A pneumonic plague outbreak has occurred in Ziketan, China. Three people have died thus far and the town of Ziketan has been sealed off. The location of this plague is very remote, and the population of Ziketan relatively small, so health officials think this outbreak will probably remained contained to that area.

People contract the plague through the air with an infection to the lungs. It is an extremely dangerous disease and can cause death within 24 hours. Most cases of the plague occur in Africa.
Image: sxc.hu.

As Flu Patrol has now expanded from covering influenza to encompass other viral respiratory illnesses, I also hope to increase the scope of its “beneficiaries”, if I may call them that.
Viral respiratory infections (VRI) are common and easily treatable in general. Colds, tonsilitis, sinusitis, and sore throat mostly only need to run their course. But some other types of VRI, such as pneumonia, bronchitis, mumps or even flu need immediate intervention, otherwise they can be debilitating or life-threatening. If you live in one of the richer countries or where healthcare is easily accessible and affordable, then life expectancy isn’t affected …read more

WORLD HEALTH DAY 2007 is on April 7, and this week is an occasion to raise awareness of key global health issues.
Undoubtedly, the issues that I focus on are of global importance. The threat of bird flu is far from over, and if this crisis balloons into a pandemic, 62 million people could die from it. The need for vigilance, dissemination and rapid response is all the more important in a interconnected world. In the coming months, I will also be expanding the scope of this blog to include other viral diseases that impact both international and personal health securities.
Other …read more

April 7 is marked as WORLD HEALTH DAY and this year’s focus is all about “international health security“.
Globalization has brought with it increasing health and security threats, and yet also more opportunities to disseminate information, and rapidly respond to outbreaks that most certainly will affect more than one nation. To quote the issues paper -

(There is a) need to reduce the vulnerability of people around the world to new, acute or rapidly spreading risks to health, particularly those that threaten to cross international borders…
The danger that new diseases to which there is universal vulnerability will cause international harm means that …read more

Until doctors can find another drug that can treat his tuberculosis, Robert Daniels is spending the rest of his life in jail-like isolation.
Daniels has what the World Health O. dubbed as XDR-TB, or extremely drug resistant tuberculosis , which is virtually untreatable using current anti-TB drugs. Daniels was considered “uncooperative and a danger to the public” and was ordered locked up because he did not take precautions to avoid infecting others or even to wear a mask in public. Although currently rare in the US, XDR-TB broke out in Africa last year with an alarmingly high mortality rate. XDR-TB is …read more