Polio is a nightmare of the past for most of the world thanks to life-saving vaccinations.
But, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Somalia, Kenya and now Papua New Guinea, recent outbreaks have brought a resurgence of the incurable disease where it was once eradicated.
Twelve children in five provinces of Papua New Guinea have been diagnosed with polio since July.
Hundreds of people have died in Brazil’s largest yellow fever epidemic in over 100 years.
A major and unexplained resurgence of yellow fever in Brazil occurred in non-human primates in 2016. The outbreak then spread to humans in early 2017, taking almost 700 lives.
Thanks to a detailed study from Oxford University, we now know how the virus spread in the 2016-2017 Southeast Brazilian outbreak. Not only does it give insight into this outbreak, but could help stop future epidemics around the world.
Millions of people visit airports every day. With so many people in one confined space, you have to expect some exchange of germs.
But, which area in an airport contains the most germs?
According to a new study from experts in the United Kingdom and Finland, not only can you catch a virus from airport security bins, they may actually be the biggest germ hotspots in airports.
Deadly cholera outbreaks have recently been plaguing many African countries, particularly those in the eastern and southern Africa region (ESAR).
With almost 25,000 cases and more than 350 deaths, questions about the overall impact of the illness remain.
How did these outbreaks happen? How likely are they to spread throughout the rest of the continent? Are other regions in danger of a cholera outbreak?
In recent years, we’ve seen the extreme dangers of foodborne illnesses. Cholera, typhoid and hepatitis A outbreaks can create epidemics that span whole countries and prove hard to stop.
An illness like listeria is no different.
The disease comes from processed meats that have gone bad, such as hot dogs, deli meats, canned smoked seafood. A person who even incorrectly refrigerates produce items can contract listeria. We’ve already seen the serious effects of listeria this year alone, with an outbreak in South Africa.
