Our Work: 2016

Our Work - 2016

Zika update

Image of a zika pdf: Visiting Puerto Rico?

Even though colder temperatures have arrived in many areas, Zika virus transmission continues to be a concern in parts of the globe, including the United States.

On November 28, Texas health officials reported that Zika virus infection in a resident of Brownsville, Texas may have been spread by local mosquitoes. This may be the first case of local mosquito-borne Zika virus transmission in the state. CDC is closely coordinating with Texas and local officials to increase surveillance and vector control efforts in the Brownsville area.

CDC continues efforts with Florida health officials to fight Zika and investigate cases in Miami-Dade County, Florida. On November 22, CDC updated guidance for Miami Beach, Florida. The North and South Miami Beach sections are now being considered separately because no new cases of local Zika virus transmission were identified in North Miami Beach after three mosquito incubation periods passed (45 days), suggesting that the risk of Zika virus infection in North Miami Beach is no longer greater than in the rest of Miami-Dade County. North Miami Beach is now designated as a Zika cautionary area (yellow area) and South Miami Beach continues to be a Zika active transmission area (red area).

CDC also continues to support the Zika response in other areas of the globe. As of November 29, 98 CDC staff members were deployed for the Zika response, and 982 had completed deployments. A total of 45 CDC employees continued to support the response in Puerto Rico, where 31,944 locally acquired cases had been reported as of November 23. The MMWRIncidence of Zika Virus Disease by Age and Sex – Puerto Rico, November 1, 2015-October 20, 2016” was published on November 11. This report showed that among more than 28,200 non-pregnant people with laboratory-confirmed Zika in Puerto Rico, Zika infection was highest among women ages 20 to 49.

Additionally, CDC has published an updated version of the Guidance for US Laboratories Testing for Zika Virus Infection, which provides updated recommendations for testing of specimens by US laboratories for possible Zika virus infection. CDC also has published Zika virus infection control guidance for healthcare workers. The guidance describes the standard precautions that should be used to protect healthcare personnel from all infectious disease transmission, including Zika virus, and other advice for healthcare workers.

On November 18, the WHO changed the classification of Zika and its related consequences from a Public Health Emergency of International Concern as defined under the International Health Regulations to an enduring public health challenge requiring intense action. Noting that many aspects of Zika still remain to be understood, the WHO Executive Committee recommended that what is needed now is a sustained program of work with dedicated resources to address the long-term nature of the disease and its associated consequences.

FoodNet Fast online tool

Image of FoodNet Fast logo

CDC just launched FoodNet Fast, an interactive tool that makes it easy to create custom searches from the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), which covers about 15% of the United States population.

Users can see how rates of illnesses have changed over the past 20 years for the nine pathogens transmitted commonly by food that FoodNet tracks: Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, Cyclospora, Listeria, Salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157 and non-O157, Shigella, Vibrio, and Yersinia.

People and organizations can use FoodNet Fast data to quickly and easily learn how many cases occurred in certain areas or over certain time periods, which groups were affected, and how the number of cases changed over time. For more information about FoodNet, visit https://www.cdc.gov/foodnet/index.html.

Candida auris now in US

Petri dish with cultured candida auris

CDC announced 13 cases of Candida auris, an emerging drug-resistant fungus, in the United States through a press release on November 4, 2016. C. auris is often resistant to multiple antifungal drugs and seems to spread in healthcare settings. Such high levels of resistance and healthcare transmission are not usual for other Candida species. An MMWR Early Release on November 11 detailed the first 7 cases from May 2013 through August 2016. The additional 6 cases are still under investigation. CDC’s C. auris webpage was updated to include a US map of cases and interim recommendations on laboratory diagnosis and infection control.

NCEZID website enhancements

cropped image of pdf: Logros 2015

Now you can find all the new NCEZID website content that’s refreshed each month on one page! Each month, on the What’s New page, you can find links to recent work, media releases, new videos, infographics, features, blog posts, and more. Aggregating all new content about NCEZID activities on a “one-stop-shop” page provides a quick snapshot of recent center highlights.

¿Habla español? Our new NCEZID en Español website provides access to Spanish speakers. The site includes evergreen content describing what we do, an organizational chart, and translations of the NCEZID strategic plan and 2015 accomplishments. Links to new NCEZID-related Spanish content will be periodically updated.

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