Influenza-like Illness Incidence Is Not Reduced by Influenza Vaccination Influenza vaccination reduces the number of influenza virus infections but not the overall number of illness.
Alertness about the Zika virus still needed for pregnant women Since May 2015, there has been a Zika virus outbreak in South and Central America, including the Caribbean. The Zika virus can cause birth defects, including microcephaly (small head size).
Training on Water Safety Plans by Unesco-IHE and RIVM in Suriname The Suriname Water Company (SWM) recently started the implementation of Water Safety Plans (WSPs). The inception phase included a tailor-made training by Dr. Giuliana Ferrero (UNESCO-IHE) and Mr.
Moderate flu season Last winter season, the duration and severity of the influenza epidemic was moderate compared to previous years.
Integrated approach reduces harmful effects of medicines in surface waters Residues of medicinal products, such as painkillers, hormones and antidepressants, are increasingly detected in surface water and drinking water.
Flu season in the winter of 2014 / 2015 more severe and longer than preceding years The flu epidemic in the winter of 2014 / 2015 lasted 21 weeks and as such was the longest epidemic ever recorded in the Netherlands. Nearly two million people suffered from flu-like symptoms.
Broad approach needed against pharmaceutical residues in environment We can all help to reduce pollution of the environment by pharmaceutical residues.
Chikungunya infections in the Caribbean region Since August 2014, there has been an increase in the number of Chikungunya patients in the Caribbean region. Travellers who visit the region can become infected there.
Release of QMRAspot v2 for quantitative microbial risk assessment of drinking water RIVM has developed a new version of QMRAspot (2.0), a user-friendly computational tool to calculate the risk of becoming infected by pathogenic microorganisms in drinking water.
No new MERS patients in the Netherlands Almost two months ago, two Dutch people were diagnosed with the MERS coronavirus.