May 2008

Little Rock, Arkansas—specifically Pulaski County– is Ground Zero for a Shigella outbreak that has reached 18 counties in the Razorback State.   Arkansas has already recorded more cases of Shigella in 2008 than it did during all of last year.

This year’s 118 confirmed cases in less than five months compares to 105 in all of

Hou Sheng-mou, writing today (05/16/08) in the Taiwan Journal takes a look at "The World Health Report 2007–A Safer Future: Global Public Health Security in the 21st Century."

The Taiwan Journal writer notes the report  "elucidates the importance of cooperation and information sharing among countries in the fight against disease."  WHO Director-General Margaret Chan

Last month,  we reported on a Shigella outbreak in New York’s Lower Hudson River Valley involving the Jewish Community.  It was centered on Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam counties, just outside New York City.

Now it appears that outbreak has spread to the Borough Park and Williamsburg communities in Brooklyn.  The New York City Health Department is working