MMWR

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever – Texas-Mexico Border, 2005

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Dengue, which can be a severe and fatal disease, is increasing worldwide including both sides of the Texas – Mexico border region. In June 2005, a south Texas resident was the first person who was a native to the U.S.-Mexico border to become infected with the severe form of dengue fever known as dengue hemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome. At the time of the resident′s infection an outbreak was occurring on the neighboring Mexico border. The outbreak described in the report seemed to spread from the Mexican northern state of Tamaulipas to the Texas-Mexico sister city communities of Brownsville and Matamoros in the summer of 2005. Texas, CDC and Mexican officials collaborated on the containment of this outbreak. In the past two decades, outbreaks of dengue hemorrhagic fever have become increasingly common in Latin America and the Caribbean and the dengue serotypes have been circulating in Mexico since 1995. Although fewer cases of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever were reported on the Texas side of the border than in Mexico during this outbreak, health officials warn that the mosquito vectors’ presence and ongoing circulation of dengue in Mexico warrant concern for future outbreaks along the Texas border region. Physicians should be trained in the early recognition and management of this condition to prevent hospitalizations and deaths.

Update: Influenza Activity – United States and Worldwide, 2006–07 Season, and Composition of the 2007–08 Influenza Vaccine

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Influenza activity in the United States peaked during mid-February, but influenza viruses continue to circulate at low levels. During the 2006-07 influenza season, influenza activity peaked in mid-February in the United States and was associated with less mortality and lower rates of pediatric hospitalizations than the previous three seasons. In the United States, influenza A (H1) viruses predominated overall, but influenza A (H3) viruses were isolated more frequently than influenza A (H1) viruses late in the season.