Travel Vaccine News

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced some people returning from Matamoros, Mexico, were diagnosed with suspected fungal meningitis infections in the U.S. that have led to severe illness and death.
Travelers with these infections had medical or surgical procedures that involved the injection of an anesthetic into the area around the spinal column performed at clinics in Matamoros, including River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3.

Respiratory infections are a leading cause of seeking medical care among returning travelers from abroad. Common respiratory infections include measles, influenza, and coronaviruses that cause the common cold.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reconfirmed masking is a critical public health tool for preventing the spread of respiratory diseases.
When people correctly wear a high-quality mask, they trap fluid droplets and help keep travel safer for everyone.

The recent travel advisory issued by the U.S. Department of State indicates several countries in northern South America are confronting various levels of civil unrest.
On May 11, 2023, the State Department reissued a Do Not Travel advisory for specific areas with the Republic of Columbia regarding civil unrest.
The highlighted areas in Columbia are as follows:
Arauca, Cauca (excluding Popayán), Norte de Santander departments, and the Colombia-Venezuela border region.

A leading Caribbean Island destination to about 4 million travelers has recently been the focus of high-level travel advisories by the U.S. and U.K. governments.
Over 225,000 British nationals visited Jamaica annually before the recent pandemic.
On May 10, 2023, Jamaica, a member of the British Commonwealth, was issued a Level 3: Reconsider Travel advisory by the U.S. Department of State, which included numerous Do Not Travel notices for sections of Jamaica, including the capital city of Kingston, home to over 1.2 million people.

In response to the current Chikungunya virus(CHKIV) outbreak in the Region of the Americas, health experts recently conducted a webinar to increase attention to this seldom discussed disease impacting about 115 countries.
On May 4, 2023, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reported chikungunya cases in the region reached over 210,000 in the first months of 2023.
Paraguay has been significantly impacted with "its worst epidemic in history with 138,730 cases."

As the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) continues reporting a rebound in air travel compared with 2019 activity, a new analysis has found that exposure to even moderate levels of airplane noise may disrupt a person's normal sleep.
Aircraft noise is unique for its multispectral acoustical properties that impact the human auditory system.
The study showed that the odds of sleeping less than seven hours rose as airplane noise exposure increased.

The World Health Organization (WHO) today announced how two African countries have been responding to separate outbreaks of Marburg virus disease (MVD) in 2023.
Initially detected in 1967, MVD is a viral hemorrhagic fever, and infections are often fatal.
In March 2023, the WHO assessed the public health risk posed by the MVD outbreaks in Equatorial Guinea and the United Republic of Tanzania as very high at the national level, high at the sub-regional level, moderate at the regional, and low at the global level. 

For the first time since 2000, all four types of Dengue virus have been detected simultaneously in the Republic of Costa Rica.
And according to recent data, over 580 Dengue cases have been reported in 2023, a significant increase from 2022.
On May 4, 2023, Costa Rica's Ministry of Health announced the Integrated Vector Control Management Program would carry out various interventions after the confirmation of the four Dengue serotypes in the canton of Sarapaquí.

The U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA) today announced there had been a significant increase in measles cases in the city of London and across the U.K.
On May 4, 2023, the UKHSA's Health Protection Report volume #17 reported that between January and April 20, 2023, there were 49 cases of measles compared to 54 cases in 2022.
Thirty-three (67%) cases were in London, and 40% were in children.
Twelve cases were imported or import-related, with the others reflecting community transmission in the U.K.

A multi-institutional study led by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) shows how the dengue virus has evolved dramatically over the last few decades in the Indian subcontinent.  
Cases of dengue have steadily increased in the last 50 years, impacting over 100 countries, predominantly in South-East Asian counties.
These IISc researchers examined 408 genetic sequences of Indian dengue strains from infected patients collected between 1956 and 2018 by others and the team.