Macao logs 22.7% drop of HIV cases last year

Tuesday, 09 February 2010; Submitted By: Administrator

MACAO -- The number of new HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection cases reported was 17 last year, 22.7 percent less than the number of cases in 2008, the local Macao Post Daily reported on Monday. The newspaper quoted the statistics released by the Health Bureau of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) as saying that some 58.8 percent of last year's HIV patients were non-local residents. The information did not elaborate on the patients' nationalities, and many of the non-local patients are understood to be sex workers. According to the figures, 41.2 percent and 17.7 percent of last year's new cases were caused by heterosexual intercourse and homosexual intercourse respectively, while 17.7 percent were infected by drug injection. A total of 427 cases of HIV infection and 44 cases of AIDS were reported between 1986 and 2009 in Macao. Some 50.4 percent of the cases reported involved people with non-Chinese nationals working in the entertainment sector, and 67.5 percent were infected through heterosexual intercourse. ...Read More

Global Tamiflu-resistant H1N1 cases reach 225

Monday, 08 February 2010; Submitted By: Administrator

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported today that 225 cases of H1N1 flu with resistance to oseltamivir (Tamiflu) have been found worldwide, and resistant viruses have spread from person to person in several clusters but have not spilled into the community. Many of the resistant cases involved people with severely weakened immunity, reinforcing the importance of monitoring for the problem in such patients, the WHO said in today's issue of its Weekly Epidemiological Record. The 225 cases come from 20 countries and include 65 cases in the Americas, 77 in Europe, 1 in Africa, and 82 in the Western Pacific region, the agency said. All the isolates had the H275Y mutation that confers resistance to oseltamivir but not to the other neuraminidase inhibitor in general use, zanamivir (Relenza). Of 142 cases for which data were available, 56 (40%) were in severely immunocompromised patients, and 54 (38%) were linked to treatment of flu. Another 16 cases (11%) were associated with preventive treatment, and 16 others did not involve any known antiviral use. The WHO reviewed reports of three clusters of resistant cases, one each in the United States, the United Kingdom, and ...Read More

Indonesian scientist says H5N1 may be outwitting poultry vaccines

Thursday, 04 February 2010; Submitted By: Administrator

An Indonesian virologist says the H5N1 avian influenza virus in Indonesia may have evolved so as to make the poultry vaccines used there less effective, according to a report in the Jakarta Globe. The virologist, I Gusti Ngurah Mahardhika, said genetic differences of up to 8.7% were found when viral isolates collected at farms with vaccinated flocks in 2008 and 2009 were compared with a virus isolated from Legok, Banten, in 2003. The Legok virus is still being used by most vaccine producers in Indonesia, the story said. Mahardhika suggested that the viral mutations may explain a series of outbreaks in Indonesian flocks over the past 2 years and said he had "strong evidence" that vaccines based on the Legok virus are not effective against newer strains. Another scientist, Amin Soebandrio of the University of Indonesia, said he concurred with Mahardhika's findings and commented, "We need to see whether the changes increase the capacity of the virus to infect the human respiratory system." http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/mutated-h5n1-virus-raises-doubts-about-the-effectiveness-of-flu-vaccines/356376 ...Read More

INDONESIA: Overcrowding fuels TB in prisons

Monday, 01 February 2010; Submitted By: Administrator

JAKARTA - Serious overcrowding, a shortage of medical staff and a lack of funding are thwarting Indonesia's efforts to tackle tuberculosis (TB) in prisons, experts say. Indonesia's 422 prisons hold more than 140,000 inmates, even though they were designed for 80,000, according to the Justice Ministry. The government started a programme to control TB in prisons in 2004 by adopting the so-called Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course or DOTS, a treatment strategy for detection and cure recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). But so far only 122 prisons in 17 of the country's 33 provinces have benefited from the DOTS programme, which receives support from the Global Fund, said Daniel Rasjid, head of the TB control strategy at the director general of the prison system. “The main problem is overcrowding," Rasjid told IRIN. “Overcrowding makes it easy for diseases to spread and TB spreads much more easily compared to HIV because it doesn't require physical contact.” A crackdown on drugs had contributed to the overcrowding, with most inmates, particularly in major cities, convicted of drug offences, he ...Read More

MEDIA RELEASE: ASEAN Working Together to Ensure Availability and Access to Antiviral Drugs and Pandemic Inluenza Vaccine

Friday, 29 January 2010; Submitted By: ASEAN Plus Three EID Programme

MEDIA RELEASE: ASEAN Working Together to Ensure Availability and Access to Antiviral Drugs and Pandemic Inluenza Vaccine       ASEAN Member States agreed on key strategies to ensure availability and access to antiviral drugs and pandemic influenza vaccine during the ASEAN Meeting on Promoting Access to Antiviral Drugs and Pandemic Influenza Vaccines held on 27-29 January 2010 in Singapore.   Ministries of Health and Food and Drug agencies expressed commitment to work together in formulating regional policies to facilitate domestic production, importation and registration of the antiviral drugs and pandemic influenza vaccines. They would also explore the feasibility of joint procurement to reduce the costs and to secure availability of supply. The sharing of antiviral drugs, vaccines and other resources was also discussed.   At the national level, Member States have been encouraged to enhance partnerships with the pharmaceutical industry to promote ...Read More

Bird Flu Virus ; Indonesia relocates poultry slaughterhouses

Tuesday, 26 January 2010; Submitted By: Administrator

Jakarta - South Jakarta City Council will shortly relocate poultry slaughterhouses. The government sets the deadline on April 24, 2010. The policy aims to prevent the spread of bird flu virus. The slaughterhouses, which are now scattered around South Jakarta, will be moved to Rawa Kepiting, Pulogading, Cakung, Srengseng Raya and Petukangan Utara. South Jakarta Animal Husbandry and Fishery Sub Agency Chief Chaidir Taufik said the decision is based on Jakarta Governor Decree No 1692 / 2009. There are about 90 chicken slaughterhouses and shelters in South Jakarta. Most of them are located in Kebayoran Lama. “It doesn’t include the unregistered ones,” Taufik said, referring to slaughterhouses at marketplaces. Another government’s attempt to fight against the bird flu virus is by intensifying the scan on poultry-transporting vehicles entering Jakarta. The program is called Operation Healthy Poultry Transportation. The operation was conducted because there have been a lot of undetected poultry transportations in Jakarta which might carry possible diseases. Various policies regarding bird flu prevention have been implemented in order to prevent ...Read More

Singapore Weekly Infectious Disease Bulletin 10 Jan - 16 Jan 2010

Tuesday, 26 January 2010; Submitted By: Singapore Communication Focal Point (1), Singapore

This report from Minstry of Health, Singapore on weekly publication of statistics on local infectious disease situation. ...Read More

Singapore Weekly Infectious Disease Bulletin 03 Jan - 09 Jan 2010

Tuesday, 26 January 2010; Submitted By: Singapore Communication Focal Point (1), Singapore

This report from Minstry of Health, Singapore on weekly publication of statistics on local infectious disease situation. ...Read More