Latest news with #diseaseoutbreak
Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Life-threatening disease erupts on Australia's doorstep as urgent travel warning is issued
Deadly dengue fever outbreaks have been rising amongst Australia's Pacific neighbours, prompting a travel warning for holidaymakers. The Cook Islands declared the most recent outbreak of the disease after 19 cases of the disease, including two active cases, were recorded as of June 6. Case counts have also been increasing in Samoa, Tonga, French Polynesia, Fiji and Kiribati. Some of the affected nations have several recorded deaths from the disease. Fiji has recorded four deaths from just under 8,000 cases; Tonga recorded three from more than 790 cases; and Samoa recorded one from 110 cases. The director of the Public Health Division at the Pacific Community (SPC) said climate change expanding mosquito habitats and increased regional and international travel were increasing the risk of virus transmission. 'There is a growing incidence of severe dengue amongst children and youth with no prior dengue exposure,' Dr Berlin Kafoa said. 'There are older adults coming from areas historically free of dengue. This suggests immunity gaps. 'Severe cases and fatalities are being reported, especially among youth.' Immunisation Advisory Centre medical advisor Dr Joan Ingram warned the spread of the disease could put travellers at risk. 'Estimates are that around six in 1000 travellers spending a month in a risk area become unwell with dengue, with up to 20 per cent of them being hospitalised,' she said. 'Globally, dengue cases were at a very high level in 2024, particularly in South America. Cases increased almost 30-fold there between 2000 and 2024. 'Urbanisation, globalisation and climate change have contributed to this increase.' Dengue fever is spread by various biting species of 'Aedes' mosquitos which thrive in the same areas as humans. It can develop into severe dengue which is a medical emergency which requires hospital treatment and can cause deaths. Experts recommend those in areas of dengue fever outbreaks take precautions to avoid the mosquitos. 'Aedes mosquitoes are daytime feeders, with two peak times of biting activity two to three hours after dawn, and mid-to-late afternoon,' Dr Ingram said. 'However, they may feed all day indoors or on overcast days.' 'People should regularly apply effective repellent as well as using light-coloured clothing to cover up. In addition, they should take steps to reduce mosquitoes indoors – such as screens on windows and doors – and in the environment by emptying any water-holding containers.' The World Mosquito Program senior director of field entomology, Dr Gregor Devine, said current mosquito control methods were only having a 'limited impact'. Impacted nations have resorted to enacting clean-up campaigns to try control the outbreaks and using insecticides, though 'resistance to insecticides is increasingly documented in the Pacific'. He warned effective vaccines were 'years away' from being universally available and affordable. However, Dr Devine said 'a safe, effective and sustainable solution exists'. 'The Wolbachia method, developed by the non-profit World Mosquito Program, involves releasing mosquitoes infected with a bacteria that reduces their ability to transmit dengue,' he said. 'Following six years of Wolbachia mosquito releases in New Caledonia, the project has been hailed a monumental success, and the French territory hasn't had a dengue epidemic since 2019.' The government's Smartraveller website warned a higher-than-usual number of cases of Dengue fever have been reported around the world, particularly in developing nations. Outbreaks have been recorded in Africa, Asia, Central and South America and the Pacific. 'This includes places popular with Australians, such as: Indonesia, including Bali; Malaysia; Singapore; and Peru,' the website read.
The Australian
5 days ago
- General
- The Australian
Two new cases of malaria detected in Queensland, brings infection total to 71
An outbreak of a potentially fatal disease continues in the Sunshine State as authorities race to investigate two more locally acquired cases, bringing the total number of infections this year to 71. Queensland Health confirmed a second locally acquired infection was recently identified in the Torres Strait Islands local government area. Ninety-seven per cent of the cases this year to date have come from overseas, predominantly Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. There are now 71 cases of the potentially deadly disease recorded in the Sunshine State to date this year. Picture: WHO It is a major increase in numbers, with 69 infections recorded in the same period in 2024, 50 in 2023, 20 in 2022 and only four in 2021. The presence of floodwaters is believed to be a key reason for the spike. Malaria is preventable and curable, and is not able to be passed from person to person, but rather spread through the bites of some infected Anopheles mosquitoes. 'We don't have mosquitoes capable of passing malaria on all throughout the country, but certainly in the more tropical parts of our country, the Northern Territory and northern parts of Queensland,' Mater Health infectious diseases director Paul Griffin said. 'That's why in those areas we need to give people that advice to make sure we reduce the chance of local transmission. Mater Health infectious diseases director Paul Griffin said it was important to advise Australians on how to avoid being bitten. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards 'With more significant types of malaria, the severe consequences can be involvement of the brain, so cerebral malaria and even death,' he told ABC News. 'It is something that we do need to take seriously and make sure we take steps to limit how much it is able to be passed on in our country.' According to the World Health Organisation, the most common early symptoms of malaria are fever, headache and chills. They typically start within 10 to 15 days of getting bitten by an infected mosquito. Hannah Wilcox Cadet Reporter Hannah Wilcox is part of News Corp's National Cadet Program's 2024 cohort. She has previously written for both digital and print publications. Hannah Wilcox
