Susceptibility of Mammals to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza: A Qualitative Risk Assessment From the Belgian Perspective.

Aims: The world experienced a huge number of outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in birds, which could represent one of the largest registered epidemics of infectious disease in food-producing animals. Therefore, mammals, including humans, are continuously exposed to HPAI viruses leading to sporadic and sometimes unusual mammal infections. The aim of this paper is to assess the risk of crossing the avian/mammalian species barrier by the currently circulating HPAI viruses, focusing on the epidemiological situation of Belgium, a representative country for Western Europe.

Translating the COVID-19 epidemiological situation into policies and measures: the Belgian experience.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to sustained surveillance efforts, which made unprecedented volumes and types of data available. In Belgium, these data were used to conduct a targeted and regular assessment of the epidemiological situation. In addition, management tools were developed, incorporating key indicators and thresholds, to define risk levels and offer guidance to policy makers.

Prevalence and diagnostics of congenital malaria in rural Burundi, a cross-sectional study.

Background: Congenital malaria, defined as the presence of asexual forms of malaria parasites in the peripheral blood during the first 7 days of life, remains a neglected area of research. Knowledge gaps exist about prevalence and management of malaria in this age group. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of congenital malaria and the validity of a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) for its diagnosis in rural Burundi.

Plasmodium Parasitemia Associated With Increased Survival in Ebola Virus-Infected Patients.

Background: The ongoing Ebola outbreak in West Africa has resulted in 28 646 suspected, probable, and confirmed Ebola virus infections. Nevertheless, malaria remains a large public health burden in the region affected by the outbreak. A joint Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Institutes of Health diagnostic laboratory was established in Monrovia, Liberia, in August 2014, to provide laboratory diagnostics for Ebola virus.

The Merits of Malaria Diagnostics during an Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak.

Malaria is a major public health concern in the countries affected by the Ebola virus disease epidemic in West Africa. We determined the feasibility of using molecular malaria diagnostics during an Ebola virus disease outbreak and report the incidence of Plasmodium spp. parasitemia in persons with suspected Ebola virus infection.

A systematic review and meta-analysis on the safety of newly adjuvanted vaccines among children.

Introduction: New adjuvants such as the AS- or the MF59-adjuvants improve vaccine efficacy and facilitate dose-sparing. Their use in influenza and malaria vaccines has resulted in a large body of evidence on their clinical safety in children.

Methods: We carried out a systematic search for safety data from published clinical trials on newly adjuvanted vaccines in children ≤10 years of age.