Disease

Slovakia - Measles

An outbreak of measles has been reported from, eastern Slovakia. Since the outbreak began at the end of May in the village of Drahňov, 101 cases of measles have been reported as of July 2.

Chagas Disease - China

Health officials in southern China have appealed on social media for the public to look out for South American “kissing bugs” after a feared outbreak of the potentially fatal tropical disease Chagas, state media reported on Friday.

The insects – also being referred to locally as “the king of fleas” – were described as about 25 millimetres long and oval-shaped, with red or yellow freckles on their dark-coloured abdomens. Triatominae suck blood from human hosts by attaching to thin-skinned areas such as the lips or around the eyes, and infected insects can pass on the pathogen, Trypanosoma cruzi, that causes Chagas, also known as American trypanosomiasis.