Last data update: May 20, 2024. (Total: 46824 publications since 2009)
Records 1-6 (of 6 Records) |
Query Trace: Likos A [original query] |
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Engaging community and faith-based organizations in the Zika response, United States, 2016
Santibanez S , Lynch J , Paye YP , McCalla H , Gaines J , Konkel K , Ocasio Torres LJ , North WA , Likos A , Daniel KL . Public Health Rep 2017 132 (4) 33354917710212 During the past decade, widespread media attention has been paid to threats of emerging infectious diseases, including 2009 influenza A (H1N1), Ebola, and now Zika. The US public receives information about these diseases from various sources, including mainstream news providers, social networking sites, and other internet services.1 Even so, many members of the public may not know how to find evidence-based information about protecting their health during infectious disease outbreaks. Zika provides a good example. Much of the public may know that Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other severe birth defects,2 that the virus primarily spreads through infected mosquitoes, and that people can also get Zika virus through sex. Even so, rumor, fear, misinformation, and challenges in identifying evidence-based information can still lead to misperceptions about Zika virus and prevent people from adopting behaviors that might prevent Zika-related birth defects. | Public acceptance of a message often depends on the source.3 During difficult situations, people often turn to trusted leaders for advice. Trusted leaders can include community or religious leaders, such as pastors, priests, rabbis, and imams.4 These trusted leaders may even be a community’s first point of contact for health concerns such as Zika virus, even if it is not their area of expertise. Based on the influence that community and religious leaders may have on their constituents’ awareness and behaviors and the potential for Zika virus to cause harm, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) developed the Health Ministers Guide on Zika5 and the Zika Action Guide for Health Ministers6 to help “health ministers” (ie, any ordained, certified, or lay leader in a community who is dedicated to improving the public’s health)7 guide Zika virus prevention in their communities (Table). |
Local mosquito-borne transmission of Zika virus - Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, Florida, June-August 2016
Likos A , Griffin I , Bingham AM , Stanek D , Fischer M , White S , Hamilton J , Eisenstein L , Atrubin D , Mulay P , Scott B , Jenkins P , Fernandez D , Rico E , Gillis L , Jean R , Cone M , Blackmore C , McAllister J , Vasquez C , Rivera L , Philip C . MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2016 65 (38) 1032-1038 During the first 6 months of 2016, large outbreaks of Zika virus disease caused by local mosquito-borne transmission occurred in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories, but local mosquito-borne transmission was not identified in the continental United States. As of July 22, 2016, the Florida Department of Health had identified 321 Zika virus disease cases among Florida residents and visitors, all occurring in either travelers from other countries or territories with ongoing Zika virus transmission or sexual contacts of recent travelers.* During standard case investigation of persons with compatible illness and laboratory evidence of recent Zika virus infection (i.e., a specimen positive by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction [rRT-PCR], or positive Zika immunoglobulin M [IgM] with supporting dengue serology [negative for dengue IgM antibodies and positive for dengue IgG antibodies], or confirmation of Zika virus neutralizing antibodies by plaque reduction neutralization testing [PRNT]), four persons were identified in Broward and Miami-Dade counties whose infections were attributed to likely local mosquito-borne transmission. Two of these persons worked within 120 meters (131 yards) of each other but had no other epidemiologic connections, suggesting the possibility of a local community-based outbreak. Further epidemiologic and laboratory investigations of the worksites and surrounding neighborhood identified a total of 29 persons with laboratory evidence of recent Zika virus infection and likely exposure during late June to early August, most within an approximate 6-block area. In response to limited impact on the population of Aedes aegypti mosquito vectors from initial ground-based mosquito control efforts, aerial ultralow volume spraying with the organophosphate insecticide naled was applied over a 10 square-mile area beginning in early August and alternated with aerial larviciding with Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti), a group biologic control agent, in a central 2 square-mile area. No additional cases were identified after implementation of this mosquito control strategy. No increases in emergency department (ED) patient visits associated with aerial spraying were reported, including visits for asthma, reactive airway disease, wheezing, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. Local and state health departments serving communities where Ae. aegypti, the primary vector of Zika virus, is found should continue to actively monitor for local transmission of the virus. |
Full House: a retrospective analysis of high sexually transmitted infection prevalence among adult film actors at a singular residence
