zika virus

At least 40 cases of adenovirus have been confirmed at the University of Maryland, College Park. One person was still hospitalized as of Tuesday.

If lawmakers in Washington truly seek to strengthen America against all threats foreign or domestic, they must reauthorize the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act. Isolationism is not an option with infectious diseases, and PAHPRA keeps the United States engaged and vigilant.

Frequent rain and flooding in May and June have helped mosquito populations multiply across Maryland — to three times their normal early summer numbers. The state has increased spraying to limit the public health threat and nuisance.

Moquitos bring Zika and West Nile, ticks Lyme disease and meat allergies. But simple actions defend against them all.

Maryland officials say they've begun their efforts to combat mosquitoes for the summer.

Dr. John Cmar, an infectious disease specialist at Sinai Hospital, provides perspective on Zika and other diseases spread by bugs, mosquitoes and ticks.

While we have detailed quarterly reports on opioid deaths from Maryland's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, these are simply not timely enough to prevent more deaths from occurring. It is clear that we need real-time information on this crisis if we want to stop it. This is not a new idea, but rather the core of "active surveillance, " an effective, time-tested method of controlling epidemics. It played a major role in our country's quick response to the arrival of the Zika virus. But we

There have been five travel-related cases of the virus so far this year in Maryland, and other states continue to report cases, including Florida where someone acquired the virus directly from a mosquito bite

Many pregnant women may not have heard of cytomegalovirus, or CMV, a common virus that can lead to hearing loss and mental retardation or even death of their babies, but thanks to the widespread attention given to the similarly devastating virus Zika word may be spreading

Scientists from the University of Maryland School of Medicine have identified seven proteins within the deadly Zika virus that could be to blame for the birth defects linked to the pathogen.

Maryland gets emergency preparedness money diverted for Zika

Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers working with scientists in Colombia have discovered what they believe is the strongest evidence yet that the Zika virus causes neurological problems in adults. Much of the medical concern about the mosquito-borne Zika has been directed at pregnant women because the virus can cause microcephaly – brain damage and a abnormally small head – in babies. The new research shows the health fallout from the disease may be more widespread than once thought.

The $1.1 billion allocated by Congress last week to target Zika will mean more money for states and localities to control and monitor for the mosquito-borne virus and for researchers to development of vaccines and diagnostic tests

The headline grabbing infections aren't the biggest hazards to people in the state

University of Maryland researcher begin injecting a vaccine made from the DNA of the Zika virus to test for safety and effectiveness

Harford County has been free – so far – this summer from major health crises based on environmental factors, but the case of two men who died in July in separate incidents, tragedies can be the result of simple, everyday encounters with creatures or the elements.

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine will begin testing a Zika vaccine in humans before the end of the year as part of an aggressive effort to curtail the virus blamed for a devastating birth defect

With more than 800 cases of the Zika virus diagnosed in the U.S. -- 26 of them in Maryland -- Harford County and state health officials want residents to have as much information possible about the mosquito-borne disease and how to prevent it.

Zika vaccine developed by Emergent headed for clinical trials.

Mays Chapel Elementary is facing mosquito (and Zika) threat because of neglected stormwater pond

Ticks and Lyme disease

As officials monitor mosquito levels throughout the state, the Maryland Department of Agriculture announced sprayings to begin Sunday, June 5 in Laurel after high mosquito counts were found around Calendon Court off Van Dusen Road.

Puerto Rico tourism threatened by CDC's Zika fear-mongering

Summer weather may bring warmth, but mosquito sprayings have become routine in Laurel as city officials ask residents to prevent mosquito breeding grounds and take precautions against the mosquito-borne Zika virus reported throughout the country.

As the mosquito-borne Zika virus catches the attention of the country, state and local officials are issuing precautions against the virus alongside the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while also sharing presentative measures to eliminate mosquito breeding grounds in communities.

Harford County Health Officer Susan Kelly updated the County Council on the Zika virus Tuesday and discussed the heroin crisis as a public health issue.

Baltimore County officials are taking steps to raise awareness about the Zika virus, a disease that has caused birth defects in infants in South America since an outbreak began on that continent last year.

A top state health official said Friday that 12 cases of Zika virus have been identified in Maryland.

Baltimore City launches Zika preparedness plan

Monday marks the beginning of Zika Awareness Week as proclaimed by Gov. Larry Hogan, and state and local health officials are reaching out to inform the public about the risks of Zika , as well as simple actions to mitigate those risks.

The rapid spread of the Zika virus — and its now clear association with microcephaly in babies exposed prenatally — has put extraordinary pressure on the research community to develop a vaccine as rapidly as possible. But accelerating the development of this vaccine is not only scientifically and logistically complicated, it is ethically complicated.

About 350 cases of Zika have been confirmed in the United States, including eight in Maryland. With those numbers expected to continue to rise, it's important that people understand what Zika is, how it can be transmitted and what they can do to protect themselves, because there currently is no vaccine to prevent the disease or drug to treat it.

State health workers will get a crash course on the mosquito-born Zika virus Wednesday as more cases are expected to hit the United States as the weather gets

With an official link established this week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention between Zika and birth defects, and warmer weather expected to propel the mosquito-borne virus north, the push is intensifying for a drug to prevent or treat infections

Microcephaly has been in the news lately related to the Zika virus outbreak spreading in many South American countries, especially Brazil. It seems that there is a correlation between prenatal exposure to the Zika virus in women who then give birth to children with microcephaly.

Howard County health officials are preparing for potential dangers posed by Zika, a mosquito-borne virus that prompted the World Health Organization to declare an international public health emergency last month.

Johns Hopkins neuroscientists and their partners in Florida and Atlanta have shown the Zika virus destroying or damaging cells that are the building blocks of brain development in the lab, another step toward confirming the Zika's connection to the birth defect microcephaly.

Three cases are now confirmed in Maryland; it's unknown if any were pregnant

Even though Zika virus is unlikely to be spread by mosquitoes in Maryland, its arrival here this month is a wake-up call to restore our strength in public health — something we were much better at in the last century.

The appearance of Zika in Maryland represents a public health threat that could affect the entire Mid-Atlantic region

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced Wednesday she has formed a working group to coordinate a plan to respond to Zika virus cases once they hit Baltimore.

Maryland health officials announced Thursday the state's first confirmed case of Zika, a mosquito-borne virus alarming public health officials with its rapid spread throughout Latin American and the Caribbean and suspected links to birth defects.

Addressing Zika virus requires reducing greenhouse gases that have enabled mosquitoes to spread

While the headlines and world health officials are focused on the Zika virus, and the state health department warns it could soon reach Maryland, it's a good time to remind people that it's far more likely you'll contract another type of virus in the next few weeks; one that kills more than 30,000 people in the U.S. each year and can be prevented with a single shot. Carroll health officials are warning that flu season is just getting started, and often extends into March and April. So if

As carriers of the Zika virus get closer to Maryland, the state health department said Friday it is keeping in close contact with federal health officials about spread of the disease and will soon begin testing people who have traveled to regions where it is prevalent.

A dangerous new pathogen

The rare tropical disease spreading rapidly in Latin American and the Caribbean that authorities suspect is linked to a devastating birth defect is raising alarms in other countries including the United States.