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There is growing concern about the Zika virus that may be causing severe birth defects in children. The virus has been known since the 1940s, but only recently has it become more widespread in the Western Hemisphere. The Zika virus is spread through mosquitoes and can cause a mild flu-like illness, however, health officials became concerned last year when the virus was linked to a rise in the number of babies born with a severe birth defect called microcephaly when the brain does not grow normally. We still don't know if the Zika virus is actually causing the uptick in...

A contagious cancer, spread by biting, has decimated the population of Tasmanian devils since 1996. Researchers have now identified a second contagious cancer in eight devils, making them question how rare contagious cancer is, according to a new study. In addition to attempting to breed devils identified as immune to the disease, scientists started working on a vaccine against Devil Facial Tumor Disease earlier this year -- which they said will not be thrown off by the discovery of a second form of the cancer. The cancer, which researchers believe is spread by common biting behavior, causes tumors and lesions...

Public officials are in the process of eliminating Naegleria Fowleri, a brain-eating amoeba that thrives in warm water, from another drinking water supply in Louisiana. Naegleria Fowleri was detected during routine tests on Aug. 5 at a utility district in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, roughly 80 miles from New Orleans... According to the local fire department, the Schriever Water System serves approximately 97,000 residents in the Houma area. .. While officials say the water is safe for drinking, residents are urged to use caution with the water, not letting it get into their nose. Humans are infected when water containing the...

Bulgarian health officials have have instituted an epidemiological investigation in the seaside city of Varna after a man contracted and died from anthrax.According to authorities from the health ministry (computer translated), the 53-year-old from the village of Mlada Gvardiya, municipality of Vetrino, in Varna district apparently cut his hand during the slaughter of an infected cow, but never sought medical attention for the wound.The slaughtered cow was flayed by the deceased and is cut into 4 pieces. Around the eighth or ninth day of July 2015., Carcass meat is sold to a person of Bozveliysko, Municipality Provadia and transported to...

South Korea struggled to contain an outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) on Monday as health authorities announced three more cases, bringing the number of infections to 18 in just over 10 days. Authorities are considering a ban on overseas travel for the nearly 700 people isolated for possible infection after a 44-year-old man broke a voluntary house quarantine last week and flew to Hong Kong and then travelled to mainland China. The man subsequently tested positive for MERS, China's first confirmed case, setting off alarm bells as health officials traced his footsteps and tested dozens of people who...

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad declared a state of emergency on Friday due to a rapidly expanding avian flu outbreak, soon after state agriculture officials announced four new poultry farms had initially tested positive for the virus. Iowa, the top egg-producing state in the United States, is the third state to declare a state of emergency because of the viral outbreak, which either has led or will lead to the extermination of up to 21 million chickens and turkeys nationwide. Minnesota and Wisconsin declared states of emergency in April... Dozens of countries have imposed total or partial bans on U.S. poultry...

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official cited an “epidemic” of syphilis among homosexual men during an event Thursday by a lobbying group pushing for an increase in federal funding for sexually transmitted disease prevention from $157 million to $212 million. “We’re also seeing what we are calling pretty much an epidemic of syphilis among men who have sex with men – that really started in the early – 2000, 2002, but we’ve seen a dramatic increase since 2008,” Dr. Gail Bolan, director of CDC’s Division of STD Prevention, said at a briefing by the National Coalition of STD...

Many urbanites use doggie day cares while they work long hours. Paying others to exercise their pets, owners can forgo long walks and enjoy guilt-free pooch snuggling in the evenings. While usually a healthy experience for the dogs, the day care environment, with dozens of pets mingling, contributed to an epidemic of dog flu in Chicago that is spreading in the Midwest, experts say.

Islamic State fighters are being pounded by a debilitating skin illness called leishmaniasis. The disease, that is widespread by sandflies, is fast swelling interjection to wickedness and bad hygiene conditions and there have been some-more than 100,000 cases reported, British media outlets reported progressing this week. The jihadi fighters are refusing medical diagnosis that has led to some-more outbreaks, according to a reports. Medical centers have sealed given medical staff have fled a assault creation a widespread of a illness some-more acute, according to a reports. Dubbed “Rose of Jericho,” a illness is caused by protozoan parasites that go to...

Recent outbreaks of an unpleasant intestinal illness in Massachusetts, California and Pennsylvania are due to a drug-resistant version of a bacteria that causes travelers' diarrhea, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned this week. Since May 2014, Shigella sonnei bacteria that have shown resistance to the antibiotic ciprofloxacin have sickened 243 people across 32 states and Puerto Rico, the federal agency said. "Research by the CDC found that the drug-resistant illness was being repeatedly introduced as ill travelers returned and was then infecting other people in a series of outbreaks around the country," the CDC explained. Shigellosis is often...