Kendrick K , Brown V , Lords C , Matthias J , Henning I , Blackmore C , Likos A . Sex Transm Dis 2016 43 (9) 556-9 BACKGROUND: During a routine human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) investigation, Florida Department of Health staff identified a house (house A) in which over 150 individuals had resided at least briefly. Further investigation revealed that house A is used by the producer of a small adult film production company to board his actors. This report describes sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevalence among male actors in gay adult films residing in a common Florida residence. METHODS: LexisNexis Accurint was used to identify house A residents since October 2002 when the producer arrived. Information on STIs and interview data were obtained from Florida's STI surveillance system. An infection was considered to be associated with residence in house A if the date of diagnosis occurred 6 months before an individual's residence start date through 6 months after his residence end date. RESULTS: Excluding the producer, 150 men resided in house A starting from September 2003 to July 2015. Forty-six individuals had a reported case of HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, and/or chlamydia with 92 infections total. Forty-two (46%) infections among 24 men were considered associated with residence in house A. CONCLUSIONS: LexisNexis Accurint was a useful tool for identifying house A residents, a highly mobile and highly sexually active population. There is a high prevalence of STIs among residents, but it is unclear where transmission is occurring. Settings like house A are good candidates for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and active STI screenings and may be an opportunity for public health officials to intervene in high-risk groups to reduce STI rates in the community. |
Prolonged detection of Zika virus RNA in pregnant women
Meaney-Delman D , Oduyebo T , Polen KN , White JL , Bingham AM , Slavinski SA , Heberlein-Larson L , St George K , Rakeman JL , Hills S , Olson CK , Adamski A , Culver Barlow L , Lee EH , Likos AM , Munoz JL , Petersen EE , Dufort EM , Dean AB , Cortese MM , Santiago GA , Bhatnagar J , Powers AM , Zaki S , Petersen LR , Jamieson DJ , Honein MA . Obstet Gynecol 2016 128 (4) 724-730 OBJECTIVE: Zika virus infection during pregnancy is a cause of microcephaly and other fetal brain abnormalities. Reports indicate that the duration of detectable viral RNA in serum after symptom onset is brief. In a recent case report involving a severely affected fetus, Zika virus RNA was detected in maternal serum 10 weeks after symptom onset, longer than the duration of RNA detection in serum previously reported. This report summarizes the clinical and laboratory characteristics of pregnant women with prolonged detection of Zika virus RNA in serum that were reported to the U.S. Zika Pregnancy Registry. METHODS: Data were obtained from the U.S. Zika Pregnancy Registry, an enhanced surveillance system of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of confirmed or possible Zika virus infection. For this case series, we defined prolonged detection of Zika virus RNA as Zika virus RNA detection in serum by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) 14 or more days after symptom onset or, for women not reporting signs or symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease (asymptomatic), 21 or more days after last possible exposure to Zika virus. RESULTS: Prolonged Zika virus RNA detection in serum was identified in four symptomatic pregnant women up to 46 days after symptom onset and in one asymptomatic pregnant woman 53 days postexposure. Among the five pregnancies, one pregnancy had evidence of fetal Zika virus infection confirmed by histopathologic examination of fetal tissue, three pregnancies resulted in live births of apparently healthy neonates with no reported abnormalities, and one pregnancy is ongoing. CONCLUSION: Zika virus RNA was detected in the serum of five pregnant women beyond the previously estimated timeframe. Additional real-time RT-PCR testing of pregnant women might provide more data about prolonged detection of Zika virus RNA and the possible diagnostic, epidemiologic, and clinical implications for pregnant women. |
Pneumonia associated with an influenza A H3 outbreak at a skilled nursing facility - Florida, 2014
Jordan J G , Pritchard S , Nicholson G , Winston T , Gumke M , Rubino H , Watkins S , Heberlein-Larson LA , Likos A . MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2015 64 (35) 985-6 In December 2014, the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Epidemiology, was notified that 18 of 95 (19%) residents at a skilled nursing facility had radiographic evidence of pneumonia and were being treated with antibiotics. Two residents were hospitalized, one of whom died. A second resident died at the facility. The Florida Department of Health conducted an outbreak investigation to ascertain all cases through active case finding, identify the etiology, provide infection control guidance, and recommend treatment or prophylaxis, if indicated. |
A silent enzootic of an orthopoxvirus in Ghana, West Africa: evidence for multi-species involvement in the absence of widespread human disease
Reynolds MG , Carroll DS , Olson VA , Hughes C , Galley J , Likos A , Montgomery JM , Suu-Ire R , Kwasi MO , Jeffrey Root J , Braden Z , Abel J , Clemmons C , Regnery R , Karem K , Damon IK . Am J Trop Med Hyg 2010 82 (4) 746-54 Human monkeypox has never been reported in Ghana, but rodents captured in forested areas of southern Ghana were the source of the monkeypox virus introduced into the United States in 2003. Subsequent to the outbreak in the United States, 204 animals were collected from two commercial trapping sites in Ghana. Animal tissues were examined for the presence of orthopoxvirus (OPXV) DNA using a real-time polymerase chain reaction, and sera were assayed for antibodies against OPXV. Animals from five genera (Cricetomys, Graphiurus, Funiscirus, and Heliosciurus) had antibodies against OPXV, and three genera (Cricetomys, Graphiurus, and Xerus) had evidence of OPXV DNA in tissues. Additionally, 172 persons living near the trapping sites were interviewed regarding risk factors for OPXV exposure, and their sera were analyzed. Fifty-three percent had IgG against OPXV; none had IgM. Our findings suggest that several species of forest-dwelling rodents from Ghana are susceptible to naturally occurring OPXV infection, and that persons living near forests may have low-level or indirect exposure to OPXV-infected animals, possibly resulting in sub-clinical infections. |
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