Situation Report

More than 150 countries sign up for global vaccine plan LONDON (AP) — More than 70 rich countries have signed up to a global coronavirus vaccine initiative intended to ensure that any effective shots are fairly distributed around the world - but which... AP NEWS

 Associated Press   July 15, 2020

By Masria Cheng

Exclusive: Scientists examine whether this route enables infections at longer distances

Large virus-laden droplets from infected people’s coughs and sneezes fall to the ground within 1-2 metres. Photograph: Nick Gregory/Alamy

CLICK HERE - STUDY - medRxiv - The Potential role of Particulate Matter in the Spreading of COVID-19 in Northern Italy: First Evidence-based Research Hypotheses - April 17, 2020

theguardian.com - by Damian Carrington - April 24, 2020

Coronavirus has been detected on particles of air pollution by scientists investigating whether this could enable it to be carried over longer distances and increase the number of people infected.

The work is preliminary and it is not yet known if the virus remains viable on pollution particles and in sufficient quantity to cause disease.

Battelle Memorial Institute's CCDS Critical Care Decontamination System uses a hydrogen peroxide vapor to decontaminate N95 respirators. The organization says that the process takes about 2½ and that masks can be cleaned and reused up to 20 times.Battelle Memorial Institute

nbcnews.com - by Didi Martinez, Brenda Breslauer and Stephanie Gosk - April 14, 2020

Late Monday, the Pentagon announced a $415 million contract to commission 60 decontamination systems that will allow millions of highly protective N95 face masks to be reused.

The system, which can process up to 80,000 masks per day, has been called a potential "game changer" for the front-line health care workers and first responders who rely on the masks, according to hospital officials concerned about a shortage of protective equipment to shield their staff from COVID-19.

But the story of how this system came to be is a testament to what can happen when a doctor and an engineer — who happen to be husband and wife — ask, "What if?"

Dengue is transmitted by a bite from an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito. This is the same species that spreads Zika, Chikungunya and yellow fever. The most common symptoms of dengue are high fever, headaches and joint and muscle pain. (Photo by: BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

forbes.com - by Daphne Ewing-Chow - December 31, 2019

In January 2019, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) warned the Caribbean region of an expected spike in dengue fever and called on communities to exercise caution and support the elimination of mosquito breeding sites to help combat the virus.

A full year later, the number of individuals in the Americas having contracted the mosquito-borne virus is approaching 3 million with at least 1,372 recorded deaths— the highest number of cases on record. The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and other experts have pointed to climate change as one of the leading causes for the surge in numbers, with poor environmental management and increased adaptability of mosquitoes listed as other causes.