Health Alerts

The World Health Organisation (WHO) posted a Disease Outbreak News item late last week relating to the outbreaks of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). As of April 27, the virus has been identified in 73 pig farms located in four states, while the federal health department’s tally of locally acquired human cases shows that 26 infections have been confirmed, 11 are considered probable and there have been three deaths. The agency’s assessment of risk is categorised at low on a regional and global level, and recommendations include vector control, surveillance and personal protective measures. Additionally, it says consideration should be given to vaccination strategies for endemic and outbreak areas, plus integration of the JE vaccine ‘into national immunization schedules in all areas where JE is recognized as a public health priority’. Read more