While in London (UK) last week, I went with a group of people to the John Snow pub. It’s a bit of an epidemiologist pilgrimage, where you can sit in a pub named after one of the "fathers of epidemiology" and sign the guest book.
John Snow was a physician in London in the mid-1800’s. Cholera
A rabies epidemic continues in Bali, with little apparent control and inadequate access to vaccination. Another person died of rabies last week. He was bitten by a dog in July and taken to a local health centre, but rabies vaccine was not administered. It’s not clear whether healthcare providers recommended post-exposure vaccination and the
At the ongoing ASM-ESCMID conference on methicillin resistant staphylococci in animals, Dr. Engeline van Duijkeren of Utrecht University (The Netherlands) presented a study on an outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in their equine hospital.
From 2006-2008, several horses that underwent surgery at their hospital developed MRSA infections. MRSA was also isolated from some
Five more E. coli O157 infections have been linked to the Pacific National Exhibition‘s petting zoo, bringing the total to 18. It’s very likely that the true number of infected people is higher, since mild cases are often missed because they don’t go to the doctor or because testing is not performed. This situation
More from the ASM-ESCMID MRSA in animals meeting…
Dr. Joe Rubin presented some data on antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus aureus bacteria from dogs and people in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada). The bacterial isolates came from dogs carrying S. aureus and from dogs infected with MRSA. When you look at the resistance patterns of the S. aureus
People sometimes panic after they hear that their pet has been diagnosed with an MRSA infection. ("Dr. Google" doesn’t help because if you search "MRSA" you can come up with a lot of scary information). However, it’s very important to understand that just because MRSA is involved, it does not mean that an animal (or
I’m in London (UK) for the ASM-ESCMID conference on methicillin-resistant staphylococci in animals: veterinary and public health consequences. I’ll provide various updates on interesting presentations over the next few days.
Dr. Armando Hoet from the Ohio State University (OSU) presented data on MRSA screening of dogs admitted to the OSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
Considering all of the disease outbreaks that have been attributed to petting zoos, including an outbreak in the UK this month that has sickened dozens and another in Vancouver that has affected at least 13 people, you would think that people who operate petting zoos would start to take the hint. Unfortunately, that’s clearly not the
A Yonkers, New York school has barred a service dog from a school. On the surface, that sounds like a problem and an invitation for a lawsuit (particularly in the US considering the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)), but when you hear the details is seems like an entirely logical response.
The "service dog"
This comic, based on actual (and unfortunately common) events, was developed by Los Angeles County Veterinary Public Health. It’s a good example of novel ways of communication regarding zoonotic diseases. More information from Los Angeles County Veterinary Public Health (and apparently future editions of Rabies Tales) can be found on their website.
