National capacity for surveillance, prevention, and control of West Nile virus and other arbovirus infections--United States, 2004 and 2012.

In the first 5 years after its introduction in the United States in 1999, West Nile virus (WNV) spread to the 48 contiguous states, resulting in 667 reported deaths. To establish detection and response capacity, WNV surveillance and prevention was supported through CDC Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) cooperative agreements with all 50 states and six large cities/counties. In 2005, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) conducted an assessment of ELC recipients and determined that, since 1999, all had developed WNV surveillance and control programs, resulting in a national arboviral surveillance infrastructure.

Notes from the field: outbreak of 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus at a large public university in Delaware, April-May 2009.

Background: In late April 2009, the first documented 2009 pandemic influenza A (pH1N1) virus infection outbreak in a university setting occurred in Delaware, with large numbers of students presenting with respiratory illness. At the time of this investigation, little was known about the severity of illness, effectiveness of the vaccine, or transmission factors of pH1N1 virus infection. We characterized illness, determined the impact of this outbreak, and examined factors associated with transmission.

Hypothyroxinemia in mechanically ventilated term infants is associated with increased use of rescue therapies.

Objective: Although common in preterm infants, transient hypothyroxinemia (TH) has not been investigated extensively in ill term infants. The objectives of this study were to investigate serum thyroxine (T4) and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) in sick term infants and to determine whether there is any association between measures of thyroid function and short-term outcome in term infants who receive mechanical ventilation.

Methods: The investigation consisted of both a prospective observational study and a retrospective cohort study.

Admission thyroid evaluation in very-low-birth-weight infants: association with death and severe intraventricular hemorrhage.

Objectives: To determine if thyroxine (T(4)) and thyrotropin (TSH) levels, measured at the time of admission to the neonatal intensive care unit, are associated with the outcomes of death and/or severe intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH).

Study Design: Blood for total T(4) and TSH was obtained upon admission to the neonatal intensive care unit in infants with birthweights less than 1500 g. Infants were followed until hospital discharge.