Travel Vaccine Breaking News

According to the U.S. Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) latest checkpoint travel numbers, airport security screening activity has returned to the levels last seen in 2019.

As of March 23, 2023, the TSA is screening over 2.4 million people per day at airports in the U.S.

The TSA Strategy guides the agency through TSA's 25th anniversary and identifies three strategic priorities:

• Improve Security,
• Safeguard the Transportation System, and
• Accelerate Action, and Commit to Our People.

The Secretary of Homeland Security recently announced 1,341 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary's Awards winners, which honor employees from 43 states, countries, territories, and districts.

These individuals, the most significant number ever recognized, were selected for their extraordinary achievements and commitment to the DHS mission.

In 2022, DHS launched a hiring initiative recruiting hundreds of experts in digital user experience and design for the Customer Experience Program.

DHS is working to improve the overall experience for those accessing government services and benefits by accepting mobile driver's licenses, reducing processing times for immigration benefits, and simplifying FEMA policies when applying for assistance.

According to media statements made by the Republic of Equatorial Guinea Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Mitoha Ondo Ayecaba, Marburg virus disease (MVD) cases have reached the city of Bata as of March 23, 2023.

Bata is a coastal city in the Litoral province of Equatorial Guinea with an urban population exceeding 225,000 residents.

Two of the eight new confirmed Marburg cases were reported from the province of Kié-Ntem, four from the Litoral,  and two from Centre- Sur provinces.

The areas reporting cases are about 150 kilometers apart, suggesting wider transmission of the deadly virus.

In total, 27 MVD fatalities have been reported in Equatorial Guinea in 2023. 

The other MVD outbreak in central Africa is in Tanzania, which announced eight cases, including five related fatalities last week.

And more than 160 contacts have been identified and are being monitored.

The World Health Organization recently assessed the risk posed by the Marburg outbreaks as very high at the national level, moderate at the regional level, and low at the global level.

And the Europan CDC stated the most likely route of introducing MVD into the EU/EEA would be via infected travelers. While importation of the virus cannot be excluded, it is currently doubtful to occur.

Should an MVD case be imported, the likelihood of the spread within Europe is considered to be very low.

As of March 26, 2023, neither the U.S. Food and Drug Administration nor the European Medicines Agency had approved a Marburg vaccine.

Puerto Rico's Department of Health Arboviral Disease Week #10 report indicates 15 probable Zika cases confirmed this year.

In 2022, there were 20 probable IgM+ confirmed Zika cases.

In the Region of the Americas, the PAHO reported 40,249 cases and two death in 2022.

Belize is the country with the highest cumulative incidence of Zika infections in the Americas.

Since its first detection in Brazil in March 2014, and as of March 24, 2023, local transmission of Zika has been confirmed in all countries and territories in the Americas, except for continental Chile, Uruguay, and Canada.

Updated May 10, 2023 - reassigned domain.

Salt Lake County Health Department (SLCoHD) today announced a case of measles in a local unvaccinated resident.

This is the first case of measles in Utah since 2017.

Utah joins Kentucky and Ohio in reporting recent measles cases.

The SLCHD stated in a press release on March 23, 2023, the public is at minimal risk of illness due to this case related to international travel.

The infected person's exposure is limited to healthcare settings and the person's family members.

Anyone vaccinated against measles is protected even if they may have been exposed. This means they do not need to take any action.

And contact tracers notified people who may have been exposed and advised unvaccinated contacts to get vaccinated immediately.

Receiving a measles vaccine after exposure can prevent illness if administered within 72 hours.

Furthermore, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says no specific antiviral treatment exists for the measles virus.

However, research indicates vitamin A deficiency is a recognized risk factor for severe measles infections. Therefore, at-risk children diagnosed with measles should receive two vitamin A supplements 24 hours apart.

"Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease," commented Dr. Angela Dunn, SLCoHD executive director.

