. The birds, which can have a wingspan up to 9.5 feet,
are lured into cages with calf carcasses. Then, 3 people are needed to
administer the vaccine, with one person poking the condor's leg with a
small syringe. The birds that were vaccinated in Arizona in 2003 are being
given shots again this year.
-
- ******
-
- [4] USA - Equine vaccination rates
- Date: Sun 18 Jul 2004
- From: ProMED-mail
- promed@promedmail.org
- Source:San Jose Mercury News, Wed 14 Jul 2004 [edited]
-
-
- Equine Vaccination Success
- --------------------------
- West Nile virus hits horses harder than humans -- but
horses have a better defense. With 2 FDA-approved equine vaccines for the
mosquito-borne pathogen in wide use, the number of infected horses in the
United States has plummeted. In 2002, 15 257 horses were infected by West
Nile virus. That number dropped to 5181 in 2003, and as of Friday this
year [9 Jul 2004] just 46 horse infections have been reported nationwide.
-
- The equine success story is surfacing as the pathogen
gains a foothold in California: 8 new cases of human infection were reported
in the past 2 weeks in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, bringing
the state tally to 20, state health officials said on Tue 13 2004. In 2003,
California posted 3 West Nile cases, none fatal. The virus is much more
deadly in unvaccinated horses, typically killing about 1/3 and leaving
17-20 percent with residual neurological deficiencies, said Gregory Ferraro,
director of the Center for Equine Health at the University of California-Davis.
As of Monday 12 Jul 2004, West Nile virus has infected 10 horses in California
in 2004, all in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the state department
of food and agriculture reports. Of the 5 that died, none had been vaccinated.
-
- The Food and Drug Administration let horse owners and
veterinarians begin using the equine vaccine months before its safety and
effectiveness had been fully tested. It earned final approval in 2003,
and word of its success has spread through the horse set. The Bay Area
is home to more than a half-million horses, said Two Horse Enterprises,
which provides resources for trail riders.
-
- So why is there a horse vaccine, but none for humans?
It's much harder to get a human vaccine approved, but early clinical trials
for a leading candidate are under way. Researchers at Acambis, a Massachusetts-based
biotechnology company, made the experimental product by tweaking the vaccine
for yellow fever, a disease caused by a virus similar to West Nile. Realistically,
though, experts said a human vaccine won't be available for several years.
"Human products have to go through so much scrutiny," said Carol
Glaser, a viral disease expert at the California Department of Health Services.
"But theoretically, there's every reason to believe it should work."
In addition to high FDA standards, human-vaccine makers face another hurdle:
an unpredictable market. While West Nile virus appears to be here to stay
for the foreseeable future, it isn't nearly as devastating in humans as
it is in horses.
-
- About 20 percent of those infected experience flu-like
symptoms, typically fever, headaches and fatigue. One in 150 develop severe
neurological conditions -- including coma, paralysis and, in rare cases,
death. Of the 9862 nationwide cases reported to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention in 2003, 264 people died. By comparison, more than
30 000 die each year from the flu, medical studies report. Acambis is aiming
its vaccine at people older than 55 -- the population most at risk for
the disease -- and those traveling to places where West Nile infections
are occurring.
-
- Meanwhile, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases, one of the National Institutes of Health, is preparing for clinical
trials of an experimental treatment for humans infected with West Nile
virus. San Francisco and Santa Rosa are among the new sites to test the
product containing infection-fighting proteins, or antibodies, made by
the Israeli company Omrix.
-
- [ProMED-mail has no commercial association with any of
these companies, and the information is reproduced in the public interest.
- Mod.CP]
-
-
- Patricia A. Doyle, PhD
- Please visit my "Emerging Diseases" message
board at: http://www.clickitnews.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php?
Cat=&Board=emergingdiseases
- Zhan le Devlesa tai sastimasa
- Go with God and in Good Health
|
