ETIDIOH - NEW

Abstract The risk of cardiovascular outcomes following SARS-CoV-2 infection has been reported in adults , but evidence in children and adolescents is limited . This paper assessed the risk of a multitude of cardiac signs, symptoms, and conditions 28-179 days after infection , with outcomes stratified by the presence of congenital heart defects (CHDs), using electronic health records (EHR) data from 19 children’s hospitals and health institutions from the United States within the RECOVER consortium between March 2020 and September 2023. The cohort included 297,920 SARS-CoV-2-positive individuals and 915,402 SARS-CoV-2-negative controls. Every individual had at least a six-month follow-up after cohort entry. Here we show that children and adolescents with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection are at a statistically significant increased risk of various cardiovascular outcomes, including hypertension, ventricular arrhythmias , myocarditis, heart failure, cardiomyopathy, cardiac arrest, thromboemboli...

{Excerpts} Situation at a glance On 13 March 2025, the International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Point (NFP) for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) reported 11 cases of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) to WHO. Additionally, between 11 February and 18 March 2025 , the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional IHR contact point received reports of six isolated cases of IMD , either through notification or bilateral communication with IHR NFPs. These cases involve individuals who had recently returned from Umrah . Meningococcal disease remains a global public health concern, particularly in the context of mass gathering events such as Hajj and Umrah . The government of Saudi Arabia regularly issues health requirements for Hajj and Umrah, including vaccination policies. As of 10 March 2025, KSA health authorities estimated that only 54% of international Umrah pilgrims had complied with the meningococcal vaccination requirements . The significant number of pilgrims traveling to KSA ...

{Excerpt} Time Period: March 30, 2025 - April 05, 2025 -- H5 Detection :  4 sites ( 1.1% ) -- No Detection :  372 sites ( 98.9% ) -- No samples in last week :  256 sites (...) Source: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,  https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/h5-monitoring/index.html ____

 <Outbreaks 1-3> In early April, Livestock Hygiene Service Centres (LHSCs) in Kumamoto Prefecture received notifications from farmers with animals presenting clinical signs and collected samples. On 8 April, the LHSCs confirmed positive for Equine Influenza by RT-PCR. Genotyping is currently underway. Source: WOAH,  https://wahis.woah.org/#/in-review/6420 ____

Abstract Measles outbreaks continue to pose significant public health challenges globally despite the availability of effective vaccines. In this study, we evaluated wastewater-based surveillance for detection of measles virus during an ongoing outbreak in Texas . Weekly wastewater samples collected from two Texas cities between January 2 and March 17, 2025 were analyzed using multiple RT-PCR assays targeting the nucleoprotein and matrix genes of the measles virus. Viral RNA was detected in multiple days from both cities , with City A showing positives from January 13 and City B from January 6, both predating the first confirmed case in the state on January 23. Sequencing of PCR amplicons confirmed the specificity of detection and phylogenetic analysis using global and U.S. measles genome databases further validated that the viral RNA belonged to the currently circulating genotype D8 . Our findings demonstrate that wastewater surveillance can provide early evidence of measles virus cir...