Health Protection Scotland - E Weekly ReportCopyright (C) Health Protection ScotlandHealth Protection Scotlandhttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=51333The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has recently published Legionnaires' disease: A brief guide for dutyholders. This leaflet is aimed at employers and people in control of premises, e.g. landlords,02 May 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=51255Health Protection Scotland (HPS) has noted an increase in reports of pertussis (or whooping cough) in 2012. Up to 19 April, HPS had received 150 reports of laboratory confirmed cases, compared to 22 i25 Apr 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50969Further to Current note 46/1201 (at http://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50896), in the UK, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has released a Tuberculosis Update Newsletter (available at28 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50970Further coinciding with World TB Day, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has issued guidance on the Management of contacts of MDR TB and XDR TB patients (at <A href="http://28 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50896To mark World TB Day, 24 March 2012, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and WHO/Europe have launched their joint report, Tuberculosis surveillance and monitoring in Europe 221 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50897The protocol for a cohort study into the effectiveness of seasonal influenza vaccination in the Scottish population has been published in BMJ Open (at http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/2/2/e001019.full).21 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50821On 12 March 2012, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published its annual risk assessment on seasonal influenza 2011/2012 in Europe. ECDC points out that on this occasion th14 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50822An article in the current edition of Eurosurveillance1 reports on an examination of the current epidemiology of M. pneumoniae in Scotland which was considered timely given the recent increasing incide14 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50823The TRAVAX team has recently completed systematic reviews of its recommendations on diphtheria and tetanus (October 2011 ? February 2012) which have resulted in changes to the ways in which both are i14 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50828The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) asked the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) to gather supporting evidence as to whether or not water miscible metalworking fluids (MWFs) pose a Legionella infect14 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50758On the 29 February 2012 ECDC published its risk assessment on research taking place on laboratory-created A(H5N1) viruses transmissible between ferrets. The risk assessment summarises and explains the07 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50759An estimated 910 000 lives were saved globally over six years by improving collaboration between TB and HIV services that protect people living with HIV from TB, according to global health impact figu07 Mar 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50700The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended changing two of the three strains in the 2012-13 season's influenza vaccine for the northern hemisphere, ending a period of stability in the vaccine29 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50702On 24 February, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published the operating procedures of the European Legionnaires' Disease Surveillance Network (ELDSNet). ELDSNet is the su29 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50492On 6 February, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) issued a rapid risk assessment (at http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications/Publications/Forms/ECDC_DispForm.aspx?ID08 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50433An article in the current issue of the Journal of Medical Microbiology (accessible at http://jmm.sgmjournals.org/content/61/2/218.abstract) reviews the four cases of legionellosis caused by Legionella01 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50273A recent letter to Clinical Infectious Diseases (accessible at http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2011/11/24/cid.cir889.full.pdf+html) comments on four cases of so-called 18 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=50222The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has noted that reported cases of pertussis (whooping cough) in England and Wales have more than doubled from 421 cases in 2010 to 1040 in 2011. [Source: HPA Press Re11 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=49999The latest HPA annual report on tuberculosis surveillance shows a 4.9% decrease in the number of tuberculosis cases in the UK. In 2010, 8483 new cases were reported giving an overall rate of 13.6 per 14 Dec 2011 12:00:00 GMThttp://www.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/redirect.aspx?id=49757An increase in the number of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections being reported through ECOSS was seen during last winter and at the beginning of this year. In recent weeks, HPS has seen a rise in the nu16 Nov 2011 12:00:00 GMT