"While over 90% of children in Utah schools and childcare facilities are adequately vaccinated, there are still people in our community who are not protected," continued Dr. Dunn.

"Being fully vaccinated against measles does more than just protect the person who receives the vaccination; it also protects their family and friends, including children who may be too young to be vaccinated, and it helps limit the spread of disease in the community."

Furthermore, the CDC recommends protecting international travelers with an MMR vaccine before visiting measles outbreak communities in countries such as India.

Various measles vaccines are available at most health clinics and community pharmacies in the U.S.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced it had expanded its Alert - Level 2, Practice Enhanced Precautions global polio travel notice.

As of March 22, 2023, the CDC increased the number of countries listed.

Furthermore, the CDC stated that before traveling to any destination listed, adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose.

Previously, the World Health Organization confirmed the spread of poliovirus remained a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Recently, the New York State Department of Health announced that New Yorkers intending to visit Israel and other countries with circulating poliovirus should ensure they are fully immunized against polio.

In the U.S., CDC updated the pediatric and adult polio vaccination schedules in February 2023.

The inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) is recommended within four weeks of travel. Various IPV-containing vaccines are available at most health clinics and community pharmacies.

The National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) today announced the presence of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in a striped skunk recovered from Carson County, located east of Amarillo in the Texas panhandle.

As of March 21, 2023, this is the first confirmed case of HPAI in mammals in Texas.

HPAI is a highly contagious virus that transmits efficiently among wild and domestic birds. The virus can spread directly between animals and indirectly through environmental contamination.

Since the H5 clade 2.3.4.4b. appeared in North America in January 2022, over 6,000 H5N1 detections in wild birds, by 47 states (14 states within 30 days), leading to the loss of over 58 million birds as of March 17, 2023.

For mammals, current data shows transmission occurs primarily through the consumption of infected animal carcasses, though mammal-to-mammal transmission does not appear sustainable.

Other mammal species confirmed with HPAI in the U.S., Canada, Central Ameria, and South America include foxes, raccoons, bobcats, opossums, mountain lions, and black bears. 

Because of the ease of transmission, the TPWD recommends that wildlife rehabilitators also remain cautious when intaking wild animals with clinical signs consistent with HPAI and consider quarantining animals to limit the potential for HPAI exposures to other animals within the facility.

Currently, the transmission risk of avian influenza from infected birds to people remains low.

But the public should take basic protective measures, such as wearing gloves, face masks, and handwashing if contact with wild animals cannot be avoided.

Furthermore, the U.S. government has approved avian influenza vaccines should human-to-human transmission occur since the annual flu shot is not effective against this type of influenza.

A recent article published by eBioMedicine discussed how the Zika virus leads to olfactory disorders in mice by targeting olfactory ensheathing cells.

On February 3, 2023, this article confirmed Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus of the genus flavivirus associated with congenital Zika syndrome (CZS) in newborns.

Clinical symptoms, including intellectual disability, speech delay, coordination or movement problems, and hearing and vision loss, have been well-documented in children with CZS.

However, whether ZIKV can invade the olfactory system (ability to detect odors) and lead to post-viral olfactory dysfunction (PVOD) remains unknown.

These researchers demonstrated that neonatal mice infected with ZIKV suffer transient olfactory dysfunction when they reach puberty.

Moreover, ZIKV mainly targets olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) and exhibits broad cellular tropism colocalizing with small populations of mature/immature olfactory sensory neurons (mOSNs/iOSNs), sustentacular cells and horizontal basal cells in the olfactory mucosa (OM) of immunodeficient AG6 mice.

ZIKV infection induces strong antiviral immune responses in the olfactory mucosa and olfactory bulb tissues, resulting in the upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines and genes related to the antiviral response. 

'Our results demonstrate that the olfactory system represents a significant target for ZIKV infection and that PVOD may be neglected in CZS patients,' concluded these researchers.

The authors declared that they have no conflict of interest.