A syphilis outbreak of "astronomical" proportions has been unleashed in Canada's easternmost province, according to the healthcare authority of eastern NewfoundlandAlready this year — in less than three months — 15 cases of syphilis have been reported, according to Eastern Health. That's more than half the total number of cases (26) confirmed by the region's health authority all of last year. Most of the 41 syphilis infections were identified in homosexual men between 20 and 49 years of age, with 10 of the cases also being diagnosed with HIV, according to Eastern Health. Rising concerns This substantial increase is raising...

ALBANY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) — Sen. Charles Schumer is urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to make measles shots free and widely available, like the flu vaccine. Schumer, D-N.Y., made the recommendation Sunday, noting that the CDC says at least 102 people have contracted measles in 14 states, including New York and New Jersey, so far this year. There was a record number of cases last year — 644 in 27 states. “It’s clear that we need to get on top of this highly contagious disease before it becomes too big for us to control,” Schumer told reporters, including...

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Tom Frieden on Sunday warned that the U.S. could see a "large outbreak" of measles. "We are very concerned by the growing number of people who are susceptible to measles, and the possibility that we could have a large outbreak in this country as a result," Frieden said on CBS's "Face the Nation." There are at least 102 reported cases in 14 states, according to the CDC. Frieden said that the U.S. is "likely to see more cases." Frieden said there is "aggressive public health action" to identify those with measles, isolate...

Health officials in Arizona, host state of Sunday's Super Bowl, have asked people who may have been exposed to measles to isolate themselves ... Seven cases have been confirmed and 1,000 people across three counties may have been exposed .. Two of the seven confirmed cases are in Maricopa County, which is hosting the NFL championship game, the county's health department confirmed Tuesday. Because the highly contagious virus can linger in the air for two hours, health officials have asked those who may have been exposed to avoid doctors' offices, emergency rooms or urgent-care centers

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A health warning. The extremely contagious measles virus is back. An outbreak that started at Disneyland is starting to sweep the country.Christie Ileto has the push for children to get vaccinated.Measles was thought to have been eliminated in the U.S. 15 years ago. Now its back, targeting those who haven’t been immunized.The outbreak that started in California’s Disneyland is expanding. At least 75 cases of measles span six states.“It’s scary to think the happiest place on Earth is infected with measles,” one Disney employee said.For this Disney employee, knowing co-workers are infected is cause for concern. Measles...

Near the hillside shelter where dozens of men and women died of Ebola, a row of green U.S. military tents sit atop a vast expanse of imported gravel. The generators hum; chlorinated water churns in brand-new containers; surveillance cameras send a live feed to a large-screen television. There’s only one thing missing from this state-of-the-art Ebola treatment center: Ebola patients.The U.S. military sent about 3,000 troops to West Africa to build centers like this one in recent months. They were intended as a crucial safeguard against an epidemic that flared in unpredictable, deadly waves. But as the outbreak fades in...

There are now 51 confirmed cases of the highly contagious virus across California, three other states and Mexico, and the Orange County Health Care Agency said the reports of new cases “indicate the measles outbreak will continue to spread.” Health officials had hoped to contain the outbreak to Disneyland visitors who were at the park between Dec. 17 and 20, when the virus spread from perhaps a single infected person or an ill family. But Orange County is now reporting six new cases of measles involving people who did not visit the Anaheim attraction during that period. State officials said...

At least nine people – including two unvaccinated Riverside County siblings – contracted measles after visiting Disneyland Resort in mid-December, state health officials said Wednesday. Public health officials are also investigating three additional cases of suspected measles, which is highly contagious, and a spokesman with the department said it would not be surprising to see more cases. All 12 reported visiting Disneyland or Disney California Adventure between Dec. 15 and Dec. 20. {snip} Of the nine confirmed cases linked to Disneyland, only one was vaccinated, according to the state Department of Public Health.

2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa - Cumulative Reported Cases Graphs "Graph 1: Cumulative reported cases of Ebola virus disease in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, March 25, 2014 – January 7, 2015, by date of WHO Situation Report, n=20712 "Graph 1 shows the cumulative reported cases in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone provided in WHO situation reports beginning on March 25, 2014 through the most recent situation report on January 7, 2015. Cumulative reported cases in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone[CSV - 1 page] Graph 2: Cumulative reported cases and deaths of Ebola virus disease in Guinea, March 25,...

A case of red measles, also known as Rubeola, was diagnosed earlier this week in Moorseville, North Carolina -- worrying health officials and highlighting the renewed threat of measles in this country. The infected person was unvaccinated and had recently returned from a trip to India confirmed Rebecca Carter, the public information officer for Mecklenburg county. Carter said she could not release any additional details such as the age or sex of the person due to patient confidentiality. Dr. William Schaffner said this case is no trivial matter, warning that measles is highly contagious, spreading easily through coughing and sneezing....