ABSTRACT
On 7 January 2011, a six year-old child living in a Roma community near Seville, southern Spain, was hospitalised with measles. Contact tracing identified a probable index case with onset of symptoms on 20 December 2011 and several unreported cases among children under the age of 15 years in the same town. The outbreak initially spread in districts in the city of Seville with a high proportion of Roma residents, and later to other cities and towns in Andalusia. While some towns experienced wide spread of the disease with significant clusters of cases, most of the affected locations saw non-clustered cases or very few secondary cases. The outbreak resulted in 1,759 confirmed or probable cases of which 393 (19%) required hospitalisation. Measles virus of genotype D4 was diagnosed in more than half of the cases. Significant differences (p<0.0001) by age group were found between clustered and non-clustered cases. The highest proportion of clustered cases occurred in the age group of 5-14 yearolds, while the highest proportion of non-clustered cases was seen in those older than 29 years. The last confirmed case related to this outbreak was reported on 20 August 2011.
Subject(s)
Disease Outbreaks , Immunization Programs , Measles Vaccine/administration & dosage , Measles virus , Measles/epidemiology , Adolescent , Adult , Ambulatory Care Facilities/standards , Child , Child, Preschool , Contact Tracing/statistics & numerical data , Contact Tracing/trends , Disease Notification , Disease Outbreaks/prevention & control , Disease Outbreaks/statistics & numerical data , Drug Administration Schedule , Female , Health Personnel/standards , Hospitalization/statistics & numerical data , Hospitalization/trends , Humans , Immunization Programs/organization & administration , Immunization Programs/standards , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Measles/diagnosis , Measles/prevention & control , Measles virus/immunology , Measles virus/isolation & purification , Measles virus/pathogenicity , Medically Underserved Area , Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction , Sentinel Surveillance , Sequence Analysis, DNA , Spain/epidemiology , WorkforceABSTRACT
In September and October 2010, 13 primary measles cases were identified among unvaccinated persons aged between 9 and 32 years (median: 16.5) in 11 districts in Germany. All cases had attended meetings in Taizé, France. This outbreak illustrates the risk of long distance spread of infectious diseases associated with international mass gatherings, and underlines the importance of closing immunisation gaps against measles by vaccinating non-immune adolescents and young adults.
Subject(s)
Disease Outbreaks , Measles virus/isolation & purification , Measles-Mumps-Rubella Vaccine/administration & dosage , Measles/epidemiology , Adolescent , Adult , Age Distribution , Child , Child, Preschool , Disease Notification , Genotype , Humans , Infant , Measles/prevention & control , Measles/transmission , Measles virus/genetics , Population Surveillance , Spain/epidemiology , Vaccination/statistics & numerical data , Young AdultABSTRACT
In Andalusia, Spain, the pandemic influenza A(H1N1)v virus has spread throughout the community, being the dominant influenza strain in the season so far. The current objective of the Andalusia Health Service is focussed on the mitigation of the health and social impact by appropriate care of the patients at home or in health centres. The 2009-10 seasonal influenza epidemic started early compared with to previous seasons. This article analyses the influenza A(H1N1)v situation in Andalusia until the week 39/2009.
Subject(s)
Disease Outbreaks/statistics & numerical data , HIV Infections/epidemiology , Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype , Influenza, Human/epidemiology , Seasons , Female , Humans , Incidence , Male , Population Surveillance , Risk Assessment , Risk Factors , Spain/epidemiologySubject(s)
Disease Outbreaks/statistics & numerical data , Measles/epidemiology , Risk Assessment/methods , Adolescent , Adult , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Incidence , Infant , Male , Population Surveillance , Risk Factors , Spain/epidemiologyABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To determine the level of health of individuals living in 1987 in Sector 7 of the Autonomous Community of Madrid (ACM). DESIGN: Crossover analysis of the mortality among residents of Sector 7 of the ACM in 1987. SETTING: The Madrid districts, Centro, Chamberí and Latina, which compose Sector 7 of the ACM. POPULATION UNDER STUDY: The 5,460 deaths of Sector 7 residents registered in 1987. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The mortality rates (both overall and broken down according to C.I.E. 9th causes), the mortality rates of those under 70 and the rates of years of life potentially lost were standardised by the direct method. The following results were obtained: 1. The mortality rates standardised according to age in the Centro district (7.82 per thousand) were significantly higher (p < 0.001) than those of the other Sector 7 districts (Chamberí and Latina were both at 6.25 per thousand) and of the ACM as a whole (6.63 per thousand). 2. The mortality rates, standardised by age for the population under 70 in the Centro district, were significantly higher (p < 0.001) than those of the other Sector 7 districts (Chamberí, 3.1 per thousand and Latina, 2.63 per thousand) and of the ACM as a whole (2.88 per thousand). CONCLUSIONS: Analysing mortality by Health Area reveals differences in communities' health levels. These findings will assist more rational planning of the distribution of resources.
