COCA Email Updates: January 19, 2016 – February 1, 2016

Available for download: February 1. 2016, COCA Email Update

---

 

COCA News and Announcements

Recent COCA Webinars/Calls:
Zika Virus — What Clinicians Need to Know
Date: Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Presenters reviewed with participants the epidemiology and clinical manifestation of Zika virus disease and how early recognition and reporting of suspected cases can mitigate the risk of local transmission.

Archived COCA Conference Calls

Free continuing education credits (CME, CNE, ACPE, CEU, CECH, and AAVSB/RACE) are available for most calls. More information about free CE.

---

 

CDC Emergency Response

2016 Zika Virus

NEW: Q & A’s for Pediatric Healthcare Providers: Infants and Zika Virus
CDC in partnership with other U.S. government agencies, public health stakeholders, and global partners joined the White House today to help launch the “National Action Plan for Combating Multidrug Resistant TB (MDR TB)” in Washington, DC. CDC is a Key Architect and Implementer of the National Action Plan.

NEW: Q&As for Obstetrical HCP: Pregnant Women and Zika virus Infection

Health Alert Network (HAN) - Recognizing, Managing, and Reporting Zika Virus Infections in Travelers Returning from Central America, South America, the Caribbean, and Mexico
Zika outbreaks have been identified recently in several countries in Central and South America. The outbreak began in Brazil in May. CDC recommends that travelers to affected areas in South America, Central America, the Caribbean, or Mexico protect themselves from mosquito bites. CDC has also provided recommendations for health care providers and public health practitioners.

Clinical Evaluation
Zika virus is spread to people through mosquito bites. The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis.

Diagnostic Testing
Zika virus disease can often be diagnosed by performing reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on serum. Testing is performed at the CDC Arbovirus Diagnostic Laboratory. Contact your state health department to facilitate testing.

Travelers' Health

NEW: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/zika-travel-information

NEW: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

NEW: Interim Guidelines for the Evaluation and Testing of Infants with Possible Congenital Virus Infection- United States 2016

NEW: Zika Virus Spreads to New Areas — Region of the Americas, May 2015–January 2016

NEW: Possible Association Between Zika Virus Infection and Microcephaly — Brazil, 2015

Interim Guidelines for Pregnant Women During a Zika Virus Outbreak — United States, 2016

2014 Ebola in the United States and West Africa

NEW: Guidance for Developing a Plan for Interfacility Transport of Persons Under Investigation or Confirmed Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in the United States

NEW: Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Decontamination of an Ambulance that has Transported a Person under Investigation or Patient with Confirmed Ebola

NEW: Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Air-to-Ground (Air-Ground) Patient Handoff

NEW: Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Patient Handoff between a Healthcare Facility and a Transporting Ambulance

updated: Case Counts

CDC News and Announcements

NEW: CDC Feature Drinking Water and Lead

NEW: Continued increase in birth defect of abdominal wall
CDC researchers found that over 18 years, the prevalence of gastroschisis, more than doubled in the United States. CDC is working to address birth defects, including gastroschisis, by tracking birth defects through several state tracking systems and regional programs, collaborating with the National Birth Defects Prevention Network (NBDPN), and funding research in Centers for Birth Defects Research and Prevention, which collaborate on large studies. These studies work to identify factors that increase the risk for birth defects.

NEW: First-of-its-Kind PSA Campaign Targets the 86 Million American Adults with Prediabetes
American Diabetes Association, American Medical Association, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ad Council join forces to reduce the incidence of Type 2 Diabetes, one of the nation’s biggest public health crises today.

CDC Science Clips: Volume 8, Issue: 4

Each week select science clips are shared with the public health community to enhance awareness of emerging scientific knowledge. The focus is applied public health research and prevention science that has the capacity to improve health now.

Public Health Preparedness

Emergency Preparedness and Response - (CDC)

Find preparedness resources for all hazards.

Emergency Preparedness and Response Training Resources for Clinicians – (CDC)

Find online and in-person training resources.

Natural Disasters and Severe Weather

Be Prepared to Stay Safe and Healthy in Winter – (CDC)

Food and Water Needs: Preparing for a Disaster or Emergency – (CDC)

Health and Safety Concerns for All Disasters – (CDC)

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

The MMWR series is CDC’s primary vehicle for scientific publication of timely, reliable, authoritative, accurate, objective, and useful public health information and recommendations. To subscribe electronically, go to. Electronically Subscribe.

January 29, 2016 / Vol. 65/Nos. 3 Download .pdf document of this issue

• Increases in Acute Hepatitis B Virus Infections — Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia, 2006–2013
• Active Monitoring of Travelers Arriving from Ebola-Affected Countries — New York City, October 2014–April 2015

Infectious, Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases

NEW: Health Alert Network (HAN) - CDC Urging Dialysis Providers and Facilities to Assess and Improve Infection Control Practices to Stop Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Transmission in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis– (CDC)
Between 2014 and 2015, CDC has been contacted about 36 cases of acute HCV infection in 19 different hemodialysis clinics in eight states. HCV transmission can be prevented when proper infection prevention and environmental disinfection practices are consistently followed. In response to the increased identification of HCV transmission in dialysis clinics, CDC recommends following certain actions to improve infection control practices.

Seasonal Influenza

What You Should Know for the 2015-2016 Influenza Season  – (CDC)

Information for Health Professionals  – (CDC)

Weekly Flu View – January 9 (CDC)

Flu View is a weekly influenza surveillance report prepared by CDC Influenza Division. All data are preliminary and may change as CDC receives more reports.

Pregnant? Get a Flu Shot!  – (CDC)

Travel Safety

Current Travel Warnings - January 29 (US Department of State)

The U.S. Department of State issues Travel Warnings when long-term, protracted conditions make a country dangerous or unstable. Travel Warnings recommend that Americans avoid or carefully consider the risk of travel to that country. The State Department also issues Travel Warnings when the U.S. Government's ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate, or because of a drawdown of State Department staff.

Food, Drug and Device Safety

NEW: Multistate Outbreak of Listeriosis Linked to Packaged Salads Produced at Springfield, Ohio Dole Processing Facility - (CDC)
Fifteen people infected with the outbreak strain of Listeria have been reported from eight states since July 5, 2015. Epidemiologic and laboratory evidence indicate that packaged salads produced at the Dole processing facility in Springfield, Ohio and sold under various brand names are the likely source of this outbreak.

NEW: MOVES Ventilator System by Thornhill Research: Class I Recall - Battery Problem - (FDA)
The issue may prevent the ventilator from providing patient breathing support and could cause patient injury or death.

NEW: Baxter IV Solutions (Select Lots): Recall - Potential for Leaking Containers and Particulate Matter - (FDA)

MedWatch: The FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program – (FDA)

MedWatch is your Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gateway for clinically important safety information and reporting serious problems with human medical products.

FoodSafety.gov Reports FDA and USDA Food Recalls, Alerts, Reporting & Resources – (HHS/USDA/FDA/CDC/NIH)

Foodsafety.gov lists notices of recalls and alerts from both FDA and USDA. Visitors to the site can report a problem or make inquiries.