Public Health Alerts
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April 10, 2024Posted: April 10, 2024Read MoreThe CDC is alerting doctors to be on the lookout for certain types of rare, serious meningococcal infections that are on the rise in the United States.
This alarming increase is caused by Neisseria meningitidis bacteria, which has caused 1 in 6 people to die, a higher fatality rate than they typically see with meningococcal infections.
These cases are also unusual because they are striking middle-aged adults. Typically, meningitis infections strike babies or adolescents and young adults.
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April 03, 2024Posted: April 03, 2024Read MoreThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released its 2022 Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) Surveillance Report providing U.S. data for nationally notifiable STI’s for federally funded control programs.
According to the report, syphilis cases (all stages and congenital syphilis) increased 80 percent from 2018-2022. More than 3,700 congenital syphilis cases were reported in 2022, reflecting an alarming 937 percent increase in the past decade, said Laura Bachmann, MD, MPH, Acting Director, CDC’s Division of STD Prevention in her announcement letter included in the report.
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January 12, 2024Posted: January 12, 2024Categories: Clinical, Industry Insights, Public Health Alerts, Health & Wellness, Product SpotlightsWe began to see an increase in the number of strep throat cases in beginning in late spring of 2023, not only in pediatric patients, but adults as well. Now in December, cases of Group A Streptococcus (GAS) continue to rise. During one newscast out of the Midwest, some physicians say 2023 was the worst year for strep throat that they can remember.Read More -
November 17, 2023Posted: November 17, 2023Read More...A total of 1,957 laboratory-confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis have been reported in the United States so far this year.
That is already surpassing the 1,129 cases reported in all of 2022. (1) The investigation of this outbreak is ongoing with no specific food item being identified as the source of most of these illnesses, although the outbreak count does include 20 patients in
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September 13, 2023Posted: September 13, 2023In some cases in Florida, patients with leprosy report contact with armadillos, but others to not. These are the only animals known to harbor the disease and have been known to spit when people get too close.Read More -
September 08, 2023Posted: September 08, 2023Read More...May 11th of 2023 marked the end of both the public health emergency and the national state of emergency for the COVID-19 pandemic. However, health professionals are concerned with the rise of the EG.5 variant, an up-and-coming SARS-CoV-2 strain that is potentially more transmissible than any of the current circulating strains in the United States. (1) EG.5 is a descendant of the Omicron lineage XBB.1.9.5
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May 19, 2023Posted: May 19, 2023Read MoreCDC issues an alert...Super Shigella on the Rise
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April 19, 2023Posted: April 19, 2023Read More...Rising Legionella Infections and Its Prevention in Industrial Cooling Towers
Although Legionella is found naturally in freshwater environments, it becomes a health concern to the population w
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January 20, 2023Posted: January 20, 2023Read More...Clostridioides difficile (formerly named Clostridium difficile, and widely known as C. diff) is a Gram-positive, spore-forming, obligate anaerobe that causes life-threatening diarrhea in people who take antibiotics, are hospitalized or in nursing homes, and people with weakened immune systems.(1)
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November 21, 2022Posted: November 21, 2022Read More...Two years ago, there was virtually no flu season due to COVID-19 isolation.
In addition, experts predict another COVID-19 surge this fall and winter.(2) According to the World Health Organization’s early October global situation report, more than 1.5 million COVID-19 diagnosis were reported across Europe during the week ending Oct. 2, a
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September 30, 2022Posted: September 30, 2022Categories: Clinical, Industry Insights, Public Health Alerts, Health & Wellness, Product SpotlightsRead MoreEmerging hand in hand with the Pandemic...
A new 2022 special report from the CDC is sounding the alarm that antimicrobial resistance to some of the most concerning bacteria and fungi significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic (1) One such highly drug resistant yeast noted in the report is Candida...
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August 19, 2022Posted: August 19, 2022Read MoreEffective vaccinations for COVID-19 have been readily available in the United States for well over a year and a new vaccine has just been added to the arsenal. Novavax (NVX-CoV2373), created by a company of the same name, was granted emergency use authorization in early July and has now been endorsed by the CDC.(2) Novavax is approved for adults who are 18 years and older and currently is limited to...
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August 05, 2022Posted: August 05, 2022Read MoreGroup A Streptococcus (GAS) is the most common bacterial cause of pharyngitis, often referred to as strep throat. GAS can also cause severe invasive infections. People who are elderly, have skin breakdown (when the skin is deprived of blood flow, the skin can become damaged or develop ulcers), or have chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes, are at increased risk. Each year in the United States...
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July 22, 2022Posted: July 22, 2022Read MoreAnother respiratory virus of concern. Common, yet underdiagnosed...
Every year we anticipate the rounds of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza, and now Covid-19; but there is a lesser-known culprit of seasonal respiratory infections.
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March 21, 2022Posted: March 21, 2022Categories: Modern Innovations, Clinical, Industry Insights, Public Health Alerts, Health & WellnessRead MoreAs the COVID-19 pandemic moves into its third year, new treatment options to combat the coronavirus disease are being authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In December, 2021, the FDA issued emergency use authorization (EUA) for two oral antiviral treatments for COVID-19, Molnupiravir and Paxlovid.(1,2)
This comes at a crucial time in the pandemic as new variants emerge and COVID-19...