News.com.au
6 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Two more cases of malaria detected in Queensland, brings infection total to 71
An outbreak of a potentially fatal disease continues in the Sunshine State as authorities race to investigate two more locally acquired cases, bringing the total number of infections this year to 71. Queensland Health confirmed a second locally acquired infection was recently identified in the Torres Strait Islands local government area. Ninety-seven per cent of the cases this year to date have come from overseas, predominantly Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. It is a major increase in numbers, with 69 infections recorded in the same period in 2024, 50 in 2023, 20 in 2022 and only four in 2021. The presence of floodwaters is believed to be a key reason for the spike. Malaria is preventable and curable, and is not able to be passed from person to person, but rather spread through the bites of some infected Anopheles mosquitoes. 'We don't have mosquitoes capable of passing malaria on all throughout the country, but certainly in the more tropical parts of our country, the Northern Territory and northern parts of Queensland,' Mater Health infectious diseases director Paul Griffin said. 'That's why in those areas we need to give people that advice to make sure we reduce the chance of local transmission. 'With more significant types of malaria, the severe consequences can be involvement of the brain, so cerebral malaria and even death,' he told ABC News. 'It is something that we do need to take seriously and make sure we take steps to limit how much it is able to be passed on in our country.' According to the World Health Organisation, the most common early symptoms of malaria are fever, headache and chills. They typically start within 10 to 15 days of getting bitten by an infected mosquito.
CTV News
24-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
AHS warns of ‘widespread' potential for measles exposure in province's South Zone
Alberta Health Services has issued a standing measles exposure advisory for the entire south health zone, because of the rapid spread of the disease.
News.com.au
14-05-2025
- Health
- News.com.au
Dozens of people have died from a melioidosis outbreak in northern Queensland
An outbreak of a soil borne disease linked to heavy rainfall and flooding has resulted in dozens of deaths in northern Queensland this year. Queensland Health confirmed 31 people have died from melioidosis and 221 cases have been reported this year, an increase of 163 cases compared the same period last year. 'Cases are most commonly reported in residents of the Torres and Cape, North West, Cairns and Hinterland and Townsville regions,' a spokesman said. According to Queensland Health, melioidosis is rare tropical disease caused by a bacteria found in soil and groundwater in South East Asia and northern parts of Australia across Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia. The disease occurs when bacteria enters the body from soil through cuts or sores, drinking contaminated water or by breathing it in after heavy rain in the wet season or flooding. While melioidosis is rare in healthy adults and children, people with long term health conditions or people who drink heavily are more susceptible to the disease, which can be life threatening. James Cook University head of biomedical sciences and molecular biology Jeffrey Warner has been examining melioidosis in northern Australia. Professor Warner said the saprophyte organism typically lived in the tropics and occurred naturally in soils and water courses after it rained, but its habitat seemed to be expanding. 'That's almost certainly due to both climate and environmental changes that's been happening recently,' he said. 'The disease presents in many different ways, the what we like to say up here in the north, it's one of the most common causes of fatal bacterial community acquired pneumonia that is not acquired in a hospital. 'Because it rains very heavily, the organism can get liberated out of the soil – its natural habitat – and then people predisposed to it can get exposed and become very sick with pneumonia, blood poisoning or sepsis.' Professor Warner said there had been a shift in places were melioidosis was present over the past 10 to 15 years and more cases were appearing in Cairns Melioidosis cases increased by 400 per cent in Cairns and 600 per cent in Townsville this year, and scientists are trying to understand what caused the recent outbreak in the north and why more people were susceptible to it. 'Normally, it was traditionally Townsville, so that's changed and melioidosis has been on the move,' he said. 'Melioidosis is an infection that scientists predicted would change with climate change, because it was an environmental infection people got from the environment. 'We should not be surprised if environment changes and climate changes, it's going to influence the availability of this organism and its ability to be transmitted. 'The climate scientists are telling us the world is warming and as the world warms that has other impacts on climate and weather, and one of those are changes in rainfall.' Professor Warner said Townsville received about five times more rain than normal, measuring up to 5m during the wet season, and as a consequence about six times more melioidosis cases were reported at this time of year. 'There was a clear correlation between the huge amount of rain in Townsville and the huge number of melioidosis cases, but what's really interesting is that Cairns was not quite like that,' he said. 'Cairns had a bit more rain year to date than average it was not significantly more rain, but it had a very large increase in cases that were four times more than normal.' He said authorities were trying to understand if the outbreak was a one off or something they needed to prepare for in the future. 'It's like anything that creeps upon us slowly, we don't necessarily see it happening, or know what the causal effects of it really are,' he said.
