On 8 April 2022, Public Health Scotland (PHS) published guidance for the prevention and control of infectious diseases of displaced people from the Ukraine in Scotland. This document provides current infectious disease guidance for public health professionals working with displaced people from Ukraine, including recommendations and information on:

• key public health interventions
• monitoring and surveillance
• vaccination
• infectious diseases of concern.

For urgent queries relating to public health management of infectious diseases in Ukrainian displaced people, please contact PHS by email.

On 7 April 2022, Dallas County Health and Human Services reported the first case this year of West Nile fever in Dallas, USA.

West Nile fever is caused by West Nile virus (WNV) and occurs annually in the USA. The virus is spread by mosquito bites and can cause a flu-like illness and rarely, severe disease.

Advice for travellers 

• there is no vaccine against WNV 
• mosquito bite avoidance should be practiced at all times, especially during peak transmission times and when outbreaks are known to be occurring 
• medical advice should be sought if symptoms develop, following travel to a risk area 
• blood donors should note that if they have travelled to an area where WNV has been detected in the past four months, they may need to be tested for the virus before donating blood. The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service can be contacted for further details

Further advice and information is available on the TRAVAX (for health professionals) and fitfortravel (for the general public) websites.

Source: TRAVAX, 13 April 2022

On 7 April 2022, the Florida Department of Health reported that it was responding to an outbreak of meningococcal disease in Florida. So far, three cases in students have been identified at the University of Tallahassee.

Meningococcal meningitis is an acute disease, caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitides that can cause serious systemic infection. It is spread through sneezing, coughing or direct contact with respiratory secretions.

Advice to travellers

Risk of infection for most travellers is very low, particularly for package tourists. Risk is increased for those travelling to a region with an ongoing epidemic: 

• who anticipate close, prolonged contact with the local population 
• who plan to visit overcrowded areas, such as busy market places, or use public transport 
• to attend a mass gathering event 
• if they have immunodeficiency including asplenia

All travellers should be aware of the risk of meningococcal disease, its transmission routes and symptoms, and are advised to avoid overcrowded areas and pay strict attention to respiratory hygiene and hand hygiene measures.

Further information on meningitis can be found on the TRAVAX (for health professionals) and fitfortravel (for the general public) websites.

Source: TRAVAX, 13 April 2022

On 9 April 2022, the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced that one million international and domestic pilgrims will be able to perform Hajj 1443H (2022). The number of international pilgrims allowed to enter Saudi Arabia for Hajj will depend on the quota allocated to each country.

In addition, the ministry announced that the following regulations will be applied:

• Only pilgrims under 65 years of age who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, using vaccines approved by the Saudi Ministry of Health, will be able to perform Hajj.
• Pilgrims from outside Saudi Arabia will need to submit a negative COVID-19 PCR test, performed within 72 hours of the time of their departure to Saudi Arabia.

The official health requirements and recommendations for travellers to Saudi Arabia for Hajj and Umrah 1443H (2022) are yet to be released by the Saudi Ministry of Health, these guidelines will advise on other vaccine requirements for pilgrims entering the country.

The CBHUK (The Council of British Hajjis) is advising British pilgrims planning to undertake Hajj to:

• follow official guidance issued by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• only book travel with organisers approved and licenced by the Ministry of Hajj who hold a valid ATOL (Air Travel Organisers License)
• follow the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) travel advice for Saudi Arabia

More information and general advice on Hajj and Umrah page is available on the TRAVAX (for healthcare practitioners) and the fitfortravel (for the public) websites. These pages will be updated further once official health requirements and recommendations for travellers to Saudi Arabia for Hajj and Umrah are released.

Source: TRAVAX, 11 April 2022

World Malaria Day takes place on 25 April 2022 and will be marked under the theme ‘Harness innovation to reduce the malaria disease burden and save lives’. The World Health Organization (WHO) is calling for investments and innovation that bring new vector control approaches, diagnostics, antimalarial medicines, and other tools to speed up the pace of progress against malaria.

Despite steady advances in lowering the global burden of malaria between 2000 and 2015, progress has slowed or stalled in recent years, particularly in high burden countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The WHO highlight that urgent and concerted action is needed to set the world back on a trajectory toward achieving the 2030 targets of the WHO global malaria strategy.

