CDC study on Cat Scratch Disease – Bartonella Henselae – finds a substantial burden of disease
New research from CDC on Cat scratch disease has just been published in the journal Emerging Infectious Disease. Cat-Scratch Disease in the United States, 2005–2013 Abstract Cat-scratch disease (CSD) is mostly preventable. More information about the epidemiology and extent of CSD would help direct prevention efforts to those at highest risk. To gain such information, we reviewed the 2005–2013 MarketScan national health insurance claims databases and identified patients <65 years of age with an inpatient admission or outpatient visit that included a CSD code from the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification. Incidence of CSD was highest among those who lived in the southern United States (6.4 cases/100,000 population) and among children 5–9 years of age (9.4 cases/100,000 population). Inpatients were significantly more likely than outpatients to be male and 50–64 years of age. We estimate that each year, 12,000 outpatients are given a CSD diagnosis and 500 inpatients are hospitalized for CSD. Prevention measures (e.g., flea control for cats) are particularly helpful in southern states and in households with children. and – “CSD causes a substantial burden of disease nationwide and disproportionately affects children. Because CSD is a zoonotic infection that is maintained and spread among cats by fleas, comprehensive flea control for cats can help reduce the risk for human infection. Risk may also be reduced by washing hands after contact with cats, to remove potentially infectious flea feces that could enter breaks in the skin. Furthermore, because cats that hunt outdoors are at substantially greater risk for B. henselae bacteremia (17), limiting hunting activity of cats may reduce risk for human infection. Educational efforts...TICKS FOUND ON 1 in 3 DOGS IN THE UK
The results of The Big Tick Project were announced by the media at the start of September following a collaboration between MSD Animal Health and Bristol University, this was accompanied by the launch of a new Tick Awareness Month Campaign by TV presenter Chris Packham. Ticks infesting domestic dogs in the UK: a large-scale surveillance programme Research published 7 July 2016 Parasites & Vectors http://parasitesandvectors.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13071-016-1673-4 The largest study of ticks found on dogs in the UK showed nearly one in three dogs were infested. The Big Tick Project analysed ticks collected by vet practices across the UK and found almost a third of dogs (31%) checked at random during a visit to a vet were carrying a tick. The Big Tick Project saw 1,094 veterinary practices from across the UK participate in the 16 week study. Over this period 12,092 dogs were chosen at random for a tick inspection. Scientists received 6,551 tick samples for analysis. Prof Richard Wall at the University of Bristol said ” We were overwhelmed by the veterinary profession’s support for the Big Tick Project – the vast number of ticks collected and analysed make this a robust study the results of which can only help to further raise awareness of the risk to pets and people from ticks. In Great Britain the distribution of ticks is estimated to have expanded in the last 10 years by 17% and the abundance of ticks to have increased at 73% of locations surveyed.” Surprisingly, dogs that were restricted to urban habitats were no less likely to have ticks than dogs exposed to more rural...Understanding Bartonella
Webinar recorded July 10, 2015 Bartonella infections are increasingly implicated in complex chronic disease syndromes, yet are extremely difficult to diagnose accurately. The purpose of this webinar is to raise awareness about Bartonella; its prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Medical, veterinary and public health professionals will benefit from attending this webinar. Speakers include subject matter experts Edward Breitschwerdt, DVM and B. Robert Mozayeni, MD. Please note that the content is highly technical and designed for an audience of medical, veterinary and public health professionals. Learning objectives include the ability to: Describe the epidemiology of Bartonella; Identify populations most at risk for Bartonella infection; and Explain the process for accurate and timely diagnosis of and treatment considerations for Bartonella Our mission is to educate as many people as possible about the increasing medical importance of Bartonella. As an advocate for One Health, please share this free webinar link with others who may be interested. Free Webinar: Understanding Bartonella Earlier post http://www.visavissymposiums.org/bartonellosis-one-health-perspectives-on-an-emerging-infectious-disease/ Galaxy Diagnostics – http://www.galaxydx.com/web/ Links to further research...Risk Factors for Bartonella species Infection in Blood Donors from Southeast Brazil
Pedro Paulo Vissotto de Paiva Diniz , Paulo Eduardo Neves Ferreira Velho , Luiza Helena Urso Pitassi , Marina Rovani Drummond , Bruno Grosselli Lania , Maria Lourdes Barjas-Castro , Stanley Sowy , Edward B. Breitschwerdt , Diana Gerardi Scorpio Published: March 21, 2016 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004509 http://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article?id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pntd.0004509 Abstract Bacteria from the genus Bartonella are emerging blood-borne bacteria, capable of causing long-lasting infection in marine and terrestrial mammals, including humans. Bartonella are generally well adapted to their main host, causing persistent infection without clinical manifestation. However, these organisms may cause severe disease in natural or accidental hosts. In humans, Bartonella species have been detected from sick patients presented with diverse disease manifestations, including cat scratch disease, trench fever, bacillary angiomatosis, endocarditis, polyarthritis, or granulomatous inflammatory disease. However, with the advances in diagnostic methods, subclinical bloodstream infection in humans has been reported, with the potential for transmission through blood transfusion been recently investigated by our group. The objective of this study was to determine the risk factors associated with Bartonella species infection in asymptomatic blood donors presented at a major blood bank in Southeastern Brazil. Five hundred blood donors were randomly enrolled and tested for Bartonella species infection by specialized blood cultured coupled with high-sensitive PCR assays. Epidemiological questionnaires were designed to cover major potential risk factors, such as age, gender, ethnicity, contact with companion animals, livestock, or wild animals, bites from insects or animal, economical status, among other factors. Based on multivariate logistic regression, bloodstream infection with B. henselae or B. clarridgeiae was associated with cat contact (adjusted OR: 3.4, 95% CI: 1.1–9.6) or history of tick bite (adjusted...
