Baseline Asymptomatic Malaria Infection and Immunogenicity of Recombinant Vesicular Stomatitis Virus-Zaire Ebola Virus Envelope Glycoprotein.

Background: The effect of malaria infection on the immunogenicity of the recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus-Zaire Ebola virus envelope glycoprotein (GP) vaccine (rVSVΔG-ZEBOV-GP) (ERVEBO) is unknown.

Methods: The Sierra Leone Trial to Introduce a Vaccine Against Ebola (STRIVE) vaccinated 7998 asymptomatic adults with rVSVΔG-ZEBOV-GP during the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic. In STRIVE's immunogenicity substudy, participants provided blood samples at baseline and at 1, 6, and 9-12 months.

Implementing an Ebola Vaccine Study - Sierra Leone.

In October 2014, the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences of the University of Sierra Leone, the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation, and CDC joined the global effort to accelerate assessment and availability of candidate Ebola vaccines and began planning for the Sierra Leone Trial to Introduce a Vaccine against Ebola (STRIVE). STRIVE was an individually randomized controlled phase II/III trial to evaluate efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety of the recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus Ebola vaccine (rVSV-ZEBOV). The study population was health care and frontline workers in select chiefdoms of the five most affected districts in Sierra Leone.

Effect of Culture-Independent Diagnostic Tests on Future Emerging Infections Program Surveillance.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Emerging Infections Program (EIP) network conducts population-based surveillance for pathogens of public health importance. Central to obtaining estimates of disease burden and tracking microbiological characteristics of these infections is accurate laboratory detection of pathogens. The use of culture-independent diagnostic tests (CIDTs) in clinical settings presents both opportunities and challenges to EIP surveillance.

Cultivation of an Adaptive Domestic Network for Surveillance and Evaluation of Emerging Infections.

Accomplishments of this program have provided numerous dividends and might benefit areas outside infectious diseases.

Update on progress in electronic reporting of laboratory results to public health agencies - United States, 2014.

Since 2010, CDC has provided resources from the Prevention and Public Health Fund of the Affordable Care Act to 57 state, local, and territorial health departments through the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases cooperative agreement to assist with implementation of electronic laboratory reporting (ELR)* from clinical and public health laboratories to public health agencies. To update information from a previous report about the progress in implementing ELR in the United States, CDC examined regular communications between the agency and the 57 health departments during 2012-2014. The results indicated that, as of July 2014, 67% of the approximately 20 million laboratory reports received annually for notifiable conditions were received electronically, compared with 62% in July 2013.

Telephone triage service data for detection of influenza-like illness.

Background: Surveillance for influenza and influenza-like illness (ILI) is important for guiding public health prevention programs to mitigate the morbidity and mortality caused by influenza, including pandemic influenza. Nontraditional sources of data for influenza and ILI surveillance are of interest to public health authorities if their validity can be established.

Methods/principal Findings: National telephone triage call data were collected through automated means for purposes of syndromic surveillance.

Decision instrument for the isolation of pneumonia patients with suspected pulmonary tuberculosis admitted through US emergency departments.

Study Objective: Many patients with pneumonia are admitted to respiratory isolation for possible tuberculosis (TB), but most do not have active TB. We created a decision instrument to predict which pneumonia patients do not need admission to a TB isolation bed.

Methods: The design was a prospective case series conducted in 11 university-affiliated, urban, US emergency departments (EDs) (EMERGEncy ID NET).

Disease surveillance and the academic, clinical, and public health communities.

The Emerging Infections Programs (EIPs), a population-based network involving 10 state health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, complement and support local, regional, and national surveillance and research efforts. EIPs depend on collaboration between public health agencies and clinical and academic institutions to perform active, population-based surveillance for infectious diseases; conduct applied epidemiologic and laboratory research; implement and evaluate pilot prevention and intervention projects; and provide capacity for flexible public health response. Recent EIP work has included monitoring the impact of a new conjugate vaccine on the epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease, providing the evidence base used to derive new recommendations to prevent neonatal group B streptococcal disease, measuring the impact of foodborne diseases in the United States, and developing a systematic, integrated laboratory and epidemiologic method for syndrome-based surveillance.

Infectious disease hospitalizations among American Indian and Alaska native infants.

Objective: To describe the burden and trends in hospitalizations associated with infectious diseases among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) infants.

Methods: First-listed infectious disease hospitalizations and hospitalization rates among AI/AN infants and infants in the general US population from 1988-1999 were analyzed by using Indian Health Service/tribal hospital discharge data and the National Hospital Discharge Survey data, respectively.

Results: Infectious disease hospitalizations accounted for 53% of all AI/AN infant hospitalizations and approximately 43% of all US infant hospitalizations during 1988-1999.

Surveillance for anthrax cases associated with contaminated letters, New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania, 2001.

In October 2001, two inhalational anthrax and four cutaneous anthrax cases, resulting from the processing of Bacillus anthracis-containing envelopes at a New Jersey mail facility, were identified. Subsequently, we initiated stimulated passive hospital-based and enhanced passive surveillance for anthrax-compatible syndromes. From October 24 to December 17, 2001, hospitals reported 240,160 visits and 7,109 intensive-care unit admissions in the surveillance area (population 6.

Epidemiologic investigations of bioterrorism-related anthrax, New Jersey, 2001.

At least four Bacillus anthracis-containing envelopes destined for New York City and Washington, D.C. were processed at the Trenton Processing and Distribution Center (PDC) on September 18 and October 9, 2001.

Investigation of bioterrorism-related anthrax, United States, 2001: epidemiologic findings.

In October 2001, the first inhalational anthrax case in the United States since 1976 was identified in a media company worker in Florida. A national investigation was initiated to identify additional cases and determine possible exposures to Bacillus anthracis. Surveillance was enhanced through health-care facilities, laboratories, and other means to identify cases, which were defined as clinically compatible illness with laboratory-confirmed B.

Neurocysticercosis in radiographically imaged seizure patients in U.S. emergency departments.

Neurocysticercosis appears to be on the rise in the United States, based on immigration patterns and published cases series, including reports of domestic acquisition. We used a collaborative network of U.S.

Update on Emerging Infections From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

[Cheney P: Fatal human plague-Arizona and Colorado, 1996. Ann Emerg Med March 1998;31:410-411.].

Comparison of Three Selective Enrichment Methods for the Isolation of Listeria monocytogenes from Naturally Contaminated Foods.

Three selective enrichment procedures-the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) method, the U.

Listeria monocytogenes Contamination of Turkey Franks: Evaluation of a Production Facility.

A facility which produced turkey franks that had been microbiologically linked to a case of human listeriosis was evaluated to establish prevalence of contamination and identify potential points for intervention. Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from only two of 41 environmental samples obtained in the plant. Among production line product samples analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control, 0 to 8% of samples from the production stages before the peeler-conveyor belt apparatus were positive for the case strain of L.