1.Cat Flea Outbreak in Kuching District, Sarawak
Lau SM ; Jamail M ; Sarina S ; Bahtiar R ; Asmad M
Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine 2010;10(1):57-61
Cat fleas were reported to attack human in RPR Batu Kawa, a housing area about 3 km from Kuching town, resulting in an outbreak. A total of 19 people (10 adults and 9 children) were attacked by fleas. They presented with red spots, slightly raised (swollen) and irritation of skin, mostly found on the ankles and legs. The first 4 cases were reported on 29 September 2007 and the last case was on 17 November 2007. The remaining 12 cases which represent the majority of cases reported on 4th October 2007. The study conducted based mainly on field investigation and flea sampling from animals on field at that moment to find out the causes of the disease spread. Flea samples from human and cats were found to be Ctenocephalides felis; which is the most prevalent species in the world. However, no fleas were found on dog, rabbit and rat. This is the first reported case in Kuching; the study was carried out to determine the cause and the epidemiological pattern of the disease. This is important, because cat flea might attack human especially if house owners fail to monitor their pets and practice proper sanitation method to avoid the presence of cat flea larvae at home.
2.Epidemiological analysis of elderly viral pneumonia in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in 2018-2019
Journal of Public Health and Preventive Medicine 2021;32(4):133-136
Objective To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of elderly viral pneumonia in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from 2018 to 2019 and analyze the pathogenic distribution, and to provide reference for the prevention and treatment of elderly viral pneumonia. Methods A total of 797 elderly patients with viral pneumonia admitted to our hospital from January 2018 to December 2019 were enrolled as the research subjects. All patients were tested for respiratory viral pathogens. According to the test results, the patients were divided into two groups, positive group (n=345) and negative group (n=452). The pathogenic characteristics of patients in the positive group were analyzed. The combined basic diseases, clinical characteristics, laboratory indicators, and distribution of viral pneumonia in different seasons were compared between the two groups. Results Among the 345 patients in the positive group, 319 (92.46%) were infected with single virus, mainly influenza virus (n=221, 64.06%), followed by parainfluenza virus (n=42, 12.17%). There were 26 cases infected with two or more viruses, accounting for 7.54%, mainly influenza virus + parainfluenza virus (n=15, 4.35%). The proportion of patients complicated with diabetes, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and malignant tumors in the positive group was significantly higher than that in the negative group (P<0.05). The clinical characteristics of both groups were mainly fever and cough, with no significant difference (P>0.05). The Lym value of the positive group was higher than that of the negative group (P<0.05), while CRP and PCT values were significantly lower than those of the negative group (P<0.05). The incidence rate in the positive group was significantly higher than that in the negative group in winter (P<0.01), and it was significantly lower than that in the negative group in spring (P<0.01). Conclusion In Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, elderly patients with viral pneumonia are complicated with many basic diseases, but the clinical symptoms are not typical, with high incidence in winter. The infection is mainly caused by influenza virus and parainfluenza virus. Laboratory indicators such as Lym, CRP and PCT can be used to identify viral pneumonia.