WHO News

On 18 March 2016, the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) of China notified WHO of 29 additional laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus, including 11 deaths.View the full article

As of 9 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Togo notified WHO of the country’s first 2 cases of Lassa fever infection.View the full article

Between 10 and 16 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for Germany notified WHO/EURO of 2 cases of Lassa fever.View the full article

Between 15 and 16 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 4 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, including 1 death. One of these reported cases is linked to the MERS-CoV outbreak currently occurring in a hospital in Buraidah city.View the full article

The Ministry of Health of Angola has provided WHO with an update on the ongoing outbreak of yellow fever (YF), which started on 5 December 2015 in the Viana municipality, Luanda province.View the full article

On 10 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of the United States of America notified PAHO/WHO of 2 cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) with confirmed Zika virus infection. Both cases are under investigation to determine whether they meet the Brighton Collaboration case definition for GBS.View the full article

Between 13 and 14 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 4 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection. One of these reported cases is linked to the MERS-CoV outbreak currently occurring in a hospital in Buraidah city.View the full article

Between 11 and 12 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 6 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection. Three of these reported cases are asymptomatic and linked to the MERS-CoV outbreak currently occurring in a hospital in Buraidah city.View the full article

Zika situation report17 March 2016http://www.who.int/emergencies/zika-virus/situation-report/17-march-2016/en/

Between 9 and 10 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 7 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, including 2 deaths.View the full article

On 7 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Argentina notified PAHO/WHO of the first chikungunya outbreak in the country.View the full article

Between 26 February and 08 March 2016 the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 25 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection (MERS-CoV), including 4 fatal cases.View the full article

Zika situation report10 March 2016http://www.who.int/emergencies/zika-virus/situation-report/10-march-2016/en/ Enlarge image

On 21 February 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Qatar notified WHO of 1 additional case of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection. A 66-year-old, male, Qatari national developed symptoms on 18 February while in Saudi Arabia, where he had stayed for approximately 2 months. On 19 February, the patient sought health care in a hospital in El-Hassa Region, Saudi Arabia, where he was treated symptomatically and discharged. The patient developed additional symptoms on 20 February. On the same day, as his condition deteriorated, the patient was transferred by ambulance to a hospital in Doha, Qatar. The patient, who was a heavy smoker and had como…

Between 17 and 25 February 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notified WHO of 7 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection.View the full article

On 1 March 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Uruguay provided PAHO/WHO with an update on the country’s ongoing dengue outbreak.View the full article

Pregnant women should be advised not travel to areas of ongoing Zika virus outbreaks; pregnant women whose sexual partners live in or travel to areas with Zika virus outbreaks should ensure safe sexual practices or abstain from sex for the duration of their pregnancy.http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2016/2nd-emergency-committee-zika/en/

On 24 November 2015, health authorities in French Polynesia reported unknown and unspecified causes of morbidity and mortality in the context of concomitant outbreaks of Zika and dengue (serotypes 1 and 3) viruses. This update provides additional information on the clinical findings as well as the epidemiological and laboratory investigations of these cases. Between October 2013 and April 2014, French Polynesia experienced the largest Zika virus outbreak ever recorded in the country. During this period of time, 32,000 patients (11.5% of the population) were assessed for the infection and 8,750 suspected cases were reported by the national surveillance system. Of the susp…

Between 29 February and 1 March 2016, WHO was notified of cases Zika virus infection in Argentina and France. On 29 February 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Argentina notified PAHO/WHO of a potential first case of Zika virus infection. View the full article

On 25 February 2016, the National IHR Focal Point for the Netherlands notified WHO of two laboratory-confirmed cases of Zika virus infection in the Island of Sint Maarten. Sint Maarten is an independent state within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is one of the Leeward Islands situated in the western part of the Caribbean region, east of Puerto Rico. The cases include a resident islander and a tourist. Both patients were confirmed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on 12 and 18 February, respectively. The two patients, who were unrelated, spent most of their incubation periods in Sint Maarten and stayed in the neighbouring island of Anguilla f…

Audio http://terrance.who.int/mediacentre/presser/WHO-RUSH_Zika_update_presser_AYLWARDb_04MAR2016.mp3

PAN AMERICAN HEALTH ORGANIZATION www.paho.org WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION www.who.int News and Public Information Media Advisory Researchers to tackle Zika virus unknowns and needs at PAHO meeting Washington, DC, February 29, 2016—Renowned researchers from key institutions will discuss needs in developing a research agenda on the Zika virus outbreak and its implications, at a special meeting at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) March 1-2, 2016. They plan to identify current gaps in scientific knowledge of Zika virus, its impact on humans, and its public health implications for the Americas. They also plan to look …

Pregnancy management in the context of Zika virusInterim guidanceShare PrintAuthors: World Health Organization Publication detailsNumber of pages: 7 Publication date: 2 March 2016 Languages: English WHO reference number:WHO/ZIKV/MOC/16.2 DownloadsPregnancy management in the context of Zika virushttp://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/zika/pregnancy-management/en/

On 25 February 2016, the National IHR Focal Point of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines notified PAHO/WHO of the country’s first case of Zika virus infection. The patient is a 34-year-old female who visited on 16 February a health centre in Union Island after experiencing fever, headache, chills, cough and weakness of the lower extremities. She was kept for observation at the hospital overnight. The patient has no history of travel in the 30 days prior to being admitted to hospital. No clusters of febrile-like illness were noted on the island.View the full article