Source: WHO, April 2022

World Immunisation Week runs from 24 to 30 April 2022, promoting the use of immunisations to protect people of all ages against disease. The theme this year is ‘Long life for all’, a message that aims to unify people around the idea that vaccines make it possible to live a long, healthy life.

The World Health Organization (WHO) highlights that this year’s campaign comes at an especially critical time as COVID-19 has disrupted essential health services, including routine immunisation, setting back progress by more than a decade. Millions of people have not been vaccinated during the global pandemic, leaving them at risk of disease and making it urgent to catch-up and reach those who have been missed.

In addition, the WHO European Region will celebrate European Immunisation Week, which as in previous years overlaps World Immunisation Week, running this year from 24 to 30 April. The theme of European Immunisation Week also reflects that of World Immunisation Week, aiming to reinforce the importance of equitable and expanded access to vaccines, to contribute to a long and healthy life for everyone.

Further information on World Immunisation Week and European Immunisation Week can be found on their respective WHO websites. Information for health professionals about vaccination practice can be found on the TRAVAX website.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have reported on a multi-country outbreak of monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium linked to chocolate products made at a factory in Arlon, Belgium, with most cases in children under ten years of age.

As of 8 April 2022, 150 cases, including 119 confirmed and 31 probable, have been reported in nine EU and EEA countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden) and the UK. The first identified case was in the UK and had a sampling date of 21 December 2021. The ECDC and EFSA continue to monitor the situation and encourage member states to be alert for new cases, investigating human infections with strains that have multi-drug resistance profiles. Further sequencing of such isolates is recommended, and ECDC offers sequencing support for countries with limited or no genome-sequencing capacity.

In December 2021, Salmonella Typhimurium was detected in a buttermilk tank at the Belgian establishment during the manufacturer’s own checks. The company implemented some hygiene measures and increased sampling and testing of the products and the processing environment. After negative Salmonella testing, it then distributed the chocolate products across Europe and globally. At the end of March 2022, upon availability of sequencing data, scientists linked human cases to Belgium through advanced molecular typing techniques.

On 8 April 2022, the food safety authority in Belgium performed official controls at the factory and withdrew the company’s authorisation for production. In addition, the company recalled all batches of products produced at the Arlon factory, regardless of their lot number or expiration date. The recalls and withdrawals launched worldwide will reduce the risk of further infections. However, because molecular typing is not routinely performed in all countries, cases may go undetected.

Experts from ECDC and EFSA have concluded that further investigations are needed at the production site in Arlon, to identify the root cause, timing, and possible factors behind the contamination, including the evaluation of the possibility of the wider use of contaminated raw material in other processing plants.

Source: ECDC, 12 April 2022 and EFSA, 12 April 2022

On 9 April 2022, because of the continued investigation into an outbreak of Salmonella cases linked to Kinder Products, Food Standards Scotland (FSS) announced Ferrero had extended its recall to include all Kinder products manufactured at their Arlon site in Belgium between June 2021 and the present date.

The new update means all of the products in the recall notice, regardless of best-before date, should not be eaten. The previous recall only covered products with best before dates up to 7 October 2022. The packaging of recalled products may not refer to the Belgium factory where they were produced and may include a different contact address, so it is important that consumers check their products against the additional information in the recall notice.

Source: FSS, 9 April 2022

The Scottish Government has launched a new fund to help advance emerging carbon dioxide (CO2) utilisation technology. The fund aims to support businesses and organisations develop and commercialise the technology, which involves harnessing and converting CO2, the biggest contributor to climate change emissions, and using it to produce valuable products such as synthetic fuels and proteins for use in aquaculture. 

The CO2 Utilisation Challenge Fund will be administered by Scottish Enterprise and match-funded by industry, meaning over £10 million could be invested in the initiative over its two-year lifetime. 

Source: Scottish Government, 11 April 2022

Around 75% of Scotland’s carbon footprint is caused by the production, consumption or waste of goods and services. An average of 18.4 tonnes of resources per person per year are used, more than the six-to-eight tonnes per person considered to be sustainable.

The Scottish Government has launched a call for evidence to help inform policy development on reducing consumption of single-use food containers, and other single-use items, aiming to support a move to a more circular economy.

The call for evidence is open until 30 June 2022.

Source: Scottish Government, 7 April 2022