Tag Archives: outbreak

DHEC in the News: Opioids, smoking, flu

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Florence VA addresses opioid issues among veterans

FLORENCE COUNTY, SC (WMBF) – The Pee Dee Area Veterans Advisory Council held a forum on the opioid epidemic Tuesday morning.

Veterans, caregivers and others gathered at the Florence County Veterans Affairs building to learn more about the dangers of opioid and possible alternatives.

Smoking cost runs high in South Carolina

To encourage the estimated 36.5 million tobacco users in the U.S. to kick the dangerous habit, the personal finance website WalletHub calculated the potential monetary losses — including the lifetime and annual costs of a cigarette pack per day, health care expenditures, income losses and other costs — brought on by smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke. The news for South Carolina smokers is not good.

General Interest

School closes for remainder of week due to flu outbreak

CLARENDON COUNTY, SC (WIS) – A school in Clarendon County will close its doors for a week after a number of students and staff members contracted the flu.

Officials say Clarendon Hall will be closed from January 24-26 after several people within the school tested positive for the influenza virus.

DHEC in the News: Cold weather tips, infant mortality, E. coli outbreak

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Health experts offer tips during cooler weather, warn about carbon monoxide exposure

Last week brought freezing temperatures, snow and ice across South Carolina, even as far as the Palmetto State’s coastal region when a winter storm blanketed beaches and palm trees with snow and ice.

When temperatures drop in cooler months, health experts often share a familiar message to residents in families – bundle up, stay warm and indoors (when necessary) to prevent cold-related illnesses.

A good way to be prepared for cold-weather health problems includes taking a first aid and emergency resuscitation (CPR) course, as well as taking preventative action by preparing homes and cars in advance for winter emergencies, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on cdc.gov.

Health in brief: CDC publishes updated infant mortality data, national rate shows no improvement

The rate of babies who die during their first year of birth has improved nationally in the last decade, but in recent years, improvement in this key public health metric has plateaued.

New data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows there was no change in the national rate of infant mortality between 2014 and 2015, the most recent years for which it has published numbers.

South Carolina has a middling rate overall, compared to other states.

General Interest

CDC: E. coli outbreak could be linked to romaine lettuce

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, are investigating reports of E. coli illnesses in 13 states possibly linked to romaine lettuce or other leafy greens, according to a statement issued by the CDC.

Arizona and California produce about 90% of the lettuce and other leafy greens grown in the United States. The produce also comes from Mexico.

Detecting Outbreak Causes Faster with New Technology

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By Jim Beasley

In a disease outbreak that threatens the public’s health, time is of the essence.

Thanks to the new FilmArray BioFire system acquired recently by DHEC’s Bureau of Laboratories, identifying the pathogens that cause these outbreaks has been reduced to approximately 90 minutes. Prior to this important acquisition, identification of the causes of disease could take one-to-three days.

BioFire proved its significance when five people fell ill after swimming in a Lowcountry community pool. Using regular testing procedures, the pool’s water sample provided nothing of major concern to DHEC’s investigators. The tests found only extremely low levels of germs, and it appeared the pool would be allowed to reopen.

However, a different type of sample was sent to DHEC’s lab to undergo further testing using the new BioFire system. BioFire identified the microscopic parasite Cryptosporidium, also known as “Crypto,” which can cause severe diarrheal illness. Because of its outer shell, Crypto is able to survive outside the body for long periods of time — and can even survive disinfection by chlorine used in swimming pools.

“This technology not only allows us to get results faster,” explains Dr. Shahiedy Shahied, bureau chief of DHEC’s Bureau of Laboratories, “but it expands the number of pathogens that we can identify. For a gastrointestinal outbreak it allows us to test for an additional seven pathogens, and the respiratory panel allows us to detect seven additional pathogens that we have no other way to detect.”

Dr. Shahied adds that running samples through the BioFire system is more expensive than more commonly used tests but, in this case, it proved its worth. Identification of Crypto enabled health care providers to offer the appropriate treatments for the five swimmers, helping them on their path to recovery more quickly.

Speaking of BioFire, Rachel Radcliffe, director of DHEC’s Surveillance and Outbreak Investigation Section, said, “It is particularly useful when a pathogen is initially unknown during an outbreak investigation because it can provide timely results that allow us to implement appropriate preventive measures and limit disease transmission.”

BioFire enables DHEC’s public health investigators to respond more rapidly to outbreak situations and makes possible a quicker response and containment of the outbreak. As a result, DHEC can identify threats like Crypto more quickly, helping protect you from bugs that can make you sick.

No Measles Cases in South Carolina

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By Jennifer Read, Public Health Outreach Director

measlesBy now you’ve likely heard about the measles outbreak associated with travel to Disneyland in California. CDC is reporting 102 measles cases so far this year in multiple states, most of them stemming from the Disneyland outbreak that began in late December 2014. The vast majority of these cases occurred among individuals who had not been vaccinated.

Here in South Carolina, we’re fortunate that no cases of measles have been reported to DHEC. In fact, a review of our current and historical records shows there have not been any instances of measles in South Carolina as far back as 1999.

Measles is among the most contagious diseases known. It is transmitted by contact with an infected person through coughing and sneezing. After an infected person leaves a location, the measles virus remains alive for up to 2 hours on surfaces and in the air.

There are countries where measles is still active and unvaccinated travelers returning from one of these countries could become infected and bring measles back to the U.S. Thus, the concern for outbreaks is related to transmission to people in our communities who are not adequately vaccinated.

From a public health perspective, the current outbreak underscores the ongoing risk of measles and the importance of getting vaccinated to protect yourself and your family. The measles (MMR) vaccine is the best way to protect yourself from the measles and to prevent potential outbreaks.

The MMR vaccine is recommended for all infants at 12 months of age and is a requirement to attend day care or school in South Carolina. Based on school reports to DHEC for 778,588 students on the 45th day of school for the current school year (2014-15), most South Carolina students were up to date on all their vaccines; 5,826 (0.75%) students had a religious exemption and 1,540 (0.2%) students had a medical exemption.

Our Division of Acute Disease Epidemiology will continue to monitor the national outbreak and have sent out a CDC Health Advisory through our Health Alert Network to help keep health care providers, school nurses and our partners updated on this national outbreak investigation.

If you haven’t been vaccinated against the measles, DHEC encourages you to talk to your health care provider.