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MMWR articles are embargoed until 4 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday. |
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| MMWR Synopsis | |
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Click here for MMWR home page. Synopsis July 2, 1999
Injuries Among Railroad Trespassers Georgia, 1990-1996 |
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| PRESS CONTACT: Andrew Pelletier, M.D., M.P.H. CDC, Epidemiology Program Office (404) 639-4245 |
The leading cause of railroad-related death in the United States is "trespassing," which accounted for 536 deaths in 1998. Trespassers are usually pedestrians who are walking along or across railroad tracks. In a study on trespassing in Georgia, 288 persons were injured while trespassing on railroad tracks from 1990-1996. Forty-six percent of the injuries were fatal. Most trespassers were male and between 20 to 49 years of age. Incidents were more common on weekends and at night. Most trespassers were injured in the same city in which they lived. Many persons were intoxicated at the time of injury. In many incidents, trespassers apparently did not hear the train horn or misjudged the speed or location of the train. The latter problem was more common when a train is approaching on one of multiple parallel sets of tracks. |
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Measles Control South-East Asia Region, 1990-1997 Continued and sustained efforts are needed to control and prevent measles in the South-East Asia Region (SEAR) |
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| PRESS CONTACT: Victor Caceres, M.D., M.P.H. CDC, National Immunization Program (404) 639-8252 |
Reduction of measles morbidity and mortality by 90% and 95%, respectively, compared with the pre-vaccine era, was adopted as the global goal for 1995 by the World Health assembly in 1989. This goal has not been achieved in SEAR, despite reported measles vaccination coverage of >80% since 1990. In SEAR, measles is still a major cause of sickness and death among children <5 years of age, and approximately 9 million children are not protected through vaccination against measles at their first birthday. In addition, polio is still endemic in at least 4 of 10 SEAR countries. SEAR is in the early stages of coordinated efforts to control measles; careful phasing in of measles control with polio eradication activities is needed on both the regional and national levels. |
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Outbreak of Influenza A Infection Among Travelers Alaska and the Yukon Territory, May-June
1999 Some travelers to Alaska and the Yukon Territory this summer should take precautions to prevent illness from influenza A (flu). |
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| PRESS CONTACT: Division of Media Relations CDC, Office of Communication (404) 639-3286 |
On June 18, 1999, CDC and Health Canada began receiving reports of clusters of febrile (fever) respiratory illnesses and pneumonia among travelers and tourist industry workers in Alaska and the Yukon Territory. From May 22 through June 29, there have been approximately 428 cases of acute respiratory infection among travelers. Many of the case-patients were diagnosed on cruise ships only after land tours passengers boarded the ships. Persons most likely to develop serious complications from flu include those > 65 years of age, or those who have certain chronic medical conditions (e.g., respiratory or heart diseases, diabetes). From June through September in North America, flu vaccine supplies are limited. During this period, antiviral medications (amantadine or rimantadine) play an important role in the prevention and treatment of influenza A. Travelers at-risk should consult their healthcare providers before traveling to Alaska and the Yukon Territory this summer. |
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