There is a WHO “EPI-WIN” Webinar covering Zika virus: learning from the past, preparing for the future, on 30 August 2023 at 1300-1415 Geneva Time (CEST). The webinar can be viewed live and post-event on the channel here: EPI-WIN YouTube channel.
EG.5, the latest “Variant of Interest” is described in a JAMA piece here: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2808762
Meanwhile the very rare variant BA.2.86 has a large number of mutations representing a step change, and is being watched closely. It has been sequenced from patients in Denmark, USA, UK, Israel and South Africa, and also found in wastewater in Switzerland, Thailand and USA. It is likely to be more widespread than this. There is discussion about the possible ramifications of the variant here: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-02656-9
And summary from Airfinity of new outbreaks from a few days ago:
Canada: the first three West Nile fever cases for transmission season 2023 have been detected in Ontario.
Chile: an imported measles case was detected, but the origin is unknown due to several countries being visited before returning home.
Democratic Republic of the Congo: an Ebola infection is suspected in the Haut-Uele province in the north.
Italy: three local dengue fever cases were detected in Lombardy over the past week.
Poland: Legionnaires’ disease has infected 71 individuals in the south of the country, with five fatalities recorded so far.
Russia: an individual tested positive for anthrax in the Voronezh region.
Spain: an mpox outbreak has been declared in Barcelona due to six unrelated cases.
United States: Maryland detects the first local malaria case in over 40 years
A new Dutch study carried out by the Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (Royal NLR) and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) on request of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management is here. It looked at on-board spread, using computational fluid dynamics, and included a “super-shedder” in the experiment. Low but not zero risk was the general finding. Schijven et al: Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment of Contracting COVID-19 Derived from Measured and Simulated Aerosol Particle Transmission in Aircraft Cabins | Environmental Health Perspectives | Vol. 131, No. 8 (nih.gov)
A useful article just published by the University of Hong Kong, supported by Qantas, looks at surface survival of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on common aircraft surfaces, finding that the level of culturable virus on those surfaces declined quickly, adding to the epidemiological observations that surface spread is not a major route of transmission. Hui et al: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/16/6598
Two new articles on long term results of COVID-19 – both huge and comprehensive studies on a large population of US Veterans – and two other studies from CDC, add to the understanding.
- One Veteran study is on long COVID and shows the greater risk of long-term symptoms amongst those who were hospitalised for COVID-19 compared those who were not. There is gradual resolution of many but not all of the symptom groups over the first two years. Bowe et al: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02521-2
- A concordant study was published by CDC showing the prevalence of long COVID in US adults reducing from 7.5% in June 2022 to 6% in June 2023 and amongst those reporting previous COVID-19 infection, from 18.9% in 2022 to 11% in 2023. Ford et al: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7232a3.htm
- The other Veteran Study is on mortality from COVID-19, finding that although overall 2-year mortality risk was worse among those infected with COVID-19, by day 180 after infection they had no excess mortality during the next 1.5 years. Iwashnya et al: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2808237
- And importantly another CDC study shows that those who have NOT tested positive for COVID-19 also experience post-COVID symptoms at significant rates – Montoy et al: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7232a2.htm
Separately on the subject of US veterans, this media piece looks at the investigation carried out on pilots who are receiving compensation as veterans for medical conditions that they have not declared to the FAA: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/08/27/faa-pilots-health-conditions-va-benefits/
FINALLY A PERSONAL NOTE
I expect this to be final or perhaps second-last MCG update, as there is a new Medical Advisor to IATA who commences on 6th September, Dr Rui Pombal from Portugal. It has been my pleasure and honour to serve as the Medical Advisor for the past 5 years. I am pleased that Rui, my trusted colleague and friend, has been confirmed in this role and I will leave these communications in his capable hands. I have passed him all of your contact email addresses, and expect that he will be in touch with you in the near future on a similar basis. This email address for me should be working for at least the next 10 days. Very best wishes,
David Powell
IATA Medical Advisor