Current Travel Health News

As of 10 August 2010, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza had entered the post pandemic phase. Nevertheless, the H1N1 virus is expected to take on the behaviour of a seasonal influenza virus and continue to circulate for some years to come. In addition, the virus is likely to continue to pose a higher risk for severe illness in some groups, including young children, pregnant women and those with respiratory or chronic health conditions.  
Moreover, influenza H1N1 (2009) virus transmission remains locally intense in parts of India and New Zealand.

For more information, please visit WHO's website.

(Source: World Health Organization 10 & 13 August 2010)

Egypt has announced 1 new human case of H5N1 Avian Influenza. The case is a 2-year-old female from Elsalam district, Cairo. She developed symptoms on 2 August and was hospitalized on the same day. She is currently under treatment in hospital. Investigations into the source of infection indicated that the case had exposure to sick and dead poultry. Of the 111 laboratory confirmed cases of H5N1 Avian Influenza reported in Egypt, 35 have been fatal.

(Source: World Health Organization 12 August 2010)

In Indonesia, outbreaks of Avian Influenza among poultries were reported in Bengkulu province. Thousands of chickens and ducks have been culled so far in order to prevent the spread of the disease.

(Source: ProMED-mail 14 August 2010)

Indonesia confirmed Rabies have spread to cattle and pigs in the regencies of Tabanan and badung, Bali. The cases of cattle and pig infection were related to bites from rabies-infected dogs. The pigs and cows bitten by the dogs eventually displayed rabies symptoms and died.

(Source: ProMED-mail 14 August 2010)

(Editor's notes: Travellers should avoid contact with animals. Immunisation (both pre-exposure and post-exposure), combined with thorough wound cleaning, is the most reliable methods of preventing rabies. Travellers visiting Bali with prolonged stay or anticipated contact with animals should seek medical consultation for pre-travel health advice and pre-exposure rabies vaccination if indicated. )

As of 30 July 2010, the Ministry of Health in Peru confirmed a total of 17 cases of Plague in Ascope province of Department La Libertad. Of these, 4 are pneumonic plague, 12 are bubonic plague and 1 was septicemic plague. The onset of symptoms for the last reported case of pneumonic plague was on 11 July 2010.

(Source: World Health Organization 10 August 2010)

As of 31 July, the Ministry of Public Health of Thailand has reported 1 341 cases of Cholera this year, of whom 5 died.

(Source: Ministry of Public Health, Thailand 6 August 2010) 

As of 10 August, Greece has confirmed 21 human cases of West Nile Virus Infection, including 2 deaths in Central Macedonia.

(Source: National Travel Health Network and Centre, UK 11 August 2010)

In India, a total of 25 775 Malaria cases were reported in Maharashtra state in the first five months of this year. The majority of the cases were reported in Mumbai.

(Source: National Travel Health Network and Centre, UK 9 August 2010)

In India, 149 fatal cases of Japanese Encephalitis have been reported in Uttar Pradesh State so far this year.

(Source: ProMED-mail 11 August 2010)

Heavy rain had caused floods and mudslides in the Himalayan region of Ladakh in northern India.

(Source: New Zealand Safe Travel 9 August 2010)

In Pakistan, the heavy monsoon rains that started on 22 July 2010 had caused flooding in many areas. As of 8 August 2010, 1 203 people were killed, the majority in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. There were at least 36 000 cases of acute watery diarrhoea reported in the flood-stricken areas, out of which 1 case of Cholera was confirmed.

(Source: National Travel Health Network and Centre, UK 9 August 2010 and ProMED-mail 14 August 2010)